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 800 including guidelines and resource box. Robert A. Kelly © 2003. Make Your PR Budget Work Harder
Do it by restructuring your business, non-profit or association public relations program so that it delivers
stakeholder behavior changes you want. Changes that lead directly to achieving your objectives.
A good first step is to base restructure on a reality like this: People act on their own perception of 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 very people whose behaviors affect organization most, public relations mission is accomplished.
Then, if you haven’t done so already, think about your important outside audiences and how their behaviors can help or hinder your organization. List them in order of damage severity, and let’s talk about #1 on roster.
Obviously, before you decide how to deal with external audience perceptions and, thus, behaviors, it makes sense to find out what members of that target audience really think about your organization.
If you are not equipped with a budget to pay for professional survey work, you and your colleagues,have little choice but to interact with audience members and that means using penetrating questions – “What do you think of us? How much do you know about us? Have you ever had contact with our people? If so, was it a positive experience?” Stay alert to negativities, and watch closely for inaccuracies, misconceptions, and exaggerations.
The data you gather from such monitoring activity let’s you identify most severe perception problem, then establish it as your corrective public relations goal. Which allows you to straighten out that misconception, correct that inaccuracy or deflate that exaggeration.
Your goal isn’t worth much by itself. It needs a buddy, and that buddy is a strategy that shows you what you must do to achieve goal. Luckily, there are only three strategies to choose from when it comes to perceptions and opinions. Reinforce existing opinion, change it, or create perception where none exists. Here, by way, you must take care that your chosen strategy fits naturally with your new goal.
