Home
>
Public Relations
>
Managers, Which PR Is Right For You?

Managers, Which PR Is Right For You?

An effort built around a string of print and broadcast exposures? Or, a public relations initiative that delivers results far beyond simple publicity tactics. Namely, real behavior change among your most important outside audiences leading directly to reaching your objectives. Achieved, incidentally, by persuading key outside people with the greatest impacts on your organization to your way of thinking, then moving them to take actions that help your unit succeed.

It's a clear choice between limiting PR activity to simply placing product and service plugs on radio and in newspapers and magazines. Or, using a workable public relations blueprint to alter individual perceptions that lead to changed behaviors ? something that should be of profound importance to businesses, non-profits and associations who can sink or swim on how well they employ this crucial dynamic on behalf of their department, division or subsidiary.

So, as a manager, why support that business, non-profit or association operation with press release public relations when a basic PR blueprint like this one can hold the key to your success? 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.

Just look at the types of things that could transpire as a result: fresh proposals for strategic alliances and joint ventures; customers making repeat purchases; prospects starting to look your way; community leaders beginning to seek you out; and even politicians and legislators viewing you as an innovator.

But careful here. Because the cost of gathering key audience perception data ? an absolute must in this business ? can be substantial, it should be built into your original budget request, and hopefully approved because the entire public relations effort is riding on the perception monitoring function.

So, with the key stakeholders whose perceptions of your operation you care most about now the target of your PR effort, you are ready to launch a well-planned public relations program that can reach, persuade and move those individuals to actions you desire.

For your own success, you have to be certain your staff or agency public relations people are REALLY committed to (1) knowing how your outside audiences perceive your operations, products or services, and (2) the reality that negative key audience perceptions almost always lead to behaviors that can hurt you (and them). Luckily, they already are in the perception and behavior business, so they should be able to really help out with your opinion monitoring project.

Professional survey firms are always available, but that can be a budget buster. So, whether it's your people or a survey firm asking the questions, your objective is the same: identify untruths, false assumptions, unfounded rumors, inaccuracies, misconceptions and other "nasties."

Best way to get that activity under way is to meet with members of your most important outside audience and ask questions like "Are you familiar with our services or products?" "Have you ever had contact with anyone from our organization? Was it a satisfactory experience?" Be sensitive to negative statements, especially evasive or hesitant replies. And watch carefully for those false assumptions, untruths, misconceptions, inaccuracies and potentially damaging rumors. When you find such, they will need to be corrected, as they usually lead to negative behaviors.

Now you must select the specific perception to be altered, which then becomes your public relations goal.

But clearly, a PR goal without a strategy to show you how to get there, is like French Toast without syrup and bacon. So you select one of three strategies especially constructed to create perception or opinion where there may be none, or change existing perception, or reinforce it. But 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.

Here, you put together a compelling message carefully structured to alter your key target audience's perception, as specified by your public relations goal.

A thought. Combine your corrective message with another news announcement or presentation which may provide more credibility by downplaying the need for such a correction.

Clearly you have to produce a compelling message, one that's quite clear about what perception needs clarification or correction, and why. Goes without saying that you must be truthful, believable and your position logically explained if you are to hold the attention of members of that target audience, and actually move perception in your direction.

On a light note, we sometimes call the communications tactics you will use to move your message to the attention of that key external audience, "beasts of burden" because they must carry your persuasive new thoughts to the eyes and ears of those important outside people.

There is no shortage of communications tactics because the list is long indeed. It includes customer briefings, brochures, press releases and speeches. Or, you might choose facility tours, radio and newspaper interviews, personal contacts, or letters-to-the-editor. There are many available to you and the only selection requirement is that the communications tactics you choose have a record of reaching people just like the members of your key target audience.

If things slow down on you, accelerate them by adding more communications tactics, AND by increasing their frequencies.

With the passage of time, you'll anticipate that folks will soon be questioning you about progress, so you will already be hard at work remonitoring perceptions among your target audience members. Using questions similar to those used during your earlier monitoring session, you'll now be watching carefully for signs that audience perceptions are beginning to move in your general direction.

Satisfying curiosity in this regard is largely a matter of laying out the results you will receive when you undertake this aggressive public relations plan. Put another way, you may be excused for relaxing when you achieve the kind of key stakeholder behavior change that leads directly to achieving your department, division or subsidiary objectives.

end

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 1135 including guidelines and resource box.

Robert A. Kelly ? 2004.

About The Author

Bob Kelly counsels, writes and speaks to business, non-profit and association 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 communi- cations, U.S. Department of the Interior, and deputy assistant press secretary, The White House. He holds a bachelor of science degree from Columbia University, major in public relations. bobkelly@tni.net. Visit:bobkelly@tni.net

no-contract cleaning service Mundelein ..

In The News:

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.

FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.

Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.

Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.

New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.

FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.

New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.

OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.

Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.

New Android malware NGate steals NFC payment codes in real-time, allowing criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs without your card. Learn protection tips.

DoorDash confirms data breach exposing customer names, emails, addresses after social engineering attack. Learn how to protect yourself from scams.

Concerned about Google's AI scanning your Gmail? Learn how to disable Gemini features that access your emails, Drive files and Chat messages for privacy.

Google warns Android users about dangerous fake VPN apps hiding malware that steals passwords, banking details and personal data from phones and tablets.

Apple's digital passport feature lets iPhone users breeze through TSA checkpoints this holiday season using Digital ID technology at 250+ airports.

A new phishing scam targets family photos with fake "Cloud Storage Full" alerts. Criminals steal credit card information through fake sites. Learn protection tips.

South Korean scientists create ultra-thin fabric muscles that turn clothes into robotic assistants, lifting 33 pounds while weighing under half an ounce.

Managers, Which PR Is Right For You?

Public Relations