PR and advertising: What’s the difference?

If you work in PR, what’s the best way to answer this question?

Ragan Insider Premium Content
Ragan Insider Content

As CEO of PR agency 5WPR, I still have to explain to friends and family what I do for a living—and the differences between public relations and advertising. Yes, they are very different, and no, I really don’t work in advertising.

What do you tell people outside of the industry? Here are some of my favorite quotes related to the topic:

“PR is about creating content and managing communications—in whatever format it is.” – Lord Chadlington (Peter Gummer), Huntsworth

“PR builds credibility, Advertising builds visibility.” – Elena Verlee

“Both PR and advertising are important in the marketing of your business, depending on what stage your business is at.” – Elena Verlee

“PR is great for building a connection with your audience and promoting your key messages, consumers are more likely to believe and take note of something written in an article, rather than an advertisement that has been paid for.” – Catriona Pollard, CP Communications

To read the full story, log in.
Become a Ragan Insider member to read this article and all other archived content.
Sign up today

Already a member? Log in here.
Learn more about Ragan Insider.