Managing Your PR Tactics
Throughout the campaign planning process, it can sometimes seem like you are drowning in tactics. This can especially happen after establishing the campaign’s goals and objectives. Through my experience in planning campaigns, I have created documents where I write down every single idea that comes to mind, no matter if they are good or bad.
“You’ve got to visualize where you’re headed and be very clear about it. Take a Polaroid picture of where you’re going to be in a few years.”
Plans guide us in the world of public relations, and tactics play a vital role in them. The abundance of ideas can be both a blessing and a curse – especially when organizing these tactics in an engaging plan because tactics can be easily overwhelming and confusing. Here are some best practices for showcasing your tactics in a cohesive, logical communications plan.
Visually Represent Your Plan
Detailing your tactics in a compelling, visual manner is essential to the planning process. I always organize, usually through a table, each objective under the goal it relates to. Additionally, I list each tactic under the objective it helps meet. Here’s an example from Mewbourne College’s Strategic Plan that I helped design.
While this example doesn’t specifically use the same exact terms you would use in a strategic communication plan, it does represent a practical format that quickly communicates the plan’s goals.
Why is this essential?
At the end of the day, the way you organize and present your tactics will change depending on the campaign and intended audience. Ronald Smith explains, “As you decide how to package your tactics, try to leap ahead of the crowd with an innovative approach to the problem or opportunity you are dealing with” (Smith, p. 408).
It is essential that you properly showcase a campaign’s tactics in relation to its objectives and goals. This helps your client better understand the purpose of your tactics and how they address the public relations problem at hand.
