Transcript Public Relations & Schools - Gene Sheehan

Public Relations & Schools
Sullivan & LeShane
Sullivan & LeShane
Government & Public Relations
Design, manage and implement strategic communication campaigns
Clients:
Corporations
Developers
Not-for-profits
Citizen Coalitions
Trade Associations
Educational Groups
Personal Background
Former President and Creative Director of one of Connecticut’s
largest ad agencies
Services to Clients
Media training
Strategic communication planning
Media relations
Litigation support
Labor unrest
Mergers and acquisitions
Branding issues
Crisis communications
Today’s Agenda
Public Relations 101
The Foundation: Planning
Building your reputation
Leveraging your reputation
Managing your reputation when the news is bad
Public
Relations
101
Public Relations?
The art or science of establishing and
promoting a favorable relationship with the
public
A promotion intended to create goodwill for a
person or institution
Some might say public relations is about
putting the best possible spin on the worst
possible news
More than Press
Releases and
Promotions
PR efforts can include:
Branding
Internal and external communications
Crisis management
Advertising
Media relations
Community relations
Fundamental
Objectives
Building a reputation
positioning yourself as the expert
Leveraging your reputation
selling products
obtaining approvals
solidifying support for a position
Protecting your reputation
managing bad news
Objectives for Schools
Building community support for your school’s
internal and external target audiences
Leveraging support for initiatives - capital
campaigns, construction projects, etc.
Preparing for a crisis or unwanted media
coverage
In Practice
A major corporation holds a press
conference to announce a new product or
service
A not-for-profit organization writes an op-ed
for the local newspaper
A citizen advocacy group buys radio ads to
promote their position
A parent calls the ACLU to change a school
discipline decision, then calls the media
Public Relations
Essentials
Have a winning team and a plan
Talk to your audiences - before they start
talking about you
Build political muscle before you need it
Be a source before you are the story
The Foundation: Planning
Planning
Every communication effort should be based
on a written plan
The plan should detail:
Assessment of current situation
Objectives to be achieved
Strategies to achieve them
Tactics to implement strategies
Expected deliverables
Assess the Situation
Take a critical look at your school
How do communicate today?
Strengths and weaknesses
Opportunities and limitations
Allies and opponents
Communication resource inventory
Identify Your
Objectives
Based on a realistic analysis of the situation,
what do you wish to achieve?
Objectives define the result of a successful
communication effort
Sample objectives:
Secure additional funding for the school budget
Attract new teachers to the school
Raise money to build a new sports field
Engage parents in school activities
Develop Strategies
Strategies define the specific pathways to
achieve a successful result
Sample Strategies:
develop key messages customized to target
audiences
prepare spokespeople to deliver key
messages effectively in various situations
generate earned media coverage to build
profile of school or district
continuously evaluate media coverage
Identify Tactics
Tactics are activities that implement plan
strategies
Organize tactics in a campaign format
Sample tactics:
by-line articles by faculty in local papers
press releases on student and faculty
achievement
email newsletters to parents
special programs to involve local businesses in
teaching curriculum
Building Your
Reputation
Your Reputation
Your audiences have existing opinions about
you
Your reputation is based in large part on
what they hear or have heard about you
Build your reputation by communicating your
messages directly to your audiences
Communication will change and build your
reputation over time
The best promotion is self promotion
Building Your
Reputation
Communicate, listen, communicate...
Become a media resource
Expand your base
Be accessible to all audiences
Identify high profile communication
opportunities
Communicate, Listen,
Communicate...
Understand how audiences respond to your
communications
Don’t just send a newsletter
Ask what your audience thinks of the
newsletter
Continuously evaluate what you are saying
and how you are delivering the message
Be a Media Resource
Organizations can build their reputations by
serving as an expert for news stories
Proactively deliver topical stories
Pay attention to natural news hooks anniversaries, holidays, trends, etc.
Provide local reporters with experts from
inside your school
Expand your Base
As your organization communicates look for
new opportunities
Look for new audiences
Look for new ways to engage your audiences
Be Accessible to All
Audiences
The media doesn’t respect fair-weather
friends
Beyond reporters make yourself accessible
to elected officials, business leaders and
other key community decision-makers
Use the interactive power of the internet
Identify
Communication
Opportunities
Monitor national media for trends that your
school can speak about locally
Think of innovative ways to communicate
with your audiences
Take advantage of high profile networking
opportunities
The I.S. factor
Leveraging Your Reputation
Use Your Reputation
School communication efforts cross into the
political arena
Your reputation in the community will create
a base of support
This support can help with fundraising
projects, support in budget referenda, or
other important policy decisions
This support can also prevent you from being
a target
Managing Your
Reputation
Prepare for the Worst
Create a crisis communications contingency
plan
Practice Makes Perfect
Media Training
Mock Drills
Never Say Never
If someone thinks it up - it might just happen
Prepare for the worst cases you never think
can happen
When the worst
happens...
10 Tips to Protect Your
Reputation
Be prepared to tell your
side of the story
Respond to all negatives
First things first
Speak with one voice
Demonstrate
responsibility
Talk to the media
It ain’t over ‘til it’s over
Insist on balance
Learn from your mistakes
Be quick on your feet
Have A Plan - Practice It Often
- Sweet Dreams!