TFMCNB – 11/5/11 – Mediocre PR
November 21, 2011 at 4:58 PM 2 comments
In case you missed the first installment of “Thoughts From My Chinese Notebook,” these mini-posts stem from good ol’ fashioned pen & paper journaling I’ve done in a small 4×6-inch book. Short. Sweet. To the Point.
There’re plenty of opportunities to do mediocre PR.
Nothing against this; serving clients with the basics is a bountiful low-hanging fruit, and in the end agencies doing press releases on-demand are contributing to the marketing mix for organizations at the same time they’re adding credibility to the PR industry as a whole.
(BTW, “mediocre PR” doesn’t include the likes of Kim Kardashian – whatever she’s doing doesn’t qualify as Public Relations and I think most pros agree).
The difference I’m delineating is between pigeon hole PR and true strategically applied communications.
There’s responding to a request for publicity by engaging in media relations and then there’s authoring a researched communications plan that supports business objectives. Oftentimes they require the same skillset, just applied in a different manner.
A strategic approach to PR ensures your activities are aimed at the right target.
Think of it this way:
Being asked to write a press release with no information outside of the subject matter is similar to shooting blindly. No matter how straight and swiftly your arrow (the press release) flies, there’s no promise it’s aimed at the right target.
Strategy, on the other hand, takes into account the surroundings and accuracy of every tactic as well as the tactics themselves (a press release in this example). This includes business climate, other marketing/PR/Advertising activities and countless other factors.
Strategy enables success by identifying the right target. Strategy empowers PR by removing the mediocrity and tying your communication objectives back to a business need. Strategy lets you see.
Entry filed under: Uncategorized. Tags: marketing communications, marketing mix, media relations, PR, press releases, public relations, strategic communications, strategic pr, strategy.
1.
ToddSledzik (@tsledzik) | November 22, 2011 at 2:24 PM
More time = better work. Essentially this is the case for all service professions. Depending on the service, it’s just easier to convince people of the time required to do a thorough job – often based on the implied consequences.
Easy to convince people that “OnDemand,” open-heart surgery or gas line repair might be a bad idea. More difficult (in my case) to convince clients that a logo done in 2 hours, even if looks good, will likely be far less on-point and original (and thus effective) than one benefiting from 2-3 weeks of proper investigation and testing.
I RT this little diddy from @VeerUpdate, last week http://ow.ly/7w8sh
2.
Chris | November 22, 2011 at 2:39 PM
Great video keeping it simple and really reinforcing the time component. More so than better creative, I like that you’ve mentioned a crucial component to a strategic approach: research.
Whether it’s initial research (investigation), or for fine tuning (testing), getting feedback is the only way understand the issue and the most effective approach.