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The differences between public information officers and public relations can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a public information officer and a public relations. Additionally, a public information officer has an average salary of $56,725, which is higher than the $48,383 average annual salary of a public relations.
The top three skills for a public information officer include press releases, web content and community outreach. The most important skills for a public relations are press releases, web content, and facebook.
| Public Information Officer | Public Relations | |
| Yearly salary | $56,725 | $48,383 |
| Hourly rate | $27.27 | $23.26 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 129,237 | 22,721 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
The primary job of a public information officer involves the promotion of a positive public image on social media. Public information officers offer significant information during a crisis. They collect facts and distribute them to the media and organize special events like awards ceremonies. Typically, they work for large organizations and government agencies. They maintain their online presence that can be part of the duties of public information. Also, they can work for long hours on an irregular schedule, especially when the incidents or situations affect the organization.
Public relations is a strategic way of developing and maintaining a client's or company's public image through media coverage, appearances, and press releases by designing and developing events to raise funds or to spread awareness to the public regarding products, brands, or individuals. It involves research and evaluation of programs including financial, marketing, employee, or government relations using topics of public interest and news items. Due to our present technological innovations, public relations now use webinars, blogs, and downloadable resources under one convenient website.
Public information officers and public relations have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Public Information Officer | Public Relations | |
| Average salary | $56,725 | $48,383 |
| Salary range | Between $38,000 And $83,000 | Between $32,000 And $72,000 |
| Highest paying City | Fairfield, CA | Richmond, VA |
| Highest paying state | Delaware | Virginia |
| Best paying company | City of Fairfield | Edelman Financial Engines |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Professional |
There are a few differences between a public information officer and a public relations in terms of educational background:
| Public Information Officer | Public Relations | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Communication | Communication |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between public information officers' and public relations' demographics:
| Public Information Officer | Public Relations | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 43.7% Female, 56.3% | Male, 36.1% Female, 63.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.8% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 5.1% White, 75.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 11.9% Asian, 5.3% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 16% | 12% |