I am no public relations expert. I have even forgotten the lessons in my three-unit PR subject in college. Yet my eight years as entertainment writer and my 12 years as a media practitioner make me think it is about time this facet of communication - public relations - should be called PPR and not just PR, simply because that's how I think public relations should be: personalized.
Personalized public relations, to me, means that the PR man goes beyond sending press releases to various media organizations. He actually goes the extra mile of establishing a relationship with the people in the media outfits that practically serve as mouthpieces to his target audience(s). By relationship I mean taking the effort to know the people working for the media partners, taking the time to send a simple greeting every now and then, and showing genuine interest in the partners in a professional and courteous manner. It's about creating bond and rapport, connection and communication.
My five years in the police and military beat taught me the importance of establishing relationships. Since I was a neophyte when I started covering the beat in 2001, I had to start from scratch. I observed and took note of how the more senior reporters in the beat treated their sources. I came to understand that they took the effort and went beyond the extra mile - they used PR in a more personalized manner. I can still remember vividly how, upon entering a police official's office (city, provincial, regional directors respectively), we would take note of anything new and interesting - new curtains, pens, figurines, air freshener, pieces of furniture... even the smell of the perfume the person is sporting. We would point out and talk about these things casually to break the ice, especially when there were controversial issues that needed to be tackled during the main interview.
From time to time, we would ask an official how his family was doing, for example, how his kids were doing in school. On a 'lazy' day, we would talk to officials about anything under the sun, except news and issues. In the morning, when we heared a police official being interviewed over the radio or learned about successful operations the night before, we would right away send that official a text message to greet him or her good morning and/or to compliment him or her on the interview.
Those were small, simple gestures but were essential in establishing a personal yet professional relationship with our sources. In the end, this relationship paved the way for the juiciest details on news stories.
They say that aside from having impeccable journalism skills, a reporter also needs to foster PR skills to relate well with sources and to establish a relationship that is anchored on trust and honesty. I agree. I also believe that these days, one also needs to go beyond PR - he should master the trade and make it PPR. In showbiz, the industry that has welcomed me for the past several years, I have observed that the corporate communications departments of ABS-CBN and TV 5 may have yet to learn the art fully.
Oh well, I will choose to be kind to TV5's CorpCom for now, considering that the network is still establishing its presence in Cebu and the rest of the country. For now, at least, I will simply pout my lips at the publicity materials that reach us once in a blue moon accompanied by low resolution photos or at the messages that I receive only in times when they need something from us. I will tell myself that they are still learning the ropes… or are they really? I might know the real answer and I can only smile in silence because I choose to be kind, for now.
But ABS-CBN is a very different case. The station has long been established and their guys are supposed to be experienced. I don't think they practice PPR in the manner by which they send their publicity materials - no greeting or even a specific addressee. Take note, I don't raise my eyebrows or pout my lips. I simply delete the material right away. Why? Because it appears to me that the sender just clicked the "send to all" button. It's random. It's emotionless.
I don't think it's PPR when the so-called public relations manager and representatives don't even bother to greet you on your birthday even if you were made to sign a birthday book. I do remember that the birthday book was passed around during an awkward meeting at the central office.
I also don't think it's PPR when the PR people don't even bother reaching out to you on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, supposedly avenues that foster rich exchanges. Ironically, it was Twitter that saved me that one time I was looking for updates on a news item. Sticking to protocol, I had sent a message to a PR representative to ask for the update only to be told the issue did not fall under her department and that she would need to ask the people in charge. Sadly, three hours passed and no feedback came. Using my journalism skills, I looked for the answer on my own and found it on Twitter.
I wonder if it was PPR when, during a film festival highlighting Cebuano creativity, I was asked which movie I wanted to watch and was told I would be given feedback the next day - only that the feedback never arrived. I wonder if it was PPR when a publicity material was withdrawn several times - up to five times - for corrections and revisions. I also don't think it's PPR when you don't get responses to follow-up questions on materials that you think merit publication.
Don't they know how a newspaper works? Unlike in radio or TV when a story can be updated immediately, there is no taking a material back once it gets published in the newspaper and flawed information can only be corrected 24 hours later in the following issue. This can be the consequence of unverified, raw publicity material. A consequence PR people should know.
These are my own experiences and I am not alone with these concerns. My fellow members in the E-Group (Cebu Entertainment Group) have theirs, too. I don't know how the CorpCom group of ABS-CBN will respond to my sentiments, but I think they might have to learn (or unlearn) some lessons.
With what I have experienced, I just couldn't help but compare - when GMA-7 representatives send publicity materials, they send them with these words: "makikisuyo po,baka pwede nyo po itong isingit sa pages nyo?" They also stand by their words to get back to you in five minutes when they say so. It certainly did not hurt when they paid our offices a visit to introduce new members of their staff or when they exerted extra effort to meet us simply to bond when they were in Cebu. Do you have a guidebook that you can probably share with the others, Sir Butch Raquel?
To ABS-CBN Corpcom, I am thankful for the weekend getaway you have treated us to in Manila in August. I thought it was the start of something beautiful. Yet why does it seem that parang ini-etchos nyo lang kami?