Don't Use PR...

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Robert A. Kelly © 2003.

Don’t Use PR…

…lose the confidence of your key target audiences…
discourage them from taking actions that lead to your
success…fail to achieve your department, division or
subsidiary objectives.

A sad scenario that should not occur. In fact, as a
manager in a business, non-profit or association, the
exact opposite can occur based on a simple premise you
can adopt and make happen starting today.

And here it is: 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.

Then, follow through!

Meet with the PR people assigned to your unit, sit down
and list those outside audiences with the greatest impact
on your operation. Then prioritize them and we’ll use #1
on the list as our example for this article.

What do you know about the perceptions of that key
external audience whose behaviors can affect the success
or failure of your unit’s operation? Probably not as much
as you should despite the reality that existing perceptions
almost always lead to predictable behaviors.

Make some time for you and your PR colleagues to monitor
those key audience perceptions by interacting with audience
members and asking a lot of questions: Do you know
anything about us? Might you have need for our services or
products? If you’ve ever had contact with our organization,
was it satisfactory? Do you have an opinion about us?

Keep your antenna up for hints of negativity, and your eyes
peeled for misconceptions, inaccuracies, untruths, rumors
or exaggeration.

What you will have gathered is the data you need to identify
the most severe perception problem alive and kicking in that
#1 external audience of yours. This becomes your corrective
public relations goal. For example, clear up that unfortunate
misconception; correct that inaccuracy; or tone down that
exaggeration.

Now, the question persists, how do you get to that goal? You
need a strategy. But, when it comes to altering perceptions or
opinions you have just three strategic choices: create perception
where none exists, change existing opinion/perception, or
reinforce it.

Be careful here that your new strategy is a natural fit with
your new goal. Obviously, if you discovered negative perceptions,
you wouldn’t select the “reinforce” strategy.

Next step is a writing challenge. Prepare a message bearing a
real burden – alter the offending perception. That means the
message will have to change what a lot of people have come
to believe. However, it can not be done unless your message is
very clear about what is wrong with the current perception. In
addition, it must be truthful if it is to be persuasive, and
compelling if it is to be believable. Spend some time on this
step in the problem-solving sequence and try it out for its
effectiveness on folks whose opinions you value.

If you goof the message, the entire effort may fail.

In most cases, you won’t want to call too much attention to
this perception-altering message by using a high-profile news announcement. Rather, include it as part of another
announcement, a speech or related presentation.

Now, it’s message delivery time. Here, you select the right
communications tactics to carry your message to the attention
of members of your target audience. You’re in luck because
there are so many tactics waiting to help you reach those
audience members. They range from speeches, brochures,
op-eds and radio/newspaper interviews to newsmaker events,
newsletters, press releases and many more.

And double-check the tactics you select to make certain they
actually reach people similar to those you want to reach.

In short order, all concerned, including you, will want to see
signs of progress. Only way to nail this down is to once again
monitor audience member perceptions with many of the same
questions you used during your benchmark opinion monitoring
exercise.

If you decide the effort must move faster, you can always
fine-tune the message, add new communications tactics to the
battle and increase their frequencies.

So, the message of the article NOW becomes, “Use PR,”
gain the confidence of your key target audiences, persuade
them to take actions that lead to your success, and achieve
your department, division or subsidiary objectives.

end