Is This the PR You Thought You Were Getting?

You know, where you do something positive about the
behaviors of those outside audiences that MOST affect
your organization? And where you do so by persuading
those important external folks to your way of thinking,
then move them to take actions that help your department,
division or subsidiary succeed?

Yes, that’s right, it’s where you use the fundamental
premise of public relations to produce external stakeholder
behavior change – the kind that leads directly to achieving
your managerial objectives.

What it boils down to is (1) your public relations effort must
involve more than special events, brochures and news
releases if you really want to get your money’s worth, and
(2), the right PR really CAN alter individual perception and
lead to changed behaviors that help you succeed!

You can do it when you bring that fundamental premise of
PR mentioned above, into play. It goes 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.

What kind of results can you, as a business, non-profit or
association manager, expect from such an approach? Well,
for starters, improved relations with government agencies
and legislative bodies, stronger relationships with the
educational, labor, financial and healthcare communities;
prospects starting to work with you; customers making
repeat purchases; and even capital givers or specifying
sources looking your way

And that’s not all. You also could see progress in the form
of membership applications on the rise; new proposals for
strategic alliances and joint ventures; rebounds in showroom
visits; enhanced activist group relations, and expanded
feedback channels; as well as community service and
sponsorship opportunities; not to mention new thoughtleader
and special event contacts.

Yes, that’s promising quite a bit but that’s what this
approach to public relations is capable of delivering.

Of course the PR people supporting you as a manager –
agency or staff – must be real team members and committed
to you, as the senior project manager, to the PR blueprint
and its implementation, starting with target audience
perception monitoring.

Ask yourself how important it is that your most important
outside audiences really perceive your operations,
products or services in a positive light? Then assure
yourself that your PR staff buys into that notion
wholeheartedly. Be especially careful that they accept
the reality that perceptions almost always lead to
behaviors that can help or hurt your unit.

Review the PR blueprint in detail with your team,
especially the plan for monitoring and gathering
perceptions by questioning members of your most
important outside audiences. Use questions like these: how
much do you know about our organization? How much
do you know about our services or products and
employees? Have you had prior contact with us and
were you pleased with the interchange? Have you
experienced problems with our people or procedures?

The perception monitoring phases of your program
obviously can be handled by professional survey people,
IF the budget is available. But keep in mind that your PR
people are also in the perception and behavior business
and can pursue the same objective: identify untruths,
false assumptions, unfounded rumors, inaccuracies,
misconceptions and any other negative perception that
might translate into hurtful behaviors.

Clearly, you will need a well-defined goal, one that
responds to the aberrations that appeared during your key
audience perception monitoring. As a flexible goal,
it could call for straightening out that dangerous
misconception, or correcting that gross inaccuracy, or
doing something about that damaging rumor.

Inevitably, a goal needs a strategy to show you how to
get there. And here, you have three strategic choices for
handling a perception or opinion challenge: create
perception where there may be none, change the
perception, or reinforce it. Unfortunately, a bad strategy
pick will taste like fudge sauce on your spareribs, so be
sure the new strategy fits well with your new public
relations goal. For instance, you don’t want to select
“change” when the facts dictate a “reinforce” strategy.

Changing people’s minds to your way of thinking is
a tough assignment, so your PR team must set down the
needed corrective language. Words that are compelling,
persuasive and believable AND clear and factual. You
must do this if you are to correct a perception by shifting
opinion towards your point of view, leading to the
desired behaviors.

Sit down again with your communications specialists and
review your message for impact and persuasiveness. Then,
select the communications tactics most likely to carry your
words to the attention of your target audience. You can pick
from dozens that are available. From speeches, facility tours,
emails and brochures to consumer briefings, media interviews,
newsletters, personal meetings and many others. But be sure
that the tactics you pick are known to reach folks just like
your audience members.

Because the credibility of a message can occasionally
depend on its delivery method, you might introduce it
to smaller gatherings rather than using higher-profile
tactics such as news releases or talk show appearances.

One good thing about doing progress reports for clients or
bosses is that they sound the alert for you and your PR folks
to return to the field for a second perception monitoring
session with members of your external audience. Using
many of the same questions used in the first benchmark
session, you must now stay alert for signs that the bad news
perception is being altered in your direction.

If impatience shows up, you can always accelerate things
with more communications tactics and increased frequencies.

It should be an irresistable premise for any manager!
Do something positive about the behaviors of those outside
audiences that MOST affect your organization. And do so
by persuading those important external folks to your way
of thinking, then move them to take actions that help your
department, division or subsidiary succeed.

Wow!

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