Business Directory for Business Information | Richmondjwj.org

PR’s Only True Measure

Sure, you could measure the rather narrow results achieved by tactical subsets of your public relations program like special events, brochures, broadcast plugs or press releases. On the other hand, you as a business, non-profit or association manager might better measure the results of your strategic efforts to alter individual perception among your key outside audiences leading to changed behaviors, which then help you achieve your managerial objectives.

I mean, can we agree that managers MUST plan to do something positive about the behaviors of those important external audiences of theirs that most affect their operation?

And especially so when they persuade those key outside folks to their way of thinking by helping to move them to take actions that allow their department, division or subsidiary to succeed?

But it takes more than good intentions for any manager to alter individual, key-audience perception leading to changed behaviors, something of profound importance to ALL business, non-profit and association managers.

He or she needs a plan dedicated to getting every member of the public relations team working towards the same external audience behaviors which insures that the organization’s public relations effort stays sharply focused.

The plan could be based on a foundation that looks like this: 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.

Results can materialize faster than you might suspect.For example, bounces in showroom visits; new proposals for strategic alliances and joint ventures; customers making repeat purchases; prospects starting to work with them;membership applications on the rise, and capital givers or specifying sources looking their way.

Watch the real performers at work. They find out whoamong their key external audiences is behaving in ways that help or hinder the achievement of their objectives. Then, they list them according to how severely their behaviors affect their organization.

Next they must determine how most members of that key outside audience perceive the organization. If the resources to pay for what could be costly professional survey counsel aren’t there, Ms. or Mr. manager and his or her PR colleagues will have to monitor those perceptions themselves. Actually, the PR folks should already be quite familiar with how to gather and assess perception and behavior data.
Read the rest of this entry »

Managers: Should Your PR Budget Stress Tactics or Strategy?

If public relations tactics like special events, brochures, broadcast plugs and press releases dominate your answer, you’re missing the best PR has to offer.

Such a budget would tell us that you believe tactics ARE public relations. And that would be too bad, becauseit means you are not effectively planning to alterindividual perception among your key outside audienceswhich then would help you achieve your managerialobjectives.

It would also tell us that, even as a business, non-profit orassociation manager, you’re not planning to do anything positive about the behaviors of those important external audiences of yours that MOST affect your operation. Nor are you preparing to persuade those key outside folks to your way of thinking by helping to move them to take actions that allow your department, division or subsidiary to succeed.

So, it takes more than good intentions for you as a manager to alter individual, key-audience perception leading to changed behaviors. It takes a carefully structured plan dedicated to getting every member of the PR team working towards the same external audience behaviors insuring that the organization’s public relations effort stays sharply focused.

The absence of such a plan is always unfortunate because the right public relations planning really CAN alter individual perception and lead to changed behaviors among key outside audiences.

If this sounds vaguely familiar, try to remember that your PR effort must require more than special events, news releases and talk show tactics if you are to receive the quality public relations results you deserve.
Read the rest of this entry »

Managers: Let’s Call a Spade a Spade!

Please feel free to publish this article and resource box in your ezine, newsletter, offline publication or website. A copy would be appreciated at bobkelly@TNI.net. Word count is 1145 including guidelines and resource box.
Robert A. Kelly © 2005.

Managers: Let’s Call a Spade a Spade!

Brochures, broadcast plugs and press releases – don’t call them public relations. Call them what they really are, valuable tactical devices which public relations calls upon from time to time to move a message from here to there.

Nothing more, nothing less, and certainly not public relations’ Mother strategy which (1), marshalls the resources and action planning needed to alter individual perception leading to changed behaviors among a business, non-profit,or association’s most important outside audiences. And (2), goes on to help a manager persuade those key folks to his or her way of thinking,
then (3) moves them to take actions that allow their department, group, division or subsidiary to succeed.

The management reality behind such an achievement is the underlying premise of public relations: 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 usually accomplished.

The good news for those managers is that the right public relations planning really CAN alter individual perception and lead to changed behaviors among key outside audiences.

You may be such a manager. If you are, try to remember that your PR effort must demand more than special events, news releases and talk show tactics if you are to receive the quality public relations results you deserve.
Read the rest of this entry »

Change Your Tone – Media Coverage Shouldn't Be Toned By Software

The world of PR is benefiting from dramatic changes in the way media coverage is being delivered electronically to your computer desktop or PDA of choice. Perhaps the nuisance of ink on your fingers is being replaced by a bad case of “BlackBerry thumb” — but nevertheless getting your media coverage electronically has never been easier or more mobile.

These changes now drive the development of new tools from content providers, and new software programs to help better manage and analyze media coverage. The automation occurring at the database level and through the real-time delivery of organizational news, to internal and external stakeholders, is now almost taken for granted. And the holy grail of PR — to automate media analysis and measurement — is already under way; but where should software stop to make way for human analysis?.

Media analysis programs can save countless hours quantifying and sorting media coverage in an unlimited number of ways, including by circulation, region, ad equivalency, company programs and services, and competitive brands. However, do you really want a computer program qualifying how each story affects your organization? It’s a gamble with little upside.

Just Say No

The automation of tone and sentiment has already been incorporated into some software programs, but how accurate can it be? Every story, across every medium, will have a dramatically different meaning or impact for various organizations and their stakeholders. Behind the news emerge both winner and losers.
Read the rest of this entry »