Lesson 11: House Journal

 

B A (JMC) (3-YDC), SEMESTER SYSTEM

SEMESTER –IV

SEC III: PUBLIC RELATIONS AND EVENT MANAGEMENT

Unit -1: PUBLIC RELATIONS

LESSON - 11: House Journal

 Objectives:

1.    Know about house journals.

2.    Understand the purpose of a house journal.

3.    Identify the contents of a house journal.

4.    Steps and requirements in bringing out a house journal

5.    Know the benefits of a house journal.

 Introduction:

A Public Relations Practitioner can exploit the media to improve the image of his organisation and to build up gradually an all-round good will for it and its products. There are many tools of communication at his disposal. One such tool is House Journal in print medium. House journals can be Internal and External. The internal journal is meant for internal publics, mainly employees. The external house journal is meant for external publics like dealers, shareholders or consumers. The external house journals can also be meant for employees as well as external publics.

The house journal reflects whether the organization is an open or a closed one. In a closed organization, there will be a one-way channel of communication. It does not take into account the views of employees. Such journal generally covers the views of top executives mainly the Chief Executive Officer or Managing Director. In an open company, the journal also covers the views of employees. Employees get an opportunity to put forth their point of view. The journal becomes a two-way communication in an open company.

An internal house journal serves as an important connection between a management and the employees. In a large corporation, a house journal reaches employees belonging to different disciplines, cadres and interests. It bridges the gap and creates a fellow-feeling among them. The PR department is generally responsible for bringing out the house journal and the editorial policy of the journal is dependent on the overall policy of the management.

Description

A dictionary describes the house journal as that of “a publication produced by a particular firm, institution or society and dealing mainly with its own activities”

Collins dictionary says, it is “a publication produced for the employees of a company or organization in order to keep them updated with news and events”

Cambridge dictionary puts it this way. “A house journal is a newspaper produced by a company to tell employees what is happening in the company” and “a newspaper or magazine that is typically read by a particular group of people and represents their opinions”.

By this, we understand that a house journal is a publication meant for informing a particular group of people.

History

The origin of house journals can be traced back to Chinese Han Dynasty in 200 B.C. These were internal communications issued to keep the royal court informed. They became official gazettes in the seventeenth century Tang Dynasty, and are the forerunners of today’s house journals.

In the 1880s company magazines began to appear in large-scale British organizations. The first official external house journal was ‘The Travelers Record’, published on March 1, 1865 by Travelers Insurance Companies at Hartford, Connecticut. This publication is still continuing, though the name and contents have changed several times. This external house journal, now published under the name “Protection”, celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2015.

John H Patterson, President of National Cash Register Co., is acknowledged for establishing the first company-sponsored internal publication in the United States, the NCR Factory News, in 1887. It is still being published under the title of NCR World. Patterson was the first one to use the term “house organ” for his publication.

The United Planters Association of Southern India published the first house journal in India, the ‘Planters Chronicle’ in 1905. By the 1930s almost every corporation had one.

When managements recognised the importance of public relations, PR practitioners came to the forefront. To play this role in an effective way, they have been exploiting both the internal and external media of communication to an optimum extent. In the process, the print medium along with other media of communication, stood them in good stead. It is in this context, the house journals, bulletins, handbooks, brochures, pamphlets and newsletters came to be produced in a methodical fashion and circulated among the internal and external audiences according to the requirements of the organisation.

The importance assigned to the house journals can be gauged from the fact that a professional body of Editors of House Journals came to be constituted way back in 1956. It was known as the Indian Association of Industrial Editors. Later, it was called the Association of Business Communicators of India (ABCI). According to ABCI, the oldest publication of manufacturing house is said to be the “Delhi Cloth Mills Patrika published in 1931. This publication could be looked upon as the forerunner of our present day house journals in India.

Internal House Journal

The prime aim of internal house journal is to keep the employees of the organisation informed of the welfare measures and the concern of the organisation for its employees. It also aims at providing a forum for the employees to express their views including their grievances. Therefore, it serves as a forum for a two-way communication, thereby promoting the healthy growth of an organisation. The organisation also uses the internal house journal to stress the fact that the management is genuinely interested in the welfare of its employees. The internal house journal is meant for the employees under the roof of an organisation.

As a rule, it is not a priced publication. It is meant for free distribution. So, to use the PR parlance it is meant for the internal audience. Broadly speaking, it aims to inform and educate the employees at all levels about the organisation, its concern for the employees’ welfare, its programmes and problems. It also aims to provide the employees with a forum to express their view points and to air their grievances, if any. It is against this wider background; the Editor of an internal House journal has to plan its contents. It shall be understood that there is no set rules or rigid criteria governing the nature of contents. The contents are planned according to the nature and requirements of an organisation on behalf of which the House journal is published. Realising its role and importance many organisations in the private and public sectors in our country today publish internal house journals. In fact, their publication has become one of the primary functions of the PR practitioner. Obviously these organisations are interested in forging strong links with the employees so that the latter may gradually develop a sense of complete identification with the organisation. The organisation also uses the forum of an internal house journal to stress the fact that it is deeply interested in the welfare of its employees. As such, the employees’ welfare activities undertaken by the organisation are regularly published in the internal house journal for the information as well as guidance of the employees.

Contents

The typical contents of a house journal may include –

a.    A regular feature entitled ‘from the Chairman’s desk’ containing a message on a subject of interest to the employees.

b.    A short ‘editorial’ from the Editor of the journal.

c.    A topical feature on any ‘facet of the organisation’ needing the employees’ appreciation.

d.    A regular feature entitled “land marks or milestones’ spotlighting the achievements of the organisation.

e.    A regular feature entitled “welfare” on the Employees’ on welfare measures undertaken by the organisation.

f.     A regular feature on ‘humour’ containing light reading material like jokes, cartoons, caricature, tit-bits etc.

g.    A regular feature on ‘social issues’ containing news of engagements, weddings, promotions, transfers, retirements, achievements of the employees or their children with illustrations.

h.    A regular feature entitled ‘sports and culture’ on the cultural activities of the employees including sports with illustrations.

i.      A regular column for ‘CSR and ESG’ activities of the organisation.

j.      A column for ‘letters to the editor’ to have the feedback from the readers.

 These are only illustrative to stress the fact that the contents should cover the areas in which both the management as well as the employees are interested for their mutual benefit or for the growth of the organisation. It all depends on the number of pages at the disposal. If the number of pages is more, naturally more number of regular features could be introduced and the tempo maintained including a photo montage. However, if the number of pages is less the PR practitioner may have to restrict the regular features as well as illustrations.

Here, it is important to know the difference between a newsletter and a house journal. Newsletters communicate news of the latest activities of the organisation to the target audience in a timely and speedy manner. House journals inform the employees and customers about the performance and style of functioning of the organisation. Both the Newsletter and the House Journal are similar to newspapers. While newspapers are sent out on a daily basis, the newsletters are often only sent out on a weekly basis and the house journals are sent out on fortnightly or monthly basis.

Editorial

What is an editorial and who writes it? To answer this question, one should understand the general background to editorials. In newspapers or periodicals, we read editorials prominently printed in a particular page. In the newspapers, usually, editorials are found on the first page below the masthead. The editor of a periodical is the most important person in the set up. In short, he is its kingpin. It is he who lays down policies of the periodical in consultation with the management and oversees the work of publishing it. Here, the Public Relations practitioner assumes the role of the Editor. House journals do not generally carry editorials. However, they do carry editorials written by PR practitioners who edit them. They got an opportunity to express themselves in the columns of the house journals. Editorial stands next in importance to the message of Chairman or Managing Director of the organisation. The editorials could deal with the issues like (1) specific and current interest of the organisation and its employees and (2) bird’s eye survey of the contents of the issue and (3) as a curtain raiser to stimulate the reader’s interest in the current issue. Editorials of house journals should inform, educate and motivate the readers i.e. the employees or the customers.

Steps to bring out a house journal:

To bring out a house journal there shall be a planning, organising of things, finalising the content, fixing of a printer and its distribution etc. Let us see them one by one.

Planning: At this stage, a concept that best serves the objectives of the company has to be developed including the format, size and periodicity. Plan all these keeping in view the objective, target audience and the budget. Get approved of all these by the management.

Organizing: After the management’s approval, organize staff members to proceed with the task. A detailed schedule for writing/collection of stories, production, printing and mailing has to be worked out and adhered to strictly.

Content: For content, can invite write-ups from the staff members if it is internal journal. If it is for external public’s, can seek write-ups from the external public’s. Identifying the people those who have a flair for writing is an art.

Publishing: Before sending the journal for publishing, lots of tasks to be attended. Press job includes editing, proof-reading, designing, selecting photographs, graphics and cover page designs. PR practitioner as Editor has to coordinate with many people for the task.

Distribution: After the journal is printed, it shall be distributed among the target audience. It is necessary to select the quickest and economical means to get the journal into the hands of the readers.

Feedback: To get feedback about the content, a questionnaire asking which are liked most or disliked by the employees and the reasons for that must be included. Feedback will help in improving the content.

Many companies are now coming out with video magazines and e-magazines for their employee community.

Requirements in launching a house journal:

The requirements to launch a house journal are its (1) registration with the Press Registrar, (2) obtaining postal concession from postal department, (3) compilation of mailing list by gathering the postal and email addresses of the recipients of the journal, (4) fixing a printer and (5) selection of paper etc.

Registration: The title of the house journal has to be cleared by the Press Registrar General of India, Govt of India in New Delhi. This is a statutory requirement under the Press and Registration of Periodicals Act of 2023 which came into force on 1^st March 2024 amending the earlier Act. The Editor and the Publisher or Printer desirous of bringing out any newspaper or any publication which includes house journals containing public news and comments will have to make a declaration before the authority concerned. For clearing the name of the house journal, a formal application has to be made to the Press Registrar General of India. In the first instance, a panel of three titles has to be forwarded to him. He will give clearance of one title or name as well as assign a registration number that has to be printed on the back cover of the house journal.

Postal concession: Corporate publications such as house journals along with printed books, newspapers and other journals are exempted from GST. They can be posted at concessional rates provided the PR practitioner complies with the conditions laid down in the relevant rules of the Post Office Guide. The most important condition in this respect is that it should have been registered with the Press Registrar and bears in print the registered number assigned by him. A formal application has to be made to the Superintend of the nearby post office addressed to the Post Master General who after satisfying himself that the journal fulfils the conditions will issue a concession order. There is no registration fee for registering a publication at post office. After obtaining the concession order, the PR practitioner has to ensure that the copies of the journal are posted on a particular date from a specified post office. However, if he could not do this for a month or for a period of cycle, he may have to intimate the authorities of the same who will specify a convenient date on which the copies could be posted.

Mailing list: When the PR practitioner brings out regularly corporate publications in general and a house journal in particular, he has to have a mailing list compiled and kept ready much in advance. The list will contain the names and addresses of persons and their organisations including email IDs to whom the copies of publications are to be sent regularly, as a matter of routine. Generally, a comprehensive mailing list will consist (1) VIPs and Authors complimentary copy list containing MPs, MLAs etc, (2) free exchange list consisting of sister organisations, (3) voucher copy list for advertisers to be sent along with bills, (4) distribution list of heads of various sections of the organisation and its employees (5) and a file copy list to preserve a minimum of 20 copies of each issue for future reference. These lists will have to be updated periodically, say every 3 months. The publisher is also required to send some copies to the Press Registrar General, Post Master General and the Commissioner of Police/ Collector & District Magistrate of the City or District along with periodical declaration of the Publisher & Editor.

Printer: Selection of a printer is an important aspect in the process of publishing a corporate publication. Publishing often includes activities like editing, formatting and preparing the material for dissemination. Printing, however is only concerned with making many copies of the said material. It specifically focuses on the physical process of creating copies of the written content. The printer will guide the publisher on the issues like paper, format, size and the colours etc. If the requirement of the publisher and the suggestions of the printer could match, the output will be definitely good. Fixing a printer can be on the basis of calling for quotations from various printers and selecting the one who quotes the lowest or by directly entrusting the work to the empaneled printer.

Paper: Much thought has to be bestowed on the choice of paper for use in the house journal. This is dependent on the budget and the size of the journal, apart from the number of pages proposed to be given. Art paper is a costly variety, but the printing results will be good. In case the budget provision is limited, imitation art paper can be used. The usual approach is to print the cover in real art paper and the inside pages in imitation art paper or any paper of that kind.

Production norms and techniques

In respect of format of a good house journal, the demy folio that is tabloid size of 8 pages will be the ideal one in view of the scope it offers for display of reading matter and illustrations. Therefore, the best size is tabloid. The next best size is demy quarto of 16 to 24 pages. Usually, the demy folio size can carry 4 columns per page. Reading matter may be set in 8 point or 10-point body type. Headlines could be set in 18 point to 24 point, double or single column according to news value of items. Lead para that is first para of each item may be set in double column with drop letters or drop capital letters in the beginning of the first para. Side headings or sub headings could also be given. The size, style, contents, colours, number of pages etc depend upon the affordability of the organisation. It is important that the masthead i.e. the banner also called as the flag of the house journal to be attractive. More important than this is giving a suitable name to the house journal so that it indicates the organisation and its activities in one go. Logo and other insignia of the organisation will have to be used liberally in each and every issue of the journal.

External House Journal

External House Journals are designed for customers or potential customers of an organisation and are meant for external circulation. Based upon their contents, they can further be broadly grouped into three categories: i) The first category is that of a scholarly journal and can be equated in almost every respect with a standard technical journal; ii) The second category is the magazine. This contains general non-technical information and information about products of the organisation, without technical details. iii) The third category is the periodical catalogue, which is similar to a trade catalogue. The basic difference between this and the trade catalogue is, that the former is issued under the same title at regular intervals, just like a periodical publication. The size, contents and the periodicity of house journals – be it internal or external – may vary but all these serve the purpose of information dissemination.

Benefits

The house journal field has been expanding in three ways simultaneously – building circulations, adding pages and bringing out new publications for special interest groups of the sponsoring organisation. Presently, the house journals represent business, industry, labour unions, universities, colleges or fraternity, clubs, associations, religious organisations, trusts or other special interest groups. Company magazines came to perform a number of important roles within large-scale business such as the construction of corporate identity, the creation of organizational culture, the validation and negation of managerial power and the evolution of industrial welfare. It is the multi-faceted nature of the company magazine that suggests the rise in its importance and also its centrality to those interested in the relationship between business and its customers.

Summary                    

A house journal is a publication that is regularly released by an organistion to inform the public about its performance and style of functioning. It can also be used to communicate with employees, customers and other interested people. House journal is also known as in-house magazine, company magazine or house-organ.

There are three broad categories of house journals - internal, external and a combination of both. Internal house journal is published for employees or members of the organisation, whereas external house journal is brought out for customers or potential customers of the organisation. A combination publication tries to do both. With a view to maintaining continuous liaison with the employees, an organisation publishes a house journal. The house journal meant for the employees under the roof of the organisation is known as the internal house journal. It informs and educates the employees about the organisation, its concern for its employees’ welfare, its progress and problems. In a larger sense it serves as a forum for a two-way discussion between the employees on the one hand and the management on the other.

The features that are to be covered in the house journal are (1) Message of the Chairman or any top official (2) Editorial (3) A topical feature on the organisation (4) Landmarks highlighting the achievements of the organisation (5) Welfare measures undertaken by the organisation  (6) Humour page with jokes, cartoons (7) social pages containing engagements, weddings, transfers, postings, retirements, achievements of employees children (8) cultural pages covering the cultural and sports activities and (9) CSR activities of the organisation. The usual size of the house journal is tabloid or A4 and there is no limitation on the number of pages, but it usually carries a multiple of 4 pages say 8 or 12 or 16 and the like.

Having taken approval of the management and after deciding the size and the contents of the house journal, the PR practitioner shall take into account the requirements like registration, postal concession, fixing the printer, deciding on the paper and finalising the mailing lists. To make the publication attractive, the masthead may be printed in multi-colours. If there is scope, photo montage can be used regularly. Same procedure is adopted in publishing e-journals and video journals.

FAQs

1.     What is a house journal?

2.     List out the features that can be covered in a house journal?

3.     What are the requirements for bringing out a house journal?

4.     Briefly explain production norms of a house journal.

5.     List out the benefits of a house journal.

Model Answers

1.            There are many tools of communication at the disposal of PR practitioner. One such tool is House Journal. It can be Internal and External. The internal journal is meant for internal publics mainly employees. It becomes a two-way communication in an open company. An internal house journal serves as an important connection between a management and the employees. In a large corporation, a house journal reaches employees belonging to different disciplines, cadres and interests. It bridges the gap and creates a fellow-feeling among them. The external house journal is meant for external public’s like dealers, shareholders or consumers. The external house journals can also be meant for employees as well as external publics.

2.         The features that are to be covered in the house journal are (1) Message of the Chairman or any top official (2) Editorial (3) A topical feature on the organisation (4) Landmarks highlighting the achievements of the organisation (5) Welfare measures undertaken by the organisation  (6) Humour page with jokes, cartoons (7) Social pages containing engagements, weddings, transfers, postings, retirements, achievements of employees children (8) cultural pages covering the cultural and sports activities (9) CSR activities to showcase the community relations of the organisation and (10) Letters to the Editor as a feed back mechanism.

3.            The requirements to launch a house journal are (1) Registration with the Press Registrar General of India, Govt of India as per Press Registration Act 2023 (2) Obtaining postal concession from the Post Master General of Postal Department according to Post Office Guide (3) Compilation of various mailing lists by gathering the names, postal address, organisation together with email ID and other details for distribution of journal copies (4) Selecting and fixing a suitable printer by following a set procedure (5) Finalizing the choice of paper for printing (6) Deciding the mode of distribution of house journal after it is printed.

4.            The best size for printing a house journal is 8 pages in tabloid size. The next best size is demy quarto with say 16 to 24 pages. The demy folio size can carry 4 columns per page. Reading matter may be set in 8 point or 10-point body type. Headlines could be set in 18 point to 24 point, double or single column according to news value of items. Lead para may be set in double column with drop capital letters in the beginning. Side headings or sub heading could also be given. The size, style, contents, colors, number of pages etc depend upon the affordability of the organisation and the readers. The name of the house journal shall indicate the organisation and its activities. It is important that the masthead is attractive. Logo and other insignia of the organisation should also appear on the journal.

5.            The house journal field has been expanding in 3 ways i.e. building circulations, adding pages and bringing out new publications for special interest groups. House journals represent business, industry, labour union, university, college or fraternity, clubs, associations, religious organisations or other special interest groups. House journals came to perform a number of important roles within large-scale business such as the construction of corporate identity, the creation of organizational culture, the validation and negation of managerial power and the evolution of industrial welfare. The house journal is an important link between the business and its stakeholders.

 Multiple Choice Questions

1.      There are _______categories of house journals.  

a.       Two

b.      Three

c.       Four

d.      Five

2.      Editors of House Journals was constituted in _______.

a.    1961

b.    1890

c.    1956

d.    1905

3.      Internal house journal is not a _________ publication

           a.  Business

b.    Commercial

c.    Priced

d.    Free

4.      House Journal is exempted from _________ Tax.

a.       Goods & Services

b.      Income

c.       House

d.      General

5.      Press and Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023 is effective from ________

a.    26^th January 2024

b.    15^th August 2023

c.    1^st March 2024

d.    2^nd October 2023

 Keys to Multiple Choice Questions: 1. (b) 2. (c)  3. (c)  4. (a) 5. (c)

Glossary:

Masthead: Top portion of a newspaper page that contains information about the publication, including the Logo, Title, editorial staff and contact information. It may also include details about the publication’s ownership, location, advertising rates and subscription rates. It is also called Banner

Lead: An opening paragraph of an article or news item that gives the audience the most important information of the news story in a concise and clear manner, while still maintaining the readers’ interest.

Column: Columns are vertical rows of printed matter in a publication. The basic unit used to calculate the cost of newspaper advertising is the single column centimeter which is 1 cm height by 1 column in width. 

Photomontage: It is a process of combining several photos together into a new image by cutting, gluing, rearranging and overlapping them to appear as a seamless print.

Tabloid: It is the size of a paper measuring 11 inches into 17 inches and is used for a variety of applications including newsletters and house journals.

Editor: A person who collects pieces of writing by different authors and prepares them for publication in a newspaper or journal. He writes the editorial i.e. the leading article.

Publisher: A person typically owner responsible for the entire operation of a publication. Publishing includes printing, distribution, marketing as well as selecting and editing news stories, managing reports and overseeing everything.

Printer: Primarily focus on the physical production of books, journals and any publication.

Press Registrar: Is an authority appointed by Govt of India who registers and maintains a register of newspapers and periodicals.

Postal concession: Registered newspapers and publications get postal concession in the postage charges.

Key words: House Journal, Corporate publication, Editor, Publisher, Printer, 

 

Y. BABJI

Academic Counsellor, Public Relations (since 1989)

AP Open University/Dr BR Ambedkar Open University

Editor, Public Relations Voice

 LESSON - 9: NEWSLETTER & BROCHURE

  B A (JMC) (3-YDC), SEMESTER SYSTEM

SEMESTER –IV

SEC III: PUBLIC RELATIONS AND EVENT MANAGEMENT

Unit -1: PUBLIC RELATIONS

LESSON - 9: NEWSLETTER & BROCHURE

 Objectives:

1.    Know about corporate publications

2.    Understand the role of publications in corporate communication

3.    Learn about Newsletter

4.    Learn about Brochure

5.    Identify the benefits of Newsletter & Brochure

 

Introduction:

Newsletter and Brochure are the two important publications among various corporate publications. Corporate publications are the material published by corporate organisations to inform about themselves, their performance and their success etc to the public. Corporate publications are brought out either as printed material or in digital format. They are the tools that augment a P.R. practitioner's overall public relations strategy. These publications accurately portray the company's status, activities and progress. Corporate publications include everything from stationery like visiting cards to annual reports either in print or in electronic form. Organisations usually bring out folders, fliers, handbills, leaflets, posters, newsletters, prospectus, folders, pamphlets, calendars, diaries, manuals, handbooks, circulars, bulletins, guidebooks, annual reports, Chairman’s speech, internal house journal, external house journal, employee newsletters, customer brochures, pictorial albums, coffee table books, annual reports etc. Incidentally, a handout is a brochure or folder or a flier or a circular of information that can be easily handed out to people as a free distribution material. Public Relations make use of these things to inform, educate, motivate and influence the organisational publics towards its goals. They are intended for the benefit of the company's stakeholders. However, these printed word information is a potential medium of communication to reach out to a literate population only.

Corporate publications target both external and internal audiences. In this way, they are the tools that augment other communications that make up overall public relations strategy. Corporate publications are produced for two kinds of audience: internal, such as employees of the organisation; and external that is customers or other influential people, such as the media, government, financial institutions, elected representatives, community leaders, influencers, opinion leaders etc. An employees’ newsletter is an example of internal publication. A customer brochure is an example of a publication designed largely for external audiences. In this lesson we will be learning about corporate publications, especially newsletters and brochures in the practice of public relations and corporate communication.

Corporate Communication

Corporate communication has been defined by different authors in different ways. Here are some definitions in relation to public relations.

·         "Corporate Communication is about 'harmonising' all communication within an organisation to ensure consistency with corporate mission and objectives"

·         "Corporate Communication is the process of 'establishing' trust, social capital and legitimacy" - Max Weber, 1968.

·         “Corporate communication means the activities that an organization undertakes as a corporate entity and include 'public relations', the company website, the annual report, corporate identity programmes, the company logo, and any form of corporate advertising that the company carries out.” - Keith J Butterick, 2011.

·         “Corporate communications focuses responsibilities, for narrowing the gap between the organisation's desired image and its actual image; establishing a consistent organisational profile; and the organisation of communication by developing and implementing guidelines for coordinating all internal and external communications and controlling communications. Public relations complements marketing communication in achieving the aims of the organisation among external publics - it translates an identity into an image.” - Richard J Varey, 2007.

·         “Corporate communication is primarily a mechanism for developing and managing a set of relationships with publics or stakeholders who could affect the overall performance of an organisation. These relationships must be viewed in a long term strategic fashion” - William Schutz, 2007.

·    Paul A Argenti & Janis Forman in their volume, "The power of corporate communication", 2003 wrote: "By corporate communication we mean the corporation's voice and the images it projects of itself on a world stage populated by its various audiences or what we refer to as its constituencies. Included in this field are areas such as corporate reputation, corporate advertising and advocacy, employee communications, investor relations, government relations, media management and crisis communications.”

·         “Corporate communication is an instrument of management by means of which all consciously used forms of internal and external communication are harmonised as effectively and efficiently as possible, so as to create a favourable basis for relationships with groups upon which the company is dependent” - Van Rie, 2005.

·         “Corporate communication is the integrated approach to all communications produced by an organisation, directed to all relevant target groups” said Blauw, 1989.

·         Peter Jackson, 1987 defines corporate communications "as the total communication activity generated by a company to achieve its planned objectives".

While all these definitions clearly indicate that Corporate Communication is a 360-degree communication between a Corporate body or a Company with its clientele, it can be divided into four broad components:

1.    Communication by a corporation to influence stakeholders and publics for establishing better relations.

2.    Marketing communication which is directed at achieving sales and support and other management disciplines such as finance, human resource development, production etc.

3.    Organisational communication engaging those publics where there is 'interdependence' by implication with the major groups such as investors, employees and suppliers and

4.    Reputation management based on organisational performance.

Corporate communication appears to be more popular than public relations these days. This popularity is based on the idea and an assumption that the term corporate communication is broader than public relations. On the other hand, public relations is often incorrectly perceived as mere media relations and is practised in Govt organisations and public sector undertakings only. However, the fact is that public relations is practised in every entity – big or small or even for individuals like celebrities and people in politics and it is an umbrella of several disciplines. When practised in corporates, public relations is known as corporate public relations and in other words, corporate communication. Similar to public relations, Corporate communication too encompasses all communications of the company, namely advertising, marketing, government relations, community relations and employee communication etc.

Every publication brought out by a corporation is meant to communicate with people, both present and future. Thus, a vast scope exists of corporate publications in the practice of corporate communications and public relations profession.

Scope of Communication in Corporate Publications

As already said, corporate communication means any communication emanating from a company or occurring within it. The word 'corporate', however, refers to the whole body or corpus, and applies to any kind of organisation, regardless of whether it is in a private, public or not-for-profit sector. All companies including non-commercial bodies are interested in corporate communications for building their images and reputations, besides maintaining relationships with the stakeholders. These days, many corporations in the USA, Europe and even in India are using the nomenclature corporate communication for public relations discipline.

A few years ago, a student from Padmavathi Mahila University, Tirupati, selected the topic 'Public Relations in IT Industry' for her Ph.D. and went to various IT companies both in Bangalore and in Hyderabad for research. She was informed that there were no public relations departments in the companies. She came back disappointed. Based on the advice of a PR professional, she again went to these companies for information on “Corporate Communication in IT Industry”. They readily gave information. This shall make people understand that the public relations practised in Corporates is called corporate communication.   

Having learnt about Corporate publications in relation to the practice of corporate communication and public relations, let us proceed to understand the two important things among several types of publications. They are Employee Newsletter and Customer Brochure.

Newsletter

It is a letter carrying some news. It is the miniature version of a newspaper. Newsletters and newspapers are similar in that they both communicate and advertise new ideas. However, newspapers are usually distributed daily, while newsletters are often sent out weekly or monthly. A newsletter is a printed or electronic report containing news concerning the activities of a business or an organisation that is sent to its members, customers, employees or other subscribers. It is tool used by businesses and organizations to share relevant and valuable information. Printed newsletters reach the subscribers directly by post and e-newsletters are sent electronically. Newsletters are a cornerstone of any marketing strategy. Enterprises and small businesses alike can gain extremely valuable benefits from developing a monthly newsletter. To maximize the results, one needs to ensure that the newsletter is tailored to reach targeted recipients.

Production of Newsletter

The standard dimension for newsletters in print is 8.5 x 11 inches and email newsletters can be 600 x 1500 pixels. Whether in print or in digital format, the three pillars of a Newsletter are Design, Content and Value. Every great newsletter starts with design. Without a sleek, responsive design strategy, it won’t matter how great and compelling the content is. A newsletter should be easy to navigate and engaging. The key elements of an eye-catching newsletter include:

Naming the newsletter: Naming the newsletter can be a challenge. While a clever name can be fun, it is more important to be descriptive. A clever name might take too long to understand, and you could miss out on subscribers. A simple and straight forward name depicting the activities of the organisation is always better.

Headers: Like the glossy pages of a magazine, a newsletter should have a masthead that reflects the branding and encourages the audience to keep reading.

Logos: Brand logo should set the tone of the color scheme and remind readers who is responsible for valuable content in their inbox.

Imagery: Depending on the brand, the newsletters should contain either vibrant photos, vivid illustrations or a combination of both.

Content layout: Using headers and subheadings will ensure that readers can easily navigate the newsletter and understand the content at a glance.

Personalized content: When possible, it is better to include personalization elements such as addressing the newsletter to each subscriber by name. Connecting customer relationship management data makes that possible. The content within the newsletter should be highly relevant to the audience and it should provide immediate value. That means the content needs to help the readers in some way, whether that is by keeping them informed on the latest industry trends and news or by providing tips and insights on a specific topic. At this juncture, it is important to learn something about employee communication.

Employee Communication

There are certain media and methods to maintain employee relations. Let us have a look at some of the popular media for this purpose. They are (1) Induction literature (2) Information kiosks (3) Closed circuit televisions (4) Suggestion boxes (5) Shop floor discussions (6) Notice or Bulletin or Information boards (7) Clubs & Societies for sports and cultural activities (8) Visits by the management (9) Employees Newsletter (10) Internal house journals and (11) Periodical refresher or re-orientation trainings.

Communication between the management and the employees has never been as important as it is today, because Industry is becoming increasingly complex in structure and purpose. There is an urgent need for the management to maintain cordial relations with the employees keeping in view the tensions that are arising in industrial relations. There is a need for the employees to know what goes on in the company. They need information about their work, environment and besides they need to know that the management cares for them and that their caring is genuine. According to a former CEO of Du Pont Company in the US “Informed employees are better and more productive employees. They get more out of their work and they do a better job for the company”. What this CEO said is something akin to the employee communication philosophy of Arthur Page, a pioneer of public relations in US who felt that informed employees had a high morale and that a high morale made them good ambassadors to the corporation’s external public. Arthur Page also felt that the more the employees know about their business, the more intelligently they could do their jobs. Employees are deemed as the assets beyond balance sheet figures. They need to be informed by the managements. Now, let us understand as to how the employees can be informed through a newsletter.

Employees’ Newsletter

Organisations that do not publish house journals find a good substitute in what is known as 'Employees’ Newsletters'. An employee newsletter is a modest publication, modest in the sense that it contains a limited number of pages say four to eight pages, and a few pictures and illustrations. Generally, Employee Newsletters are printed in a single colour. However, Newsletters with multi-coloured mastheads are not uncommon.

Employee newsletters have come a long way. Gone are the days of flat, uninspired corporate newsletters which drown staff in floods of text. Today’s digital newsletters are rich multimedia tools for building employee engagement and changing behaviors.

Employee newsletters are a chance to engage and inform the employees about whatever topics the Organisation wants, from company news and events to updates, spotlights, and culture. Most employee newsletters are for employees’ eyes only. This allows a regular direct information and enhance employees’ experience. Employee newsletters are not only a great way to touch base with the employees on a regular basis but are also informative, engaging, reliable, and convenient.

Production of Employees’ Newsletter

Unlike in older days, employees are not confined to one particular work place. They are spread across several geographical locations and are available both physically and online. Employees today are inundated with information coming from a variety of communication channels. Reports show that professionals are spending 2.6 hours in their inboxes and receive an average of 120 messages per day. Some sections of employees while on the job may be receiving more than this number of messages and spending more time dealing with them. This is on top of messages via chat apps, project management tools, video calls, and other channels. So how to compete without noise and get the newsletters read by the employees?

The answer is engaging and fun content can help increase the readership of an employee newsletter, but not to lose sight of communications objectives. By keeping the content relevant, it is to be ensured that employees find value and keep reading. Employees’ newsletters need to balance the content that focuses on business, employer, customer and entertainment-centric content.

Benefits of Employees’ Newsletter

Let’s take a look at some of the benefits a regular newsletter brings to the workplace: They are (1) Increased employee engagement (2) Building the trust between employer and employees (3) Improving the company culture (4) Relaying important information in an interesting format (5) Providing external talking points (6) Creating an archive for communications content (7) Celebrating company and employee achievements and (8) Collecting feedback and metrics and such other incidental benefits.

Brochure

Brochures or customer brochures are information pieces mainly used to introduce a company or organization, and inform about products or services to a target audience – customers and prospective customers. Brochures are distributed by post or e-mail, handed personally or placed in brochure racks. They are usually made available near tourist attractions and hotels. Booklet brochures are made of multiple sheets most often stitched or stapled like a paperback book. Brochures are often printed using four colour process on thick gloss paper to give an initial impression of quality. Businesses may turn out small quantities of brochures on a computer printer or on a digital printer, but offset printing turns out higher quantities for less cost. Compared with a flyer or a handbill, a brochure usually uses higher-quality paper and more colour. A Brochure is a booklet with a limited number of pages. It deals with a single theme. Pictures and illustrations enhance its attractiveness as well as impact. It can be in a single color or in multi-color. Brochures carry distinct, colourfully printed covers that attract the attention of readers.

Production of a Brochure

The words brochure and booklet are used in an identical sense to denote a small publication of say 4 pages to any number of pages. Generally, it is not bulky, but 28 or 32 pages. It must always be a multiple of 4 pages in total as each folded section will make 4 pages. The PR practitioner or Corporate Communicator has to bring out brochures regularly to project the image of his organisation. This is part of his duties. Broadly speaking the theme of such brochures will be his organisation, its products and its development. In addition, related aspects of the hard core subjects could also constitute the theme of brochures. They can be brought out in a routine way as well as on special occasions, such as for instance the inauguration of a new plant or launch of a new product etc. The contents may therefore have to be so planned as to make routine brochures and special brochures equally meaningful to serve the purposes in view. Their format and lay out will differ. In these respects, the special brochures will have to look more attractive than the routine ones.

Brochures could be of different sizes. Usually they are brought out in the sizes of 6” x 9” called Memo size; 7 ½” x 9 ½” called Crown quarto size; 8 ½” x 11” called Letter size etc. It should be noted here that the size of a brochure is decided by the theme and the occasion on which it is proposed to be published. If the theme is very important and if the occasion is very significant to the organisation, then the PR practitioner may have to decide in favour of a bigger size and more number of pages. If, on the other hand, the theme is of routine nature, the size need not necessarily be a big one. As already said, a brochure will have only a limited number of pages. Generally we draw a distinction between a brochure and a booklet by number of pages they carry. If the number of pages is more we call it a booklet or book. Taking into consideration the volume of matter and the number of illustrations that should go into the proposed brochure, the PR practitioner decides the number of pages. If the reading matter is more and there are many illustrations, naturally the brochure will have more number of pages.

A basic fact that a PR practitioner has to appreciate is the scope that a brochure offers for the use of different types of illustrations with advantage. They could be colour or black & white photographs or diagrammatic representation or perhaps a harmonious combination of both. Again, a topical and relevant photo montage could also be used as a centre-spread. In this connection, the budget at the disposal will play a major role. Most of the public and private sector organisations bring out brochures on art paper to keep up their prestige, while the usual approach is to use real art paper of higher thickness of cover and real art paper of thinner inner pages. If the brochure were to be attractive, its cover as a rule should be as colourful as possible. Therefore, the cover must be in multi colours. Single color covers have become old fashioned.

Brochures of different sizes offer good scope for the display of reading matter or body matter as well as illustrations. This ought to be taken full advantage of by the PR practitioner while endeavouring to project the image of his organisation through the medium of the printed word. Almost all the sizes of brochures give ample scope to print reading matter or body matter in two or three columns instead of one column as is usually done in text books. This approach easily facilitates the use of various style of headings.

Benefits of a Brochure

In a technology-driven world, more companies are using brochures. Why? Because brochures can send the subtle message that the business is professional, reliable, and committed to quality. Here are the benefits of a brochure -  (1) Brochures are easy to distribute both offline and online. Brochures can be strategically sent or placed in a wide variety of locations. (2) Brochures are cost effective. Compared with other publications and some online marketing options, brochures are a low-cost marketing plan (3) Brochures build trust. Once the potential clients start reading the brochure, a trust can be built. (4) Brochures hold lots of information. Whether product prices are to be included or for telling the business story, plenty of space is there to get the entire message across (5) Brochures personalise the business. It is more effective than speaking to the audience at personal level and (6) Brochures establish business’s authority. While business cards or letterheads offer credibility, a customer brochure shows that the company is willing to invest further. People generally expect printed merchandise from a serious business.

Summary                    

Corporate publications are tools that accurately portray a company's status, activities and progress so as to reach its planned objectives. They are communication tools between an organisation and its various stakeholders to promote goodwill, promote organisational products and services. They include everything from stationery, calendar, diaries, newsletters, brochures, annual reports and house journals. Corporate communication means any communication emanating from a company or occurring within it. Corporate communication can be divided into four broad components: 1. Communication by a corporation to influence stakeholders and publics for establishing better relations, 2. Marketing communication which is directed at achieving sales and support other management disciplines such as finance, human resource development, production etc. 3. Organisational communication engaging those publics where there is 'interdependence' by implication with the major groups such as investors, employees and suppliers and 4. Reputation management based on organisational performance.

Employers that cannot afford to print and publish house journals, especially internal house journals meant for its internal public i.e. employees, generally resort to have employees’ newsletters to establish communication with them.  A Brochure is a booklet with a limited number of pages, say 28 to 32 pages. Generally, it is not bulky. It deals with a single theme with pictures and illustrations to enhance its impact. It can be in a single colour or in multi-colour. Brochures carry distinct, colourfully printed covers that attract the attention of readers. Government publications constitute a different and distinct category. They are mostly development communication or publicity literature for wide distribution among almost all sections of the public whereas corporate publications are from Corporate organisations to inform and impress their targeted clientele.

FAQs

1.     Define corporate publication.

2.     What do you understand by corporate communication?

3.     Briefly describe Newsletter

4.     Explain about Brochure

5.     What are the benefits of a newsletter? 

Model Answers

1. Corporate publications are tools to accurately portray a company's status, activities and progress. All printed promotional material such as newsletters, prospectuses, house journals and annual reports etc. are included. Corporate publications are produced for two audience types: internal, such as employees of the organisation; and external that is customers or other influential people, such as the media, government, financial institutions, elected representatives, community leaders, influencers, opinion leaders etc.

2.    Corporate communication means any communication emanating from a company or occurring within it. Corporate communication can be divided into four broad components: 1) Communication by a corporation to influence stakeholders and publics for establishing better relations. 2) Marketing communication which is directed at achieving sales and support other management disciplines such as finance, human resource development, production etc., 3) Organisational communication engaging those publics where there is 'interdependence' by implication with the major groups such as investors, employees and suppliers, and 4) Reputation management based on organisational performance.

3.    A newsletter is a tool used by businesses and organizations to share relevant and valuable information with their network of customers, prospects and subscribers. Newsletters give a direct access to audience’s inbox, to share engaging content, promote sales and drive traffic to the website. Newsletters are a cornerstone of any email marketing strategy. Enterprises and small businesses alike can gain extremely valuable benefits from developing a monthly newsletter. To maximize the results, one needs to ensure that the newsletter is tailored to reach targeted recipients.

4. Brochures or customer brochures are information pieces mainly used to introduce a company or organization, and inform about products or services to a target audience – customers and prospective customers. Compared with a flyer or a handbill, a brochure usually uses higher-quality paper and more colour. A Brochure is a booklet with a limited number of pages say 28-32 pages. It deals with a single theme. Pictures and illustrations enhance its attractiveness as well as impact. It can be in a single color or in multi-color.

5.    The benefits of a newsletter are (1) Increased employee engagement (2) Building the trust between employer and employees (3) Improving the company culture (4) Relaying important information in an interesting format (5) Providing external talking points (6) Creating an archive for communications content (7) Celebrating company and employee achievements and (8) Collecting feedback and metrics and such other incidental benefits.

Multiple Choice Questions

1.    Printed word is a medium of communication to reach ______ population.

a.       Total

b.      Illiterate

c.       Literate

d.      Neo-literate

2.    Informed employees are good ambassadors to the corporation’s external public, said ________

a.    Ivy Lee

b.    David Ogilvy

c.    Du Pont

d.    Arthur Page

3.    Internal Newsletter is meant for ___________

           a.  Public

b.    Employees

c.    Customers

d.    Management

4.    Brochure in print is a multiplication of _______ pages as one section.

a.       2

b.      6

c.       4

d.      8

5.    _________ is not a Corporate Publication

a.    House Journal

b.    Annual Report

c.    Gazette notification

d.    Chairman’s speech

 Keys to Multiple Choice Questions: 1. (c)  2. (d)  3. (b)  4. (c) 5. (c)

 Glossary

Publication: Something made to communicate with the public like pamphlets, folders, brochures, booklets etc.

Corporate Communication: The process of sharing information with people inside and outside a company.

Newsletter: A periodic report that contains news about an organisation or business and is sent to its employees or customers.

Brochure: It is an enlarged publication over a pamphlet with more number of pages for

giving information about an organisation / product. It is used as a piece of advertising.

Annual Report: A detailed document that provides information about a company’s activities and financial performance over the previous year.

Key Words: Publications, Corporate Communication, Public Relations, Newsletters, Brochures.

Y. BABJI

Academic Counsellor, Public Relations (since 1989)

AP Open University/Dr BR Ambedkar Open University

Editor, Public Relations Voice