A common misconception of marketing is that only large firms need or use public relations. While it is true that many items in the business section of the newspaper are generated from news releases, it is not true that these releases were all sent by sizeable companies. As you approach planning for 2006, remember that every business can benefit from a well-thought-out public relations program. Public relations is defined by the Institute of Public Relations as “the planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an organization and its publics.”

Public relations is more than working with media or promoting products. Companies use public relations to share information and address issues that might concern the public. Every company, regardless of its size, has information to share – news about new products or services, business milestones, community service projects, affiliations with organizations or employee achievements. To be sure this type of information has the maximum effect, even companies who already employ a public relations person or staff can benefit from the help of a strategic public relations firm or integrated marketing company.

Sending out press releases is just one tactic of public relations. While releases certainly play a role in promoting your news, an integrated marketing company can do much more to help your company establish a relationship with its various publics or help influence public opinion. It can make public relations tactics like event planning, crisis management, media training and internal communications part of an overall marketing plan devised to help your company reach its business goals.

Keeping in mind that the goal of public relations is for an organization to establish and maintain goodwill and understanding, these additional tactics provide valuable links between a company and its publics. Hosting an event, for instance, gives the public a chance to get a more personal look at your company. Crisis management training empowers you to deal with the public and the media should the need arise. Internal communications ensures that your company establishes and maintains communications with one of its most important audiences: its employees.

Determining how your company benefits from public relations tactics can be tricky. It’s not easy to measure goodwill and understanding. You can, however, measure what is called “earned media.” Every time an article or news item runs, the value of that space (or air time) can be calculated as if it had been purchased.

For instance, if an article measuring six column inches runs in the newspaper, the PR value of a six-inch ad can be calculated. This dollar amount is considered “earned media.” The same is true for airtime on radio or television.

To the dollar value of earned media you can add the intangible fact that news items are better read and have higher credibility than paid advertising. Thus, the value or return-on-investment of earned media can be much higher than advertising, many times resulting in a 3:1 to 5:1 ratio of return.

These days, an amazing number of specialty publications carry articles of interest to very specialized audiences. Tracking down the publications that can help you reach your desired audience can be very costly and time consuming. MillerWhite uses technology to not only locate these publications but also get your story in front of the right media representative to maximize placement, then monitor coverage and evaluate the results, saving you time and money.

This leads to an important component of public relations: following up with media outlets to provide additional information, graphics to accompany a news items, exclusive interviews with company representatives, and notice of photo opportunities. Public relations firms or integrated marketing companies have the personnel and time to make these contacts, relieving you of the burden of doing so.

As you plan for 2006, ask yourself if your company would benefit from proactively developing a public relations program for the year. An integrated marketing firm like MillerWhite can walk you through the steps.

Regardless of how it’s implemented, companies of all sizes can and should use public relations to establish and maintain goodwill with their audiences.

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