Why public relations are vital for business reputation in the age of ‘fake news’

The speed with which news travels in the age of social media and live online updates means businesses need to recognise the importance of public relations to maintain their reputations.

The Chartered Institute of Public Relations define public relations (PR) as "the planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an organisation and its publics".

Practical examples include the press release stories shared with news brands on a business update or positive event. PR also includes media relations, whereby a company engages with journalists to build a relationship over an extended time.

Other PR activity includes crisis management whereby an organisation issues a sincere apology and a plan for improvement after a product failure or a public mistake, community engagement where events are staged to build goodwill, along with thought leadership, in which businesses share insights through the media to show they are a market leader.

CIPR Midlands Chair Alison Gallagher-Hughes advises business owners on public relations in her role as founder of Tillymint Marketing & PR, an agency which draws upon her experience in journalism, public relations and marketing going back more than 30 years.

Based on a recent West Midlands Business Festival workshop hosted at Leopard Co which Alison delivered, here are some top tips on you need to prepare a PR business strategy.

Your reputation matters more than ever

The pace with which news is shared means narratives about a business or individual can change rapidly.

Recent celebrity scandals, including the social media fallout, show how reputations which have been cultivated over decades can tumble down.

Public relations can build customer trust over an extended period of time, allowing your brand to grow in a sustainable way so that people understand about you when you go into the market.

Why you need PR in the age of ChatGPT

With artificial intelligence and digital communication tools allowing anyone to claim expertise in writing, public relations of the highest standards will still be most beneficial.

Working with an accredited PR practitioner, such as those with membership of the CIPR, means you can access strategic counsel from someone who is accountable to standards in communicating on your behalf to your communities and audiences.

These are the important guidelines they will follow:

• Act with integrity
• Be honest and transparent
• Serve the public interest
• Provide objective advice responsibly

Take public relations seriously

Many people get their ideas about PR from the fictional practitioners in film and television, such as those shown in the Bridget Jones movies and sitcoms like Absolutely Fabulous and The Thick of It.

In the age of fake news, the fabricated information presented as objective journalism to influence, businesses need to have strategies to manage their digital reputations, especially there is less of a clear dividing line between paid advertising and “earned” content shown in editorial coverage. 

PR professionals use trusted sources of information to ensure they are accurate. Trained practitioners also do not need to “spin” or misrepresent information to get a desired impression.

The wider public and business sector can often overlook the strategic value of PR, with other functions like legal, finance and HR, holding more clout at board level.  

In response the CIPR is collaborating with other chartered institutes on the Chartered Collective, an initiative for closer working between trained professionals meeting industry standards.  

The West Midlands region has been earmarked for a pilot project, with the CIPR Midlands group supporting the trial to reinforce the power of PR to affect business change.

Next steps

If you have an ambition to grow your business, including utilising marketing and public relations, speak to us today. Our Business Advisers will give you free, tailored advice and signposting so you can make the most of all the funded support available to businesses.