It’s time to set the record straight about PR.
For too long, the world’s notion of a publicist was Samantha Jones or something adjacent. All glamour, parties, and brisk phone calls solving a problem in 30 seconds. In 2025, it’s far more complex.
Even though PR plays an integral role in shaping how organisations are perceived by the public, many people still hold misconceptions about what it involves. They think that it is a Band-Aid solution, a service that will solve all their problems overnight, or worse, something that’s light and fluffy, but doesn’t drive real results.
In truth, PR is all about the long game. It’s about strategically cherry picking the right tactics for your brand to build trust and reputation with the public over time and, ultimately, creating business impact.
Whether you’re a business owner trying to understand the value of PR, or someone just starting out who is figuring out if it’s the industry for you, we’re going to dispel the top five PR myths that surround this elusive discipline.
Buckle up, as we lift the curtain and show you the reality behind the mystical world of PR.
1. PR and Marketing are the Same
We’ve all been there as a PR professional. At the dinner table of a family gathering having to explain to Aunty Deb what you do for a living as a publicist.
“Oh, so it’s like marketing? Or like that Mad Men show?” Not quite, Aunty Deb, not quite.
While PR, advertising and marketing all fall under the same umbrella and often work in tandem, they have different goals and methods of executing their strategies. The main different between PR and other marketing practices, is that PR agencies utilise earned (unpaid) tactics, whilst marketing and advertising are largely paid.
If you purchase an ad on a billboard or a targeted Instagram post, you are guaranteeing that promotion for your brand, which can be expensive, especially if used consistently for optimal impact. Meanwhile, if you activate an earned-first PR campaign, your agency will utilise a story-first media strategy, pitching publications to organically cover your brand. This can take more time, and there is less of a guarantee around when the coverage will land and the end-result produced, but when a brand or story is featured in an outlet with the right audience on an earned-first basis, that endorsement is more credible to an audience than a paid ad or marketing campaign, which audiences have learned to filter out in many cases.
2. PR is only for Large Companies
It’s completely natural for some businesses to feel intimidated and doubtful of what PR Agencies can bring to the table, especially if they don’t understand how it works.
The digital world has given everybody the chance to have multiple online platforms that can help them build brand awareness in a grassroots fashion. However, just because you’re starting out, it doesn’t mean you can’t find a PR agency that’s right for you.
In fact, a boutique agency may just be what you’re looking for. A boutique agency will be more likely to dedicate significant time to building a strategy that works, nothing that’s cookie cutter, and provide facetime and hands-on work from senior team members.
3. PR has No Impact
A well-executed PR strategy can strongly improve a company’s credibility, public perception, whilst also achieving business goals. The skills that PR agencies bring such as- storytelling, managing reputations and working with the media – are more important than ever.
Companies that don’t invest in public relations are likely to miss out on valuable opportunities to build stronger and more meaningful relationships with stakeholders. Ultimately, they are prevented from enhancing their reputation and achieving their business goals.
In the past, PR was all about securing a prime TV segment or a spread in a magazine, which is still important. But in this digital world, PR has shifted to focusing on how to grow a brand presence online. Through well-crafted online PR strategies, agencies are now able to measure the outcomes of their earned online pieces by highlighting back-end digital metrics that point to increased website traffic, higher search engine rankings, credible media referrals, a growing subscriber base, and more conversions and sales.
At Agent99, this is what we call PR that performs.
4. PR works in a Vacuum
As I previously mentioned, PR is all about the long game.
When it comes to a strong PR strategy, it’s a marathon not a sprint.
We want to put your brand in front of the right audience by placing them in the proper media outlet or partner. But this takes time and persistence. Timing is everything, especially when it comes to securing media wins, and an outlet may love your story but not have the capacity to cover it at any given moment. It’s the PR agency’s job to find the right person, outlet and moment to strike with your offering.
PR is deeply affected by the outside world (which has been a bit mad lately, if you haven’t noticed) so achieving the results you want can take a minute. Which makes securing a client a major media win all the sweeter.
5. PR is just about getting media coverage
That said, whilst media coverage is a significant part of public relations, it’s only one aspect of the broader strategy that PR agencies use to deliver results.
Beyond media coverage, PR agencies can help with content writing, social media management, influencer relations, brand development, event management and digital and paid strategies. It’s about building a 360 plan that will serve your brand best, media coverage and all.
If you would like to find out more about Agent99’s services, visit: https://agent99pr.com/services/
By Agent Meriha
