April 04, 2017

Honesty is The Best PR Policy

Joshua Harlow – Senior Vice President

“Spin doctor” or “wordsmith” or the even less appealing, “fixer” have been phrases used to describe practitioners in the public relations industry. These titles are many times much more exaggerated and twisted than real life, but still, the implied notion of “bending” the truth to get the public relations outcome you want never works. In communications, if you are not honest, you will never benefit a company or organization in the long run. Dishonesty only leads to short-term gain. There are many reasons why, but here are two from my experience:

1. Trust:

Once your organization decides to bend the truth for gain, you will never have the same loyal following. It is human nature that once people are lied to once from a source, there is always doubt from that same source moving forward.

2. Organizational Health:

You think your organizations might take a hit from bending the truth, but think about the morale hit employees and vendors will experience. No one wants to work for or be associated with brands that are less than truthful.

Bottom line: Always practice honesty in your communications efforts even if it might result in short-term pain, it will always have a long-term gain!

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