Insights for Leaders Navigating
Visibility, Credibility, and Growth.
From media strategy to reputation management, we explore the trends shaping public perception and share the approaches that drive measurable results for growing brands.
Has there ever been a time when you needed to collaborate with coworkers, clients, or vendors, and it became a momentous task to schedule a time that works on everyone’s calendar? With the holidays in full swing, it can become stressful to get jobs done when it requires meetings with others who may be on vacation, not to mention all the other roadblocks that can come up when scheduling time. Thankfully there are tools available that can be used to make the headache of calendar management a thing of the past.
Here are five tips to help manage your calendar and make meeting scheduling smoother:
- Use natural language to find meeting times – When scheduling a meeting in Outlook, you may not have an easily findable date. For example, you may need to create a follow-up meeting about six weeks from now. Instead of manually clicking through your calendar counting each week, Outlook will recognize terms like “in six weeks” in the meeting date. Outlook will then populate with a date six weeks from that day.
- Create meetings via email replies – This is Outlook’s most straightforward but often overlooked feature. There are times when after a few email correspondences, a meeting needs to be created. This can be done by opening the message options and selecting meeting reply. Doing this makes creating a meeting more straightforward and keeps all past emails in the meeting invite.
- Recreate meetings with fewer steps – Another simple but highly effective tool from Outlook. Say you just had a meeting, and the participants decide another meeting is needed the next day. Instead of creating a new meeting from scratch, hold the control button and drag the original meeting invite to the new time, creating a copy of that meeting. You will still need to add the attendees to the newly created meeting, but this will save time as everything else has remained the same.
- Show multiple time zones – At Communiqué, we have employees and clients working in different time zones, making scheduling time tricky. When looking at your calendar, go to the left-hand side of the screen that shows times and right-click on it to see options, then click on “Change Time Zone.” This will bring up a window where you can add up to two other time zones on the left side of your calendar. This is not only helpful for scheduling but also helps in keeping any correspondence within the other person’s working hours by having your calendar show their current time.
- Embrace calendar management programs – Many free and paid applications are available that make calendar management a breeze. Clockwise and FindTime are just two applications that can collaborate with your work calendar to give you more scheduling options. FindTime will send scheduling options to your meeting participants, and each person can mark the times that work best for them, giving you clear insight. This eliminates the need for back-and-forth messaging and gets the meeting on your calendar with better efficiency.
With these tips, creating meetings and managing your calendar won’t be a chore. Much of the information in this blog comes from the work of Kevin Stratvert. His YouTube channel has various other technology-related videos that are informative and easy to follow.
Leveraging Unique Data to Drive Awareness and Build Thought Leadership
More and more, we are finding that clients are interested in developing and publishing their own surveys or reports, highlighting original findings about their respective industry. And while the unique insights often offer insights in customers’ perspectives and interests, original data is also an excellent tool that can be leveraged to strengthen stories.
Reporters are hungry for data, especially when it highlights new trends, controversial findings or disruption. So, it can be a great way to engage the media and support thought leaders’ perspectives on the industry.
Given original surveys are a significant investment, organizations will want to maximize their impact by leveraging the findings to raise brand awareness and build thought leadership. Below are several ways to utilize your unique data.
Announce the Findings
First things first, announce the findings. Once you secure the results of the report, identify the most compelling insights, how they support current industry trends, or better yet, are set to disrupt the industry. Consider asking: how is this contrary to current predications? Does this further support a trend that is gaining a lot of traction?
When drafting the press release, be mindful of the structure and organization. Press releases highlighting data can often be dry and complicated. Identify three or four key takeaways from the report and include several data points within each section to support the desired takeaways.
Breaking the release into clear takeaways increases the likelihood that your audiences will understand the report findings.
Leverage for Proactive Opportunities
Original data is the gift that keeps on giving. Once report findings have been announced, there will still be plenty of opportunities to leverage the findings for media opportunities.
Consider diving into specific themes from the report by developing proactive pitches and contributed content on that topic. It’s a great way to highlight the data, promote the report add commentary that may not have been featured in the report. This commentary is critical to building out the broader story and adding the “human element” of storytelling.
Create Compelling Graphics
While data is highly desired by media, it’s important to present it in ways that makes it easy to understand and review. Creating infographics, charts and imagery to summarize the findings can help target audiences visualize the data.
Not only do they make it easier to interpret the data, but they also support engagement, often leading to increased views for press releases and shares on social media channels.
Publish Findings at a Regular Cadence
If the report clearly demonstrates ROI, consider making it a regular occurrence. If an organization publishes an annual report, consistently sharing valuable data, reporters will come to look for those reports each year, leveraging the findings for their reporting. This is a great way to build rapport with journalists and establish an organization as a clear industry leader.
Industry reports and original data are excellent tools to engage media, build thought leadership and raise awareness.
PR is a relationship-driven industry. As such, mastering client relations is central to a successful career in PR – especially in an agency setting. A critical component of client relations is understanding and managing expectations.
Outlined below are five tips for managing client expectations.
No. 1: Ask Specific Questions
Good questions consider the future. They aim to draw out the information necessary to understand what’s needed to accomplish a task. One best practice is to develop and outline questions before a meeting with a client. This way, you can think critically about whether the questions will home in on the information you need most or if you need to make any adjustments.
For example, you want to ask questions such as:
- What results will you need to see to consider this campaign successful?
- Is there anyone else on this project that will be providing input?
- What is the approval process?
- How often would you like to receive an update on the project status?
- Is email your preferred method of communication or would you prefer updates another way?
- Are you comfortable with us prioritizing Project X over Project Y to stay within our agreed upon-budget?
Use a mix of yes/no and open-ended questions. Using a mix of question types can provide a balance between efficiency and thoroughness and can allow you to gather both broad and specific information. For example, you might use yes/no questions to quickly gather basic information about a person’s background or experience, and then use open-ended questions to explore those topics in more depth.
Also, since you don’t always want to influence the client’s response, it’s important to use neutral wording to encourage an honest answer. The more you can learn about a client’s expectations, the business and its needs, the better you can anticipate expectations in the future.
No. 2: Listen and Recap Takeaways
As you ask questions, listen carefully to what the client is telling you. If you’re on a virtual call, ask if you can hit record, so your attention is on active listening, rather than taking notes. If you’re in person, determine and designate a specific participant to take notes or record the proceedings.
Repeat back to the client what you’re hearing during your discussion. This might sound like, “What I’m hearing is XYZ. Is that accurate?” or “Based on what you’ve shared, I envision our next steps will be ABC. Do you agree?”
It’s also vital to send a written recap of the discussion to the client after the meeting. Be specific on who owns which action items and expected deadlines. Active listening and recapping discussions are great ways to alleviate redundancies, create alignment and secure optimal results.
No. 3: Establish Timelines and Deadlines
Many professionals understandably relate to the motivation deadlines provide, which generally helps ensure projects stay on track and within budget.
By outlining clear timelines and deadlines you provide your client a clear grasp and vision of how you plan to meet goals and objectives. When necessary, be specific about what roadblocks might crop up, their potential impact, and how your team plans to overcome them to keep the project on track. Provide updates on the project’s progress regularly, as agreed upon at the start of the project.
If you anticipate you won’t meet a deadline, communicate that to the client as early as possible. Be transparent about the cause of the delay, if appropriate – but be careful not to make excuses. Ensure you communicate the new deadline clearly and ask if they have any concerns with the adjusted timeline.
No. 4: Outline Anticipated Results
Anticipated results are central to managing client expectations. As previously mentioned, ask questions about what results would make the campaign successful for the client. Is it coverage in a specific publication? A particular number of articles? The presence of key messages in a write-up? An increase in share of voice or positive sentiment over time?
This understanding informs your strategies and tactics and how you forecast anticipated results in advance of a project. Having advance notice of expected results beforehand gives the client time to react, ask questions and adjust expectations if needed. It also ensures the teams are aligned on what’s realistically achievable.
No. 5: Measure and Report on Actual Results
Clear, measurable goals ensure that PR strategies are effective. In a professional world that is increasingly focused on data-driven outcomes, it’s vital to track results. You might share them via a written report about a specific project, in a weekly, monthly or quarterly status report, or verbally in a meeting. Ultimately, aim to answer the direct questions, “Did we meet or exceed the client’s expectations? Why or why not?”
How you share results should align with what your client has stated works best for them. Your client will likely be reporting PR results to their superiors/colleagues, so it’s essential you recap results in a way that dovetails nicely with the reports they will share internally.
Managing client expectations is not always easy but establishing a clear picture of what your clients truly value is the key to building a long-lasting and impactful relationship.
So, you’ve won the business of a new client. Congrats! And so begins the critical onboarding process for a new client that can set the tone for the entire working relationship. Starting off on the right foot is crucial in order to set realistic expectations and standards on how to communicate and to build goodwill. The next step is for your team to get prepared so you can hit the ground running to drive meaningful results.
Onboarding new clients is a valuable process. Getting yourself and your team up to speed on your client’s immediate objectives is essential to laying a solid foundation for the partnership.
Below is a guide to creating a strong onboarding experience that sets your team up for long-term success.
- Monitor industry trends. Set up Google alerts to monitor your client’s key competitors and stay abreast of other vital news impacting your client.
- Conduct a media audit. If you didn’t do this as part of your new business pitch, it’s a good idea to review and analyze your client’s and its competitors’ editorial coverage. This will help you understand how your client’s coverage differs from its competitors. This analysis may also inform the ideas and strategies you recommend and serve as a baseline for tracking results.
- Know your client’s priorities. It’s critical to understand your client’s priorities, short and long-term goals, key competitors and perspectives. This is vital in defining the right strategies and knowing where to focus your resources and energy.
- Align on KPIs. Establish shared expectations around the measurement of results. Specifically, know how your client defines success, the KPIs that are important to them and how often they want progress reports or results recaps.
- Develop foundational materials. Begin developing the materials you will leverage throughout the partnership. For instance, create a story arc, develop key messages, and identify the supporting data that will be used to guide future campaigns.
Winning the business of a new client is an exciting time. However, it’s crucial that you put the time and resources into onboarding that will pave the way to success for both you and your client. Creating a strong foundation from the start will guarantee that your team won’t need to go back and execute these steps later on, leading you to successful PR campaigns from the get-go.
With many leaders embarking on planning for the coming year, I thought it might be helpful to explore the optimal team structure for corporate communications.
It is worth thinking about the structure of the communications department because beyond laying out the reporting structure, it can have a huge impact on workflow, workloads and collaboration. And these things can in turn have an impact on employee satisfaction, team effectiveness and efficiency.
What is the optimal structure for my comms team?
The answer depends on your organization’s objectives, the functional areas you’re overseeing, and how much lateral or cross-team coordination will be required. Many heads of communications are responsible for corporate comms, product communications, employee comms, influencer programs and social media.
The options for team structure include:
- Internal managers or specialists for each of these areas
- External vendors for each of these areas
- Blended teams of internal staff and external agencies
Is there an ideal number of people for a comms department?
No. The idea team is often a function of company objectives, the type and volume of work that needs to be completed, and the expense budget the company can allocate to communications. We have clients who are part of large teams of 15 or more and others who are the sole communications leader in their company.
What is the comms leaders’ role?
As mentioned above, comms leaders typically oversee a variety of activity. It often includes corporate brand communications, crisis comms, product communications, influencer relations, media relations, internal comms and social media.
Leaders are often responsible for hiring and motivating staff. They ensure people are prioritizing the right activities and have the information and tools they need to do their jobs effectively and efficiently.
And leaders need to be good problem solvers because their direct reports will often turn to them when they’re unsure of what to do.
Finally, because the leader often oversees a variety of functional areas, they also play an important role in lateral communication within their team and the broader organization. They often must ensure information is shared with internal comms and external comms at the same time so they both can begin planning and preparing. For instance, if a company is doing layoffs internal comms and external comms must be handled with care.
Is there anything else I can do to avoid information silos on my team?
Consider a weekly or biweekly meeting with your team leaders where they share a high-level summary of the projects they’re working on with the larger team. A standing meeting can go a long way toward guaranteeing there is information sharing between teams. These meetings don’t have to be long: The goal is simply to quickly share an update on activity and, if there is activity that must be coordinated across teams, set up additional meetings to enable that to happen.
Formalize team collaboration and communication. Let managers know that part of their job is to think about and communicate in a timely manner with their colleagues.
Another more radical idea is to adopt a matrix structure, in which an individual reports up to one or more managers. For example, a communication specialist might have two bosses, such as the external communications manager overseeing PR and the internal communications manager.
In this situation, the managers work together. They jointly set objectives, supervise work, help with professional growth and development, and provide performance appraisals. Therefore, by default, there should be more communication between the managers, fostering better lateral or cross-silo communication.
Clearly, there are many ways to structure and grow your communications team. But as leaders embark on planning for 2023, it’s a wonderful time to consider whether their department structure still works given their priorities. If not, leaders should consider changes.
With 2022 nearly gone, it’s time to begin planning for the coming year.
Strategic planning helps make sure you’re clear about your client’s business and communications objectives and how to achieve them in 2023. Below are five tips for strategizing in the new year.
Realign on communication objectives
Clear objectives create winning strategies. Have a conversation with your client about their goals and how PR can help them achieve the right outcomes. This is also a wonderful time to discuss any changes in messaging, products and services, and operations that could affect your program.
Implementing a PR program without these updates is like trying to bake a cake without a list of ingredients. Without an understanding of what is required, you can’t design a PR program that will produce the desired results.
Evaluate successful (and unsuccessful) strategies
Another important step is analyzing your previous PR efforts. What strategies were successful? Which missed the mark?
Consider KPIs such as client feedback, reporter response rate, client retention, and coverage amount and quality. If you’re looking for ideas about how to measure media coverage, check out my colleague’s recent blog post specifically analyzing message pull-through and outlet readership.
Understanding what worked helps you focus on strategies with proven track records. Use past success to drive future results.
Re-evaluate media targets
Just as many people use New Year’s resolutions to clean up their lives, PR professionals should clean up their media lists. It is common to use similar media lists and contacts for pitching throughout the year. But to get the most out of these lists, it’s necessary to update them. A good practice is to update your list throughout the year when you receive bouncebacks or learn a reporter has left their position.
Don’t stop at edits, though. Media lists should evolve with your client. Consider any new verticals or targets where your client can be a part of the conversation. When analyzing a new publication, search for articles that could relate to your client. Make a note of the author and add them to your media lists.
Going into 2023 with stronger media lists will optimize pitching results and drive coverage.
Identify important dates
The new year means new opportunities. Identify the deadlines for key events for editorial calendar opportunities, speaking engagements and conferences.
This information is typically on a publication’s website. However, if the publication staff hasn’t updated opportunities for the new year, it never hurts to send an email. Get a jump before January, though, because many deadlines come sooner than you think. You don’t want to miss a valuable PR opportunity because a deadline snuck past you.
Consider year-in-review or predictions stories
In December and January, it is typical for publications to run year-in-review stories and trends or predictions for the new year. These packages are often planned well in advance and are listed on a publication’s editorial calendar.
These articles are a great way to secure a product or company write-up or to showcase your client as a thought leader. Take advantage of this time of year by inserting your client into the conversation. Highlight their successes, significant accomplishments and announcements for the new year in a momentum-focused press release.
Your PR New Year’s resolution to enhance your strategies begins well before Jan. 1. To attain results and satisfied clients, start planning now.