Want This Kind of PR?

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Robert A. Kelly © 2004.

Want This Kind of PR?

PR that really does something positive about the behaviors
of those outside audiences that most affect your business,
non-profit or association?

PR that uses its fundamental premise to deliver external
stakeholder behavior change – the kind that leads directly
to achieving your managerial objectives?

PR that persuades those important outside folks to your way
of thinking, then moves them to take actions that help your
department, division or subsidiary succeed?

Get organized and you could be looking at results like these:
prospects starting to do business with you; membership
applications on the rise; customers starting to make repeat
purchases; fresh proposals for strategic alliances and joint
ventures; community leaders beginning to seek you out;
welcome bounces in show room visits; higher employee
retention rates, capital givers or specifying sources beginning
to look your way, and even politicians and legislators starting
to view you as a key member of the business, non-profit or
association communities.

And the fundamental premise of public relations will show
you the way: people act on their own perception of the facts
before them, which leads to predictable behaviors about
which something can be done. When we create, change or
reinforce that opinion by reaching, persuading and moving-
to-desired-action the very people whose behaviors affect the
organization the most, the public relations mission is accomplished.

As a manager, if you’re serious about making your public relations
dollars earn their keep, you had better take the time to actually list
those outside audiences of yours who behave in ways that help
or hinder you in achieving your objectives. Then prioritize
them by impact severity. Now, let’s work on the target
audience in first place on that list.

I’ll wager that you don’t have access to data that tells you
how most members of that key outside audience perceive your
organization. You would, however, have these data if you had been
regularly sampling those perceptions.

But without a hefty budget to hire professional survey people, you
and your colleagues will have to monitor those perceptions
yourselves. Interact with members of that outside audience by
asking questions like “Have you ever had contact with
anyone from our organization? Was it a satisfactory experience?
Are you familiar with our services or products?” Stay alert
to negative statements, especially evasive or hesitant replies.
Watch carefully for false assumptions, untruths, misconceptions, inaccuracies and potentially damaging rumors. Any of which
will need to be corrected, because experience shows they
usually lead to negative behaviors.

Since you must correct such abberations before they morph
into hurtful behaviors, you now select the specific perception
to be altered, and that becomes your public relations goal.

Unfortunately, a PR goal without a strategy to show you how
to get there, is like meatloaf without the gravy. That’s why you
must select one of three strategies especially designed to
create perception or opinion where there may be none, or
change existing perception, or reinforce it. The challenge
here is to insure that the goal and its strategy match each other.
You wouldn’t want to select “change existing perception”
when current perception is just right suggesting a “reinforce”
strategy.

Now writing skill enters the fray. Someone on your PR team
must put those writing skills to work and prepare a compelling
message carefully designed to alter your key target audience’s
perception, as called for by your public relations goal.

Consider combining your corrective message with another
newsworthy announcement of a new product, service or
employee which may lend credibility by not overemphasizing
the correction.

Try to build several values into your corrective message.
Clarity for example. It must be clear about what perception
needs clarification or correction, and why. Your facts
must be truthful and your position must be persuasive, logically
explained and believable if it is to hold the attention of members
of that target audience, and actually move perception your way.

Here is the least challenging part of your campaign, picking
the “beasts of burden” – the actual tactics you will use to carry
your persuasive new thoughts to the attention of that external
audience.

There are plenty of communications tactics available including
letters-to-the-editor, brochures, press releases and speeches. Or,
you might select others such as radio and newspaper interviews,
personal contacts, newsletters, or group briefings, always
making sure the tactics you select have a record of reaching
the same audiences as those that make up your target stakeholders.

You’ll want to be ready for queries about progress by again
monitoring perceptions among your target audience members.
Using questions similar to those used during your earlier
monitoring session, you will now watch carefully for indications
that audience perceptions are beginning to move in your direction.

We are fortunate in the PR business that we can always put the pedal
to the metal by employing additional communications tactics,
AND by increasing their frequencies.

As this article suggests, you WILL want this kind of PR only
after you insist on an aggressive new public relations plan that
targets the kind of key stakeholder behavior change that leads
directly to achieving your operating objectives.

end

About the Author

Bob Kelly counsels, writes and speaks to managers about using the fundamental premise of public relations to achieve their operating objectives. He has been DPR, Pepsi-Cola Co.; AGM-PR, Texaco Inc.; VP-PR, Olin Corp.; VP-PR,
Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co.; director of communications, U.S. Department of the Interior, and deputy assistant press secretary, The White House. mailto:bobkelly@TNI.net Visit:http://www.prcommentary.com