1. What is the difference between public relations and advertising?
2. Why are we seeing so many ads in so many new and different places? Do you often wonder
why products or services you have recently searched for online show up as advertisements in
your news feed? How is that happening?
3. How do you see the future of shopping changing as a result of the Internet? Consider
everything from products from around the world to getting your groceries or your pet supplies.
Both public relations and advertising play a crucial role in market advertising, but they
have some significant differences. Public relations focuses on the idea of building trust and
maintaining a good reputation when it comes to a company and its audience. Public relations
could be seen as servant leadership as Mark 10:45 states, “For even the Son of Man did not
come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” ( , Mark 10:45 (NIV)
n.d.). When following the principle of being a servant leader, public relations professionals
should always intend to promote the good of others, whether it is the company or even
employees. On the other hand, advertising aims to increase revenue and profit from sales
prompted by specific ads (Pennock, 2019).
There are so many ads nowadays in new and different places due to data collecting and
tracking. There are so many online platforms that collect data based on our everyday browsing
behavior, including the sites we browse, what we look up, and even the products we view.
Sometimes, I wonder or get concerned anytime a product I recently talked about with friends
shows up in my advertisements. As mentioned before, I believe that this is due to our phones
tracking our browsing behaviors and app activity, Based on these features different networks
like google can gather data based on these searches and find ads that might relate to your
specific interests.
The internet is changing the future of shopping by making it more accessible to the
consumer and allowing other platforms to become powerful shopping channels. Shopping has
become more convenient for busy lifestyles through the internet because people can shop from
any location on their laptop or smartphone. In addition to making shopping more convenient,
the internet has allowed platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok to become shopping
channels. Creating the ability to shop within these different platforms has allowed the user to
buy products without having to close the app or exit the platform.
References
Mark 10:45 (NIV). (n.d.). Bible Gateway.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010%3A45&version=NIV
Pennock, C. (2019, November 13). Advertising and public relations: Do you know the difference?
UConn Center for Career Readiness and Life Skills.
https://career.uconn.edu/blog/2019/11/18/advertising-and-public-relations-do-you
know-the
difference/#:~:text=Advertising%20is%20media%20you%20pay,basic%20exposure%20
nd%20company%20overhead
