Josh, originally from New York, and Gina, originally from Germany, met while obtaining their MBA’s from Babson College in Wellesley, MA. The owners launched Beyond Blossoms after writing a business plan for an entrepreneurship class. “We were looking for a business that would allow us to be creative and sell something that people love. Flowers are perfect item,” Josh states. In 2003, company began servicing clients in Boston Metro area before moving to New Hampshire in August 2004 after completing its first round of financing.

Beyond Blossoms buys its flowers straight from grower to make sure they’re fresh. Using only 2-3 kinds of flowers in each bouquet, company gives arrangements a sophisticated look different from garden-style bouquets (which typically use a large mix of flowers and colors). A good example is company’s Mediterranean Stroll Bouquet. It combines orange roses, purple trachelium, and lime green bupleurum. Each bouquet is hand-tied so recipients don’t need to do any arranging. Finally, flowers are shipped by FedEx overnight in gift box so recipient doesn’t have to be home for delivery.

Professional survey people obviously can handle perception monitoring phases of your program, IF budget is available. But always remember that your PR people are also in perception and behavior business and can pursue same objective: identify untruths, false assumptions, unfounded rumors, inaccuracies, misconceptions and any other negative perception that might translate into hurtful behaviors.

What about your public relations goal? You need a goal statement that speaks to aberrations that showed up during your key audience perception monitoring. And it could call for straightening out that dangerous misconception, or correcting that gross inaccuracy, or doing something about that damaging rumor.

When you set a goal, you need a strategy that shows you how to get there. You have three strategic choices when it comes to handling a perception or opinion challenge: create perception where there may be none, change perception, or reinforce it. A bad strategy pick will taste like marinara sauce on your brownies, so be certain new strategy fits well with your new public relations goal. For example, you don’t want to select “change” when facts dictate a “reinforce” strategy.

Because persuading an audience to your way of thinking is awfully hard work, your PR team must come up with just right, 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 desired behaviors.

Sit down again with your communications specialists and review your message for impact and persuasiveness. Then, select communications tactics most likely to carry your words to 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 tactics you pick are known to reach folks just like your audience members.

You’ve heard old bromide about credibility of a message depending on its delivery method. On chance it’s true, you might think about introducing it to smaller gatherings rather than using higher-profile tactics such as news releases or talk show appearances. The need to produce a progress report will sound alert for you and your PR folks to return to field for a second perception monitoring session with members of your external audience. Using many of same questions used in first benchmark session, you’ll now be watching very carefully for signs that bad news perception is being altered in your direction.

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

Finally, like a military unit, your public relations effort can use an action-oriented motto: right PR really CAN alter individual perception and lead directly to changed behaviors that help you succeed.

end

Bob Kelly counsels 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. mailto:bobkelly@TNI.net Visit:http://www.prcommentary.com