Answer to Question 1
Companies may have the following objectives as their goals for public relations efforts:
1 . Promoting goodwill. This is an image-building function of public relations. Industry events or community activities that reflect favorably on a firm are highlighted.
2 . Promoting a product or service. Press releases or events that increase public awareness of a firm's brands can be pursued through public relations.
3 . Preparing internal communications. Disseminating information and correcting misinformation within a firm can reduce the impact of rumors and increase employee morale.
4 . Counteracting negative publicity. The attempt here is not to cover up negative events, but rather to prevent the negative publicity from damaging the image of a firm and its brands.
5 . Lobbying. The public relations function can assist a firm in dealing with government officials and pending legislation.
6 . Giving advice and counsel. The public relations effort can assist management in determining what (if any) position to take on public issues, prepare employees for public appearances, and help management anticipate public reactions.
Answer to Question 2
Advertising objectives guide campaign development, and therefore advertisers should define objectives carefully. Advertising objectives should be stated clearly, precisely, and in measurable terms. Precision and measurability allow advertisers to evaluate advertising success at the end of the campaign in terms of whether objectives have been met. To provide precision and measurability, advertising objectives should contain benchmarks and indicate how far the advertiser wishes to move from these standards. If the goal is to increase sales, the advertiser should state the current sales level (the benchmark) and the amount of sales increase sought through advertising. An advertising objective should also specify a time frame so that advertisers know exactly how long they have to accomplish the objective.