Public relations and promotions are about building a positive long-term image for the brand (through PR), while at the same time trying to spur a short-term behavioral responses (through promotions). The public relations plan should contain detailed information about media content and stakeholder perspectives concerning the brand, as well as promotional opportunities that may enhance the brand.
WHAT SHOULD BE INCLUDED: This section of the campaign should start with an account of current opinion and news coverage about your client and issues that are related to the brand. It should explain how you’ll track mass opinion, how you plan to monitor press coverage and how you’ll build relationships with media who cover you, as well as consumers.
These insights should help you develop media relations strategy for the brand. Consider how will you encourage media to cover your events and news releases. The media relations strategy should include a list of relevant media contacts, including specific details about how to contact them (such as a phone number or email address), as well as a list of headlines of recent stories about your brand. You can use a database like LexisNexis or Factiva to help you find out what’s been written or said about your product or brand.
This section should also include an analysis of the various stakeholder audiences — you’ll want to think through the different groups who have a stake in how well your brand performs, and how what you do through PR activities can influence those groups. Consider what issues are important to your stakeholder groups and how you intend to influence or manage opinion around those issues.
The PR director must also consider Web, mobile, search, direct and word-of-mouth marketing. The PR and promo director is responsible for working with the account director to outline some promotional efforts to support the brand and increase consumer action in desired ways. It is the responsibility of the public relations director to make it clear how this plan grows out of the situation analysis and the campaign strategy — especially how it ties into the position, brand and unique selling point you’ve established.
The PR plan must also include a discussion of public relations and promotions tactics you would use to generate press coverage and goodwill for your brand. These might include specific publicity programs, staged events or philanthropic efforts. Be sure to detail what specific events and publicity programs are planned, as well as explain how they would reinforce the core message of your campaign and the brand position you’ve established. All activities should answer the following question: “How does this effort advance the brand image and personality outlined in the campaign strategy?” The plans for these events should be supported by press releases and press kits for media who would cover them. Your final campaign book should have at least two press releases and one press kit with at least three pieces.
It should also explain other promotional and other non-traditional media activities to be executed, such as consumer and trade promotions (contests, incentives, special events and coupons) buzz marketing or word-of-mouth efforts.
Finally, the PR plan should address — with a comprehensive plan — how you would use social media to connect with consumers and influence opinion about your product and brand.
HOW TO DO IT: Start by developing your analysis of public opinion and stakeholders, as well as what issues are important to them. That should lead you into a well-developed PR strategy, which should include the media relations plan.
There are two major parts that should make up your PR plan — media tracking and event planning. One of the first things the public relations director should do is set up a Google alert, which will send you any stories about your client or product and your industry. You should work with your research director to search a database — Google News, Lexis-Nexis or Factiva — for news coverage of issues related to your campaign and your client. Staying on top of the stories that affect your client is important, and you can use them to identify relevant stakeholders and how they feel about the brand. And having an eye on who’s covering your product or organization will give you a way to reach traditional media when necessary. You also want to monitor public opinion about your brand and industry to see how attitudes are changing over time. PR directors must actively monitor social media throughout the semester to gauge what consumers (and non-consumers) are saying about your brand, your competitors and your industry.
Events and other activities to support your brand are a way of attracting press attention. Whether you’re hosting a contests, drawing, charitable partnership, public meeting or conference, your activity should cover this question: “How does this effort advance the brand image and personality outlined in the campaign strategy?”
The PR and promotions director should develop estimates for how much each element of the PR plan would cost and include a budget at the end of this section. (See the PR costs page for details about how much certain events might cost.) Unlike the set budget the media director has for buying paid media, the PR director has an unlimited budget.
The PR/Promo section of your campaign book should include these elements:
- A cohesive public relations strategy
- Who are your stakeholders and why do they care about your brand?
- What issues are important to your publics?
- How do you intend to influence or manage opinion around these issues?
- Discussion of media relations strategy and target vehicle selection
- How will you encourage media to cover events and releases?
- Who are your contacts at various news outlets?
- Why will you direct attention toward these outlets?
- Discussion of social media strategy
- How will you use social media to support your brand?
- What strategies will you use to engage with stakeholders?
- Will you run any social media promotions?
- Discussion of public relations tactics (such as publicity programs and events)
- What specific events and publicity programs are planned?
- How do these efforts reinforce the core message and brand position?
- Discussion of promotional activities to be executed (such as contests and incentive)
- What are the key promotional efforts?
- How does these efforts support the core message and brand position?
- How will Promotional and PR elements generate “buzz” or ‘go viral.”
- Budget and media kit (placed at the end) — the media kit should include at least three pieces, such as a background memo, a FAQ, graphics or maps, or any other information about your event that would help a reporter covering it.
WHO’S IN CHARGE: The public relations director
But the PR and promotions director may ask other team members to help in the overall development and execution of the plan, such as by helping write press releases or pieces of the press kit. The research director can help compile a listing of stories about your product and brand.
BE CAREFUL: There are a few pitfalls here. Remember that the PR plan should be used to support the rest of the campaign. Keep in mind the strategic decisions you’ve made, such as positioning, branding, unique selling point and the target audience. And if your media plan involves a flighting or pulsing strategy, for example, there will be months when there are little or no advertisements for your product in the media. Staging PR events or promotions during those times can help keep your brand at the top of the public’s mind. Or, you can use a PR plan to support one pulse in a campaign. Also, when coming up with ideas for events and promotions, think beyond a fun run or Instagram/Twitter contest — get creative!