Chapter 6 Program Planning

Overview The value of planning Approaches to planning Elements of a program plan

The value of planning The second step of the P.R process , following research is program planning . A good public relation program should be an effective tool , to support an organization business , marketing and communication objectives . Public relation planning should be strategic

Continued .. _Strategic planning is deciding where you want to be in the future ( The Goal ) and how to get there ( the strategies) , it sets the organization’s direction proactively , avoiding Routine in activities . _systematic planning prevent ineffective communication , having a blueprint of what’s to be done makes programs more effective and P.R more valuable to the organization .

Program planning should be: Strategic Proactive Coordinated

Approaches to planning _Planning is like putting together a Jigsaw puzzle This section provides two approaches to planning , in two cases the emphasis is on asking and answering questions to generate a road map for success .

Continued.. Management by Objective (MBO) A Strategic Planning Model

Management by objective MBO : provides focus and direction for formulating strategy to achieve specific organizational objectives . _ The use of MBO ensure the production of relevant messages and establishing criteria against which campaign results can be measured

MBO Steps ***Client / employer objectives : what’s the purpose of communication and how does it promote or achieve the objectives of the organization ? Specific objective such as ( to make consumers aware of the product’s high quality ) are more meaningful than ( to make people aware of the product )

continued ** Audience / publics : what exactly should be reached with the message and how can the audience help achieve the organization’s objectives ? What are the characteristics of the audience and how can demographic information be used to structure the message ? ** Audience objectives : what’s that the audience wants to know, and how can the message be tailored to audience self interest ?

Continued.. **Media channels : what’s the appropriate channel for reaching the audience and can multiple channels ( news media, special events and direct mail ) reinforce the message among key publics ? ** sources and questions : what primary and secondary sources of information are required to provide a factual base for the message ? ** communication strategies : what environmental factors will affect the dissemination and acceptance of the message ?

Continued .. ** Essence of the message : what’s the planned communication impact on the audience ? Telling people about the values of physical fitness is different from telling them how to achieve it . ** Nonverbal support : how can photographs , graphs , films and artwork clarify and visually enhance the written message ?

Approaches to Planning : A Strategic Planning Model Ketchum’s Strategic Planning Model for Public Relations provides the general building blocks for planning.

Approaches to Planning : A Strategic Model Facts: _Category facts :what are the recent industry trends ? _ Product/service Issues : what are the significant characteristics of the product , service , or issue ? _ competitive Facts: who are the competitors ,and what are their competitive strengths, similarities and differences ? _ customer Facts : Who uses the product and why ?

Approaches to Planning A Strategic Model Goals _ Business objectives : what are the company’s business objectives ? What’s the time frame ? _ role of public relation :how does public relation fit into the marketing mix? _sources of new business : what sectors will produce Growth ?

Approaches to Planning: A Strategic Model Audience _ Target audiences: what are the target audiences ? _ Current Mindset : how do audience feel about the product , service or issue ? _ Desired Mindset : How do we want them to feel ?

Approaches to Planning: A Strategic Model Key Message: Ask: What key message must be conveyed to change or reinforce mind sets?

Elements of a Program Plan Situation Objectives Audience Strategy Tactics Calendar/timetable Budget Evaluation

Elements of a Program Plan: Situation 3 reasons for a public relations program To overcome a negative situation Specific one-time projects To reinforce and preserve reputation and public support

Elements of a Program Plan: Objectives Objectives are: Informational Motivational

Continued.. _ Informational objective : many public relations plans are designed primarily to expose audiences to information and to increase awareness of an issue, an event or a product. _ Many communication and marketing professionals believe that the major criteria for public relation effectiveness are 1. an increase in public awareness and 2. delivery of key messages . _ One difficulty with informational objectives is measuring how will a particular objective has been achieved .public awareness & the extent of education that takes place are somewhat difficult to quantify .

Continued .. _ Motivational Objectives : although changing attitudes and influencing behavior are difficult to accomplish in a public relations Campaign , motivational objectives are easier to measure , that’s because they are bottom-line oriented and are based on a clearly measurable results that can be quantified .such example Levi Jeans .

Elements of a Program Plan: Audience Public relations programs should be directed towards: Specific audiences and defined audiences Primary and secondary audiences

Continued .. _ In another word public relation practitioner target specific publics within the general public , this is done through market research that can identify key publics by such demographic as age, income , social strata , education … etc. _ for example market research told M&M’s Candies that young people were the primary consumer of it’s product

Elements of a Program Plan: Audience _ Again the primary audience is not the general public . _ A thorough understanding of the primary and secondary publics is essential if a program’s objectives are to be accomplished . Such knowledge also provides guidance on the selection of appropriate strategies and tactics that would reach these defined audiences .

Elements of a Program Plan: Strategy A Strategy Statement describes how an objective is to be achieved, providing guidelines and themes for the overall program. Key Messages /Themes :are reoccurring messages thorough a campaign. for example in Turkish Tourism Campaign , the strategy of combating (Negative stereotype & lack of knowledge about Turkey ) included key messages designed to reinforce historical/cultural sites , Great shopping , ideal weather and friendly people. In an effort to position Turkey ‘ center of World History ‘

Elements of a Program Plan: Tactics _Tactics are the nuts and bolts of the plan that describes , in sequence , the specific activities that put the strategies into operation and help to achieve the stated objectives. Tactics involves using the tools of communication to reach primary and secondary audiences with key messages .

Elements of a Program Plan: Tactics Public Service Announcements Press releases Guest appearances Contests

Example of Levi Jeans _ The tactics of Levi Jeans : Levi Used a number of tactics to support it’s objectives and strategies in its program to reposition Levi Jeans as a hip Brand in the college –age market . _other tactics included : Announcement of winners for publicity Creation of a weekly web show using webcams and headsets to broadcast online shopping experienece

Example of Levi Jeans Levi jean made a 1$ donation to the brand’s ongoing beneficiary , and these donations will be rewarded to HIV program called Life Beat . So as we see In many cases each strategy is supported by specific tactics .

Elements of a Program Plan: Calendar/Timetable _ The Three aspects of timing in a program plan are 1. deciding when a campaign should be conducted 2. determine the proper sequence of activities and 3. compiling a list of steps that must completed to produce a finished product _ All the three aspects are important to achieve maximum effectiveness

The timing of a campaign _ program planning should take into account the environmental context of the situation and the time when key messages are most meaningful to the intended audience . _ for example the strawberry producers increase public relation efforts in May and June , when a crop comes to market and stores have large supplies of the fruit . _ Other Campaign depend less on environmental or seasonal context such as Levi’s Jeans as it’s in anytime.

Scheduling of Tactics _ The second aspect of timing is the scheduling and sequencing of various tactics or activities. _ A typical pattern is to concentrate the most effort at the beginning of a campaign when the number of Tactics are implemented

Compiling a Calendar _ An integral part of timing is advance planning , a video news release , a press kit , or even a brochure often takes weeks and months to prepare , arrangements for special events also take time. _ In another words , the public relations professional must link ahead to make things happen in the right sequences at the right time _one way to achieve this goal is to compile time lines and charts that list the necessary steps and the completion dates .

Compiling a Calendar Calendars and time lines takes various forms : one simple method is to post activities for each day on a large monthly calendar . Gantt Charts are also used for planning purpose , Gantt Chart is a column matrix that has two sides the vertical and the horizontal one .

Elements of a Program Plan: Budget No program plan is complete without a budget, both clients and employees ask “ How much will this program cost “ A budget can be divided into two Categories : Staff time Out-of-pocket (OOP) expenses

Elements of a Program Plan: Budget _ Staff time usually takes the lion’s share of any public relation budget _ In a program plan , budget are usually estimated on the basis of experience and requests from Vendors for estimates _ after the program is completed , part of the evaluation is to compile a form that shows estimated expense versus actual expense .

Elements of a Program Plan: Evaluation Evaluation criteria should be: Realistic Credible Specific In line with client or employer expectations

Elements of a Program Plan: Evaluation Evaluation of an informational objective often entails a compilation of new clips and an analysis of how often key messages points were mentioned . But in the motivational objectives often are measured and evaluated by increases in sales and market share .

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