11 PR Professionals Look at How PR and Marketing Are Converging or Not

A trend in PR and marketing is the growing overlap between the two. While in some companies strict demarcations remain between PR and marketing, many firms have found it important for the heads of PR and marketing to at least be aware of each other’s priorities and plans. As Page (formerly The Arthur W. Page Society) argues, the chief communicator’s role increasingly has her/him working across multiple parts of the enterprise.

In some companies, of course, the chief marketing officer is the head of PR, although this arrangement doesn’t necessarily guarantee members of the two departments work closely.

With this background, we asked senior brand communicators how they differentiate their PR efforts from those of their marketing communications colleagues and queried senior PR execs from firms how they advise brand clients on this issue. Below are their edited responses.

Stacey Tank

VP and CCO, The Home Depot

PR takes the lead on anything related to journalists. Marketing takes the lead on paid advertising. In the middle, we find owned media, influencer strategy, social media, experiential, sponsorships and beyond. People who grew up in PR seem to inherently understand how to generate organic buzz. They are scrappy and creative in stretching a dollar.