Bruce Freeman, who owns a marketing and public relations firm, writes a column on small business for Scripps Howard News Service. Today he talks about the difference between public relations and advertising and whether owners should take on that task themselves.

Public relations involves marketing, not sales.

Its purpose is to increase the marketplace’s knowledge and awareness of your business.

It is accomplished primarily by convincing trusted media sources to write or say something positive about you.

You can’t buy good opinions or recommendations outright, but you can purchase the services of a good PR agent for less than it costs to advertise.

The question for many small businesses is: Should I try to do PR myself?

I often ask people if they are good at maintaining relationships.

Are you disciplined enough to take at least five hours a week to cordially contact journalists and editors, review editorial calendars, and thank those who comment about your business even if you disagree with their opinion?

Are you willing (and able) to compose press releases, write articles and pitch stories to 20 journalists and then faithfully follow-up with people who are hard to reach and harder to pin down?

If you can’t give an unqualified “yes” to any one of these questions, it’s better to hire a professional rather than to do PR yourself.

Once you’ve decided to hire a professional, look for a genial personality who maintains a variety of journalistic relationships over a long period.

Much of PR is accomplished through long-term relationships or recommendations from people who know of one another.

Chances are that even if a good PR agent doesn’t know your market, they know someone who does.

Next, ask for press releases and articles placed for recent clients. You’ll get an idea of quality and what to expect.

Finally, PR is not free. Long-term journalistic relationships are worth money and you’ll have to pay for that access. The key is to use the initial placements as a springboard for more and better placements over time.

PR is a long-term marketing function — of six months to a year — and does not guarantee increased sales, but it can help you succeed.