Businesses and PR

There may be those who say they do not care what others think of them. Personally, though, I do not believe one word of that. On some level we all are care how we are perceived by others. I sure do. If I hear someone I only remotely know does not think all that well of me, I confess to being bothered by it. Do I expect everyone to think I am the "bee's knees?" Of course not. But being looked upon in a negative fashion remains a hard pill to swallow. While that reality may not be all that flattering to me, I am confident I am not alone in that regard. We all want to be viewed favorably simply because one of our fundamental needs as a human is being accepted by others.


In this regard, businesses are not all that different than people. They, too, care about how well they are perceived. For them, favorable public opinion often spells the difference between turning a profit and not. If we, as individuals, do not believe a particular business is genuine in its concern for us, then we are very likely to turn to a competitor for what we need. While we want to spend our money wisely and acquire reliable and appealing products, we also want to be treated with respect, in an honest and open manner, and feel some level of appreciation. A major key to any business' ability to survive concerns how well they speak to those needs of its current and prospective customers.  
Those with an expertise in communication can help a business achieve these goals. As Anne Lawrence and James Weber in their text, Business and Society, observed: the general public does not necessarily deal with businesses through economic exchanges. Instead, their interaction depends more upon their opinions of the business and its activities. Those in public relations can help highlight the qualities of a business to which the public responds more favorably. Thus, for better or worse, it is not enough for a business to produce a viable product or service. They also need professionals to spread the word about what they do.