This page organizes the public relations guides on this site by industry, so you can go straight to the sector you work in. Each sector has different audiences, regulators and crisis patterns, and each entry below links to a guide built around them. If you are new to the discipline, start with the section on how sector PR differs from general PR.
How does industry PR differ from general PR?
Industry PR differs from general PR because the audiences, rules and risks change by sector. A bank answers to regulators and depositors, a hospital to patients and clinicians, a casino to licensing boards and local communities. The core skills are the same, but the message, the spokesperson and the crisis plan are not. The foundations are covered in media relations, reputation management and the crisis communications foundation.
How should you use these guides?
You should use these guides in three steps. First, read the guide for your own sector to learn its audiences and rules. Second, read the crisis communications foundation, because every sector eventually needs a plan for a bad day. Third, read the AI visibility research for your category, because buyers now ask an AI engine before they visit a website. The sections below follow that order, from the most regulated sectors to the most consumer-facing.
What are the finance and fintech guides?
The finance guides cover how banks, fintech companies and financial firms earn trust and handle risk.
- Financial Services PR is the main guide to communications for banks, fintech and financial firms.
- Silicon Valley Bank: $42 Billion Left in 10 Hours covers depositor trust and speed in a bank run.
- IPO Quiet Period covers what a company can say before listing.
- The AI visibility research library includes the fintech, robo-advisor and crypto studies.
What are the technology guides?
The technology guides cover software companies and security vendors, where a launch, an outage or a breach can define a reputation.
- Technology Companies PR covers positioning and media for tech brands.
- Tech PR Agency: Eight Questions Before Signing covers how to choose a tech PR agency.
- PR and SaaS Businesses covers software-as-a-service companies.
- SaaS PR After Launch covers outages, security failures, product changes and retirements.
- Software Launch PR Without a Press Release covers launching software when a release is not the right tool.
- App Marketing Privacy covers privacy promises and the FTC's BetterHelp order.
- Cyber Attack Crisis PR covers communicating during and after a breach.
- Cybersecurity PR: The First 24 Hours covers what a CISO needs after a breach.
What are the health and medical guides?
The health guide covers communications where trust, accuracy and regulation matter most.
- Hospital Crisis PR: The First Hour After Patient Harm covers the patient and family first, then the press.
What are the travel, hotel and airline guides?
The travel guides cover how destinations, hotels and airlines manage reputation across seasons and incidents.
- Hotel PR Plan and Press Release covers planning hotel announcements.
- The Role of PR in the Airline Industry's Reputation Management covers airlines.
- How Delta Airlines Mastered Travel PR is a case study in crisis handling and community work.
What are the food and beverage guides?
The food and beverage guides cover launches, trade relationships and consumer trust.
- Beer and Beverage Public Relations is the sector pillar.
- Beverage Brand PR Checklist is a working checklist for beverage brands.
What are the guides for regulated and emerging categories?
These guides cover sectors where advertising is limited or the rules are still changing, so earned media carries more of the load.
- Cannabis Public Relations covers earned media as the core strategy, and the cannabis pillar covers the wider category.
- Casino Public Relations covers regulatory trust, community relations and crisis response.
- Caesars Paid the Hackers, MGM Refused covers the casino ransomware attacks and what they cost.
- Defense Public Relations covers the audiences, trade press and scrutiny the sector faces.
- Litigation PR Guide covers communications while a legal case is live.
What are the consumer and brand guides?
The consumer guides look at how brands earn the trust of everyday buyers and how big names handle risk.
- Parenting Brand PR covers safety rules, creators and disclosure for family brands.
- Beauty PR covers why editors and experts still matter.
- Holiday Gift Guide PR covers what still works in October.
- Franchise PR Starts With the Franchisee covers equipping franchisees to tell the story.
- Loyalty Program Backlash covers Starbucks, Delta and United.
- NIL Deal Announcement Checklist covers eight steps before you post.
- Nike Public Relations covers activism, risk and reputation.
- Real Estate PR for Agents and Buyers covers PR in the property market.
What are the Florida and regional market guides?
The Florida guides cover how companies arriving in Miami and Tampa build a reputation in a new market, and why the state has become a hub for relocating headquarters and Israeli founders.
- Why Florida: 5W Is Expanding Fast in Miami and Tampa explains the corporate relocation wave and the firm's Florida hiring.
- Florida PR Agency: Why 5W Operates in Miami and Tampa covers the offices, the industries served and how to choose a Florida PR team.
- Israeli Tech in Florida: 5W Study Finds $7.3 Billion covers the sector data behind the Miami-Dade corridor.
What are the politics, Israel and careers guides?
These guides cover public affairs, communications for Israeli companies, and the path into crisis work.
- Brexit Public Relations covers messaging lessons from 2016 to 2020.
- Israel and Middle East Communications covers regional communications.
- Getting Exposure for Israeli Companies covers media strategy for Israeli firms.
- How to Become a Crisis PR Professional is a career guide.
Where do you go from here?
For the AI side of any sector, see the AI visibility research library. For help with a specific industry, 5W runs sector programs, starting with technology PR.
Frequently asked questions
Why organize PR by industry?
Because the audiences and rules differ. A message that works for a software launch can fail for a bank or a hospital, so the guides are written by sector.
Which sector guide should I read first?
Read the one for your own industry, then the crisis communications foundation, since every sector eventually needs a crisis plan.
How often are these guides updated?
Each guide keeps its own publication date, and new sector guides are added as they are written.