ROLE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS IN NON COMMERCIAL ORGANIZATION
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ROLE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS IN NON COMMERCIAL ORGANIZATION
For many non-commercial organisations, public relations, whether used to recruit volunteers, publicise an event, or commemorate organisational milestones, is a daunting, if not foreign, chore. In most cases, personnel at non-profit organisations understand their programmes, the areas they serve, and the organization’s target social issues, but they do not know how to conduct public relations.
In recent years, there has been a drive in the non-commercial sector to establish public relations as a core competency, as indicated by an increase in seminars and conference presentations on the issue.
Recent workshop offerings include: “The Nuts and Bolts of Public Relations,” presented at the 2005 Washington Library Association (WLA) Conference in Spokane, Washington; “Media Management:
The Value of Relationships,” presented at the 2006 Montana Non-commercial Association Annual Conference in Helena, Montana; and “Branding, Communications, and Public Relations” to be presented at a July 2007 day-long workshop presented by Technical Assistance for Community Services (T Though these three presentations are only a sample of the numerous workshops and presentations available to non-profit organisations in the Pacific Northwest
it should be noted that all three focus on media relations—the creation and distribution of pitch letters, media advisories, press releases, and public service announcements.
The truth is that public relations encompasses far more than just news agencies. However, with less emphasis on government support and a greater reliance on independent sources of funding (Frumpkin, 2006), funders want to know that their money is being used wisely, and media clippings are one method to demonstrate this.
As a result, the majority of non-commercial organisations’ public relations programmes focus on media relations. Many non-commercial organisations currently provide public services (1).
relations, albeit not in the most strategic or effective manner possible. Sending out a monthly or quarterly newsletter to clients, workers, and supporters, as well as drafting and distributing press releases and public service announcements in conjunction with a fundraising or event, are all examples of public relations tasks.
Some non-profit organisations have even created and maintained media contacts, as well as remarkable databases of supporters, funders, clients, and community partners.
However, these resources may not be used to their maximum capacity, and current public relations initiatives could be more efficient, consistent, and effective.
The goal of this paper is to develop effective public relations programmes in organisations that are either starting a public relations programme for the first time or want to improve the capacity and effectiveness of an existing public relations programme.
The essential operations of the organisation, as outlined in the mission statement, take precedence over public relations, and the organization’s performance is judged in quantifiable measures connected to service output rather than media attention. Simply put, many non-commercial organisations lack the funds to hire a full-time public relations professional.
As a result, many non-commercial organisations engage interns to do public relations tasks, as seen by internship posts on any university’s career services website, a plethora of online intern search websites, and even job search engines that include an internship search.
At first look, this appears to be a plausible answer to the resource challenge that many non-commercial organisations face. However, the majority of interns work for non-profit organisations throughout the summer or for a semester during the year.
Interns rarely encounter the person who previously held their post, and as a result, the role’s continuity suffers. For example, summer interns at non-profit organisations may create a database of media contacts and disseminate press releases accordingly.
Interns who start in the autumn may be unaware of the database or who was contacted, resulting in a lack of ties with gatekeepers.
1.2 Objective of the Study
The objectives of this study are divided into two sections: theoretical foundation and practical application.
If public relations are to be performed in the non-commercial setting of Guidance Community Development Foundation, the case study of this project, it must take into account the unique climate of non-commercial organisations, not be overly time consuming, and encourage continuity while acknowledging that many people in the organisation may be
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Performing public relations functions. Furthermore, given the difficulties of creating a public relations programme in a non-commercial setting, non-commercials must be convinced that it is worthwhile of their time and effort.
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1.3 Research Questions.
The following research questions were developed for the study:
To what extent does a non-commercial organisation use public relations as a means of communication.
What are the public relations channels used by Guidance Community Organisation?
What is the cumulative impact of public relations campaigns on the performance of non-commercial organisations?
Is there a substantial difference in public relations practice between non-commercial organisations and commercial organisations?
How can non-profit organisations deal with the various aspects of their official and informal interactions with the public.
Significance of the Study
In the age of integrated marketing, the distinctions between advertising, communications, and public relations have practically vanished. What role does public relations play in today’s business mix?
Reputation can make up a significant amount of a company’s market capitalization and be its most valuable long-term asset. It has a wide-ranging impact on an organisation, including its stock price and ability to recruit and keep consumers and staff.
1.5 Scope of the Study
To allow for a thorough and broader study of this research activity, the scope of this study is organised as follows:
The theoretical basis part will look at key theoretical foundations and best practices. In the practical application portion, theoretical underpinnings and best practices will be applied to create a guide for building public relations programmes in non-commercial settings.
The first part of this paper focuses on public relations in general; the second part applies the first part’s knowledge to non-commercial situations, specifically for a non-academic audience. Guidance The Community Development Foundation serves as a case study.
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1.6 Limitations of the Study
According to an aphorism, “the road to success is not that smooth”. The realisation of the desire to write about this particular issue was not without challenges or disagreements.
The problems are as follows:
Time Factors: Insufficient time was provided to complete this research effort, resulting in the absence of some required items or areas introduced. The proportion of sample areas chosen is also influenced.
Lack of Corporation: Difficulties that almost resulted in frustration were also faced in the process of gathering essential information as a result of a lack of Corporation and the hostile attitude of some respondents, who believed that the information gathered would be utilised against the organisation.
Financial Constraint: Another issue encountered while doing this research was insufficient funds to print enough surveys and for transportation.
1.7 Definition of Terms
Public relations (PR) refers to a corporation’s, store’s, government’s, or individual’s actions in building goodwill with the public, the community, employees, customers, and so on. The first World Assembly of Public Relations Associations, held in Mexico City in August 1978, defined public relations as “the art and social science of analysing trends, predicting their consequences, counselling organisational leaders, and implementing planned programmes of action, which will serve both the organisation and the public interest.”
Non-commercial: Non-commercial (sometimes spelt noncommercial) refers to an activity or entity that does not include business in some way, at least in comparison to similar activities with a commercial goal or emphasis.
Public: In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of people, and the public (sometimes known as the general public) is the sum of such groups.
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Nonprofit organisation: Nonprofit organisation (abbreviated as NPO) is not a legal or technical term, but rather an organisation that uses surplus income to achieve its aims rather than distributing them as profit or dividends.
Public relations officers advise management on communication initiatives, plan and implement them, and evaluate their performance.
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