Why risk the embarassment when with a little basic PRtraining, you as a business, non-profit or associationmanager can always be ready for battle?

Never again will you fail to do something positive about the behaviors of those important outside audiences of yours that MOST affect your operation.

Never again will you fail to create external stakeholderbehavior change leading directly to achieving yourmanagerial objectives.

And never again will you fail to persuade those key outside folks to your way of thinking, or move them to take actions that allow your department, division or subsidiary to succeed.

In fact, once you digest the underlying premise of publicrelations, you'll understand how the right PR really CANalter individual perception and lead to those changedbehaviors you need. Here's how it goes: people act on theirown perception of the facts before them, which leads topredictable behaviors about which something can be done.When we create, change or reinforce that opinion byreaching, persuading and moving-to-desired-action thevery people whose behaviors affect the organization themost, the public relations mission is accomplished.

However - and this is a big however - it requires more than special events, brochures and news releases if you reallywant to get your PR money's worth.

For example, business, non-profit and association managers who employ this kind of public relations can benefit fromresults such as new proposals for strategic alliances andjoint ventures; rebounds in showroom visits; membershipapplications on the rise; community service and sponsorshipopportunities; enhanced activist group relations, and expandedfeedback channels, not to mention new thoughtleader andspecial event contacts.

As time passes, you should see customers making repeatpurchases; prospects reappearing; stronger relationshipswith the educational, labor, financial and healthcarecommunities; improved relations with government agenciesand legislative bodies, and even capital givers or specifyingsources looking your way.

Obviously, you want your most important outside audiencesto really perceive your operations, products or services in apositive light. So be certain that your PR staff has boughtinto the whole effort. Convince yourself that they accept thereality that perceptions almost always lead to behaviorsthat can help or hurt your unit.

Get together and go over the PR blueprint carefully withyour staff, especially regarding how you will gather andmonitor perceptions by questioning members of your mostimportant outside audiences. Questions like these: howmuch do you know about our organization? How much doyou know about our services or products and employees?Have you had prior contact with us and were you pleasedwith the how things went? Have you experienced problemswith our people or procedures?

You can depend on professional survey people to handle theperception monitoring phases of your program IF thebudget is available. But luckily, your PR people are also inthe perception and behavior business and can pursue thesame objective: identify untruths, false assumptions,unfounded rumors, inaccuracies, misconceptions and anyother negative perception that might translate into hurtfulbehaviors.

Let's chat for a moment about your public relations goal.You need one that addresses the problems that cropped upduring your key audience perception monitoring. Chances are,it will call for straightening out that dangerous misconception,or correcting that gross inaccuracy, or doing something aboutthat damaging rumor.

But as you surely know, goals need strategies to show youhow to get there. And you have just three strategic choiceswhen it comes to handling a perception or opinion challenge:create perception where there may be none, change theperception, or reinforce it. Unfortunately, selecting a badstrategy will taste like peanut butter on your sea scallops, so be certain the new strategy fits well with your new publicrelations goal. For example, you don't want to select "change"when the facts dictate a "reinforce" strategy.

Here the right, corrective language must be created, becausepersuading an audience to your way of thinking is awfullyhard work Especially when you're looking for words that arecompelling, persuasive, believable AND clear and factual.This is a must if you are to correct a perception by shiftingopinion towards your point of view, leading to the desiredbehaviors. So, meet again with your communicationsspecialists and review your message for impact andpersuasiveness.

In order to carry your words to the attention of your targetaudience, you need to select the communications tactics mostlikely to reach them. Happily there are dozens of availabletactics. From speeches, facility tours, emails and brochuresto consumer briefings, media interviews, newsletters,personal meetings and many others. Just be sure that thetactics you pick are known to reach folks just like youraudience members.

Occasionally, the credibility of your message can depend onits delivery method. So, consider introducing it to smallergatherings rather than using higher-profile communicationssuch as news releases or talk show appearances.

When you sense the need to provide a progress report, it'sprobably time for you and your PR folks to return to the fieldfor a second perception monitoring session with membersof your external audience. Using many of the same questionsused in the first benchmark session, stay alert for signs thatyour communications tactics have worked and that thenegative perception is being altered in your direction.

Should those around you wax impatient, things can always beaccelerated with a broader selection of communicationstactics AND increased frequencies.

You won't get caught with your PR down when you applyyour budget to public relations activity that creates behaviorchange among your key outside audiences that leads directlyto achieving your managerial objectives.

That's when it will become clear to you that the right PRreally CAN alter individual perception and lead to changedbehaviors that help you win.

end

Please feel free to publish this article and resource boxin your ezine, newsletter, offline publication or website.A copy would be appreciated at bobkelly@TNI.net.Robert A. Kelly © 2004.

Bob Kelly counsels, writes and speaks to business, non-profit andassociation managers about using the fundamental premise of publicrelations to achieve their operating objectives. He has been DPR,Pepsi-Cola Co.; AGM-PR, Texaco Inc.; VP-PR, Olin Corp.; VP-PR,Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co.; director of communi- cations, U.S. Department of the Interior, and deputy assistant presssecretary, The White House. He holds a bachelor of science degreefrom Columbia University, major in public relations.mailto:bobkelly@TNI.net Visit:http://www.prcommentary.com