Developing aPublic Relations
campaign
Developing aPublicitycampaign
A publicity campaign tells a story⢠People like stories . . .⢠A story is the way we understand something⢠In the theater, a story = about two hours⢠In PR campaigns, a story = about two hours . . .
⌠in five-minute bits and pieces
⌠in headlines and bumper stickers
⌠in photos ⌠etc.
⢠The story is told by news media
Publicity is not Advertising
Advertising = paid announcements
Advertising will buy you name recognition,âŚbut it is not a good way to tell your story
Maximum control over placement,
but minimum credibility
Advertising = âpaid mediaâ
Public Relations (publicity) = âearned mediaâ
News media = credibilityNewspaper: âThird party endorsementâ
Television: âSeeing is believingâ
Radio: âThe buzz is goodâ
Internet: âThe detailsâ
How to get the news media to tell your story: Thatâs the essence of the PR campaign
In a PR campaign you play to win
You are in a contest â
Competing for âshare of mindâ
Competing for credibility with editors
Competing against your critics
You have to âwin an argumentâ
Two big questions
Who is your audience?
What is your message?
Who is your audience?
Depends on what you want to accomplish.
Ultimate audience
Opinion leaders
âThe Mediaâ
Your own supporters *
What do you want to accomplish?
Raise awareness
Communicate a message
Motivate behavior (e.g., sell something)
Generate prestige (win something)
Build your organization
What do we want to accomplish?
(our case history will be a citywide PR campaign to publicize the 60th anniversary of the Battle of Warsaw (the âWarsaw uprisingâ of 1944)
Working toward a message
PR = âProblemâ + âResolutionâ
What is the âproblemâ you are solving?
What is the issue that needs attention?
What is your personal concern?
What core values are implicated?
Why should everyone become interested?
Message = three parts
1. âProblemâ/solution
2. Connect to values
3. Call to action
Think of them as three sentences in a single sound bite
Also as three key points to be communicated
Message = three parts1. âProblemâ/solution
⢠Heroism in a time of terror â sound familiar?⢠An entire people said âLetâs roll.â⢠Hastened the end of the war⢠As tragic as Troy⢠Against great odds, a calculated risk.⢠A heroic moment not just for Poles but for
Western civilization â âour finest hourâ
The Battle of Warsaw stands alongside Stalingrad and the Normandy invasion as one of the turning points of WWII. Yet the genius and the courage of its warriors is too often overlooked
Message = three parts2. Connect to values
⢠Sometimes heroism is greater than a single hero. . .
⢠Sometimes an entire people are called by history to take a stand
⢠The warriors of Warsaw rose to the challenge⢠âRemember Warsawâ
The Battle of Warsaw stands alongside Stalingrad and the Normandy invasion as one of the turning points of WWII. Yet the genius and the courage of its warriors is too often overlooked. Once again, Poland is at the center of the Western military alliance. We owe an eternal debt, that we can repay by honoring the 60th anniversary of their bravery.
Message = three parts3. Call to action
⢠You thought youâd heard it all? Take a moment to learn something significant â and exciting â about World War II
⢠Join with us â share the pride & excitement
The Battle of Warsaw stands alongside Stalingrad and the Normandy invasion as one of the turning points of WWII. Yet the genius and the courage of its warriors is too often overlooked. Once again, Poland is at the center of the Western military alliance. We owe an eternal debt, that we can repay by honoring them in a month of celebrations. Join with Chicagoâs proud and thriving Polish-American community in our commemoration of the 60th anniversary of their bravery.
Each message part is a key point
1. Historical significance, often overlookedFact sheets, paragraphs of information on the uprising, with reference to the 1943 Jewish uprising to avoid confusion.
2. Battle of Warsaw a triumph of the spiritAn entire people united in their heroic defiance of the Nazi juggernaut, which they battled to a draw, with implications.
3. Coming soon: month of commemorationSpecifics on the program, events, connections.
Message shapes all communications
⢠Press release format:â Lead (message)â Key point #1 (historical significance)â Key point #2 (values & analogies)â Key point #3 (call to join us)â Conclusion (repeat message, e.g. as quote)
⢠Similarly for pitch letter, PSA, etc.
S.W.O.T
⢠SWOT analysis:⢠SWOT analysis:â Strengthsâ Weaknessesâ Opportunitiesâ Threats
⢠Requires research
What are your strengths?
What do you have going for you?
What makes your message compelling?
. . . convincing?
What are your weaknesses?
What are the disadvantages?
What are the downsides?
What are your opportunities?
Good timing? . . .
Support of a celebrity or prominent official?
Other advantages?
What are your threats?
What are the challenges to the success of your message?
What are the counter-messages that you might face?
PR Campaign plan outline⢠Situation analysis (S.W.O.T.)
⢠Target audience(s)⢠Goals (what do we hope to accomplish?)⢠Objectives (what needs to be done?)⢠Key messages⢠Strategy (or Strategy/Tactics)⢠Tactics (or Strategy/Tactics)⢠Timeline
(and two more elements weâll talk about later)
Situation analysis
⢠Requires researchâ Allow plenty of time for quality research
⢠Start with an introduction to the subject:â What are the plain facts?â What are the opportunities?â What are the strengths?â What weaknesses should we consider?â Do we face any threats or challenges?
Target Audiences⢠Primary audiences
â Readers/viewers of mass media, Chicago & suburban
â Students, esp. H.S. and college; and Teachers
â Opinion leaders
⢠Secondary audiencesâ Members of Pol.-Amer. Organizations
â State & city officials, librarians, museums
â Financial institutions, business community
â Members of our organizations (membership building)
Goals⢠What do we hope to accomplish⢠These can be very specific⢠But they are not necessarily measurable⢠They are shared by everyone working in the
campaign, and should be easily understood
Examples: We want to raise awareness of the Battle of Warsaw among all Chicagoans âŚWe want especially to inspire Polish-Americans with this heritage âŚWe want to seize this moment to better organize Polonia youth âŚOr to build consensus & consortia among Pol.-Amer. organizations.
Objectives⢠These are specific and measurable⢠They are not a checklist or timetable, not yet⢠These tell us whether or not we succeeded.
Examples: We want a Tribune story before the June 6 CNN special on the Battle of Warsaw âŚlocal TV coverage of the Aug. 1 commemorations ⌠âChicago Tonightâ feature around Aug. 30 gallery opening ⌠Chicago Trib Magazine article prior to Sept. 16 official event ⌠City Council resolution & town hall meeting (Aug. 1? Oct. 2?) âŚLibrary events around literature of the Battle of Warsaw âŚ
Key messages⢠Keep it simple, stupid
âŚPeople donât like to be confused
⢠People suffer information overloadâŚJust give me three things to remember this week
⢠People want an easy challenge⌠Just tell me what you want me to do
⢠With limited time, people want to have fun⌠This isnât going to be a waste of time is it?
⢠People donât want to feel left out⌠Did you hear about â ? You missed it?! You loser!
Strategy/Tactics
1. Match goals with objectives & get specific
2. Prioritize and detail the goals
3. Mentally work through every task
Once Iâm reasonably clear on goals, I find it more useful to treat strategy and tactics together, in work plan clusters.
Strategy/Tactics
1. Prepare for the PR campaigna) Put media lists in orderb) Identify our best writersc) Do research for press kits, backgroundersd) Spokespeople identifiede) Veterans of Battle of Warsaw contactedf) Veterans debriefed & evaluated for mediag) PR game plan outlined
2. Pre-campaign coverage: June 6 CNNa) Call/write CNN press office to coordinateb) Contact print media â interview with veteransc) Contact TV media re interviewsd) Contact radio talk shows re interviewse) Letter writing & organizational outreach to
make June 6 a planning opportunityf) Other
Strategy/Tactics
Strategy/Tactics
3. Library & CPS campaigna) Contact officials concerning June 6 CNNb) Consider Sept./Oct. in-school activitiesc) Contact Viking (publisher) to develop high-
profile events around Daviesâ Rising â44d) Oral histories: summer student activity?e) Develop teachersâ kitsf) Other
Strategy/Tactics
What are some other goals/objectives?
The Timeline⢠Organize your activities like a good stage manager
⢠Identify dates on which you plan each tactic
⢠Assign tactics (objectives) to dependable people
⢠Follow up on them
⢠Timeline can be simple:
Week of May 17 Contact CNN re June 6 airingContact John Harway, Trib editor, re coverageAsk Dorothy Danners re âIn the Loopâ
Week of May 24 Mailing to churches re June 6 outreach
Organizational meeting
Two more Campaign plan elements(the ones I said weâd talk about later)
⢠Budget (money and time and resources)â An important element that you should plan to spend
time & energy developing; consult a good planning text for details on this subject.
⢠Evaluation (how did we do?)â Too often, PR plans give too little attention to this
element. You need to attach your objectives â and your Strategy/Tactics development â to a chart of measurable outcomes.
In your toolkit
⢠Press release⢠Tip sheet⢠Media alert⢠Backgrounder⢠Fact sheet⢠Press kits⢠Photos
⢠Articles⢠Case histories⢠Op-Ed⢠PSAs⢠Web pages/CD-ROM
⢠Bio profiles⢠Survey
Tactical maneuvers
⢠Commit to being opportunistic⢠Come up with a unique angle on a
current news story⢠Find a local angle on a national story⢠Offer yourself as an expert⢠Have materials updated & ready⢠Be always trolling for news pegs⢠Keep an eye on the calendar
The pitch letter⢠Start with a grabber
â Little-known factâ Anecdote, human interestâ Ask a provocative questionâ Be intriguing (but get to the point)â Be able to support every statement
⢠Show familiarity with the media outlet⢠For TV, emphasize visual elements⢠Be prepared with research, statistics⢠Supply a short list of credible sources⢠Provide brief introduction of credentials
From Streetwise Complete Publicity Plans by Sandra Beckwith
Making the pitch⢠Make the call⢠Summarize your story effectively
â You need to show how easy it is to tell⢠Practice, practice, practice⢠Start with the least important outlets⢠Track the feedback⢠Never argue your point⢠Follow up
From Streetwise Complete Publicity Plans by Sandra Beckwith
Always remember,youâre telling a story
⢠Each installment of the message is another âchapterâ or âsceneâ
⢠Always âstay on messageâ⢠The key to penetration (reach + frequency) is
Repetition Repetition Repetition ⢠Variety is always important⢠Spokespeople must be credible
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