Yes?

Good!

Still, as a business, non-profit or association manager, ifyou're not getting the behavior changes you paid for, you'rewasting your money.

Here's why I say that. People act on their perception of the facts, and those perceptions lead to certain behaviors. But something can be done about those perceptions and behaviors that leads to achieving your organization's objectives.

Which means you really CAN establish the behavior change you want, up front, then insist on getting that result before you pronounce the public relations effort a success.

In other words, the way to increase your comfort level about your public relations investment, is to make certain thatinvestment produces the behavior modification you said youwanted at the beginning of the program.

That way, you KNOW you're getting your money's worth.

Just what, you may ask, does your public relations teamhave to do to achieve that result?

Here's one approach.

Because public relations problems are usually defined bywhat people THINK about a set of facts, as opposed to theactual truth of the matter, it will be especially helpful if the public relations program is built upon the premisementioned above and, for emphasis, again here:

1. People act on their perception of the facts; 2. Those perceptions lead to certain behaviors; 3. Something can be done about those perceptions and behaviors

that leads to achieving the organization's objectives.

Now, Rank Your External Audiences

Identifying key audiences and prioritizing them - a crucialstep in any public relations action plan -- starts with apriority-ranking of those audiences with a clear interestin your organization, often described as "stakeholders" or"publics." Included would be customers, prospects, employees, media, the business community and local thought-leaders aswell as any number of other interest groups.

Stay Aware

Those with the public relations assignment must stay awareof negative or counterproductive behaviors among theorganization's key stakeholders or "publics."- customers,prospects, media, community activists, union leaders, competitorsthe business community and others.

Interaction of one kind or another with key audiences willtell you how they feel - and how they perceive -- your organization, and in particular areas where problems may bebrewing. This is informal polling, but essentialto any public relations effort. If resources are available,a limited opinion poll of the priority audience would behelpful.

There are many ways to gather such information. For example, regular monitoring of headquarters and field location media,staff activity reports, employee and community feedback,regulatory and other local, state and federal government activitiesinvolving your organization. High on any such intelligencelist is the Internet with its emails, ezines, chatrooms and search engines.

Identify the Behavior Modification Problem or Challenge

Now is the time to identify the behavior modificationproblem such as declining sales in a specific product line. Or, is it an allegation of wrongdoing? Or a quality orperformance issue? Has an elected official spoken negatively about your industry? Have you learned that a national activist group may target a unit of your organization? Or, is thereclear evidence of negative behavior among a key audience?

Similarly, a behavior modification challenge might includecreating positive, first time impressions of a new soft drink during a new market introduction. Or reinforcing thereputation of a category leader whose sales have begun toslip.

Verify the Accuracy and Severity of the Problem

Is it true and how bad is it? Determine through fieldstaff, key customers, media monitoring and, if the budgetis there, opinion sampling, just how serious the problemis. If an allegation, is it true or false? If a drop-off insales, gather and carefully evaluate the likely reasons.If a quality issue, probe deeply for its real cause.

After an exhaustive review of all evidence surrounding thebehavioral problem, establish conclusively its size and shape. Does it threaten employee or public safety, financialstability, reputation, the organization's mission, or sales? The answers to these questions help determine the resourcesto be assembled.

The Public Relations Goal

Simply stated: the goal is to begin the process of alteringpublic perception and, thus, behaviors, to a view consistent with that held by your organization.

The Public Relations Strategy

Now, you must select one of three choices available to youwhen you determine the public relations strategy. You cancreate opinion where none exists, change existing opinion or reinforce existing opinion.

Let's assume that we will strive to change existing opinion on the key issue. With your perception, behavior modification goals and now, the strategy, established, progress will bemeasured in terms of specific altered behaviors, i.e., floor traffic returns to the showroom; activist rhetoric declines; a low employee retention rate reverses. Such progressindicators can be set down, and agreed upon, once thenegative perceptions are truly understood, thus establishing the degree of behavioral change that realistically can beexpected.

A Persuasive message

What do we say? Well, we prepare persuasive messages designed to inform, clarify, and impact individual perception in such a way that individual behaviors flowing from those perceptions are consistent with that desired by our organization. Bringing important target audiences around to one's way of thinkingreally does depend heavily on the quality of the messageprepared.

The messages must contain clear evidence supporting yourorganization's views on the issue such as a crediblethird-party endorsement of your position. Regular assessments of how opinion is currently running among employees,suppliers and community leaders should be made. Finally,action-producing incentives leading individuals to changetheir perceptions of the issue, thus altering their behaviors, should be included in the message - incentives that testify to the organization's good intentions and veracity.

It's Tactics Time

Now, you select the most effective communications tacticsavailable to you.

The question is, how will you reach your target audiences -especially in various locations? You have many choices.Face-to-face meetings, email, hand-placed feature articlesand broadcast appearances, special employee, supplier orcommunity briefings, news releases, announcement luncheons,onsite media interviews, facility tours, promotional contests, brochures and a host of other carefully targeted communications tactics.

Reaching such audiences with the message through specialevents is particularly effective. They offer news value and include activities such as financial roadshows, awardsceremonies, celebrity appearances, open houses and tradeconventions.

Your public relations effort can be accelerated, evenamplified by carefully selecting the very best tactics from among print or broadcast media, key podium presentations,special events or top-level personal contacts. Whenthese tools communicate with each target audience, they must score direct bullseyes.

And remember that vital to the success of any action program is the selection and perceived credibility of theactual spokespeople who deliver the messages. They mustspeak with authority and conviction if they are to be believed, and if meaningful media coverage is to be achieved.

Action

While it's pull-the-trigger time, you should insure that youapproach your target audiences with a tactical schedulecalculated to reach them consistently as well as throughvaried media such as newspapers, radio and televisionappearances, high-profile speeches, facility tours andcommunity briefings.

How are we Doing?

The key activity here is monitoring progress, seeking signsof improvement in target audience perceptions and behaviors.

You and your colleagues should speak regularly with members of each target audience, monitor print and broadcast mediafor clear evidence of the organization's messages or viewpoints and regularly interact with key customers, prospects andinfluential citizens.

Indicators that the messages are moving community opinion -read perceptions and behaviors -- in your organization'sdirection will start appearing. For example, indicators like comments in community meetings, local newspaper editorials, e-mails from suppliers as well as public references bypolitical figures and local celebrities.

The End Game

You'll know when you arrive at the public relations end gamebecause the changes in behaviors will become truly apparent -- among them, encouraging supplier and thought-leader comment,increasingly upbeat employee and community feedback andan increased pace of positive media reports.

Bottom line? The public relations program can be deemed asuccess when you clearly meet the original behaviormodification goal you set when it all began.

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 © 2005.

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 communications, U.S. Department of the Interior, and deputy assistant press secretary, The White House. He holds a bachelor of science degree from Columbia University, major in public relations.

Visit: http://www.prcommentary.com; bobkelly@TNI.net