Public Relations and Consumer Relations - Introduction

The evaluation of the role and responsibility of enterprise communication

in a growing new Europe, requires primarily consideration of the respective
role and responsibility of communication and the market within a society
where more advanced and modern economy should be able to produce
increasing profits while taking into consideration legitimate rights of
millions of consumers.

We are speaking of a new Europe which does not yet exist, whose
boundaries are not limited to the twelve EC Countries, but which already
includes not only this Community but also a larger market of many other
Countries.

We are not in a position to analyse numerous complex political and social

aspects that face the new Europe, and the problems to be solved to
become a single community of millions of inhabitants.

The market could, perhaps, facilitate the solution of many relevant political,
social and cultural aspects, if we consider it as an entity of enterprises and
workers, products and services, consumers and users.

A modern definition of the market underlines that it is an excellent system

to collect and disseminate the information essential to co-ordinate the life,
work and behaviour of millions of individuals.

No single individual can be in possession of all the information he needs to

co-ordinate his economic planning.

Information disseminates independently, changes continuously and cannot

be known within the same time as the decision-making process. Nobody
knows what each individual, as a consumer, would like to buy as nobody
knows what each producer is going to offer, although the market is
collecting and transmitting information on individual preferences, different
trends and availability of products.

Therefore, information and the market are concepts and facts which are
inter-connected.

The efficiency of the market depends upon the quality of the information
available as well as its rapidity of diffusion and perception.

The total freedom of information is the basic condition for the proper
functioning of the market which necessitates exhaustive information about
enterprises, consumers and products.
Practically, there is a close relationship between the quality of enterprise
communication and market development, with a very strong analogy
between the quality of political and social communication and the
satisfactory functioning of democracy.

Today, public relations is a fundamental aspect of the enterprises planning

process, in all business sectors, thanks to its capability of opening a
dialogue with the market and listening to consumers to acquire appropriate
knowledge.

The main responsibility of public relations is certainly to open and manage

systems of communication between the enterprise and all its targets,
especially consumers.

Sufficient ethic recognition must be accorded to the public relations sector

to establish and maintain a suitable communication by means of dialogue
based on mutual respect.

Today, public relations is an important communication management tool

for all sides of the new Europe business society. It also represents one of
the basic concepts because the most important common issue at stake for
public relations activities is consumerism.

How do you define consumerism?

It is a fundamental question to which different replies are given by different

countries, depending upon various social and economic conditions.

Nevertheless certain basic elements may be taken into consideration for

the recognition of the consumers rights:

• to feel safe
• to be well informed
• to be listened to
• to have a choice

If you agree, one can say that consumerism is a system combining

principles of ethics and rules of corporate behaviour which directly affect
the decision-making process of a company or an organisation.

In this case "consumerism" is not only the fulfilment of the obligation, to

respect consumer rights arising from coercive legal rules and laws,
compulsory liability and directives. Consumerism suggests that a company
or an organisation is required to handle proper, pro-active relations with
consumers as individuals and with Consumer Associations wherever the
market of that Company or Organisation exists.

The implementation of the European Single Market has further increased

the need of specialised consumer relations because this market now
includes more than 340 million consumers.

Looking towards the new Europe, it appears that in the year 2000
additional millions of consumers will demand better consumer relations.

Consumer Relations and Public Relations

Consumer relations is a part of the global communication policy of a

company or an organisation and belongs to the corporate communication
level more than heretofore as a key element in the marketing
communication area.

Consumer relations is only one of the different aspects of the public

relations profession and should be geared to specific targets such as
individual consumers and their representative organisations, Government,

Parliament and local authorities, having demonstrated that they consider

consumerism being one of their main responsibility.

Presently, in modern economy in Europe, the value of corporate and

product reputations are considered as basic values necessary to be
successful.

The mission and the culture of an enterprise are firmly connected with
strict quality standards.

The concept of quality value emerges from the standard of the products
and services offered to the market but this quality is accepted and
recognised in conjunction with the conduct of the enterprise.

People, generally speaking, more and more frequently consider corporate

behaviour as a key element to identify and qualify the enterprise, but
corporate behaviour itself is first and foremost expressed by the quality of
the consumer relations.

The methods each company utilises to handle its communication are

manifold and a proper mix is always recommended and appreciated, but
the focal point for the quality emanating from enterprise behaviour is
based upon the quality of its consumer relations for the sole reason that
taking care of consumer expectations and needs is an essential part of the
service that an enterprise should offer to a market.

To sell a product or a service means having in mind consumer satisfaction

as sales are positively concluded only after consumer satisfaction.

Therefore, consumer relations today are no longer limited to the

dissemination of information on products or services and/or the distribution
of leaflets or advertising material, but must be geared towards the full
satisfaction of consumer needs through a daily evaluation of own
performance and, of course, a mutually acceptable solution of every
problem that could arise.

The basic duties of each public relations practitioner determined by the

Code of Ethics and the Code of Professional Conduct must also be strictly
and fully respected by the consumer relations specialist, but the evolution
of consumerism throughout Europe, suggests the analysis of further
elements of consumer relations and the application of new and more
specialised rules of professional conduct.

Consumer Relations and Advertising

PR professionals and, of course, consumer relations specialists have also

to consider advertising and its vital contribution to an efficient market,
which in turn maximises the benefits of improved quality, price and service
to consumers. It is well known, and easy to understand, that the
discussions in the European Community and in many European countries
about restrictions on advertising cause great concern within various
industries.

Advertising is a driving force in a free market economy.

The completion of the 1992 internal market increases competition and

extends over national boundaries.

In that respect freedom of commercial speech is essential although, for

specific commodities, a certain responsibility should be observed.

At this moment some regulations are already affecting advertising and

marketing in general and some areas (e.g. pharmaceuticals, tobacco and
toys) in particular. Although in the Treaty of Rome nothing was said about
consumer policy - let alone restrictions on advertising - since the eighties
these topics have been part and parcel of the European policy.

In the other areas (e.g. alcoholic beverages) there exists a strong concept
of self-regulation, which has been proven to be quite successful.

Public policy will recognise this position, and therefore respect the
principle of the freedom of commercial speech responsibly exercised.

Consumer Policy in the single market

To meet consumers growing information needs is a fundamental way to

build and achieve consumer confidence and a primary responsibility for all
Public Relations Practitioners, In-house and Consultants.

Many EC directives and regulations already protect consumer interest and

have already been taken into account within national legislation.

Today, to better meet its responsibility and company needs, the public
relations profession should consider the whole system of EC directives
and regulations covering consumerism and consumer relations.

The Single European Act, which constitutes the legal basis for its
implementation, makes specific reference to consumer protection and
stresses that the EC Commission must include a "high level of protection"
in proposals concerning this.
The basic issues concern health and safety, access to legal redress,
information and consumer representation.

All the above must be balanced between the interest of the consumers
and suppliers, between different consumer policy approaches in the twelve
Members States and between the principle of the highest possible
standards on the one hand and the free movement of goods and services
on the other.

Meantime the fragmentation of the Community market obliges

manufacturers in many sectors to produce their goods in different variants
to meet the requirements of other countries.

This implies additional costs for research, development, marketing,

storage and distribution.

In a market without frontiers, European industry could transfer the benefit

of cost savings to consumers in order to lower prices or improve service
quality.

The "Preliminary programme of EC for a consumer protection and

information policy" was adopted by the Council of Ministers in 1975 and
five basic rights have been established:

1. The right to protection of health and safety, because goods and

services must not present a risk under normal condition of use.
2. The right to protection of economic interest, because the purchaser
must be protected against abusive practice of the seller such as
misleading advertising, unfair contract clauses, etc.
3. The right to redress, because consumers should be advised and
helped in the case of unsatisfactory products and services and swift
redress for any damages suffered.
4. The right of information and education, because consumers should be
in position to make a choice based on full information.
5. The right of representation, because consumer organisations should be
consulted on all proposed legislation affecting consumer interest.

A Second Consumer Programme was adopted by the Council of Ministers

in 1981 to cover the period until 1986, stressing the importance of the
price/quality ratio to consumers and addressing the problems of the
services sector. In 1983 the Council decided to hold a special Council
meeting of Ministers to discuss consumer policy. The main thrust of the
above programmes still applies today. Many community directives and
regulations, which concern both specific product groups and general
measures, have already been adopted and included into national
legislation such as:

Foodstuff: lists of acceptable substances and purity criteria have been

drawn up for additives used in foodstuffs; composition, manufacture and
trade description of many food products; qualities of additives have been
also considered.

Presentation and labelling: a directive stipulates rules to be indicated on

the packaging, such as composition and quality of ingredients; another
one regulates dietary foods.

Dangerous substances: several directives cover the classification,

marketing and labelling of above.

Misleading advertising: a directive prohibits misleading advertising and if a

consumer feels that he or she has been misled by an advertising claim or
presentation, legal action against the producer is possible. The burden of
proof may be reversed and, last but not least, any communication
originated from an enterprise is classified as "Advertising".

Product liability: the directives state that manufacturers are liable for any
damage their products may cause to the consumer even if there is no fault
on their part. The burden of proof lies with the producer.

Industrial products: many directives have been adopted to guarantee the

safety of passengers in cars and vehicles.

Medicinal products: uniform provision on testing, evaluation, authorisation,

labelling and patent rights have been determined.

Door steps sales: purchasers have a week cooling off period in the case of
contracts negotiated away from the salesmen’s business premises; the
salesman is required to inform the consumer in writing of above right of
cancellation.

Information system: if the authorities of a Member State ascertain that a

product has caused or could cause damage to health and are therefore
considering a restriction on its sale, the authorities of all the other Member
States are immediately informed and can take appropriate action.

Other directives cover issues such as package tours, rights of air

travellers, safety of toys, consumer credit.

Therefore, a uniform level of protection of consumer rights has been

established and at the same time many trade barriers have been
abolished through adoption of harmonised standards and regulations.

All the above directives should be carefully considered by any consumer

relations specialist because they represent a type of "scheme" of
consumer expectations and needs, including the main relevant issues
dealt with by Consumer Organisations and Groups.

The "White Paper" on the internal market produced by the Commission of

the European Community has introduced a new approach.

National regulations are no longer harmonised in every detail by the

Council of Ministers because, for instance, the task of drawing up detailed
technical standards for practical application, has moved to the experts of
the European Standardisa-tion Bodies.
This decision considerably accelerated the process and, to consumers all
over Europe.

On November 1989 the Council of in the meantime, granted a uniform

minimum level of protection to consumers all over Europe.

On November 1989 the Council of Ministers adopted a third Action

Programme which includes specific actions to improve consumer
representation (the Consumer Consultative Council has been formed).

The consumer information right has been considered and, for instance,
comparative testing of goods and services handled by Consumer
Associations has been encouraged.

Once again all consumer relations specialists should follow up the

evolution of the "Action Programme" adopted because Consumer
Organisations and the media are pro-active in each member State and
new issues, new questions arise day by day.

Consumer Relations definitions

In order to describe consumer relations as "a fundamental part of the

whole Public Relations operation", definitions such as the following may be
considered:

1. Consumer relations is corporate or business activity aiming at:

• matching the corporate and product image as close as possible

with that expected by the consumer targets;
• ensuring the best quality of products and services, to achieve
consumer satisfaction;

2. Consumer Relations comprises planned programmes designed to

establish, handle and develop appropriate two-way communication
channels with consumers of products and services, with Consumer
Groups and Associations and with public Authorities and Bodies whose
responsibilities involve consumer protection and information rights.

3. Consumer relations is a significant asset to a Company or business

which recognises consumer protection and information rights as a
fundamental principle to be respected and developed in the Company or
business managerial practice.

4. Consumer relations is planned and permanent pro-active and post-

active action addressed to consumers as individuals or groups, aiming at
improving consumer confidence in the quality of products or services.

Consumer Relations Specialist’s basic duties and profile

In keeping with the above definition the most relevant contents of

consumer relations and the consumer relations specialist’s basic duties
may be considered as follows:
 • Analysis and management of all issues which involve consumers
as individuals or groups, at all levels including environmental and
wherever the Company or the business is operating.
• Assisting management in creating self regulatory systems
whenever this is needed to guarantee the responsible exercise of
the freedom of commercial speech, including the supervision or
monitoring of advertising.
• Planning and handling of appropriate interactive media to
establish adequate relations with consumers, as individuals and
groups.
• Collecting and disseminating information on Company products
and services and all other aspects of a Company or a business
which involve consumer interests and needs.
• Providing an immediate and appropriate reply to any question
asked by consumers as individuals or groups, solving any possible
problem to achieve the best consumer satisfaction.
• Handling complaints made by consumers as individuals or groups
and search for appropriate solutions within the company or
business functions.
• Monitoring of consumer expectations and needs with the
Organisations internal functions and units in keeping with their
own specific responsibilities.
• Producing periodical reports for Company or business
management with a view to analyse and classify contacts with
consumers in accordance with business issues and
Company/business functions responsible for these relations.

The profile of a consumer relations specialist requires from the responsible

person appropriate experience in the whole public relations operation and
a good knowledge of all the company or business aspects, including
organisation, production and marketing of products and services.

A consumer relations specialist must have a good knowledge of the

company/business market sector, including competitors, because many
consumers may ask for information on their products or services. This
person should have a suitable knowledge of consumer organisations and
groups within the Country concerned and maintain adequate contacts with
the media handling consumer issue.

The consumer relations specialist must be strongly motivated and able to

deal with person to person, verbal and written communication skills,
including modern techniques.

Basically, a significant negotiation capability is recommended.

The consumer relations specialist is the "point of identification" or the

"point of contact" of a company or a business enterprise for consumers as
individuals or groups. Therefore, he or she must demonstrate a high
degree of professionalism in maintaining intellectual integrity, honesty and
loyalty towards both the company and the consumer.
European Charter for Consumer Relations

The principles of the Code of Ethics and rules of the Code of Professional
Conduct in Public Relations, adopted by CERP and by each member
National Public Relations Association, must be fully respected by a
consumer relations specialist since his/her professional duties are a part of
the whole Public Relations operation.

The following principle for a "European Charter for consumer relations" is

suggested as an "official interpretation" of the above CERP Codes tailored
to meet the specific requirement of consumer relations as a specialised
area of the public relations profession:

General Professional Conduct:

1. In handling his/her professional duties a consumer relations specialist

must fully consider the basic consumer rights to information, to audience,
to freedom of choice and to safety.

2. In his professional conduct the consumer relations specialist must

demonstrate intellectual integrity, loyalty and honesty towards both his/her
company/enterprise and consumers. He or she undertakes not to make
use of information or comments which to his or her knowledge or belief are
false or misleading. He/she must be careful to avoid the use, even by
accident, of practices and methods incompatible with the above intellectual
integrity, loyalty and honesty. (Clause 3. CERP Code of Conduct)

3. Consumer relations programmes must be carried out openly: they must

be readily identifiable, bear a clear indication of their origin and must not
be handled to mislead third parties. (Clause 4. CERP Code of Conduct)

4. In the practice of his/her profession, a consumer relations specialist

must scrupulously respect professional confidence and in particular must
not reveal any confidential information received from his/her clients or
employers, past, present or potential, or make use of such information
without expressed authorisation. (Clause 7. CERP Code of Conduct)

Specific Responsibility to Consumers:

5. Considering that a consumer is an individual or a group offered or sold

products or services for their own satisfaction, a consumer relations
specialist must grant to thesame individual or group all after sales services
that they may require.

6. A constant concern on the part of the consumer relations specialist with

consumer rights to information and moreover the duty to provide
information within the limits of professional confidence must be considered
as a basic responsibility. (Clause 14. CERP Code of Conduct)

7. All information must be given clearly in keeping with the consumer’s

education and cultural background and their technical knowledge on
products and services, production, marketing and so forth.

8. Consumer relations programmes must be implemented at no cost to

the consumers, individuals or groups and therefore, no charge should be
sustained by the consumers, in any way.

9. Information received from consumers, as individuals or groups, cannot

be used for any market research, promotion or direct marketing action
without the expressed authorisation of the consumer.

10. If the use of a product or a service requires proper warnings, the

consumer relations specialist has the obligation to disclose it openly.

11. Any attempt to deceive consumer opinion or its representatives is

forbidden. (Clause 15 CERP Code of Conduct)

12. No payment or gift shall be offered or given to any person having an

interest in a Consumer group or Association for the purpose of influencing
any act or decision of such group or association.

Adopted as "recommendation" by the CERP General Assembly Milan,

March 26, 1994

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