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PR Performance You Should Expect

by Robert A Kelly

Publicity placements are satisfying, but when it's REAL public relations performance you want, you had best shoot for creating the kind of external stakeholder behavior change that leads directly to achieving your managerial objectives.

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Robert A. Kelly © 2006.

PR Performance You Should Expect

As a business, non-profit, government agency or association
manager, one way or the other (and sooner or later), you'll
be paying for some kind of public relations results.

And hopefully, results that do something meaningful about
the behaviors of those important audiences of yours that
MOST affect the organization you manage.

Better yet, results that create the kind of external stakeholder
behavior change that leads directly to achieving your
managerial objectives.

And even better still when those results reflect how your
follow through persuaded those key outside folks to your
way of thinking as you helped move them to take actions
that allowed your department, group, division or subsidiary
to succeed.

In my view, the alternative is unacceptable: managers
preoccupied with simple tactics like press releases,
broadcast plugs, special events and brochures, which
deny them the best that public relations has to offer.

Instead, what is needed is good public relations
planning that really CAN alter individual perception
resulting in changed behaviors among key outside
audiences. But that only happens when you demand
more than just communications tactics. That's when
you'll receive the quality public relations results you
deserve.

Results, incidentally, based on a highly proactive premise
that can easily go your way: 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.

When managers adopt such an approach to public relations,
the desired end-products should soon emerge. For instance,
prospects begin to do business with you; membership
applications start to rise; welcome bounces in show room
visits occur; customers starting to make repeat purchases;
capital givers or specifying sources beginning to look your
way; new proposals for strategic alliances and joint ventures
start showing up; politicians and legislators begin looking
at you as a key member of the business, non-profit or
association communities; and community leaders begin to
seek you out.

Still another epiphany occurs when you realize that the
public relations people on your staff can be of real use for
your new opinion monitoring project. After all, they're
already in the perception and behavior business. But to be
certain, determine if those PR folks really accept why it's
SO important to know how your most important outside
audiences perceive your operations, products or services.
And this is really important: be sure they believe that
perceptions almost always result in behaviors that can
help or hurt your operation.

Is your PR plan now complete? Better sit down and review
it carefully with the public relations professionals on your
team, be they agency, staff or parent. Discuss how you will
monitor and gather perceptions by questioning members
of your most important outside audiences. Ask questions
like these: how much do you know about our organization?
Have you had prior contact with us and were you pleased
with the exchange? Are you familiar with our services or
products and employees? Have you experienced problems
with our people or procedures?

If you decide that, instead of mobilizing your PR staff as
key audience data gatherers, you may try professional survey
firms to do the job. Just know that that may require more
expense than using those PR folks of yours in that monitoring
capacity. But whether it's your people or a survey firm
asking the questions, the objective remains the same: identify
untruths, false assumptions, unfounded rumors, inaccuracies, misconceptions and any other negative perception that might
translate into hurtful behaviors.

The most serious problem areas uncovered during your key
audience perception monitoring call for setting a realistic,
achievable PR goal. For example, will your goal be to
straighten out a dangerous misconception? Correct a gross
inaccuracy? Or, stop a potentially painful rumor before it
does more damage?

To show you how to reach that new goal, a matching strategy
should be established. However, there are only three strategic
options available to you when it comes to solving perception
and opinion problems. Change existing perception, create
perception where there may be none, or reinforce it. But the
wrong strategy pick will taste like raspberry jam on your
collard greens . So be certain your new strategy fits well with
your new public relations goal. You certainly don't want to
select "change" when the facts dictate a strategy of
reinforcement.

One of the keys to success in public relations is the
persuasive message, one that helps move a key
audience to your way of thinking. It must be carefully
written, and aimed directly at your key external audience.
Lean on your best writer to accept the assignment because
s/he must produce language that is not merely compelling,
persuasive and believable, but clear and factual if it is to
shift perception/opinion towards your point of view and
lead to the behaviors you have in mind.

Who will carry that message to the attention of your
target audience? Well, with your message written,
approved and ready to go, you and your people must
answer that question this way:"Communications tactics."
And there is no shortage of such tactics available to you.
From speeches, facility tours, emails and brochures to
consumer briefings, media interviews, newsletters,
personal meetings and many others. But be certain that
the tactics you pick are known to reach folks just like
your audience members.

It's an unfortunate, but true aspect of public relations
that HOW you communicate your message will bear
heavily on its believability, always fragile at best. Which
is why you may wish to unveil your corrective message
before smaller meetings and presentations rather than
using higher-profile news releases.

Fact is, a second perception monitoring session will be
needed to measure your progress in moving key audience
perception,. The results will be your first progress report.
Happily, you can use many of the same questions used in
your benchmark session. But now, you will be watching
for signs that the bad news perception is being altered in
your direction.

Oh, yes. Because a program occasionally can lose some
of its early velocity, here are two remedies. Either add
more communications tactics, or increase their frequencies,
or both.

And finally, publicity placements are satisfying, but when
it's REAL public relations performance you want, you had
best shoot for creating the kind of external stakeholder
behavior change that leads directly to achieving your
managerial objectives. And do so by persuading those key
outside folks to your way of thinking by helping move
them to take actions that allow your unit to succeed.

end

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