© 2005 Copyright Innovative Research Group Inc. Strategy and Public Opinion 

2 Agenda What is public opinion? Public opinion as a factor in GR Public opinion and brands – do brands matter?

3 Defining Public Opinion “Those opinions held by private persons which governments find prudent to heed.”

4 Public Opinion 101 While opinion about specific issues tends to move around based on the current public debate, all opinions are anchored on stable values and other deeply held predispositions. Government looks both at current public opinion and latent public opinion. –“… what he (the legislator) needs really to worry about is, not whether his performance pleases the constituency at the moment, but what the response of his constituency will be in the next campaign when persons aggrieved by his position attack his record.”

5 Personal Identity (Self-Esteem) Values and Ideals Attitudes Beliefs Opinion Formation Public and Media Discourse Behaviours and Actions Support for Post Secondary Funding Your University Image How Opinion Forms

6 As Illustrated by the Little Red Boat… Little Red Boat * Public Opinion it’s affected by the winds * Public Debate it’s affected by the current * Underlying Change 1 2 3

7 Anchors * Values Sometimes the lines are tight… … and sometimes the lines are loose Little Red Boat * Public Opinion What keeps public opinion anchored? 12 Moving public opinion depends on how tightly or loosely the public is anchored to the personal values that influence how opinion is formed.

8 Little Red Boat * Public Opinion … values are loose and the Little Red Boat drifts around the lake Anchors * Values High Political Sophistication/ Engagement Low Political Sophistication/ Engagement When the lake water is low … 1

9 Little Red Boat * Public Opinion … values are tight and the Little Red Boat stays in one spot Anchors * Values High Political Sophistication/ Engagement Low Political Sophistication/ Engagement … but, when the lake water is high … 1

10 How do parties count?

11 Conservative Vote Universe

12 Defining the Battleground QuebecRest of Canada Voter Segments C

13 How parties think? Each campaign has two jobs: To convince voters to support their party To convince supporters to vote

14 Canada’s Political Tribes

15 6 ROC Battleground Conservative Clusters 1: Zach and Zoey 2: Richard Johnson 3: Sandra 4: Herman 5: Gladys 6: Susan

16 Quebec Conservative Media Clusters Quebec Media Clusters C

17 Quebec Media Clusters by Conservative Voter Segments “Celebrity Watchers” “News Avoiders” “Just the News” “Home Decorators” “Sports Fans” Quebec Media Clusters X Conservative Voter Segments C

18 Key Take-Aways Everyone is NOT equal when it comes to elections. –Parties focus on specific types of voters in swing ridings. The opinions that matter the most are the opinions in play among swing voters in swing ridings during the next election.

19 The Bottom Line for those trying to influence government There are two ways to influence public opinion. Drive the Agenda –In the short term, advocates can influence the winds of the public debate to push public opinion to the limit of existing values and predispositions. This is practical and actionable. Move the Goal Posts –In the long run, advocates can influence values and other predisposition This is possible (think about attitudes towards smoking and same sex marriage) but success take years.

20 What is Corporate Reputation? The reputation of an organization is comprised of the combined perceptions of its key stakeholders – the audiences that judge an organization based on its actions, behaviours and communications. Financial Performance Corporate Citizenship Human Resources Brand Equity Product & Service Quality Leadership CORPORATE REPUTATION Elements of Corporate Reputation Audiences Financial Community Employees PartnersRegulators Media General Public Customers Company

21 Reputation Drives Choices Universities depend on their reputation to attract the most talented “inputs” (students and faculty). And to be seen among Canadian business and industry leaders as having the most highly skilled “outputs” (graduates and research results). A University’s reputation impacts the institution’s ability to attract leading researchers and faculty, to gain grant money for research and for operations, and to fundraise. 21

22 The hospital brand is a sum of it’s parts, no one part is mutually exclusive Hospital Brand Fundraising Employee Satisfaction Community Perception Patient Care

23 Effective public relations also drives positive brand Note: ‘Don’t know/Refused’ not shown My local hospital wastes a lot of money 19 point difference 22 point difference

24 Rating of hospital affects likelihood to donate Note: ‘Don’t know/Refused’ not shown Likelihood to donate to local hospital 31 point difference 29 point difference 28%

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