Pressure From the Top?

Yes, and that pressure often comes from a CEO who knows what a public relations investment SHOULD produce.

And do public relations folks fear such pressure? Not those who've got the answers!

For example, "we're spending your public relations investment in the most effective way - insuring that our most important external audiences perceive us accurately, understand what we do, and end up taking those actions we desire.

"We're operating from a solid foundation," Mr/Ms Chairman, or Executive Director. Namely, people will act on their own perception of the facts before them. And those perceptions will lead 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 those folks whose behaviors affect your business, the public relations effort is a success.

So, what actions flow from that underlying premise?

First, we run a kind of G-2 operation by interacting with our most important external audiences - customers, members, prospects, technical specifiers and employees, among others. Here, we ask questions and gather information.

We need to know how they perceive our operation and our management. We listen carefully to what they say about us, especially our products or services. At the same time, we track print and broadcast media and other feedback sources.

We believe it's important to watch for developing misconceptions and inaccuracies. Particularly potential problem areas that may need corrective action. Problems like suggestions of technical difficulties with our products, personnel questions, perceptions of obsolescence, or trouble-making competitive rumors.

Once we've identified perceptions that need correcting, the question is, what is our strategy for getting it done? Here, we must ask ourselves whether we need to create a certain perception where none exists, change an existing perception, or merely reinforce it.

This is really important because the answer obviously will affect the persuasive messages we're about to prepare to correct the misperceptions.

So we carefully put together what we hope will be really compelling messages. Then, we aim them at those key target audiences we discovered are harboring misconceptions that, left unattended, will certainly result in behaviors we don't like. Our objective will be to move that opinion in our direction.

Now, not surprisingly, we must select communications tactics, known in some quarters as "beasts of burden," that are carefully structured to carry those persuasive messages directly to the attention of members of that key target audience.

Communications tactics range from one-on-one meetings, newspaper and radio interviews and press releases to open houses, speeches, brochures, newsletters and promotional events. There are literally scores of such tactics available to you.

Finally, we must gauge the impact of our communications activity by continuing to meet with members of that key target audience, and by monitoring our other feedback sources. We will watch and listen for signs of developing awareness of you, your operation and how it functions. But especially for indications that any misconceptions, or other problems we discovered, have been resolved.

"Mr/Ms Chairman, at the end of the day, I believe you want us to use our expertise in a way that helps you achieve your business objectives."

Thus, regardless of what strategic plan we create to solve a problem, regardless of what tactical program we put in place, when all is said and done, we must modify somebody's behavior if we are to earn our keep.

And that is our certain path to public relations success.

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.

Robert A. Kelly ? 2003

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 communications, 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.

Visit: bobkelly@tni.net; bobkelly@tni.net

home cleaning services Bannockburn ..

In The News:

Spotify's managed accounts for kids under 13 now available in at least seven countries, allowing parents to filter and block explicit content and songs.

Friendly text conversations about BBQs and social events can lead to WEEX gold trading scams that target older adults with fake investment opportunities.

California company Skyeports creates self-healing glass spheres from Moon regolith that generate solar power and support plant growth for sustainable lunar living.

Cleafy researchers discover fake VPN streaming app Mobdro Pro that installs Klopatra banking Trojan, giving attackers full control over Android devices.

Police departments across the U.S. and Canada are adopting virtual reality training to better prepare officers for high-pressure, real-world situations.

House Bill 469 would prevent AI systems from owning property, serving as executives, or gaining legal personhood in Ohio under Representative Thaddeus Claggett's proposal.

Public voter records expose retirees' personal details to election scammers who create targeted cons using names, addresses, and voting history data.

Instead of fearing what comes next with artificial intelligence, think outside the box. Here are high-earning AI jobs that don't require a computer science degree.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says polite words like "please" and "thank you" cost millions annually, while direct prompts may improve ChatGPT accuracy by several points.

Chattee Chat and GiMe Chat exposed intimate conversations and photos, revealing users spent up to $18,000 on AI companions before the breach.

New Instagram parental controls allow families to manage teen screen time and content limits through the Family Center with stricter safety settings.

Third-party security breach at Discord exposes sensitive user information including government IDs, highlighting cybersecurity risks from external service providers.

Survey of 1,000 students shows teens using AI for personal relationships while two-thirds of parents remain unaware of their children's AI usage.

Cybersecurity experts warn about a ShadowLeak vulnerability that weaponized ChatGPT's Deep Research agent to steal personal data from Gmail accounts through hidden commands.

Tesla's Full Self-Driving system faces federal investigation following 58 reports of crashes, with six vehicles running red lights before colliding with other cars.

The Fox News AI Newsletter brings you the latest developments on artificial intelligence, with news on OpenAI moving to soon allow erotica for adult users.

Eric Schmidt alerts that hackers can reverse-engineer AI models to bypass safety measures, citing examples like the jailbroken ChatGPT variant called DAN.

Cybercriminals exploit Microsoft Teams through impersonation, malicious links and fake profiles to gather intel and deliver ransomware to personal and work devices.

Google, Dior, Allianz and dozens of other companies lost sensitive customer data in Salesforce-related breaches affecting millions of records across multiple sectors.

Apple launches iOS 26 with new Preview app that combines document editing, PDF annotation and scanning features into one streamlined iPhone experience.

New AI road monitoring system uses sensor-embedded fabric to predict infrastructure problems, potentially reducing maintenance costs and traffic disruptions for cities.

Holiday charity scams target retirees through lookalike organization names, untraceable payment requests, and data broker information to steal donations.

The Federal Trade Commission says criminals are posing as IRS agents, law enforcement officers or other officials, often over the phone or online, to steal thousands of dollars at a time.

AI phishing scams now use voice cloning and deepfake technology to trick victims, but Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson reveals warning signs to watch for.

Inversion Space unveils Arc, a reusable reentry vehicle that can deliver up to 500 pounds of cargo from orbit to anywhere on Earth in under an hour.

Pressure From the Top?

Public Relations