Why PR today is less about messaging and more about relationships

For a long time, public relations has been explained primarily through messages, channels and campaigns. We plan what to say, decide where to say it, and measure how far it travels. That logic still dominates strategies, presentations and reports.

Yet when I look at how PR actually works today, the reality feels different.

Much of contemporary PR happens outside neatly defined campaigns. Communication is continuous. Conversations do not pause between launches. Issues rarely arrive with a clear beginning or end. People respond in real time, reinterpret messages through their own experiences, and talk back in ways organisations cannot fully predict or control.

In that environment, messaging alone no longer explains the work.

The limits of message-centric thinking

Messaging still matters. Words matter. Framing matters. But focusing too heavily on messages creates a misleading sense of control. It suggests communication is something organisations do to others, rather than something that happens between people.

That way of thinking made more sense when organisations and “the public” could still be seen as separate worlds. Today, that separation has largely disappeared.

Organisations are no longer distant entities communicating with society from the outside. They are embedded within it. The people who represent organisations are members of communities, networks and conversations long before any formal communication begins.

Social media has accelerated this shift, but it did not create it. Boundaries between organisations and society have been eroding for years. Relationships now exist continuously - 24 hours a day, seven days a week - whether organisations actively manage them or not.

Relationships as the real unit of PR work

Once we accept that organisations are already part of society, the focus of PR changes.

Communication is no longer about establishing relationships with “the public”, because those relationships already exist. The real question becomes how those relationships are lived, sustained and shaped over time.

This is especially visible in complex or sensitive contexts such as infrastructure projects, community engagement, reputational challenges or moments of crisis. In these situations, communication is not linear. It is ongoing, relational and deeply human.

People assess organisations not only by what they say, but by how consistently they listen, how they behave over time, and whether they show respect for concerns that may not fit neatly into a communications plan. Trust is built slowly, often invisibly, through repeated interactions rather than single announcements.

For PR practitioners, this means the work is less about delivering perfect messages and more about sustaining dialogue. It requires judgement, empathy and patience - and an acceptance that not every interaction can be optimised or measured in the short term.

From public relations to people relations

Over time, I have found myself questioning whether the term public relations still accurately reflects what the profession actually does.

The phrase implies a relationship between organisations and some external “public”, as if organisations exist in one world and society in another. That assumption no longer holds. Today, organisations are made up of people who are fully integrated into social, professional and local communities.

Seen from this perspective, PR is less about managing an abstract public and more about managing relationships between people - within organisations, across communities and in shared social spaces.

This does not change the abbreviation we use. PR can remain PR. But the meaning behind it shifts. Instead of public relations, it increasingly reflects people relations: ongoing, human, relational work that cannot be reduced to campaigns or channels alone.

What this shift changes for practitioners

This relational reality changes how PR feels as a profession.

The work becomes less predictable and more emotionally demanding. It involves navigating ambiguity rather than controlling outcomes. Success is harder to reduce to simple metrics, because its effects often appear over time, not immediately after a campaign ends.

It also raises ethical questions. When communication is understood as an ongoing relationship, responsibility does not end when a message is sent. How organisations listen, respond and remain present has long-term consequences for trust and legitimacy.

This can be challenging in environments that still expect fast results and clear attribution. But it also reflects the real value PR brings: helping organisations relate to people in complex, contested and emotionally charged contexts.

Where this leaves the PR profession

PR has not lost its relevance. But its centre of gravity has shifted.

As communication environments become more continuous and interconnected, the profession is increasingly defined by its ability to manage relationships rather than messages alone. This is not always easy to articulate, particularly within organisations that still expect communication to be packaged as campaigns.

Yet recognising this shift matters. It allows practitioners to be more honest about what their work involves, what it requires, and why it matters.

In a world where trust is fragile and dialogue is constant, PR’s value lies less in what is said at any given moment, and more in how relationships between people are built, maintained and repaired over time.

Andrius Kasparas is a senior strategic communications and reputation advisor with decades of experience working in corporate communication, public affairs and complex infrastructure contexts across Europe. He is the author of Transforming PR: Public Relations to People Relations (Routledge), which explores how communication practice is shifting toward long-term, people-centred relationships.