20 Hats: Thinking Cap

The Public Relations Measurement Dilemma

Most people would agree that a public relations program will be most effective when some pre- and post-campaign research is done. However, convincing organizations to spend that money is really difficult.

That’s probably why this quote from a PR Week article about the publication’s 2006 Corporate Survey caught my attention.

"You can't control what you don't measure," says Mark Stouse, BMC director of worldwide corporate communications. "PR people [who] say, 'I can feel it in my gut,' may be correct, but a business executive is going to say, 'You want me to trust your gut?'"

Stouse is 100 percent correct, and yet we continue to struggle to justify funding for this important activity.

Here are three reasons why measurement is important:

1. Without research, you’ll never know where you stand. Politicians wouldn’t run a campaign without poll numbers, and you shouldn’t either.
2. Avoid costly mistakes. With research, public relations practitioners can better advise you on the strategies and tactics that will have the greatest impact, and you won’t overspend on useless tactics.
3. Without measurement, there is no way to gauge return on investment for your public relations expenditures.

Public Relations Play of the Day

LRAD acoustic nonlethal device in NOLA at Superdome
Originally uploaded by xeni.

Congratulations to New Orleans! The city will unveil the Superdome tonight when the New Orleans Saints host the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football.

The Superdome has undergone a $184 million makeover to rid it of the stench and physical damage caused when 30,000 plus people sought refuge there during Hurricane Katrina.

Holding an event at the Superdome is a critical public relations move and one that I think is brilliant.

There could be some backlash today though. Officials need to be prepared to answer questions about why such a large amount of money was spent on the Superdome while some areas of the city still are without utilities and infrastructure.

Working with the Media: Media Mistakes

Reading1
Originally uploaded by Ughman.

From time to time we have a client who is annoyed that the media has gotten something wrong about them in a story. Typically, the error is something like giving someone a wrong title or paraphrasing a quote. Sometimes it’s factual (do you mean the error?) in nature.

Although your boss may be hacked off that something is wrong, this situation begs the question of whether the error is important enough to correct or if asking for a correction would basically amount to nit-picking.

To make this determination, take a step back and assess just how damaging the error is. Is it worth jeopardizing future coverage from the publication?

In most cases, it’s not.

Although the error may cause an internal political issue - such as your CEO being referred to as president - most readers won’t even notice or remember the individual’s title in the article.

Demanding a retraction or correction for something that is primarily creates internal upheaval is a bad idea. Ditto when the “error” involves the misuse of industry jargon or terminology.

Instead, be sure to clarify any confusion upfront the next time you work with that same publication. In addition, work between stories to cultivate a better relationship with individual reporters.

Blog Policy Police

Clients and reporters alike have asked me recently whether I think a business should have a blog policy in regards to its employees’ postings (both on personal sites and the company’s site) about the organization..

I have mixed emotions on this topic.

I believe strongly in freedom of speech and its protection. However, I also think that any organization has a right to monitor and control what its employees are publishing about that organization.

This is especially true if the information is libelous, proprietary, or in violation of another employee’s or client’s privacy.

I think the best blog policy is simply an extension of your employment agreement. It should remind employees that harassing behavior, sharing of trade secrets, disclosure of proprietary information, etc., whether made verbally or electronically, is not tolerated. Many fields, such as health care, deal with patient or client information that must be kept confidential, and those restrictions should apply to blogging as well.

A good policy should also remind employees that the personal image they portray on the Internet will impact the public’s perception of their employer. In particular employees of non-profit organizations or organizations that work with children, should be careful of what they say and who they openly associate with on the Internet.

Charlene Li of Forrester Research, provides the following sample policy on her blog:

1. Make it clear that the views expressed in the blog are yours alone and do not necessarily represent the views of your employer.
2. Respect the company’s confidentiality and proprietary information.
3. Ask your manager if you have any questions about what is appropriate to include in your blog.
4. Be respectful to the company, employees, customers, partners, and competitors.
5. Understand when the company asks that topics not be discussed for
   confidentiality or legal compliance reasons.
6. Ensure that your blogging activity does not interfere with your work commitments.

Relationship or Transaction: What do you want from your outside consultants?

At 20 Hats, we've spent a lot of time during the past few months discussing the attributes of our firm's "ideal" client. One of the biggest things we've discovered is that we want to work with clients who view our engagement with them as a relationship and not a transaction or one-night stand.

What's the difference?

When a transaction happens, you have two parties involved. One provides a product or service, and the other pays for it. End of story.

According to David Maister, building a relationship with clients leads to many benefits: less fee resistance, more future work, more referrals to new clients, and more effective and harmonious work relationships with the clients.

My guess is that most clients would also say they want a relationship with their vendors and consultants. However, many of them seem to make their buying decisions based on project cost and short term impacts - the very essence a of one-night stand.

Hmmmm, does that mean that many organizations have been burned in the past and are no longer willing to commit to more than a quickie with their outside consultants? Probably.

If we as consultants (or even as clients) want to be treated with the respect, we better start treating each other with the love and respect you gave your spouse while you were dating (before you got too comfortable). Be on your best behavior. Be honest. Be supportive. And most importantly, be trustworthy. According to Maister, you must do something for the other person to give them the evidence on which they can base their decision to choose to trust you. You must be willing to give in order to get.

Posted by Danielle Ezell, APR