What are the Benefits of Publicity? 

Publicity is beneficial for the following reasons:

• Cost - (Usually) There's no cost to publicity. Compare this with advertising campaigns that may entail extensive costs. 
• Influential - Often, publicity is more influential than other marketing methods. The mode and source of transmission of information tends to be trusted more than paid methods. 
• Carryover Potential - This means that publicity tends to carry from one person to the next better than other means of advertising. This is generally by virtual of the method by which publicity spreads (word of mouth). 

When is Publicity a Negative? 

The negative aspects of publicity are as follows:

• Control - The biggest potential drawback with publicity is that we don't control the message. So, as a company, trying to sell a product or service, we don't control the message when it comes through publicity. That is, we can't control who transmits it, the message itself (the content or accuracy of the content), etc.  
• Effect - Publicity can be very harmful (particularly when it is inaccurate), because people tend to trust the source and what is being said. As such, the impact of the publicity can be greater than that of advertisements.