Are Clients ALWAYS Right?
Are Clients ALWAYS Right?
newsletter, offline publication or website. Only
requirement: you must use the Robert A. Kelly byline
and resource box. Word count is 735 including
guidelines and box. Robert A. Kelly © 2006.
Are Clients ALWAYS Right?
It’s not unusual for clients of service providers to insist
that their budget dollars be quickly applied to a variety
of flashy tactics. Yet, when pressed, many acknowledge
that what they REALLY want for their money is visible,
end-game change.
This is especially true in public relations where clients
often second-guess careful plans for achieving that end-
game change by insisting on premature use of tactics like
news releases, talk-show appearances and sports
sponsorships. But obviously, flashy tactics alone will not
satisfy those clients once they start looking for a return
on their public relations investment. Because it is then
that it becomes clear, sometimes painfully, that their goal
MUST be the kind of change in the behaviors of key
stakeholders that lead directly to achieving their business
objectives.
Thus, it is quality planning, and the degree of behavioral
change it produces, that eventually captures client attention,
not tactics.
These days, with public relations budgets always in mortal
danger, tactical chats between a client CEO and public
relations counsel probably sound like this: “Do something
about those activists chaining themselves to our plant gate
and yelling that our emissions go into the river. It’s costing
us big money each day that plant is shut down.”
Or, “How are we going to calm down those Garden Club
members down in the lobby waving around those
cockamamie newspaper reports and talking to the TV cameras
about the additives we use? Where’d that reporter get those
numbers, anyway? It’s costing us sales!”
Or, “Please people, what are you doing to encourage a
favorable Town Council vote on our petition for that new
highway off-ramp?”
What’s common to each of those rants? The CEO is asking
his public relations people to modify somebody’s behavior.
He doesn’t want to talk tactics, or even strategies. He wants
those activists off his property, he wants those print and
broadcast reporters to do a fairer job of reporting on his
production methods (hopefully getting the Garden Clubbers
off his back), and he wants a real effort made to move public
opinion in a way that encourages local officials to approve
that badly needed vehicle ramp.
Modify somebody’s behavior, that’s his goal, and that’s the
job of the public relations agency and its client’s corporate
professionals. Fortunately, the key to a successful effort is
the fact that people really DO act on their perception of the
facts. In so doing, and in a cumulative way, they form the very
public opinion that those practitioners must now inform.
So, what is their strategy? In short, to reach those perceptions
with the facts as they know them. Hopefully, the messages
they use will be clear and persuasive, and will change negative
or inaccurate perceptions, then alter behaviors in the client
company’s direction.
Using the three examples above, when the activists become
satisfied with explanations of the company’s new, public
commitment to correct their emission problems, the protesters
can be expected to leave the plant gates.
Editorial board meetings with local newspapers and television
stations will begin to bear fruit with more balanced reportage
of the company’s efforts to meet emission standards which, in
turn, will reduce negative public opinion.
And, while the agency’s briefing sessions with town council
staff will do little to hasten a formal vote, a targeted
communications effort is likely to lead to a community opinion
poll showing positive movement in public, then official
sentiment about the new highway off-ramp.
In the end, a sound public relations strategy combined with
effective tactics leads directly to the bottom line – perceptions
altered; behaviors modified; client satisfied.
end
Bob Kelly counsels and writes for business, non-profit and
association managers about using the fundamental premise of public
relations to achieve their operating objectives. He has authored
245 articles on the subject which are listed at EzineArticles.com, click
Expert Author, click Robert A. Kelly. He has been DPR, Pepsi-Cola
Co.; AGM-PR, Texaco Inc.; VP-PR, Olin Corp.; VP-PR, Newport
News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co.; director of communications, U.S.
Department of the Interior, and deputy assistant press secretary, The
White House. He holds a bachelor of science degree from Columbia
University, major in public relations.
mailto:bobkelly@TNI.net Visit:www.PRCommentary.com
Are Clients ALWAYS Right - To learn more about this author, visit Bob Kelly's Website.
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Please feel free to publish this article in your ezine,
newsletter, offline publication or website. Only
requirement: you must use the Robert A. Kelly byline
and resource box. Word count is 735 including
guidelines and box. Robert A. Kelly © 2006.
Are Clients ALWAYS Right?
It’s not unusual for clients of service providers to insist
that their budget dollars be quickly applied to a variety
of flashy tactics. Yet, when pressed, many acknowledge
that what they REALLY want for their money is visible,
end-game change.
This is especially true in public relations where clients
often second-guess careful plans for achieving that end-
game change by insisting on premature use of tactics like
news releases, talk-show appearances and sports
sponsorships. But obviously, flashy tactics alone will not
satisfy those clients once they start looking for a return
on their public relations investment. Because it is then
that it becomes clear, sometimes painfully, that their goal
MUST be the kind of change in the behaviors of key
stakeholders that lead directly to achieving their business
objectives.
Thus, it is quality planning, and the degree of behavioral
change it produces, that eventually captures client attention,
not tactics.
These days, with public relations budgets always in mortal
danger, tactical chats between a client CEO and public
relations counsel probably sound like this: “Do something
about those activists chaining themselves to our plant gate
and yelling that our emissions go into the river. It’s costing
us big money each day that plant is shut down.”
Or, “How are we going to calm down those Garden Club
members down in the lobby waving around those
cockamamie newspaper reports and talking to the TV cameras
about the additives we use? Where’d that reporter get those
numbers, anyway? It’s costing us sales!”
Or, “Please people, what are you doing to encourage a
favorable Town Council vote on our petition for that new
highway off-ramp?”
What’s common to each of those rants? The CEO is asking
his public relations people to modify somebody’s behavior.
He doesn’t want to talk tactics, or even strategies. He wants
those activists off his property, he wants those print and
broadcast reporters to do a fairer job of reporting on his
production methods (hopefully getting the Garden Clubbers
off his back), and he wants a real effort made to move public
opinion in a way that encourages local officials to approve
that badly needed vehicle ramp.
Modify somebody’s behavior, that’s his goal, and that’s the
job of the public relations agency and its client’s corporate
professionals. Fortunately, the key to a successful effort is
the fact that people really DO act on their perception of the
facts. In so doing, and in a cumulative way, they form the very
public opinion that those practitioners must now inform.
So, what is their strategy? In short, to reach those perceptions
with the facts as they know them. Hopefully, the messages
they use will be clear and persuasive, and will change negative
or inaccurate perceptions, then alter behaviors in the client
company’s direction.
Using the three examples above, when the activists become
satisfied with explanations of the company’s new, public
commitment to correct their emission problems, the protesters
can be expected to leave the plant gates.
Editorial board meetings with local newspapers and television
stations will begin to bear fruit with more balanced reportage
of the company’s efforts to meet emission standards which, in
turn, will reduce negative public opinion.
And, while the agency’s briefing sessions with town council
staff will do little to hasten a formal vote, a targeted
communications effort is likely to lead to a community opinion
poll showing positive movement in public, then official
sentiment about the new highway off-ramp.
In the end, a sound public relations strategy combined with
effective tactics leads directly to the bottom line – perceptions
altered; behaviors modified; client satisfied.
end
Bob Kelly counsels and writes for business, non-profit and
association managers about using the fundamental premise of public
relations to achieve their operating objectives. He has authored
245 articles on the subject which are listed at EzineArticles.com, click
Expert Author, click Robert A. Kelly. He has been DPR, Pepsi-Cola
Co.; AGM-PR, Texaco Inc.; VP-PR, Olin Corp.; VP-PR, Newport
News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co.; director of communications, U.S.
Department of the Interior, and deputy assistant press secretary, The
White House. He holds a bachelor of science degree from Columbia
University, major in public relations.
mailto:bobkelly@TNI.net Visit:www.PRCommentary.com
Are Clients ALWAYS Right - To learn more about this author, visit Bob Kelly's Website.
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
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John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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