Despite there being quite a lot of differences between public relations and advertising, many people still tend to think of these two separated trades as being one and the same. There are certainly things in common between the two, for they are part of the same immense industry of communication. However, these are two fundamentally distinct disciplines, as we’re about to see.
The most important aspect to note here is that advertising is paid media. It is all about paid announcements that can be promoted through every conceivable type of mass media. Public relations, on the other hand, is earned media. It is a strategic communication tool which uses different channels to create favorable relations for the company.
A good communications team will try to use the PR toolkit in order to promote their clients company in an organic way. Advertising is always a valid option and one that should be used when necessary, but not abused.
For more on the differences between Advertising and PR, read this very informative article published by The Balance: