Transformation Of Public Relations In The Era Of The COVID-19 Pandemic

Illustration. (Photo: Unsplash)

JAKARTA - The world of information and communication has continued to develop rapidly in recent times. Only less than five or ten years ago, for example, people may still be so unfamiliar with the terms buzzers and influencers.

However, do not ask about the role and impact that these two things could have in influencing information in today's society. Or also the involvement of social media platforms is inseparable in the communication strategy of a company. The wave of disruption in a fast and quiet manner has changed the existing communication patterns and created a new standard of its own.

This condition is exacerbated by the occurrence of the COVID-19 virus pandemic, in which one of the distinctive characteristics of modern society whose mobility is limitless, is now being forcefully forced to back to the barrier and maintain physical distance from one another.

Relations in society are no longer the same. No exception that also happens in the business world. The relationship that a company must build with the surrounding community has completely changed. Online and real-time interactions have instantly become a trend that you can't help but follow.

Physical interaction as much as possible no longer used. The pandemic conditions eventually pushed the wave of disruption to roll up bigger and faster. A new order is formed and becomes the standard 'the new normal' that applies in our society today.

For a company, the role as the spearhead in facing this new, very challenging and dynamic condition lies in a Public Relationship. In the conventional approach some people may still think that “don't judge the book from the cover”. But today's reality teaches that an image for a company is like an avatar that is very decisive in various aspects.

A Canadian-American financial consultant as well as a motivator, Brian Tracy, described the role of communication at this point as being the science of riding a bicycle or writing. It seems trivial with the scope of science that seems more technical, but it can change the quality of all parts of our lives.

A CEO may act as the captain determining which direction the ship will go. However, it is a Public Relations officer who is in charge of finding ways how to break the waves in front so as not to hit and then ground the ship, so that the journey can continue. A Public Relations officer is fully responsible for communication and information strategies so that the company's ark remains intact while achieving predetermined goals.

IPRA 2020

Armed with the above thoughts, the Indonesia Public Relations Award (IPRA) 2020 intends to give the highest appreciation to the role and function of Public Relations in supporting a company to achieve maximum performance. Through IPRA 2020, there is an appreciation for companies in Indonesia that have proven to be able to carry out the role of good Public Relations by being able to create positive news and a good image in the midst of society.

This award will be based on an in-depth research process through several methods. One of them is media content analysis to be able to see further the contents of a text and various news related to the company concerned.

"The analysis process of the monitoring media also aims to understand the meaning structure of a news text which can then show positive, negative, and neutral sentiments. The more positive sentiments that emerge from the news, the better the performance of Public Relations, so that it can produce output. in the form of a good corporate image in the community, "said Mohamad Ihsan, initiator of IPRA.

The media monitoring process will be carried out by monitoring online news in the last six months related to companies from various industries, including agribusiness, life insurance, general insurance, consumer goods, retail, energy, pharmaceuticals, property & construction, oil and gas, financing. , banking, mining, telecommunications, agritech and information technology. In addition, awards are also given to foundations.

The climax, along with awarding the winners, the initiator of IPRA also invited two major figures in the field of communication, namely the Minister of Communication and Information (Menkominfo) Johnny G Plate and the Chairman of the Public Relations Association (Perhumas) Agung Laksamana, who will attend as related Keynote Speakers. the role and challenges of the communication industry in this disruptive era and the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Finally, we congratulate the winners of the IPRA 2020 award. Hopefully our efforts will encourage the national business world to always and always maintain the quality of its public relations role, and even further improve it in the future," said Ihsan.