In an effort to address industry-wide issues faced by PR professionals today and elevate PR practice in the country, the Public Relations Society of the Philippines (PRSP), the country’s premier organization of PR professionals, is gathering together high-caliber local and international thought leaders at the 26th National Public Relations Congress this September 24 and 25, 2019 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.
Local industry veterans will join international experts from the biggest PR companies in the region and the world such as Singapore-based Edelman and Hong Kong-based Strategic Public Relations Group (SPRG) to give attendees a deeper understanding of how PR has evolved—and continues to evolve—globally.
At the top of this year’s agenda is calibrating PR practice in the country against global standards. PRSP emphasized, however, that congress does not seek to impose on PR practitioners and oblige them to follow certain approaches. “With this year’s conference, we hope to give PR and communication practitioners a glimpse of how the practice is in other countries across the globe and maybe see whether or not the same best practices can be applied in the Philippines,” Ana Pista, PRSP Vice President-External and Chairwoman of the 26th PR Congress, said.
Andy Saracho, APR, PRSP President, noted that a deeper knowledge of how the industry operates is the first step to understanding its current state and problems. “This year’s congress is definitely a good opportunity to discuss key issues such as the need for a standard way of measuring the success of a PR campaign. We are now better equipped to address pressing concerns in the industry,” added Saracho.
Measuring PR success
The 26th edition of the annual PR Congress is jump-starting the discussion on an industry-based approach to evaluating the success or failure of a PR strategy.
“We have tapped some of the leading media intelligence and monitoring groups in the world such as the Association for Measurement and Evaluation of Communication (AMEC), Meltwater, ISentia, Talkwalker and CARMA to share with us new and better ways or approaches to measure PR success,” said Saracho.
With a growing number of international organizations veering from Advertisement Value Estimates (AVEs), PRSP sees the congress as the ideal platform for opening the discourse about an outcome-based measurement. “Through the congress, practitioners can discuss and bounce back ideas about this crucial topic. As for brands and organizations, more knowledge on this will hopefully show them the value of communication professionals’ contribution to their business and secure their support for a clearer way of evaluating PR initiatives,” Pista added.
The two-day conference will also cover key issues such as crisis management and political correctness. “We’re looking forward to learning ways of managing a crisis from our visiting speaker and expert from the Public Relations Institute of New Zealand (PRINZ),” said Pista.
The 26th National Public Relations Congress offers discounts to PRSP members, students, members of the academe, government employees, NGOs, senior citizens, and PWDs. Please contact Monique Galza through moniquegalza.prsp@ardent.com.ph or 631-0511 for more information.