PR vs Marketing: What’s the difference and why it matters more than ever

You’d be surprised how often people mix up public relations and marketing communication. It’s an easy mistake to make both involve messaging, media, and visibility. But they serve very different purposes. Get the two confused, and you can waste budget, miss opportunities, or even damage trust.

In short:

• Marketing sells.
• PR builds belief.

And knowing when to use each one, or how to make them work together, can be the difference between being seen and being remembered.

 

The key difference

Marketing communication focuses on generating sales. It’s about encouraging people to do something now: buy, sign up, click, or convert. Think paid ads, email campaigns, and short-term offers that are bold, direct, and measurable.

PR, on the other hand, is about trust. It’s long-term. It helps brands look credible, approachable, and respected to investors, media, communities, employees, and customers alike.

When a brand faces a crisis, wants to launch in a new market, or needs to build credibility before asking for a sale…that’s PR’s territory.

Who they talk to

• Marketing speaks directly to consumers targeted by behaviour, demographics, and buying intent
• PR speaks to everyone who influences perception: the media, investors, partners, policymakers, and local communities

A 2024 Edelman study found 76% of people expect brands to be transparent and accountable not just with customers, but with the wider world. PR is how that happens.

 

How Messages Get Through

Marketing is loud and direct “Buy this now”, “Offer ends Friday”. It’s controlled and transactional.

PR is indirect and earned through news articles, interviews, thought leadership, or influencer commentary. When others talk about you, it feels credible. People trust it more. In fact, Nielsen found 83% of consumers trust editorial coverage over advertising.

 

When to Use Which

Marketing works best when:

• You’re launching a product or service
• You’re in a competitive market and need to stand out
• You’re running short-term sales or lead campaigns

PR works best when:

• You need to build credibility before selling
• You’re entering a new market or audience
• You’re managing reputation during change or crisis
• You want journalists or thought leaders to tell your story

Used together, they’re powerful.

 

How Proper PR Blends the Two

At Proper PR, we never treat PR and marketing as rivals.

They’re partners.

We start by building trust and credibility through coverage, commentary, and thought leadership. Then, when marketing activity kicks in via email, social, paid campaigns and so on, it lands harder, because the brand already feels established.

 

Measuring Success

PR success looks like:

• Positive media coverage
• Invitations to speak or comment
• Stronger reputation in search results
• Long-term credibility and trust

Marketing success looks like:

• Clicks, conversions, and sales
• Website traffic and engagement
• Campaign ROI and customer value

Both matter but they measure different things. PR drives belief. Marketing drives behaviour. When they work hand-in-hand, that’s when real growth happens.

 

Final Thoughts

It’s not about choosing PR or marketing communication. It’s about knowing when to lead with one, and when to layer the other.

PR builds the story. Marketing amplifies it. Together, they turn awareness into action, and action into loyalty.

Lets talk.