Before you can begin to communicate effectively with others you need to know what you want to achieve and how that fits into your organizations strategic goals.
Too often companies and associations jump right in and want their story published in The New York Times, on the local news or told by others. However, the first step is figuring out why an executive wants to be in The New York Times or on the local news. An experienced public relations professional can help your leadership team identify and prioritize your marketing goals and then will use those goals to wrap a strategic communications plan around it.
To better define your organizations marketing needs, it is helpful to look at:
- The history of the organization
- Its’ Mission and values
- Key stakeholders or audience you want to reach and why you want to reach them
- issues that you can talk about with credibility and authority
- Current and past PR efforts, what worked and what didn't
- Available research and data to support your efforts
- Budget parameters
- Priorities
Any experience with prior PR or marketing firms should not stand in the way of engaging new perspectives on your marketing needs that also match your marketing budget. However, your organizational priorities should dictate where you invest your marketing efforts and you should let you marketing team, including outside consultants step in to create and implement the strategy.
