What Is The Guideline And Usage Of The Public Relations Budget? Introducing 5 Ways To Get A Budget And How To Decide

Unlike marketing and advertising staff, many spokespersons may have had the experience of being aware that "public relations = no money" because they rarely publish in the media. 

Of course, there are public relations activities that can be done at no cost, but despite the fact that the range of public relations activities are expanding day by day, many spokespersons may be worried that their desired budget will not be met. If you don't spend your budget, your range of activities will be limited.

In this article, it will introduce the guideline and usage of the public relations budget, the method for obtaining the budget, and the method for deciding the budget.

What is the guideline for the public relations budget and its main uses?

First of all, I would like to confirm how to decide the budget. What should be the guideline for the public relations budget?

The guideline for the public relations budget depends on the application. The budget that can be considered for public relations activities can be broadly divided into the following five uses.

a. Planning costs

The first budget for public relations activities is " planning costs ." It mainly refers to the cost of planning press conferences and PR events. Includes venue costs for planning and implementation costs, stage costs for assigning guests, and production costs. It is a good idea to consider a budget guideline according to the scale of the project.

In addition, if you outsource the operation to an external partner such as a PR company or an advertising agency instead of operating it by yourself, you will incur outsourcing costs, so this must also be included in the budget.

b. Production costs

The second budget for public relations is " production costs ." It refers to the production cost for creating the content necessary for publicizing companies, products and services, such as public relations magazines, PR videos, and press kits.

For the production of printed matter and things, the cost will change depending on the number of pieces required, so it is important to know at the stage of budgeting.

c. Media costs

The third budget for public relations is " media costs ." Depending on the company, public relations may be in charge of tie-up advertising, and media advertising costs will be incurred. It is necessary to make a media plan and decide the budget according to the purpose, how much should be invested in which media.

d. Tool usage fee

The fourth budget for public relations activities is " tool usage costs ." It refers to the cost of using external tools such as press release distribution platforms and clipping services.

Remember to include this cost in your budget, as services that cannot be covered by internal resources will need to be outsourced.

e. Actual expenses such as purchasing goods and business trips

The fifth budget for public relations is " actual costs ." There are small actual costs involved in public relations activities, such as purchasing newspapers and magazines for media studies and traveling expenses for business trips to rural areas. It's a good idea to decide on a budget based on how much you will incur each month.

How to decide the public relations budget? Factors to consider when budgeting

Many spokespersons may be worried that even if they consider the public relations budget from the five items, they will not be able to get the budget they want.

So how is the public relations budget decided? Next, it will introduce the three factors to consider when deciding on a public relations budget, so let's understand them as a spokesperson.

Factor 1. Public relations budget that can be allocated to sales

Public relations PR activities are not directly linked to sales, but are indirect activities. Therefore, it is often not a necessary expense. It is necessary to make a management decision on how much the company can devote to public relations with respect to the scale of sales.

In addition, it is dangerous to decide that sales are 0% because the remaining profits change depending on the size of the company, labor costs, and product costs. We recommend that you work with your finance department to set a budget.

Factor 2. Purpose of public relations activities

In some cases, the budget is determined by the ROI (cost-effectiveness).

To get a budget, it is necessary to clarify the purpose of public relations activities, where public relations can contribute to management issues. In addition, it is safe to decide the policy while working with the management.

Factor 3. Annual public relations plan

When deciding on a budget, many companies decide on a long-term basis such as a year or half a year. Therefore, it is necessary to plan what kind of public relations activities will be carried out in a year and calculate the necessary budget. Let's calculate back what activities should be carried out for the purpose of "public relations activities".

I want to increase the public relations budget! 5 things to do to get a budget

In order to get a public relations budget, you need to understand that you are considering a budget for the above items and then persuade the company. Lastly, it will introduce the five elements that can be useful in persuading.

ToDo 1. Clarification of the results of public relations activities

The first thing we want to do to get a budget is to " clarify the results " of our public relations activities . It's a good idea to use the results of last year's public relations activities as a persuasive material for budget acquisition.

Looking back is also important in formulating a public relations plan, such as continuing activities that ROI can expect while continuing to brush up, and shrinking (reducing) activities that did not produce results.

ToDo 2. Penetration of public relations understanding within the company

At first glance, it may seem that it has nothing to do with budget acquisition, but "penetration of understanding of internal public relations activities" is also important for budget acquisition. If the company does not understand it or if it is recognized that public relations is not important, it will lead to a situation where the budget cannot be allocated.

ToDo 3. Cooperation with each business division

Collaboration with other divisions is also important when getting a budget . Let's cooperate with each business division and hear if there is a request for public relations.

If each business unit feels that it needs public relations activities, make a public relations plan that meets the needs of each business unit and convince the company of the necessary budget for that.

ToDo 4. Tool selection for efficiency

It's easy to focus on getting the budget needed for public relations measures, but improving the efficiency of public relations activities is one of the important tasks.

If you have a tool that can be more efficient than devoting internal resources, you should actively use it. Let's visualize how efficient it can be with numbers and get the budget necessary for introducing the tool.

ToDo 5. Proposals from external partners such as PR companies

It 's also a good idea to incorporate an external perspective in order to get a budget .

In order to make public relations activities with news value, it is important to incorporate information on social conditions and trends, and to confirm how the company is viewed by society. However, it is possible that the external perspective may be lost due to internal coordination.

Occasionally, it is also an effective means to have an external partner with knowledge, such as a PR company, propose issues and measures to be implemented in the current public relations activities of the company. If it is a policy proposal to be implemented, it will be easier to obtain a budget accordingly.

Conclusion

In this article, we have introduced the guideline and usage of the public relations budget, the method for obtaining the budget, and the method for determining the budget.

"Publicity acquisition", which is one of the public relations activities, is regarded as the main part of the public relations activities, and it seems that it is often recognized as an activity that does not cost as much as there is no advertising cost. However, for this "publicity acquisition", it may be obtained by holding a press conference or PR event, and it may be necessary to create content.

In addition, since public relations activities are not directly linked to sales, it may be difficult to see the effects and make budget decisions. Spokespersons should start by getting the company to understand the purpose of public relations activities, which part of the management issues the public relations activities will contribute to.

In order to carry out effective public relations activities, show the necessary budget on a grounded basis and try to persuade them.