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I've managed to cover the first chapter of the textbook readings for the week. In a nutshell, my readings have helped me to better understand the concept of public relations and the history and reasons behind it. A brief history of PR was also made known to me.
One of the more interesting aspects of this chapter that caught my attention was the different views and perspectives on public relations from different parts of the globe. Three of the main schools of thought that were presented in the text were the US perspective, the UK perspective and the Asian perspective.
From what I understand, one of the main reasons for the existence of these varying interpretations of PR stems from the fact that public relations is based on existing social values and ethics. Therefore, it makes perfect sense that different countries from different parts of the world have varying perspectives with regards to PR due to the vastly different cultures and customs that exist within these countries.
One lesson that can be derived from this fact is that having an appropriate PR strategy is of utmost importance. This strategy must be conducted based on the research and understanding of the culture in which an organization operates. A strategy that is formulated based on theory and definitions alone is unlikely to succeed. It is therefore the PR practitioner's duty to understand these customs and values that govern the thoughts and actions of the organization's target market and society in general.
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The topic discussed in this week's lecture and tutorial, however, drew more attention from me than the textbook readings did.
EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING
What an interesting concept.
This form of marketing is definitely something that I have been personally exposed to and yet, I was not ever really aware of its existence until now. This marketing concept revolves around creating positive and memorable consumer experiences. The "magic" happens when consumers consciously or even subconsciously relate these positive experiences to products or services offered by companies.
My personal opinion - this works much better than hard-selling, if one claims that hard-selling even works at all. Personally, I get turned off when a product keeps getting blatantly shoved in my face. As opposed to the product-focused methods of traditional marketing, experiential marketing focuses on the customer's emotions and I feel that this is a much more personal and soft approach to marketing a product - marketing with a "human touch", if you will.
The following website offers several case studies of a few brands that have made use of this marketing approach to reach their customers.
A good coverage of the issues discussed during lecture and in chapter 1 of the readings as well. I would agree upon your observation that the various perspectives and definitions is so due to varying cultures and customs is different parts of the world. Just like how a single word or gesture can bring across different meanings, definitions can written out with different words, but mean the same thing. Do you think all these perspectives have any points that may be conflicting? Can you comment a little more about the differences based on the values held highly in the different countries mentioned?
ReplyDeleteCasually speaking, EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING ROCKS!
Why do you think experiential marketing works better than what you described 'shoved-in-the-face marketing' other than the human touch added upon it?
Well, I have to say that one of the reasons experiential marketing is more effective than old-school hard-selling is simply because consumers nowadays have become informed buyers.
ReplyDeleteGone are the days when a company can just publish an ad and everyone will believe it. Consumers, especially the younger generation will more often than not research on a product or service before investing in it.
That's why it's a better approach to let the EXPERIENCE the product/service themselves instead of shoving ads in their faces.