PR in the Global Village

My recent reading of Guth and Marsh’s (2007) chapter on cross-cultural communication, prompted me to think about the differences between local, national, and global public relations work. Despite the size of the company you are working with, the values for global public relations work should remain the same. And as the internet continues to connect us around the world, I think the demand for global PR will only continue to grow.

So many companies and brand names we see everyday are in need of global publicity–the Coca-Cola Company, Disney, car companies (Toyota, Volkswagen, etc.), General Electric, numerous clothing companies and SO much more. Coca-Cola, for example has an extensive public relations team, and some of their recent work can be seen on the press center section of their web site. In addition, there is an interesting video that explains just how global their work is. For example, the video mentions how Coca-Cola is sold in 206 countries. And, Coca-Cola has recently sent three “happiness ambassadors” to visit all 206 countries and observe the differences of what makes people happy around the world.

As a result of the need to reach people on a global level, I would imagine the demand for global PR is very high. Most of the large companies I named have their own PR heads/sections, but there are still some  businesses that need help. A New York based business, Strauss Global Public Relations, works with clients in need of global publicity that do not have the resources and extensive team that bigger companies like Coca-Cola have.  Strauss has worked with NASDAQ, National Coupon Month, and many other companies to create campaigns and promote global awareness of its client’s initiatives. Unsurprisingly, many of Strauss’ tactics involve web site development, and implementations of other internet resources. All in all, I think the public relations values for each should remain the same, but the scope in which you view each area of emphasis should become broader as the communities you cater to become broader.

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