Public Relations And Why Established Companies Advertise

There are some brands that just stand out. For soda, Coca-cola tends to be a big name. For Cereal, Kellogs is the major player, and for a laptop, Apple or Dell is the “go-to” company. A big question that can come up, then, is why do established brands bother advertising? If you go to the store, chances are you already have the brand you’re planning to buy in mind; yet some already reputable companies spend millions of dollars for a thirty-second commercial (super-bowl!)- so how is that value determined? Well, the most significant reason companies like coca-cola still advertise is to uphold the public’s feeling of attachment to the product in order to continue the rate of revenue. This is known as sustaining or improving public relations, also known as PR. Public Relations are the reputation and perceptions of a company- how consumers view the product. For example, a commercial which evokes a sentimental feeling, laughter, or the “cool” factor will tend to be glorified in the eyes of a consumer. Companies can even create consumer pride if the PR is strong enough. For example, my dad is a die-hard apple fan. He pays to have Apple’s logo on hats, and he is willing to argue (rightfully) that apple macs are better than dell PC’s when discussing technology with a friend. Generating and maintaining this sense of pride (eventually translated into consumer-generated advertisement) is a difficult task, and one that takes quite a bit of work. So, next time you catch yourself arguing about how much better the Yankees are than the Red Sox, or Visa versa, consider the power of the PR that brand has built.