Expanding Beyond Key Publics Essay

Corporate PR and marketing communications target a few, selected key publics. For routine PR, this is fine. However, should any problem arise—especially in crisis situations, it would be good to expand communications beyond the key publics. After all, when crises arise, a wider range of publics need to be addressed. It is best that an organization maintain a few communication strategies to maintain communication with the different publics regardless if these are key publics. It is important for companies to increase their publics. They should define more audiences beyond their usual ones. They should develop publics or audiences that could help them reach their existing and other audiences. To do this, they must develop a primary and secondary message. The primary message is a sum of everything they want to say to their audiences. The secondary message is every other information they want to inform their different audiences. While a company may have primary and secondary messages, it should maintain one theme for all it wants to say to the public. Possibly, it should have one slogan used for all. This way, while having primary and secondary messages, they remain consistent and sound like one message.
This lesson is very important to a foreigner like me. My publics or audience are beyond my family and close friends. I should reach out to other people without sacrificing who I am or what my ethnic background is. I will have to adjust to the other publics but within limits of who I am and what my culture allows. I will have to impart a message that I am smart like everyone else and that I can understand everything that everyone else is doing. However, I have my limitations and beliefs that I cannot compromise. That is what democracy is all about. I can be part of society but at the same time balance who I am.