The impact of Public Relations on the Tourism Industry; a study based on Tourism in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Tourism is a very historic industry in the world. At present tourism has booming demand among people who love to travel around the world. Public Relations (PR) is a distinct function that creates an organizational image, reputation, goodwill, and interactive understating among its key public. PR plays a big role in tourist destination marketing and attracts several tourists. It provides huge support for retaining tourists for a long period competing with competitive tourism countries and companies smoothly. This study mainly focuses on identifying what is public relations and tourism, the relationship between PR and Tourism, the Role of Public Relations in the Tourism industry, and identifying how Public Relations build a Sri Lankan country's image in the global tourism industry. A qualitative approach is used for this research. The research study concludes that Public Relations and Tourism have a very close relationship; it plays a big role in promoting tourist destinations and builds a positive image among world tourists consumers. Also, the study reveals that at present numerous Public Relations strategic plans and campaigns are implemented to uplift the Sri Lankan tourist image, to decrease the negative impact of the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks and the Covid-19 impact on the tourist customers.