Some folks will know that I found myself speaking at "Stratstock: How the Other Half Plans", an IPA Strategy Group "do". Thought that I would bash out some thoughts on the whole thing ...
First of all, planning is by and large the same at heart.
Like any other planner, those is PR are charged with understanding the
commercial requirements, getting under the skin of the consumer and
establishing what actions will produce the best results: whether shifting
awareness or behaviour. Quirks of
individual planner or agency approach are as likely to make one approach different as the requirements
of the discipline, in that respect
That said, some things that those working with PR
planners, or keen to get into PR planning would do well to remember ...
- that the thing that gives public relations its power is
that someone else (who has influence over others) is saying good things about
you. So you are planning for (and need to understand what will influence and prompt
to action) the intermediary, as well as end-consumers of the message conveyed.
- that the balance in the creative brief needs to be
between that which will be of interest to the media and the message the
brand-owner believes will motivate the consumer. While "kills 99 per cent
of germs" will motivate, a journalist won't care unless its brought to
life and made "new news" - "kills 99 per cent of the 158 germs
found on a commuter's hands" might cut it.
- "Transexual bishop resuscitates Prince Charles'
polo pony" has everything the media loves: sex, religion, health,
royalty/celebrity, animals and sport. With the addition of housing and money,
perhaps, find a way that the brand can weave some of those things in to create
a story. Simple, pragmatic, but effective.
- that the output is content-led. Your travel brand's
users like fine wine and seek advice about money? Great, advertise across the
wine page and the money pages. But don't believe that a PR will deliver
meaningful coverage in those places regularly. We do help brands break out of
their ghetto (financial services out of the money pages, travel brands out of the
travel pages, and so on), but the creative changes every time to reach those
places
- that PR doesn't pay for wastage when it comes to media.
By and large, a piece in The Sun costs as much as a piece in the Independent,
so someone hitting ABC1s might as well be in The Sun and deliver the numbers.
However, what the PR planner needs to understand is a title's influence. There may be more people who take advice
about wine reading The Sun, those in the know will trust and act on what
Anthony Rose has got to say in the Indy.
- the best PR planners embrace the fact that PR is
faster, fleeter and can be delivered in a day. While a tactical ad campaign
that makes use of the news agenda might have been months in the making, some PR
reacting to a news event can be dreamt up, executed and delivered in days,
minutes even. Learn to love that fact and sell it as one of the things that
makes PR powerful - rather than bemoaning its sometimes tactical nature.
Understand those few things and you'll make a successful
PR planner ... in my view at least.
What do you think?
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