Planning and Managing Public Relations Campaigns: A Step-by-step Guide (PR in Practice)

This is a book everybody in the practice of public relations always should bring in their briefcase. Hands on and very well structured, Gregory manage to bring the best in a textbook as well as an "everyday guide" to communications planning. The weak side of it are the cases which not support the texts very well but can actually be total contradictions. Also it would be appropriate to add a chapter on communication techniques and how to use these in the planning process. I have used this guide in my daily work as well as when teaching graduate students and it works very well in both cases.

Some of the statements in this book are so blindingly obvious to anyone with a nano-seconds experience in marketing that I actually bothered to read a few of them to my housemate for laughs, for example:

'The nature of the sector in which the organisation finds itself will profoundly influence the way public relations is conducted' (really, you're kidding!)

And DIAGRAMS (from the 1950's) showing what the blindingly obvious looks like too.

There are some anecdotal bits approaching interest once you've skimmed the first four chapters but generally this book I can only assume is designed to bore O level students into considering a career in accountancy.

Sorry to be so scathing but really, how can this be a best seller, it's awful!

Despite having spent some 30 years in the PR business this book has still much to teach me. Within its pages lies a wealth of knowledge and experience written in a straightforward and easily understood style. It provides an excellent reality check on whether the PR project or programme brief you have so lovingly crafted presses all the right buttons before implementation. The section on strategy deserves praise for its simplicity and clarity of thought. In short the PR student and PR professional will find this book invaluable.

Anne Gregory has provided one of the most comprehensive and valuable tools for PR practioneers and non-pr MD's and marketing managers alike. Provides all the know how to get a PR plan of the ground for new and established accounts/companies and for ongoing account management. I have just started a new position and found this book fantastic and invaluable.