International Public Relations and Culture

Public Relations refer to developing and maintaining relations with the public. This public can be anyone, for instance, target audience, priority audience, stock holders, in-house public and even general public.

We usually believe that PR campaigns, strategies and activities are one sided, i.e. the reaction of PR activities is seen on the audience. However, it is also the other way round, i.e. there is an equal impact of audience on PR's strategies. And the reason of this impact is the "Culture".

Here is one of the famous example; Pepsodent toothpaste campaign was a proper mess when it launched its campaign in South-East Asia. Their slogan was "Whiten you teeth", but the trend among the people of that region is to blacken the teeth. Hence, if PR would have concentrated on the Culture aspect of that region then probably it would be a hit!

For Multinational Companies it is important to understand the culture of their target region. PR should be looked differently in different areas. The Culture practiced in England is not same to that practiced in Japan. Hence if a company wants to launch its service or product in two different regions then they need to do an analytical study on Culture.

The famous Indian PR researcher, Mr. Krishnamurthy Sriramesh  has authored many books on International PR and Culture. In his one book named, Public Relations in Asia Anthology he is talking about how culture plays an important role in PR. One of his example is, in India, PR strategies are still too traditional such as docudramas, dances and skits, whereas in Singapore it is far more modern and technical. Hence, if a pr agency uses Internet as the medium in India, there are chances it may not get good response.

Hence it is important for any PRO to understand that 'One size does not fit all' and only then he/she may give positive results to their company or client!!