Week 5.

Week 5.
Readings: A Typical Public Relations Program in C.Tymson, P. Lazar, P & R, Lazar, (Eds.) The new Australian and New Zealand Public Relations Manual, 2006.
Chapter 7 of Public Relations: Theory and Practice. Edited by J, Johnston & C, Zawawi, 2004.

I think the key points to remember from this weeks readings were firstly, that a typical PR program, be it for a major corporation or a small one off project, consists of a similar set of steps. For example, a general PR program starts with the development of objectives, it moves onto the the implementation of the objectives and the program is then evaluated. This plan is generally repeated, following on from the knowledge that has already been gained (Tymson & Lazar, 2006). The Tymson Lazar reading stresses the importance of the evaluation step of the process. I think this is a very relevant point because lack of evaluation can lead to the repetition of poor programming.
The public relations practitioner must be proactive, using information from many sources in order to be successful. They should not be passive, waiting for something to happen before acting.
'Public relation can lay the communication groundwork to assist in effecting change'. I think this quote indicates the importance of the PR practitioner.
The practitioner must set general objectives, define their target audiences, research must be conducted, clear objectives must be establised and the proper media sources should be sought after. The budget must be prepared and evaluated before the final implementation of the program is undertaken. The essential part of the process is the proper evaluation of the program.
The Johnston and Zawawi reading stresses the need for PR practitioners to think and practise strategically in order to be relevant in organisations today.
The process involved from going from thinking of a strategy to creating and implementing that strategy is a step by step process. Each step allows the practitioner to further clarify and define the task at hand. Strategic planning is essential for a successfil plan.

The readings made me think more about public relations theory/practice in that it is an essential part of any organisations success. PR practitioners provide the link between the plan of what an organisation wants to achieve and the accurate, succinct execution of these plans. The readings gave good examples and practical application of PR programming. The more effort put into planning a program, the more success a campaign will have. The readings show that Public Relations is more than essential for the success of any organisation.