| What do your customers say about your company? | | | | company's interfaces. The focus is on establishing the |
| Would you let your major competitor control your | | | | company image, and will impact the reception you |
| sales strategy? | | | | garner from each of these audiences. Confirming the |
| Public relations is an inevitable consequence of being in | | | | corporate message needs to practiced with all |
| business. Whether you like it or not, your corporate | | | | departments working in unison because conflicting |
| image evolves with every interaction with clients, | | | | signals will undermine the significance of any future |
| investors, competitors, and even between your own | | | | efforts. For example, your marketing team cannot be |
| employees. Thus, managing perceptions of your | | | | contradicting what the product team asserts for |
| company is just as important to the bottom line as | | | | product capability. |
| what you sell and who buys it. Unfortunately, many | | | | A company's image is most important for |
| companies see PR as a reaction to external forces | | | | non-customers. What do your competitors say about |
| and lose control over market direction as a result. | | | | you? Do they take you seriously? Do your suppliers? |
| As with all other corporate activities PR should be | | | | How about industry analysts? Do potential employees |
| treated as a strategic process. Adopting a strategic | | | | want to work for your company? These impressions |
| PR campaign enables a company to not only compete | | | | do count and can determine the company's |
| better in the marketplace, but also be successful | | | | maneuverability in a dynamic market by determining |
| across market boundaries. Being proactive rather than | | | | access to needed resources and strategic options. |
| reactive means establishing long-term goals that are | | | | Strategic PR delivers a consistent, credible message |
| measurable and repeatable and that will ensure | | | | that establishes a foundation for future efforts and |
| longevity and achievement for the company. The | | | | results. |
| setting of objectives, milestones, and metrics | | | | Corporate Strategy Alignment |
| guarantees that any and all PR activities are aligned | | | | Knowing your company's short-range and long-term |
| with the company's objectives and will deliver real | | | | aspirations is vital in setting the tone for any and all PR |
| results. | | | | campaigns. Having a clear direction allows definition of |
| By answering the following questions, a strategic | | | | long-term goals and short-term milestones to be set |
| process will emerge for PR that will support all of the | | | | and success to be measured. As with other corporate |
| company's process and goals. | | | | processes, the PR campaign should be aligned with |
| Who are you? | | | | management's objectives and reinforce the other |
| What do others say about us? | | | | corporate efforts. Buy-in is needed from all rows and |
| What are the corporate objectives? | | | | columns in the company's organizational table. Through |
| How can we control the PR process? | | | | strategic public relations initiatives, the necessary steps |
| Your Internal Identity | | | | will be developed to implement the plan that will |
| The reality is that good PR begins at the office: | | | | support and promote reaching desired results. |
| possessing a strong sense of corporate identity on all | | | | Ultimately, by transmitting the company's mission |
| levels is key to having a consistent and credible public | | | | through the attitude and actions of all stakeholders, a |
| image. It is the responsibility of management to | | | | common vision will take hold that will ensure success |
| articulate to all employees the company's mission | | | | Increasing Your Perceived Value |
| statement and make it actionable. This is a message | | | | Obviously, not all of the aspects of external perception |
| that will be repeated and demonstrated to external | | | | mentioned above can be controlled (i.e. competitors). |
| audiences daily through virtually every company | | | | This is the reason, however, that strategic PR must be |
| interaction. Employees who believe in the mission | | | | implemented as a proactive process. A consistently |
| statement will display the corporate image through their | | | | delivered message, encompassing both words and |
| actions. Indecision, multiple, or conflicting messages at | | | | deeds, across all facets of the corporate identity will |
| any level will have a negative impact and inadvertently | | | | mitigate even the worst things that others might say |
| kill any momentum that might be achieved. | | | | about your company. To ensure success, PR needs |
| By making PR a strategic process and not a reaction | | | | to be managed with the same seriousness as sales, |
| to external situations, a consistent message will be | | | | product development, and marketing activities. The |
| developed across all corporate segments. Applied | | | | entire corporate team must believe in the goals (which |
| correctly, it is a message that will eventually evolve into | | | | will be infectious to all who hear the message) and the |
| corporate attitude and culture. Actively defining the | | | | process (which will generate buy-in at all levels). Most |
| image of your company ultimately impacts the | | | | importantly, an executive must be assigned to shape |
| credibility obtained from all sectors: employees, | | | | and coordinate the message across the various |
| investors, customers, competitors, and the general | | | | outlets and channels. Inclusion of an outside PR |
| public. Actions speak louder than words and govern | | | | professional can be a valuable addition, to avoid |
| how all outsiders will interact with you. Establishing a | | | | group-think and maintain objectivity (which underlies |
| mission that is accepted and adopted by every | | | | credibility). |
| segment of your company will aid in verifying your | | | | Conclusions |
| value. | | | | A strategic PR campaign is an often-neglected |
| Your External Identity | | | | component in establishing a company's market position |
| Initiating a strategic PR campaign allows your company | | | | and chances of success. It is not focused on just the |
| to control its place in the market by defining | | | | marketing or sales team, but provides them with a |
| perceptions across all segments of the value network. | | | | strong foundation to leverage, built on the attitude and |
| It is more than just a clever marketing campaign to | | | | image of the total organization. Like all other important |
| support your products - it is an extension of the | | | | corporate activities, PR must be implemented as a |
| corporate identity. Think about what others say about | | | | well-defined process that is proactive instead of |
| you - your customers, competition, shareholders, and | | | | reactive, with short- and long-term goals as well as |
| the general public. In today's economy the response | | | | objective metrics. By developing this new mindset, your |
| needs to be in harmony. | | | | company can maximize its potential by controlling |
| A coordinated PR strategy is critical to delivering a | | | | external perceptions. |
| consistent and compelling message across all of your | | | | |