PR tactics and exercises for defining companies to the public


Knowing your opponent is one thing-defining them in the minds of your publics is an additional. Most PR exercises are about defining the organization in the minds of its publics, but this is only half the story, particularly when one is confronted with a persistent opponent who can't be placated.

The issue is made worse by the reality that people often identify using the underdog, which means that direct attacks on opponents are extremely likely to backfire. Subtlety is needed! The way forward for many organizations is to use wording that conveys a solidly positive image, forcing opponents to take up the negative stance.

By categorizing yourself in a positive way it is simple to imply that your opponents are categorized in a negative way. The subject of abortion is an very emotive one, for example: those in favor of it categorize themselves as "pro-choice," which indicates that any opponents instantly categorize themselves as "anti-choice." Those exact same opponents categorize themselves as "pro-life," which tends to make opponents categorize themselves as "anti-life" in the public consciousness.

For firms in less emotive industries, there's the possibility of categorizing the firm as "pro-jobs" or "on the side of economic growth in the region." This instantly wrong-foots opponents, who then need to justify their very own positions.

Forcing opponents into a negative position provides you with an instant advantage in establishing your own credibility in the minds of your publics. Unless your opponents are extremely slick, you will have gained the high ground.

Find the positives. Choose the positive that forces your opponents into a negative position. Don't muddy the waters-keep plugging the positive term you have decided on. Be prepared for retaliation. Your opponents will most likely respond in kind.

Many firms make a large song-and-dance about their charity function, promoting their generosity in sponsoring this or that good trigger. This is all well and great, but can easily backfire: a firm that continually harps on about its great corporate citizenship makes individuals wonder whether it's only contributing to charity in order to appear good-in the exact same way as a rich person suddenly becomes overwhelmingly generous as death approaches, the suspicion is that the firm (like the individual) is merely trying to purchase its way into heaven. The alternative would be to keep fairly quiet about charitable behavior-but how can this benefit the business?

Physique Shop is world renowned for its unusual method to the cosmetics business, and indeed to business in general. Founder Anita Roddick famously said that she didn't think in marketing, but in reality she was eminently good at doing it: she was equally great at public relations, and elevated Body Shop in numerous ways.

One of the most important aspects of the Physique Shop organization is that each store is encouraged to carry out charity function within the nearby community. Staff can select which projects they wish to turn out to be involved in, and can determine their own way of contributing, with the assistance of the firm.

This means that nearby Body Shop branches might be involved in creating a children's playgroup, in supporting a local hospice, in fundraising for a kidney machine for the nearby hospital, or in any one of hundreds of different ways. Staff sometimes volunteer their time to help, sometimes collect money, sometimes lobby local councils to act. Physique Shop allows them time off function to complete this, but many staff members carry on in their own time as well.

The outcome of this approach is that staff really feel component of the nearby community, they feel that they're working for an ethical employer, and they feel more like part of a team. In the nearby area, word soon gets about that Body Shop is helping: the publicity arises through word of mouth, instead of as the result of press releases or advertising. This is surely probably the most powerful way of generating interest.

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Note: This article was sent to us by: Claire Stutton at 01232011

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