Storytelling in Public Relations: A Literature Review on Social Enterprises

Abstract

Public relations, especially one dealt with storytelling, is a marketing communications tool that creates long-term value for every types of entrepreneurs. Particularly social enterprises, storytelling plays a pivotal role in formulating a sense of emotional value between a social enterprise and its stakeholders (Lapirattanakul, 2010, p. 9). It also leads to entrepreneurial transparency through a vivid description of how social entrepreneurs are committed to help society and environment. Due to such importance, this study has two-folded objectives: a) to examine key characteristics, roles, and approaches of storytelling in public relations in the context of social entrepreneurship, and b) to study major public relations channels that disseminate the stories to the public. To respond to the study’s objectives, a systematic PRISMA document-based research is adopted through documental and empirical research studies in the relevant topic. The findings reveals that social entrepreneurs use the stories of pressing social problems and the enterprise’s solutions to address such problems, followed by the stories of the entrepreneur and the target beneficiaries respectively. As for public relations channels, most social entrepreneurs were found to publicize their stories whilst holding special events. This is followed by website and social media and public speaking in the leading forums as well as media interviews. The study’s results at least add on existing academic knowledge base and ignite the need of this topic among researchers. Practitioners could find the study’s results beneficial to their formulation, operation and development of storytelling and public relations tools.