C’est la Vie: Netflix’s Marketing and PR Confusion

Published on November 13, 2020, at 9:58 p.m.
by Emie Garrett.

Between the chic clothes, upbeat French soundtrack and sweeping shots of Parisian architecture, it’s easy to get caught up in the world of “Emily in Paris,” one of Netflix’s newest original series.

“Emily in Paris” follows Emily Cooper, a young marketing professional from Chicago, who’s given the opportunity of a lifetime when her boss, Madeline, unexpectedly can’t jet off to Paris to work with a partner marketing firm for a year. Emily is then offered the position and doesn’t hesitate to grab it. What follows is a montage of mishaps, zany work adventures and, of course, love — she is in the “City of Love,” after all.

As I watched — or rather binge-watched in one sitting — the first 10 episodes of the show, I found myself searching things like “easy chocolate croissant recipes” and “where to buy cute berets” on Google. While I quickly fell in love with Emily’s world, there was one thing about her new career in Paris that kept nagging me.

The main reason Emily moves to Paris is to work for a marketing firm, yet much of the work she does and the goals she sets for said marketing firm align more closely with the work of public relations professionals. I then thought back to my own pre-college confusion about the differences between marketing and public relations.

For many, the line where marketing ends and public relations begins can get blurry. While there are some areas of overlap, there are also distinct differences between the functions and goals of each.

For instance, in episode three of the series, Emily is concerned that a risqué ad for her firm’s client, a French perfume company named De L’Heure, will be perceived as sexist by its female stakeholders in the United States, a critical audience for the brand. In the episode, Emily says, “We need to be sensitive to the way women are thinking now. I want to protect your brand.”

Emily is concerned about De L’Heure’s brand image and its relationship with key audiences. This is a public relations concern, as PR practitioners’ main focus and goals are building mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics. PR is about engaging with and influencing organizations’ stakeholders in order to build long-lasting, positive relationships. Putting out a sexist ad would certainly impede creating connections with key publics of a perfume company.

On the other hand, marketing is focused on creating and building brand engagement with consumers in order to drive sales. Marketing prioritizes an organization’s bottom line, whereas PR is focused on building brand-audience relationships.

In episode five, Emily thinks of a social media campaign for another client, Hastens, a mattress company. The campaign will consist of Hastens placing its mattresses in multiple, busy locations in Paris, “the most irresistibly Instagrammable spots,” as Emily puts it. Passersby will be encouraged to sit or lie in the beds and take photos to post on Instagram.

In this situation Emily is less focused on creating mutually beneficial relationships with audiences and more honed in on creating an experience that drives consumer engagement with the brand in hopes that it will drive revenue as well, aligning with the goals of marketing professionals.

“Emily in Paris” creators have successfully produced a fun show with an easy-to-get-lost-in atmosphere that makes you want to go out, buy a beret and book a one-way flight to Paris — but maybe next season they should consider changing Emily’s job title.