APR 271 EXAM 1 (PHASE 1 FORMATIVE RESEARCH: STEPS 1-3: WEEKS 1-4)
Swann's Definition of Public Relations
"If you ask a hundred people, you would probably get a hundred different replies—and sever confused looks"
Public Relations & Other Disciplines
-Advertising -Marketing -Journalism
SWOT analysis
strengths: internal competitive advantages weaknesses: internal limitations opportunities: externally favorable conditions threats: external barriers to success
Public Perception
· Visibility: the extent to which the organization is well known. · Reputation: general/long-term impression of the organization.
UA's Betsy Plank: The Plank Center Definition of Public Relations
"A strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics." -strategy: "a plan of action or policy designed to achieve a major or overall aim." -communication: "the imparting or exchanging of information or news." -process: "a series of actions or steps taken in order to achieve a particular end." -mutually beneficial relationships
PRSA Definition of Public Relations
"PR is a strategic communications process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics"
Key Resolution Questions for Risk Assessment
-How can this situation be resolved? Can it be resolved to the mutual benefit of everyone? -How strongly committed is the organization to solving he issue?
What are key/target publics?
-publics we want to specifically engage -may be critical in success -most influential to our overall success
Edward Bernays, a founding father of Public Relations Definition of Public Relations
"The three main elements of public relations are practically as old as society: informing people, persuading people, or integrating people with people. - "Of course, the means and methods of accomplishing these ends have changed as society has changed."
Finding Consensus
(smith pg.29) emphasizes coming to a consensus. -The communications team and client/ must agree on: - The key facts relevant to a situation. - Is it really an obstacle/ opportunity? - That the issue is an important thing to address. - Are there other, more pressing issues to address? i.e., should we commit time and resources to it now?
A More Practical Definition of Public Relations
- "Protect the brand, condition the market, fortify the workforce." - Protect the brand: Making the reputation better, reputation management - Condition the market: getting target publics to do the things we are trying to persuade them to do, creating the environment - Fortify the workforce: employee communication, not consequential. Everyone publishes today and has the potential to be on social media. Keep them informed. - Consumer facing -Two-way communication needs to be relevant to the public
Start by analyzing available Secondary Research
- Ask yourself: - Is the existing information accurate? - Is the existing information thorough? - Does the existing information directly address your specific situation? - If a systematic review of secondary information leaves substantial concerns, consider primary research.
Key Background Questions for Risk Assessment
-Has the issue been dealt with before? -What really caused the situation? -Relevant history -Most important facts -How could this affect our organization's reputation/relationships?
Key Consequence Questions for Risk Assessment
-How does the situation affect/relate to the organization's business or mission? -How serious/resource intensive should our response be? -Is this a one-time issue or something ongoing? -Who/what is affected by the situation? -What is the overall impact on our bottom line? -If the situation is an obstacle, is it possible to turn it into an opportunity?
First question to ask
-Is the situation an opportunity or an obstacle?
Why is Public Relations valuable?
-PR should have a purpose, this purpose should provide value for an organization - Swann identifies nine organizational benefits
Charleston Animal Society Case Study
-Problem: people thought it was sleazy; image needed rebranding b/c a new $11 million facility was set to open within the year -Solution: Spike vs. Biscuit, a campaign to see which animal would be president of the new facility; used political-style ads -Goals: educate public, build positive credibility, increase number of adoptions -Rawle Murdy (Charleston, SC) created this award winning campaign
What Public Relations is NOT
-about hype or exaggeration, don't make things up, we know the limitations -is not secretive -does not manipulate people -it is not only about publicity - cleans up mess, but avoids mess in the first place -not just a tool of a big business, it is used by every kind of organization -sometimes we are asked to do things that we sometimes cannot do
What is a stakeholder?
-any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of the organization's objectives -relate to organization through their potential impact on the mission and objectives
Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC)
-blending PR and marketing communications within an organization -encourages consistency and working towards common goal; increases impact at minimal cost
What is Public Relations?
-build the brand, condition the market, fortify the workforce -some companies just try to tell the people "what they want to hear", but you actually need to understand the audience -tied to the business goals of the organization -includes: social media, media relations, news releases, etc. -art and social science, management function -responsibility we have the potential of our messaging -many definitions contain both organizations and publics
Value of Sustainability
-can contribute to brand creation -supports employee retention & talent acquisition objectives -resonates with customers and other key audiences -connects with local communities
Audit: Smith's Internal Environment, External Environment, and Public Perception
-explores internal and external factors that are both conducive and prohibitive to success -breaks each of the 3 sections down to give categories like a checklist -Internal: performance, ethical base, niche, internal impediments, structure -External: supporters, competitors, opponents, external impediments -Public Perception: vision, reputation
Edward Bernays and the Bacon Case Study
-father or PR; felt 3 main elements were informing people, persuading people, integrating people with people -people began turning to cereal instead of bacon, so Beechnut and Bernays got doctors to say that bigger breakfasts (including bacon) were healthier for Americans -Bernays wasn't pushing the specific brand, so it didn't seem like an ad; bacon sales rose
PSE Bulb Research
-looked at report on pros and cons of distributing free CFLs -gathered new consumer data and analyzed preexisting data -Found two main audience segments: Green Idealists (Believe it is socially responsible to limit energy use; Well versed in environmental issues (about 14% of customer base)) and Practical Idealists (Also believe in limiting energy use, but are mostly motivated by saving money (about 23% of customer base))
Publics in Stages Examples
-nonpublics:residents of Trenton, NJ and the Westminster Kennel Club -latent publics:· An animal shelter & senior citizen (many would benefit from animal companionship) A brand that traditionally focuses on white middle-class consumers and middle-class Hispanic consumers -apathetic publics:Local citizens in a drought stricken community who do not pay attention to a municipal water board's water usage recommendations. Re message to them -aware publics:· people with high blood pressure who understand but don't follow the American Heart Association's diet and exercise recommendations. Remove that barrier, understand that issue to try to remove barrier to engage with them. -active publics:· People with high blood pressure who understand and follow the American Heart Association's diet and exercise recommendations.
Value of Strategic Planning
-people don't trust business and media ("fake news", post truth era) -dynamic communications environment: digital disruption, changing audience views -increasing diversity in US -important to understand strategy early in career; critical to be good at it later in career
Swann's 9 Organizational Benefits
-provides awareness and information -fosters internal motivation -provides early warning system -helps identify opportunities -helps manage crises -helps ameliorate "executive isolation" -helps facilitate change -helps promote social responsibility -helps influence public policy
Psychographic Segmentation
-psychographics are more for personality and what a person likes, what are they about,how does this person make choices, what music to listen to, what is about the person to make them do these types of things. -ex: activity, interest, behaviors, values, attitudes, opinions -more what type of messaging would resonate with a person -have been used mainly by advertising in the past but now PR is using them to cut through clutter and understand publics
Haagen-Dazs Loves Honey Bees Case Study
-relevant because a big selling point of HD is their use of all natural ingredients, which bees are needed for -received over 125,000,000 PR impressions in the first week (goal for whole year) -partnered with farmers' markets, grocery stores; had magazine ads made of seed paper
Rubbermaid Recession Case Study
-sales began to plunge in 2008 with worsening economy; investors became concerned; HR reported high employee stress -Rubbermaid set out to mobilize employees; launched a global education campaign; had CEO come out dressed in mountain climbing gear as a kickstarter -earnings ended up growing by 8%
PR as a management function
-supports business goals -responsible for corporate reputation/brand -drives or supports sales and marketing efforts -manages critical relationships: customers, potential customers, media -interprets and acts on data and market
Case Study: Puget Sound Energy's Rock The Bulb Tour: Research
-three research sources to help plan the campaign: -an evaluation report of 2008 PSE CFL give-away pilot program that identified the pros and cons of distributing free CFLs -a detailed customer segmentation study that identified attitudes, beliefs and current energy efficiency behaviors -
Analyzing the Organization
-time now to collect everything and move forward, that being an audit -conduct an audit you need to gain an understanding of how the organization sees and understands itself -does it have an accurate picture? -does it align with the campaign you've planned?
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
-top level is extremely hard to achieve -relevant to PR because if you can figure out what need level consumers are at you can market more effectively -Understanding the publics and audiences and there is a hierarchy of the way people are motivated, groups of people are in different places. basic needs that everyone has.
four phases of strategic planning
1. Formative Research 2. Strategy 3. Tactics 4. Evaluative Research
Publics in Stages
1. Nonpublics (not significant; doesn't share common interests/issues with org) 2. Latent/Inactive Publics (may share common interests/issues but does not recognize this; low levels of knowledge/involvement but have potential to engage) 3. Apathetic Publics (aware of an issue but really don't care) 4. Aware Publics (share an issue with org and believe it to be meaningful/important, but don't/can't take action) 5. Active Publics (know about an issue/situation and take relevant action)
Six Steps to Stay Ahead of Issues
1. environmental scanning 2. research/analyze issue 3. consider response actions 4. develop action plans 5. implement plans (if necessary) 6. evaluate effectiveness of response
Analyzing the Organization cont.d
Businesses are for-profit organizations. · Revenue is distributed to owners/shareholders. Non-profits use any earned revenue to further their organizational goals. · Non-profits are granted "tax exempt" status as they aim provide some form of social enrichment. There are many different types of for-profit and non-profit organizations. Who owns a for-profit company? The shareholders. Publicly own company, the media is more interested in.
Categories of Publics (Smith: see exhibit 3.1 on pg. 68)
Customers (former, current, potential, secondary) Producers (suppliers, personnel, financiers) Enablers (media, opinion leaders, allies, regulators) Limiters (opponents, competitors, hostile forces)
Enablers: Opinion Leaders
Individuals or groups that can, themselves, influence the opinions of others -Smith refers to those people as "intercessory people/publics" -can be formal or informal
Issue vs. Situation
Issue: A broad set of events, trends, or developments that have potential impacts on your organization Situation: The specific affect of an issue on your organization -not all issues require action, whereas all situations require action
Company Statements
Mission Statement=brief description of an organization's purpose; theoretically guides its decisions Vision Statement=brief description of what the organization desires to do or the impact it hopes to have on the world Value Statement=brief description of the set of beliefs that drive an organization
Three Categories of Companies
Nonprofit: used any earned revenue to further their organizational goals and are granted "tax-exempt" status as they aim to provide some form of social enrichment. For-profit (can be private or public) -privately held=one owner (could be huge company, could be small family owned company) -publicly held=shareholders have ownership stake; government regulated by SEC
Situation Analyses are research intensive, How do we get necessary information?
Primary and Secondary Research
Primary vs. Secondary Research
Primary=conducted firsthand -specific to the on-hand situation -ex: focus groups, interviews, surveys, etc. Secondary=data/info that already exists -may be internal (collected within the organization) or external (compiled outside the organization -includes casual web searches *Primary research usually costs more time and money... do you have these resources to spare? ex.) internal= previous program assessments, financial data, employee performance. external= audience reports, industry reports, trend analysis
What is your definition of Public Relations?
Public relations is a process of strategic thinking and planning in order to establish strong connections and efficient communication between organizations and the public. When I think of public relations, the words, "deliberate and planned" stand out to me. Public relations is the act of establishing efforts that are well thought out and planned. I am most interested in the reputation aspect of the profession, reducing any negative perceptions that organizations may have by gathering support from the public, etc.
PR Acronyms
RPIE (Research, Planning, Implementation, Evaluation) ROPE (Research, Objectives, Programming, Evaluation) RACE (Research, Action, Communication, Evaluation) ROSIE (Research, Objective, Strategies, Implementation, Evaluation)
Smith's Four Phases of PR: Phase One
Research -Analyze the situation -Analyze the organization -Analyze the publics
PR vs. Marketing
Similar: -both are persuasive in nature -both commonly identify consumers as a key public -both emphasize the value of relationships Different: -public relations is broadly concerned with an organization's reputation while marketing is primarily concerned with the organization's bottom line -marketing relies extensively on paid media -marketing is outwardly focused while public relations focuses on both internal and external publics
PR vs. Advertising
Similar: -both persuasive in nature -both rely heavily on mass communication oriented tactics/executions Different: -advertising uses paid media, while public relations depends on earned (unpaid) media -interact with the creative process differently -the notion of credibility is much more central to PR
PR vs. Journalism
Similar: -journalists and public relations practitioners both package content/information for public consumption -journalists and public relations practitioners often use similar writing conventions and style (i.e., AP style) Different: -journalists are bound to objectivity while public relations practitioners assume an advocacy role -in other words, public relations practitioners are hired by organizations to further their interests
Case Study: Puget Sound Energy's Rock The Bulb Tour
Summary: -PSE=Washington State's oldest energy company; serving 1 million+ electric customers, 750,000 natural gas customers -Goals: Engage the community in an energy conservation effort, Deepen Puget Sound's relationship with its customers, Reinforce Puget Sound's brand positioning as the most trusted energy efficiency source What they did: PSE engaged Colehour+Cohen to help develop and execute an innovative customer engagement and education campaign focusing on motivating customers to be more energy-efficient at home, starting with energy-efficient lighting in the form of compact fluorescent bulbs (CFL bulbs) -Campaign: included weekend bulb exchange events, a vast door-to-door CFL bulb distribution effort and an energy-efficiency contest and promotions
What is an audience?
a group of people who pay attention to a particular medium and receive messages through it -NOT a type of public
What is a market?
a group of people with certain characteristics that help organizations reach "bottom line" oriented goals
Characteristics of Publics
distinguishable, homogenous, important, large enough, accessible -organizations don't choose their publics; effective organizations must be able to effectively communicate/connect with their publics and be where their public is, or where the public expects the brand to be
What is a public?
group of people that shares a common interest vis-a-vis an organization, recognizes its significance, and decides to do something about it · are groups of people who interact with and engage with or have an interdependency on an organization. · Publics and organization face a common issue (or common sets of issues). · Organizations don't choose their publics (they are like family, in a way) · Differ from an audience, i.e., people who are in a channel · Though a public can be a target audience
Enablers
groups that help facilitate success -media, opinion leaders, allies, regulators
Benchmarking
is a continuous and systematic process of measuring an organization and its products and services against the best practices of strong competitors and recognized industry leaders, in order to improve the organization's performance. -a benchmark is a specific and measurable standard against which an organization can compare its own products and services, with an eye toward improvement
Strategic Planning-Why Bother?
it delivers results efficiently (being more thorough in order to save time/money and get better results)
Demographic Segmentation
measurable characteristics used to split up publics -age, gender, sex, income, education, family life cycle, religion, socioeconomic status are examples - who, what, when, or why, the facts -what neighborhoods to target or media
Analyzing the Publics
not all publics are "equal" -publics can and do evolve/develop all the time · For instance, some latent publics will become aware publics and, eventually, active publics. · Other latent publics might become apathetic publics (or apathetic publics, then aware publics and, finally, active publics). · However, not all publics evolve/change.
Analyzing the Situation
situation=a set of circumstances facing an organization -situations need to be addressed (can be positive or negative) -an obstacle is a factor that limits the organization's opportunity to realize success -can manifest in the form of negative public perception -the Internet has provided both opportunities and obstacles -team needs to come to a consensus (communications and client need to agree on key facts relevant to the situation)
Audit: SWOT
strategic tool for identifying Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats relative to an organization -one way to conduct an audit; helps identify solutions to problems, "best" possible decisions, new opportunities -considered industry standard; may include diagram, often represented using a visual matrix/diagram
Audit
systematic review of an organization (or facet of an organization) -audits come in all shapes and sizes (financial audit, social media audit, communications audit, news audit and so on) -two different (but very similar) auditing approaches: 1. SWOT 2. Smith's Internal Environment, External ENvironment, and Public Perception approach
If we are justified in____________ when our plans go well, we must also ___________________ when things don't go well or when we get blindsided. And then figure out how to prevent the situation from reoccuring
taking credit take responsibility
Issues Management
the process in which the organization tries to anticipate issues and respond before they get out of hand
cultural context
the values, attitudes, beliefs, orientations, and underlying assumptions prevalent among people in a society -understanding the cultural context is crucial in this research phase of the strategic process -PR practitioners who give a priority to learning the nuances of the culture in which the publics are likely to develop campaigns that can be successful -not knowing them can create embarrassment for organizations and counterproductive responses.
Risk assessment plays a role in Crisis Management planning, Once we've identified the situation and analyzed any risk, the next step is to conduct research.
three "types" of questions: -background questions -consequence questions -resolution questions
Risk Assessment
within an issues management program, organizations will often use risk assessment principles to prioritize monitoring efforts -identify risk -analyze risk -evaluate risk
SWOT vs. Smith's approach
· Both identify the same types of information. Both, if conducted properly, will yield similar strategic insights. SWOT is used much more frequently (and in many different industries/organizational settings).
PR practitioners focus on social and esteem needs
· Esteem Needs: after a person feels that they "belong", the urge to attain a degree of importance emerges. · Examples of esteem/motivating esteem needs are: · Recognition (external motivator) · Attention (external motivator) · Social Status (external motivator) · Accomplishment (internal motivator) · Self-respect (internal motivator)
Publics in Stages (cont'd.)
· Factors that determine developmental stage of the public include: · Problem recognition/knowledge: · Degree to which a public understands the issue/situation is a problem and actively seeks out information relevant to the issue/situation. · Constraint recognition: · Extent to which people perceive there are obstacles to their ability to act. · The greater their perception of obstacle(s), the less likely they are to seek information or to act on information. · **Remember both 'Rock the Bulb' target publics were aware that they hadn't yet explored all the options for saving energy. ** · Level of involvement: · Extent to which people connect themselves to a situation. · The more people think they are involved in a situation, the more likely they are to seek information and not see obstacles. · When thinking about a given public, it is important to avoid stereotyping. · A stereotype is a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing. · Good research helps prevent stereotyping. · **Dealing with people, with attitudes in society and it can change** · Dig in! Learn as much as you can about each public! · Prioritize learning about "key" publics! · What type of limiter/enabler/producer/customer is the public? · How does the public communicate? · What type of media does the public consume? · What demographic characteristics are associated with the public? · What type of personality traits/individual psychological characteristics does the public possess?
Internal Enviroment
· Performance: Quality of product/viability of ideas · Niche: What makes the organization different from others? · Structure: How are resources organized? · Ethical base: Organizational conscience · Internal impediments: Obstacles within the organization.
How are organizational audits done and what do they look like?
· Secondary Research: examination of all available data (internal documentation, representation in the mass media, social media behavior) · Primary Research: collection of new data (interviews with key actors, focus groups, psychographic surveys). -- · Written narration. · Use of SWOT matrix to summarize key points. · Language is brisk and to the point. · Approach is objective. · Goal is to succinctly yield actionable conclusions.
External Environment
· Supporters: groups/individuals that share similar interests and values. · Competitors: groups/individuals doing the same thing. · Opponents: groups/individuals with opposing perspectives/goals. · External impediments: other obstacles outside the organization.
