The world has always been changing since its formation but at a very slow pace until last year, that is 2020 with the breakout of Covid 19. When all these years we have learnt about man being a social being and that man cannot live without company, now all we hear are words like ‘isolation’, ‘distancing’ etc. We are advised not to come into contact with people unless it is extremely necessary. With the unexpected breakout of Covid 19, the world has changed tremendously. When everything in the world is on the verge of rapid change, so is Public Relations.

What is Public Relation?

Public Relation is the practice of maintaining a healthy relationship between organization and public/ employees, investors, partners and the like. It refers to a convincing communication process where the organization adopts instruments, ideas and strategies to bring about cooperation and understanding between an organization and public.

Impact of Covid 19 on Public Relations

With the Covid 19 situation across the globe, the flow of information has taken a different turn where the strategies and communication policies of Public Relations has taken a faster pace of mobility than pre – covid times.

The two extremely popular applications like Facebook and WhatsApp has become the best friends of the public through which they could connect with the outside world despite of being confined to the four walls of their house. Although these applications are informal source of communication yet business, education related information and even news are disseminated through it. Even government officials, political parties, several brands made use of these apps to maintain relations with the public.

With the horrifying outcome of the pandemic, the PR professionals ought to make sure that the public is served with verified and authentic facts and news rather than taking advantage of the fragility of the pandemic situation and circulating ‘sold’ stories. The PR professionals are endowed with national responsibility to serve the public with relevant information.

The PR professionals need to understand and figure out the wants of the public to maintain their bond. In the recent times, India has witnessed a sudden rise in the trend of binge watching when many popular shows and daily soaps were telecasted. Also, news channels has become the evening tea partners for many. To understand what the public wants has become the need of the hour.

Conclusion

It cannot be denied that Covid 19 has lead to digital acceleration in India and everywhere across the world . Even after the pandemic gets under control, this tendency to digitalisation would stay and leave behind an important legacy.

When the country has faced the cruel waves of the pandemic, the PR agencies are expected to feed the public with what times and public demands. The PR practitioners are expected to adapt to the changing trends in order to maintain healthy bonds with the public.