Articles like this (Does your business need PR?) tend to raise some important issues. For example, is there more to PR than press releases?
Yet the discussion of the role of public relations in growth businesses neglects one thing: every individual and every organisation is doing public relations whether they know it or not. The question should be how you manage your public relations, and what it aims to achieve.
I’m still surprised that the successful experience of two iconic growth businesses – Microsoft and Google – is not more widely discussed in articles such as these. Public relations first, advertising last (if at all) is one lesson they teach us.
PR Studies 
Richard, I’m PR Manager at a large law firm that previously had very little media coverage. During my first year I’ve focused on building relations with key media, giving them interesting stories, often exclusively. The last five months we’ve had a minimum of press releases, still this is the five months with most (positive) press coverage for this firm in years, probably ever. Lesson learned? PR is first and foremost about relations. Once journalists know you and trust you, then they might pick up your press releases.
I think that’s why I prefer the term communications over public relations. Most of us who practice in the field are not just “relating” to the public. We relate to – and communicate with – a large variety of audiences.