From Zero to Hero in Two Weeks:
The 14-day research plan
that can save your job
(and maybe your company, too!).

by Mark G. Daly

The big meeting is in two weeks and you have been ordered to demonstrate the effectiveness of the company’s public relations program. The not-so-subtle hint is that your job is on the line: You have 14 days to convince management to keep you around.

The economy is down and management is looking for ways to cut costs. Budget cuts often affect the marketing department before other departments, and marketing decision-makers must decide what areas to cut. Advertising is often pitted against PR for this tough decision. Without evidence of its influence, PR often falls by the wayside, and the company struggles on without it, or exists with limited PR. It’s your job as a PR professional to show your department's effectiveness and to save your own butt while you’re at it.

There is a common misconception that public relations is media relations. Although media relations is an important aspect of PR, it is only one part of the whole. Another misconception is that PR deals with “The Public,” generally meaning consumers. Dealing with consumers is another aspect of PR, but it is also only a portion of the whole. Good public relations means working with all your “publics.” With that in mind, it’s time to get to work.

Day 1: Get oriented.

Defining your publics is one of the first steps to a successful PR strategy. Your publics are the thought leaders in your industry, the “influentials.” They are employees, management, key customers (and former customers), partners, competitors, analysts, bankers, advertisers, editors, trade journalists and key Web sites. Your customers naturally look to these players for opinions.

Know your publics and you’ll have a better understanding of your company and its industry, a critical step in public relations.

Day 2: Meet with the big guys.

Insist on meeting with the CEO, the head of marketing, and other important company management. Without executive buy-in, any PR program will stagnate. Remember, your job security is in their hands.

Listen attentively to what these people have to say. Be prepared with a list of questions that will help you to understand their needs, the business’s needs and the needs of your publics. Ask the executives what they expect from the PR program and their impression of the company. Ask them what keeps them up at night.

Take the opportunity to ask what the company’s mission is and what messages it is trying to communicate; these are the foundation of an effective PR program. If they don’t exist, hammer something out right away, even if it’s just a preliminary statement. A company without a mission is, well, a company without a mission.

Most importantly, really listen to what the big guys have to say. They will be able to tell you a lot about the company’s goals and its publics. Their perception of the company will give you valuable insight.

Days 3-4: What’s important to your publics?

You need to know what is important to your publics in order to form an actionable plan. Use all the resources available to you for determining these needs. Employees and the company Web site are a good starting point.

Find out where the publics go for information. Determine the influential industry Web sites and trade journals and find out what thought leaders are saying about your company. Understand what generates your company’s image and learn the needs of your varied publics.

Salespeople and customer service people have the best access to customers (customers are the first tier of publics). Customers have a working relationship with company representatives. Interview these employees to find out what customers and potential customers have to say. Complaints and compliments are equally useful. Getting the full picture of the company is the goal, so gather as much information as you can.

Visitors to the company Web site can give you good information as well, so make sure that the Web site collects useful data from them. Find all past customer and employee surveys and data from customer focus groups. All of this information will help you to see the big picture.

Days 5-6: Invite influential publics to lunch.

Organize a luncheon for key analysts, editors, and influentials. Give them what they are looking for: Offer good food, company brochures, press releases and a fair amount of time for questions and answers. Make sure you communicate your company’s mission and its messages. The goal is to get them to carry your message for you and thereby influence your publics.

Days 7-9: Create some copy.

By now, you are itching to do some ‘traditional’ PR work so you can have something in black and white to show management when the time comes. Now that you have a better understanding of the company, you can start to use your knowledge to develop a public image.

Find some positive aspect about the company (a satisfied customer is a good angle) and write about it. Use that copy in press releases, internal newsletters and in direct mailing to current, potential and former customers. Be concise and convincing. Quote influentials, as third-party endorsements have greater impact.

Days 10-13: Look for results and plan for the meeting.

Look for reactions to your efforts while continuing to study your company, its place in the industry, and the publics’ image of it.

Look for ways to refine the company’s mission and messages, based on what the perception of the company is. Continue to write new copy about products and interesting events and people within the company.

Day 14: The big meeting.

Management expects to see a return on their investment expressed in a language they understand, and that means charts and graphs and hard numbers. Don’t bother with stacks of clippings, focus groups or anecdotal data. Hit them with the numbers and when they pick themselves up off the floor, hit them again with MORE numbers. They’ll never forget your success.

So, if you have a positive customer story, make sure you know how much that customer spends with the company each year. If you’ve scored some good press, leave the clip book at home. Instead, show them a chart that demonstrates how many potential customers you’ve reached with your message and how you compare to the competiton.

Whatever you do, remember: Just the facts ma’am.

Mark G. Daly is an independent PR analyst in Portsmouth, NH. He can be reached at markgdaly@aol.com.

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