A while ago I wrote this line “Connecting people to things they care about is at the heart of connecting with them”. Examining this thought through the lens of a PR Practitioner reminds me that all of our work begins and ends with a deep understanding of what motivates people. At the very start of a PR campaign, the question is “What is the role of PR?” How does the work we do connect to what the organisation/leaders we are working for care most deeply about? What drives the Founder / CEO / CXO and what do they care about that PR can support?
I often hear the complaint that PR is not a central function, or that it is brought into the equation towards the end of the planning cycle, just before an announcement or a launch. Connecting with the right stakeholders internally making sure we understand their priorities and aligning PR with them is the only key to changing the way the function is perceived.
Once we have the attention of internal stakeholders and they understand the power of PR, then our energies need to shift to external audiences. Who does the business or the brand want to communicate with? Is it the investor community? Or is it potential customers? Who are they, where are they and what do they care about? If we can connect our brand or business to the things that our audience cares about, the PR is sure to work its magic. The messages that will move these audiences in ways that matter to us emerge. Then the outreach strategy and tactics. Finally, measurement to close the loop and see how much of an impact PR has been able to have on the original goals defined.
A planned and sustained effort to create and maintain two-way communication between an organisation and its public, for mutual benefit… is what the textbook definition of PR asks us to focus on. It is so hard to lose sight of this in the race for maximising share of voice, increasing reach, engagement, likes and followers, and a host of other metrics that add to the noise. The simple truth is we need to stay focused on what our audience cares about and find a way to engage with them on those topics. This is true when it comes to my work life and also my life in general. One of the serendipitous benefits of writing a weekly column is that I get to revisit my thoughts and re-examine them.
Connecting with myself requires me to follow this notion – I must at regular intervals examine what and who I care about and then work hard to communicate with both. It is so easy and I dare say tempting to stop looking inward. The pressures and pulls of life, deadlines, to-do lists, and never-ending demands of others often are so much easier to dance to the tune of. One of the ways I have found to do this is to create the space to pause at periodic intervals and examine what is going on in my life. I do this with the help of professionals like coaches, therapists, and communities of like-minded people who are on a similar journey of trying to live in alignment with their true selves.
Finding my voice, singing my song, creating my music, is much harder, but it is when my light shines brightest. My energy drops and dims if I don’t do this hard work. My reputation is linked to my actions. So, when I am not living in alignment and if I stray off my path, then my reputation gets muddled or muddy. People cannot see me or if they do, they get an unclear picture of who I am and what I stand for. The same holds true of businesses, brands, and companies. If they lose sight of the people, they set out to serve and what matters to them, then it’s difficult to connect with their audience and they start to lose their way and their reputation.
The views and opinions published here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the publisher.
A trusted coaching and communications professional, Nikhil Dey is a certified life and leadership coach (International Coach Federation - ICF). Nurturing talent and helping clients achieve their goals is what makes him happy. He loves learning from students of communication, teaching courses and guest lecturing at various educational institutions. When he is not working you will find him on the tennis court or out for long walks with his family and four legged friends.
Previously he has held senior leadership positions at Weber Shandwick and Genesis BCW.
He can be reached on twitter @deydreaming
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