Communication plan, PBL Task 6
Open Task 6
Problem: What does a communication plan involve?
Learning objectives:
LO1 What are different communication plan models?
LO2 How to evaluate/measure the effectivness of the communication plan?
LO3· How are the trends reflected in the communication plans? (example)
Personal Study:
LO1: What are different communication plan models?
What is a Strategic Communications Plan?
A communication plan is simply a written statement that outlines communication goals, provides some situational analysis, and proposes approaches and activities to achieve the identified goals given the identifies current situation.
A communication plan sets out the timeframe for carrying out these activities, details the resources and support that will be necessary to achieve your goals, and identifies how results will be measured. It can be a summary document of only a few pages, or a manifesto of 40 pages or more. Part of the length and depth of a plan depends on whether it is a five-year organizational plan or a plan designed to support a particular campaign or strategic goal.
You can find an outline of a typical communication plan in Appendix A.
In the private and government sectors, communication plans are typically developed in support of very detailed organizational strategic plans. In the not-for-profit sector, it is most common to see strategic communication plans as a hybrid of both organizational and communication planning processes.
A cautionary note: while communication plans are written documents, they also need to be thought of as living documents. The reality is, the communication landscape is always changing, and new opportunities will continually arise for delivering your organization’s messages to internal and external audiences. And, as your understanding of the communication landscape – and your skills at manoeuvring through it – improve, your opportunities to get the message out will only increase. For these reasons, written communication plans should be revised regularly – at least quarterly - based on ongoing evaluation. And they should be constantly referenced.
LO2: How to evaluate/measure the effectivness of the communication plan?
I recently started a job in a newly created position as communication manager for a company that recently doubled in size through an acquisition. “A greenfield opportunity” was how it was positioned in my interview. It was a happy confluence of events that I drafted this article just as I started developing the first global communication plan for the newly merged company.
I am starting the planning process, as I always do, with measurement. Over the years, I’ve developed a strategy tool that I call measurement-based planning. It may sound counterintuitive to start your plan at the end, but starting with defining what you ultimately want to measure—and how you will measure it—creates a more focused and concrete communication plan, with more quantifiable results.
This is a twist on the traditional planning process that focuses on goals and objectives. Yes, the things you ultimately want to measure are the objectives. However, analyzing those objectives through a measurement lens from the outset forces you to think much more concretely.
For instance, one of the responsibilities in your job description may be to manage employee communication and to educate and motivate the company’s workforce. Instead of plunking down “educate and motivate employees” as an objective, start by asking yourself, “How would I know if employees were educated and motivated? How would I measure that?”
Consider three types of outcome measures, which social media measurement expert Kami Huyse has summed up neatly as the three As: awareness, attitude and action. In other words, what will your audience know, what will they believe, and what will they do?
What will employees know?
Much of communication involves conveying knowledge. For example, employees at my organization are expected to know the company’s vision and its five values. This kind of knowledge is easily measured, although it will take some probing to determine whether the understanding goes beyond rote memorization. The communication planning process should identify various content employees should be aware of: key business strategies, competitive positioning, safety and ethical policies, etc.
What will employees believe?
This is about trust. You will want to measure trust in senior management, trust in the company’s direction, the credibility of your organization’s mission, vision and values, and similar dimensions.
What will employees do?
Surprisingly, this outcome is often the most overlooked, yet it can be the easiest to measure. Look for specific employee actions that support corporate goals. For example, in an industry where there is fierce competition for talented employees, one measure of employee motivation (or lack thereof) is the number of employees who leave to work for competitors—a number that I can pretty much guarantee is already being tracked by your organization. Another measure is work quality. Depending on the type of business, quality can be measured in manufacturing defects, in customer complaints, in the percentage of time the operation is up and running (versus offline or shut down for repairs)—again, these are existing metrics in most organizations. If your communication plan can make an impact on those numbers, you will achieve not only quantifiable results, but documentable return on investment.
How should you measure these outcomes? As I noted, some metrics may already exist. Other measurement tools, such as employee surveys, will need to be developed. Or you can look to other resources within your organization. For example, from my discussions with the human resources department, I know an in-depth employee engagement survey is in the works that can give me some solid metrics and benchmarks for employee attitudes.
Starting with measurement reinforces the need to benchmark other objectives as well. Measurement is a comparative process—one of the key points I took away from PR measurement expert Katie Paine’s book,Measuring Public Relationships. Without context, numbers have no meaning. That’s why the first step in measurement is to determine a base line. I intend to conduct some brief surveys and perhaps some interviews or focus groups to gather more in-depth understanding of the current state of the organization. That input will give me a sense of how much change we can hope to achieve through communication. For other measures, such as quality or employee retention, gather current statistics, background insights and existing targets from the keepers of that data. Knowing what is measurable and what is not can help you define clear and actionable objectives in each area.
Communication planning is not a linear process. It is more like a series of loops: As you establish metrics, objectives and measurement tools, you are also researching the organization, defining the target audiences and their critical characteristics, and identifying available and effective communication channels. Even before these pieces are in place, it can be hard to resist brainstorming some potential tactics. But the measurements that you establish at the outset will emerge at the end of the planning cycle as an evaluation of the success of your communication efforts and a benchmark for future planning.
By putting measurement first, you ground your plan in reality as well as set in place clear criteria against which success can be evaluated. You won’t end up at the end of the year wishing measurement hadn’t fallen off the bottom of your to-do list.
I am starting the planning process, as I always do, with measurement. Over the years, I’ve developed a strategy tool that I call measurement-based planning. It may sound counterintuitive to start your plan at the end, but starting with defining what you ultimately want to measure—and how you will measure it—creates a more focused and concrete communication plan, with more quantifiable results.
This is a twist on the traditional planning process that focuses on goals and objectives. Yes, the things you ultimately want to measure are the objectives. However, analyzing those objectives through a measurement lens from the outset forces you to think much more concretely.
For instance, one of the responsibilities in your job description may be to manage employee communication and to educate and motivate the company’s workforce. Instead of plunking down “educate and motivate employees” as an objective, start by asking yourself, “How would I know if employees were educated and motivated? How would I measure that?”
Consider three types of outcome measures, which social media measurement expert Kami Huyse has summed up neatly as the three As: awareness, attitude and action. In other words, what will your audience know, what will they believe, and what will they do?
What will employees know?
Much of communication involves conveying knowledge. For example, employees at my organization are expected to know the company’s vision and its five values. This kind of knowledge is easily measured, although it will take some probing to determine whether the understanding goes beyond rote memorization. The communication planning process should identify various content employees should be aware of: key business strategies, competitive positioning, safety and ethical policies, etc.
What will employees believe?
This is about trust. You will want to measure trust in senior management, trust in the company’s direction, the credibility of your organization’s mission, vision and values, and similar dimensions.
What will employees do?
Surprisingly, this outcome is often the most overlooked, yet it can be the easiest to measure. Look for specific employee actions that support corporate goals. For example, in an industry where there is fierce competition for talented employees, one measure of employee motivation (or lack thereof) is the number of employees who leave to work for competitors—a number that I can pretty much guarantee is already being tracked by your organization. Another measure is work quality. Depending on the type of business, quality can be measured in manufacturing defects, in customer complaints, in the percentage of time the operation is up and running (versus offline or shut down for repairs)—again, these are existing metrics in most organizations. If your communication plan can make an impact on those numbers, you will achieve not only quantifiable results, but documentable return on investment.
How should you measure these outcomes? As I noted, some metrics may already exist. Other measurement tools, such as employee surveys, will need to be developed. Or you can look to other resources within your organization. For example, from my discussions with the human resources department, I know an in-depth employee engagement survey is in the works that can give me some solid metrics and benchmarks for employee attitudes.
Starting with measurement reinforces the need to benchmark other objectives as well. Measurement is a comparative process—one of the key points I took away from PR measurement expert Katie Paine’s book,Measuring Public Relationships. Without context, numbers have no meaning. That’s why the first step in measurement is to determine a base line. I intend to conduct some brief surveys and perhaps some interviews or focus groups to gather more in-depth understanding of the current state of the organization. That input will give me a sense of how much change we can hope to achieve through communication. For other measures, such as quality or employee retention, gather current statistics, background insights and existing targets from the keepers of that data. Knowing what is measurable and what is not can help you define clear and actionable objectives in each area.
Communication planning is not a linear process. It is more like a series of loops: As you establish metrics, objectives and measurement tools, you are also researching the organization, defining the target audiences and their critical characteristics, and identifying available and effective communication channels. Even before these pieces are in place, it can be hard to resist brainstorming some potential tactics. But the measurements that you establish at the outset will emerge at the end of the planning cycle as an evaluation of the success of your communication efforts and a benchmark for future planning.
By putting measurement first, you ground your plan in reality as well as set in place clear criteria against which success can be evaluated. You won’t end up at the end of the year wishing measurement hadn’t fallen off the bottom of your to-do list.
LO3: How are the trends reflected in the communication plans? (example)
10 Global Communication Trends in 2014
As I travel around the Burson-Marsteller network, the subject I get asked to talk about most is the future of communication.
As I see it, the major trends in communication are finely balanced between the emotional: periods of crisis, loss of trust, the desire for personalised communication, the drive towards greater transparency, and the rational: purposeful, strategic counsel with tangible, evidence-based outcomes. These are the ten top trends for 2014:
- Shift to Mobile and Beyond #mobile
The biggest trend with the greatest immediate impact on communication is the shift to mobile. Global mobile traffic currently represents 17.4% of all internet traffic and is rapidly increasing. Mobile internet use is expected to surpass traditional desktop internet use in 2014. Mobile has become so deeply embedded in our lives by offering convenience through immediacy, simplicity and context. Through mobile – and soon wearable – technology each of us can receive individualised content which also points to another major trend, that of personalisation. - Personalisation or the "Youniverse" #personalisation
This idea of creating your own "Youniverse" is a perfect example of tapping into our emotional desire to be seen as unique personalities. Public relations professionals must assist companies in learning how to move from more traditional tactics in favour of smarter approaches that extend their personalisation capabilities beyond the PC. The ability to deliver relevant communication across multiple channels will transform these marketing efforts from an unwanted intrusion into a valued service. - Social Media Impact on Communication #socmedimpact
Public relations professionals need to keep pace with this fast-evolving environment. The challenge is dealing every day with two huge data explosions: the expanding universe of ‘digital influencers’ and the massive volume of social media conversations and real-time mentions that concern your brand, industry and competition. Digital influencers have grown 30-fold in less than two years. A crucial difference with traditional media is the need for engagement. The sheer volume of mentions requires brands to prioritise: find out who matters, determine what they’re saying, how it sways others and how best to engage with them. Balancing the emotional (dialogue) with the rational (measurement of influence) is the key. - Brand Journalism #brandjournalism
Social media broke the traditional media model in one fundamental way: media organizations are no longer gatekeepers of information & audiences. The very definition of "news" is changing, and this evolution creates the opportunity for PR & content marketing pros to create timely content that earns credibility, earns media and generates ongoing (and relevant) visibility for the brand. The key to finding and telling great stories in a way that will make your audience not only want to engage with them but share and even repurpose them is to commit to trying new things. Brand journalism isn’t content marketing, nor is it sponsored content. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. It is meaningful, quality storytelling. - Crisis in the "Always On" Era #prcrisis
Since the advent of "always on" social media, companies have to guard their reputations even more vigilantly. Viral videos can wreak havoc on brands. Legal responses like attempting to pull videos from YouTube only inflame the situation. Speed is of the essence and ultimately the only answer at times like this is timely, honest and transparent communication. This leads us to another key trend: hyper-transparent communication. - Transparency is King #transparency
In our hyper-connected world, the trend is increasingly towards hyper-transparent communication. Consumers and other stakeholders have many more channels at their disposal for exposing and discrediting companies for any lack of honesty. As difficult a concept as that is for many, transparency is the only answer and any failures in this area are punished with alarming speed and efficiency. Brands that embrace this hyper-honesty trend will reap the benefits in consumer trust. - Evidence-Based #evidence
A major trend in public relations is that of measurement from the outset and throughout a campaign to measure impact and effectiveness. Burson-Marsteller has developed an evidence based approach to communication with the use of research among target audiences to test messages and measure results. Digital campaigns are particularly easy to track as many social media channels like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube have their own analytics which make it possible to demonstrate the reach of these campaigns by the number of views, shares, retweets, likes, etc. But it’s pushing beyond simple measurement into actionable insight that will be the game- changer for communications. - Image is All #image
Studies have shown that people remember only 20% of what they read (are you still with me?) and that 83% of learning occurs visually. The massive popularity of visual social networks like Instagram, Pinterest and Tumblr, demonstrates the emotional power of images to tell stories in a way that is proven to be far more memorable than mere words. In the same way, viral videos tell more powerful stories and allow greater engagement with consumers. The rise of infographics also shows the capacity of visuals to break large chunks of data into digestible portions. The bottom line is, we all have ever shorter attention spans and compelling images and visualisations are the key to making your story stand out from the crowd. - Power of Communicating Purpose #purpose
The world has fundamentally changed. Globalisation, democratisation of information, the rise of social media and the global financial crisis have forced corporate leaders to reassess the strategic path for their brands and organisations. They do so at a time when the central objectives of communication, reputation and trust, have shifted shape, perhaps irrevocably. In today’s hostile business environment, there is more need than ever for companies to explain why they are here, the rationale and the context. Our 2013 Power of Purpose study builds on those we carried out in 2008, 2010 and 2011 but with a new focus on how Corporate Purpose impacts on challenges which are increasingly relevant for companies in today’s business environment: the need for transparency, managing successful organisational change and reputation recovery after a crisis. - Integrated Communication #integration
The digital age has heralded a polar – and some might argue generational – shift in the way that the communications industries of PR, marketing, and advertising operate. It is increasingly evident that the future lies in full integration of all the communication disciplines. Previous (above and below) lines of demarcation are slowly but surely being dissolved. Driven by the fast pace of technological innovations, we can expect the industry evolution towards integrated communication to gather pace.
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