One of the most common assumptions is that public relations (PR) professionals are “spin doctors”. This could not be further from the truth. Assumptions like these cause organizations to skip prioritizing an important function which builds trust and relationships with the communities they serve. The problem? A confusion between PR and marketing.
To be clear, marketing is a very important part of any operation. If people don’t know about you, and you don’t take advantage of every communication modality available (i.e. advertising, social media, earned media, blog posts, etc.), is that good for your company? How do you sell your product or service? Good question if you think about it. I learned that marketing is defined as identifying consumer demand, and developing products and/or services that satiate that demand. It’s about what people want, not what you want to sell them. So, why public relations? You may ask, if I don’t have a crisis, AND I have regular customers, what’s the point?
It’s about what people want, not what you want to sell them.
In this article, I will point out key aspects that demonstrate the value that public relations professionals deliver for organizations. Also, how their education, training, and experience move the needle (ROI) for an organization’s strategic interests.
What communicators really do
In a widely circulated Harvard Business Review article, “What Leaders Really Do?”, John Kotter explained the difference between leaders and managers. I implore you to read the article, which was required reading in many graduate business schools, as it was for mine. It left an indelible mark that inspired how I built Nichols Strategies to support our clients. If you’re busy, however, here’s a one sentence summary of Kotter’s work: Leaders set vision, and managers carry the vision out. Simple enough.
In the same vein, I endeavor to explain the differences between marketers and communicators. Just like leaders are not managers, communicators are not marketers. Marketing and communications (public relations) are two separate, but equally important functions. One is not subordinate to the other, nor do they operate in the same hierarchical order as John Kotter explained. Rather, they are complementary.
Marketing’s function is to sell the product; public relations’s function is to identify why the product is a good idea, and present that to management so they can deploy the best strategy to build the case with the consumer.
Manage relationships, not the crisis
Crisis happens. Nichols Strategies has managed communications for a range of critical incidents, including wildfires, school shootings, and cases of sexual misconduct, compelling leadership to take intentional steps in response. We help them do that.
But in 18 years of working in this field, I learned most of the time what people think is a crisis, is not a crisis. Usually, it’s about an issue that causes stakeholders to feel their institutions are not listening and/or not communicating. What’s interesting is that most CEOs are required by their board of directors to communicate. It’s in their job description, and if they get the job, it’s key in their evaluation.
To be at your best, you must do Strategic Communications Planning.
- This starts with Research. I want to know what my client is dealing with and what their peers and competitors are dealing with. More than anything, it’s about what their stakeholders are thinking of them. We do this by primary and secondary research, and quantitative and qualitative research. Big words, but basically means we ask good questions, take good notes, and identify what’s truly causing the problem.
- After that, Planning. We put together a plan that is highly customized and also objective. We uniquely demonstrate to our clients that they have a trusted partner that helps them navigate a plan to get them to the results they seek. Movement is not the same thing as motion.
- Implementation is all about carrying out the plan. Let me use a sports analogy: we can’t call audibles at the line too often. Rather, we “stick to the playbook” at this stage. We prepped, we trained, so we should keep to the plan and use this to become our next round of research, (i.e. game film).
- And finally, Evaluation. This is where you’ll thank yourself for not making changes during implementation. Because if you change in the middle of the game, you torpedo your research and planning process. There’s usually going to be another strategic plan, crisis plan, comms plan, etc., someday. Let this plan speak for itself and demonstrate what went well, what didn’t, and use that knowledge to build better engagement plans going forward.
Key Takeaways
- Clients/customers don’t care about what you offer, they care more about what you can do for them. This is a critical psychological component of an effective engagement strategy.
- Sustained relationships are better than new ones. Banking goodwill with your stakeholders is critical, and frankly profitable. If you make multiple “deposits” with your market before you make a withdrawal, you build trust.
- Think about what happens when you don’t communicate. Remember: marketing/sales aren’t the same as engagement. It’s so much better to first build an affinity with your customer than it is when you’re called to the carpet by your customer or their proxy. (i.e. public comment at Board meetings, media interviews, employee civil complaints, union complaints).
An important goal in professional communications is to realize a behavior change in the internal or external constituencies you serve. Knowing the difference between marketing and communication will go a long way in achieving the results you and your organization are really looking for. You need both.
To learn more about how Nichols Strategies can support your organization’s communications goals, contact us today.