How About MANAGING Your Own PR?

It’s one thing for a senior manager to approve story angles for publicity folks to use in shopping around for print and broadcast placements. Not an especially large amount of managing needed there.

It’s quite another matter, however, when that senior manager, with best interests of his or her own department or unit in mind, actually overlooks reality that people act on their own perception of facts, leading to predictable behaviors about which something can be done on his or her behalf. Then compounds error by failing to insist that PR people make a special effort to create, change or reinforce perceptions of those external audiences whose follow-on behaviors really DO impact his or her unit.

That’s a bit of too bad because those two, core, public relations functions require hands-on managerial cooperation throughout organization if it’s to get its money’s worth. The two functions deserve first-class treatment because they help each manager target kind of stakeholder behavior change that leads directly to achieving his or her objectives.

Pretty important stuff!

What it says to business, association and non-profit managers is this: a key part of your job description is – or should be – do everything you can to help your organization’s PR effort as it strives to persuade important stakeholders to your way of thinking. And particularly when program works to move those stakeholders to behaviors that lead to success of your department and your programs.

In your own best interest, that means assuring yourself that your public relations program is actively MANAGED to that end.

Has anybody to your knowledge sat down and listed those external audiences whose behaviors could hurt your unit badly? Then prioritized them according to impacts they have on your operation? This is a necessary first step in creating right public relations goal for you. Here, in fact, is how public relations activity could proceed on your behalf.

Let’s take a look at audience at top of your target audience list. Because there could be negative perceptions out there, some of your colleagues will have to interact with members of that audience and ask a number of questions. “Do you know anything about our organization? Have you had any kind of contact with our people? Have you heard anything good or bad about us or our services and products?” Watch respondents closely for hesitant or evasive answers. And stay alert for inaccuracies, rumors, untruths or mis- conceptions.

“Publicrelationistas?”

Is that what we are? Fanatic, over-the-top disciples of some wretched obsession?

Well, maybe not fanatic, or even wretched or obsessive, but certainly SOLD on reality that people act on their own perception of facts before them, leading to predictable behaviors. And equally sold on next step too, create, change or reinforce that perception/opinion by reaching, persuading and moving-to-desired-action those people whose behaviors affect organization.

Why am I sold on what amounts to a fundamental premise for public relations? Because it’s best way to insure that you, as a manager, get key external audience behaviors you need to help achieve your unit objectives.

It also makes proper execution of public relations program very important to other managers like yourself in any business, non-profit or association.

Here’s one approach that can work just fine.

Jot down your unit’s, or department’s, most important audiences, then prioritize them as to impacts they exert on your operation. Let’s look at #1 on list because, clearly, any organization, including yours, must stay in touch with its most important external audiences in order to know how it is perceived, remembering of course, that behaviors usually follow perceptions.

Now, you need to interact with members of your target audiences, monitor what they think about you and ask lots of questions. “What do you know about us? Have you had any contact with us. Was it satisfactory?” and so on. Be alert to an untruth, an inaccuracy, or a potentially damaging rumor.

The responses to your opinion monitoring form basis for your public relations goal. In other words, specific perception to be altered, followed by desired behavior change.

Obviously, goal will seek corrective action. That is, clear up a misconception, scotch a rumor, or correct an inaccuracy.

But a goal without a strategy is like a hot dog without a bun.