The Simplicity Of An Idea

Design Forum Tasmania is a cultural institution in Launceston that presents the work of artists who work with the beautiful timbers from the island State.

On one of the gallery walls sculptor Peter Costello shares his thoughts on simplicity in art - a thought that applies equally to communication.

"I try and keep my work very simple. Each piece needs to be predicated by one idea only.

If it has two good ideas in the piece it is one good idea too many. It becomes too busy, uncentred so I work entirely on a single idea ... I believe almost any idea will do.

The success of it relies upon how you execute the idea. So in a sense there's almost no such thing as a bad idea."

Likewise the best ideas in marketing and PR are simple and uncomplicated.

Sell In Your Big Ideas

I recently ran a session on "selling your ideas to the boss".

The audience were public affairs professionals working in Australia's three levels of public service. It was a challenging experience mainly because ideas are tools of trade for most PR people.

I think we all agreed that getting a good idea out of the door is sometimes the toughest task for any communicator. Simply getting the OK for a new way of working can often be harder than its implementation.

So consider these steps when it comes to succeeding with your next winning idea:

• Crystalise your big idea and make sure it is developed enough to make sense to others when you proudly announce it. Does it cover important issues like the benefits to be gained or the opportunities that may be lost if it is not taken up. What does it mean in terms of time, cost and effort? And is there a clear plan to roll it out?
Who do you need to consult to earn support and what relationships need to be sustained to execute your suggestion?

• But you need to balance the need to work out this fine print with the urgency of releasing your idea in sufficient time to have impact. If you take too long in thinking through an initiative it could be outdated by the time you announce it, or you could lose the energy to carry it through or worse still someone may steal it before you have the chance to act.

• Appeal to self interest when you sell ideas. Identify the benefits to others and to your organization if your suggestion goes ahead. Specify the time or money or effort it will save -hopefully all three? Your managers and team mates are more likely to support something new if they sense better outcomes on the horizon.

• The maths of innovation are simple: introducing a new idea involves continuing conversation. You can never over-communicate a new plan because just when you are thoroughly tired of talking, others are just beginning to understand.

• Welcome objections. Often we interpret legitimate concerns about our ideas as hostile criticism. You need to know all potential barriers so you can develop simple, clear responses to overcome the likely difficulties. Objections can be valuable in themselves when they attract attention and raise awareness of a new suggestion particularly in a jaded organisation.

• You need to convince more than 51 per cent of the hierarchy about the value of your vision. When the going gets tough, a slim majority can easily disappear and along with it can follow your great idea. Aim to get solid majority support for your plan but sidestep hostile opponents and leave them on the sidelines.

Above all remember new ideas are the lifeblood of any organisation. They are the propellant that makes a difference and reinvigorated your practices. So communicate with clarity and passion because if you are not excited about your big idea, why should others be enthused.

Good luck with your next grand plan.

5 Reasons PR Pros Still Need Traditional Media

Social media is increasingly important for all communications pros, but dovetailing it with traditional media is the way to go. 

 

Check out this great common sense advice at the Ragan Communications website.

Internet Makes Youth More Engaged

A US study finds the Internet makes young people more politically engaged.
http://yhoo.it/e1lJvP

Why PR People Love Newspapers

I like working with newspapers because they provide an abundance of opportunities to PR professionals.

 

Day in day out newspapers sort, sift and present us with stories from around the world.  They report politics, business, sports, health and a host of other issues.  Each edition offers the opportunity to learn something either we did not know or we ought to know. 

By and large  our  communities are well served by daily, weekly, local and national newspapers which offer  numerous opportunities to promote our clients, customers and occasionally ourselves.

Some commentators delight in predicting the death of newspapers. True the evidence can seem compelling when we hear a newspaper has closed, cut staff or is now only  available on-line. But we need to be cautious about predicting the death of newspapers.  It would be a sad day if they were to vanish.  We would lose the broad coverage of community affairs  they provide: news we can read over coffee, share with friends, circle with a pencil or rip out to stick on the refrigerator door.

Newspapers are important for other reasons.  They provide a permanent record of events and archive what happens at a particular moment in time. Often they drive the news cycle when radio and TV stations follow their lead and pick up their stories and in recent times on-line sites draw credibility from them by linking back to what they report.

And PR professionals delight in the different sections  of a newspaper designed to appeal to different types of readers. 

The early general news or first four or five pages of a newspaper are where fast breaking news stories about politics, the economy, crime and conflict appear.  Every client aspires to be so prominent providing of course the coverage is positive. However it is competitive so coverage in other sections is likely to be more achievable.   

Feature can range from half to multiple pages and allow more in-depth reporting.  Often there will be weekly or periodic supplements on motoring, education, health, food and wine, seniors, computers, travel or other specific themes.  And larger newspapers may publish weekend magazines that cover such softer issues in more detail than their daily editions. 

People and organisations can express their own opinions through newspapers. They can write to the editor to make their views known or volunteer to write an opinion piece on a topical issue . Or they can approach  the columnists who regularly present their thoughts on news and issues  or make local events easy to discover through the community diary section.

To work effectively with newspapers, you need to develop a feel for how they report their stories.  This can come from analysing what stories appear, how they are described and how a newspaper uses facts and figures and images to explain an issue. A closer reading will also reveal which reporters write about what topics and how often they do so. Analysing then answering these questions will help you understand how to best approach and work with print journalists to cover your organisation or client.