Books can open portals to other worlds, get you out of your head, and put you to sleep. They can inform, inspire, educate, surprise, anger, and excite. The barriers to entry are low—as long as you have a library card, you can read to your heart’s content for free. They’ll take you away from screens, connect you with others who have read the same books, and ultimately make you a more knowledgeable individual.
Unsurprisingly, there are hundreds of books about PR on the market. It can be difficult to figure out which ones are worth your time! Not to fear; we did the work for you. Keep reading to discover our top five favorite PR books that every public relations professional should read.
1. The New Rules Of Marketing And PR
This book, by David Meerman Scott, is one of the best-selling PR books of all time. It explains how market demand and trends change. Meerman Scott, an American strategist, explains to the reader that you can never assume that you know everything. The moment this thought flashes through your mind is the exact moment demand, and market trends will change.
The dynamism that prevails in the market is crucial, and the author believes if you have a firm grip on how market trends ebb and flow, you will succeed in crafting good public relations strategies. Moreover, the book focuses on maintaining competitive advantage and informs business owners how to stand out from their competitors. You need to understand your business’s differentiators to avoid brand parity. This knowledge will help business owners weather market lows and excel during market highs.
2. The PR Masterclass
This is next in the line of top PR books and is written by Alex Singleton, one of the world’s chief strategists. The central theme of this book is the effectiveness of PR strategies. The book focuses on why certain PR campaigns fail to make an impact and looks at specific campaigns, techniques, and tips. It also sheds light on creating an engaging press release because, according to some studies, more than 75% of press releases go unnoticed.
Whether you’re handling your own public relations or hiring a firm, everyone involved in marketing initiatives on your team must understand the basic principles that make a good PR campaign. This book should be required reading for marketing directors and CMOs everywhere.
3. Spin Sucks: Reputation and Communication Management In The Digital Age
Author Gini Dietrich teaches the reader about marketing ethics in this book. Now that consumers are incredibly well-informed compared to previous decades, thanks to the internet and social media, it is not easy to manipulate them into purchasing decisions. Consumers can and do easily catch brands in lies, and this type of marketing can destroy a brand’s reputation in a matter of hours. The author suggests approaching all PR campaigns with an ethical mindset and working within ethical bounds. This will help maintain a solid brand reputation and infuse PR campaigns with a level of honesty and authenticity that is impossible to fake.
4. The Business Persuasion
This book by Harold Burson, a PR legend, is extremely well-rated. It takes you on a journey, starting with the basics of creating a brand, and then it shifts its focus to the challenges PR professionals face and how to manage crises. The author includes anecdotes from his own life and experience in the business sector to underline certain points. Burson also shares stories about some of the most prominent communication events of the last century, which helps readers understand the consequences of certain PR decisions. This book would be a great read for anyone looking for inspiration for future PR campaigns.
5. Everybody Writes
Ann Hadley’s engaging book covers how to craft attention-grabbing content that people can’t resist reading. Writing is a skill that every single person needs to possess. From daily emails and text messages to dissertations and press releases, the importance of writing in an individual’s life may vary. Still the fact remains that every person needs to understand how to craft an intelligible sentence. Hadley sprinkles writing rules, personal revelations, and whimsical prompts throughout the book, so every reader walks away feeling smarter and inspired.
Bonus Read
Beyond Burning Bras, co-written by Emily Reynolds Stringer and Laura Finley, is a bonus read that’s relevant to anyone in business. The book offers a practical guide to everyday actions anyone can take to promote gender equality and social justice. Both men and women would benefit from reading this book and understanding the ways in which certain actions hold women back from achieving their maximum potential.
The book catalogs more than 50 real-life accounts of courageous actions and life-changing moments. It truly paints a picture of the way feminism shows up in everyday life.
Beyond PR Books
These PR books are just a snippet of the great reading options available to all PR pros. Start with these, then don’t be afraid to branch out into books about marketing, branding, and business overall. The things you can learn from a book are literally endless!
