|
"The
road
to
success
has
many
tempting
parking
places."
- Steve Potter -
 PR Blog
Topics
Recent entries posted on our blog, Public Relations Insights,
include:
Developing a PR
Mindset for Your Business - Part IV: Be Alert
 by
Frank Williams
The
October
issue of The Pioneer Strategist introduced the concept of developing
a PR mindset for your business, and the
November
issue expanded on that concept by offering insight into our view of
what public relations is and is not.
Last
month's issue discussed the importance of planning as it relates to
developing a PR mindset for your business.
This month, we will focus on the importance
of being alert.
The word "alert" can be defined as fully
aware and attentive; wide-awake; keen. Another relevant
definition is an attitude of vigilance, readiness, or caution, as
before an expected attack.
Within the context of developing a PR
mindset for your business, "alert" could be defined as being
constantly aware of and prepared for public relations opportunities and
potential crises that could impact your business.
If you are constantly on the lookout for
potential PR opportunities, you are less likely to miss out on those
opportunities.
 Similarly,
if you are always on the lookout for looming public relations crises,
you are less likely to be blindsided when they do arise. If you
fail to anticipate a crisis and are therefore unprepared when it hits,
you may end up looking like a deer in the headlights.
Practical Ways to Stay Alert
There are several practical steps you can
take to help you stay alert and remain watchful when it comes to your business:
1. Review your communication plan
regularly. In making this statement, I assume that you have
such a plan; if you do not, you should develop one.
2. Develop a crisis communication
plan. Ask the "what if" questions -- "What if this happened in
our business?" Brainstorm any and every potential public relations
crisis that could impact your business, then prepare for that
possibility. Hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst.
3. Make time to discuss public
relations. Every business owner has a tendency to become
consumed with the "busyness" of running their business. When this
happens, PR is one of those things that is all too often swept under the
rug. If you want to remain alert, you should make time to discuss
your public relations program. We recommend a regular meeting in
which you proactively identify and discuss potential PR opportunities
and identify and plan for potential crises.
4. Analyze every aspect of
your business from a public relations perspective. The meeting
described in item #3 provides a natural forum for doing this. If
your business has multiple departments, discuss the potential PR
opportunities and land mines in each department during your meeting.
Ask those in attendance to offer feedback on what things are reinforcing
your PR program and what things are potentially undermining it.
5. Seek objective counsel. It
is all too easy to be so close to the forest that you can't see the
trees. Objective, trustworthy counsel from a competent outside
source can provide you with valuable insight and help you see things you
would otherwise miss. Such advice could come from a trained public
relations counselor, members of your board of directors or other
trusted business advisors. When you do seek outside counsel, make sure the
person in whom you confide is trustworthy, ethical, knowledgeable and
that they have have your best interests at heart.
Be alert. By making a conscious effort
to always be on the lookout for public relations opportunities and
potential crises, you reduce the likelihood that you will miss
opportunities or be caught off guard by crises.
Join the "Pioneering
Quotes" E-mail List
You are invited to join the "Pioneering
Quotes" e-mail list. If you join this
list, you will receive leadership or motivational quotes via e-mail two
or three times each week.
Click here to subscribe.
How to Subscribe to
this Newsletter
If you are receiving a forwarded copy of
this newsletter and would like to subscribe,
click
here or send an e-mail to:
subscribe-956605774@ezinedirector.net
This
newsletter and all content and information contained herein are the
property of Pioneer Strategies, Inc. and may not be
reproduced in any form without the express written consent of the
publisher.
|
