| Please feel free to publish this article | | | | problemswith our services, products or |
| and resource boxin your ezine, | | | | people?" |
| newsletter, offline publication or | | | | As you interact with audience members, |
| website. | | | | watch closely forevasive or hesitant |
| A copy would be appreciated at . | | | | responses to your questions. And be |
| Word count is 935 including guidelines | | | | equallywatchful for negative |
| and resource box. | | | | misconceptions, rumors, |
| Robert A. Kelly © 2003. | | | | exaggerations,inaccuracies or untruths. |
| Get Outsiders on Your Side | | | | These data are grist for your mill, |
| Especially good advice for business, | | | | i.e., the information you needto |
| non-profit andassociation managers whose | | | | establish a public relations goal that |
| job success depends in largepart on the | | | | corrects the offending opinion |
| behaviors of their key external | | | | perception. Such a goal might look like |
| audiences. | | | | these: spikethat rumor, clarify that |
| I refer to behaviors like inquiries on | | | | misconception, or correct that |
| the increase, newwaves of specialized | | | | inaccuracy. |
| employment applications, moreand more | | | | Now, you need a pathway leading to your |
| followup purchases, new levels of | | | | public relations goal,and that means you |
| membershipqueries, a substantial boost | | | | must pick a strategy showing you how |
| in capital donations, or morefrequent | | | | toget there. Luckily, there are just |
| component specifications by engineering | | | | three strategies in matters ofopinion |
| firms. | | | | and perception: create perception where |
| If you are such a manager, you almost | | | | there isn't any,change existing |
| assuredly need helpin achieving your | | | | perception, or reinforce it. Just be |
| unit's operating objectives. Which is | | | | certain thatthe strategy you select is a |
| whyit's nice to hear that the public | | | | logical fit with the public |
| relations team assigned toyour operation | | | | relationsgoal you just established. |
| is responsible for providing a large | | | | Now, what you say to members of your |
| portionof that help. | | | | target audience mustclearly address the |
| Two things need to happen to make that a | | | | offending perception gently but firmly. |
| reality. One, itrequires more than your | | | | Your message must be believable, |
| oversight. You must stay involvedwith | | | | compelling and, at the sametime, explain |
| your public relations folks at every | | | | why the current perception is not merely |
| major decision point. | | | | untrue,but unfair. It is no easy job to |
| And two, the entire effort must be based | | | | alter what people believe,which is why |
| on more than a casualdebate about which | | | | writing such a message demands |
| communications tactics should be used. | | | | persuasivewriting ability. |
| What is needed is your commitment to a | | | | To maintain the credibility of the |
| fundamental premisethat is the | | | | message, you may wish topiggy-back it on |
| foundation on which your entire public | | | | another announcement or presentation |
| relationseffort will be based. A premise | | | | ratherthan using the higher-profile |
| like this: People act on theirown | | | | press release format. |
| perception of the facts before them, | | | | Happily, when it comes to delivering |
| which leads topredictable behaviors | | | | your message to membersof your target |
| about which something can be done. | | | | audience, you have multiple choices for |
| When we create, change or reinforce that | | | | yourcommunications tactics. Everything |
| opinion by reaching,persuading and | | | | from newsletters, bulletinsand alerts, |
| moving-to-desired-action the very | | | | special events and speeches to print and |
| peoplewhose behaviors affect the | | | | broadcastinterviews, press releases, |
| organization the most, the | | | | consumer/member briefings and manymore. |
| publicrelations mission is accomplished. | | | | Just be sure the tactics your use can |
| With that established, we can get to | | | | demonstrate thatthey reach people |
| work on the blueprintthat will help | | | | similar to those who make up your |
| persuade those important members of | | | | targetaudience. |
| yourkey target audiences to your way of | | | | Before long, you, your PR team, and |
| thinking. What youhope for then, is | | | | others in your unit willwant to see some |
| follow on stakeholder actions that | | | | progress. Best (and most frugal) way |
| result inyour success as a business, | | | | todetermine that is to return to |
| non-profit or association manager. | | | | perception monitoring in thefield and |
| Before taking any action steps, you need | | | | ask members of your key target audience |
| to know howmembers of your key target | | | | the samequestions used in the earlier |
| audiences perceive you. So,first, you | | | | session. |
| and your PR team need to list those | | | | Only this time, you'll be on alert for |
| importantoutside audiences whose | | | | indications that theoffending |
| behaviors affect your unit the most. | | | | perceptions are changing as you planned, |
| Then prioritize them so we can use the | | | | alongwith predictable follow on |
| audience in first placeon that list as | | | | behaviors. |
| our target audience for this article. | | | | By the way, things can always move |
| Instead of spending considerable money | | | | faster by adding othercommunications |
| on professionalsurvey work, you and your | | | | tactics, and using them on a more |
| team can interact with membersof your | | | | frequentbasis. |
| target audience and pose a number of | | | | Yes, for managers whose job success |
| questionsdesigned to draw out any | | | | depends to a largedegree on the |
| perception problems. "Do youknow | | | | behaviors of their key external |
| anything about us? Have you had any | | | | audiences, apublic relations |
| contacts withour people? Were they | | | | problem-solving sequence like this one |
| satisfactory? Do you have any | | | | ISespecially good advice! |