Can you please explain what does this mean? "opinion leaders as catalyst" and in relation to public relations.

Question

Can you please explain what does this mean? "opinion leaders as catalyst" and in relation to public relations.

Answer 1

"Opinion leaders as catalyst"

Okay, say  you wear a new sort of sneakers to school.  They're a little different, and you're not sure how they'll go over.

Then, the most popular girl in school sees them, and, in front of her friends, says, "Oh my gosh, I LOVE those shoes."

By the end of the month, a quarter of the school is wearing shoes just like yours.

In that scenario, the popular girl was the opinion leader, and her remark was a cause, or a catalyst, for everyone to buy shoes like yours.

In history, it could be something like the people who hated Marie Antoinette being the catalyst leading to the downfall of the French Monarchy.

This relates to public relations because you want to get the opinion leaders to support your position or else you have an uphill battle when it comes to selling a law, an action, or a product.

For example, if President Bush wants to get everybody behind him on some issue (that has never seemed to be one of his priorities), he would, say, attempt to appeal to Oprah Winfrey and Rush Limbaugh.  If those two approve any of his actions, he's got probably 60-70% of the population hearing one of them endorsing it.