A message can have a thousand different meanings, but when using it in a professional settings, it is important to connect it to a brand. Branding in an essential aspect to keep in mind when creating PR campaigns, press releases, newsletters, etc. In order to understand the role of branding in pubic relations, we can split it up into four categories.
- Direction
- Identity
- Protection
- Loyalty
Direction of a brand is important for growth and building character to a company/organization. The path of a business’s values/morals are established in this concept. PR professionals ask themselves, “Where do we want to go with this client? , “In what ways do we want to show growth?” When focusing on a brand’s reputation, it is important to be able to know the direction of ideas/strategy in order to keep the audience focused on the main message.
Identity is the aroma of an entire brand. It’s the feeling and connections you think of when someone says a brands name. When a company has a unique identity, it allows for customers to “cling” to a brand. This is essential for PR professionals, because maintaining a positive reputation is their job. Having an audience backing is what allows for messages to be listened to. For example, Apple is brand known for their improvements’ to people’s lives. Their technology has improved society easiness to communicate and grow.
The role of protection in branding keeps a message clear and concise. If there aren’t many restrictions on a brand, then it allows for more clutter in their overall message. Branding creates a set of values in a company that entails certain guidelines within the organization. These set of protections give PR professionals a bit of a relief when having to create different strategies.
Brand loyalty is how professionals keep their customers/clients. When a person trusts a company, they tend to do more business with them. This is beneficial to public relations because establishing loyalty is important for keeping clients pleased with your business. For example, Amazon was named 2020’s brand loyalty leader in the U.S. Because of their ability to reach out to their customers, they were successful in establishing loyalty within their brand.
Branding is a concept that is important for PR professionals to be able to grasp. In order to protect the reputation of a company, you must be able to understand the values and messages that run along with a company. When speaking to other clients/professionals, it is important to represent what that brand entails. Therefore, the role of direction, identity, protection and loyalty are crucial to maintain a successful brand.
Ali Runge 