Monthly Archives: June 2023

The Value of Independent Perspective

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Does your current public relations strategy need a second set of eyes? A fresh perspective can be invaluable. However, in-house communications teams are sometimes so busy or concerned about the optics of bringing in an outside team that this inherent value is overlooked in the process. It should not be.

Navigating multiple competing priorities requires careful planning, execution and excellent messaging. When it comes to effective communication, it can be challenging for in-house public relations or marketing teams to maintain an endless stream of creative thinking or an objective perspective on their strategies and tactics among their numerous priorities.

But even the most carefully developed messaging, well considered campaigns and communications processes can fall victim to stagnation, groupthink or tunnel vision without the benefit of fresh outside perspective. This is where partnering with an independent public relations agency can help.

Viewing Your Comms Strategy Through a New Lens

A PR agency can inspire new creativity to communications and provide a unique perspective to complement an organization’s existing marketing and communications team. Done in a collaborative environment, bringing in a public relations agency can drive diversity of thought and enhance your communications strategy.

And because outside PR firms are independent of the company itself and often paid to be so, they are free to challenge the status quo and drive healthy debate. They also bring varied experiences or modes of operation that can help further enhance the organization’s communications efforts, as they are not part of the larger internal culture. A communications strategy is only as good as the story it tells, and often an established story is made better by inviting new voices to the table.

Further, busy in-house communications and marketing teams may simply benefit from the extra sets of hands an outside agency can provide. A good PR agency partner can help carry the water on a priority media campaign or help explore new partnerships, emerging trends or untapped markets and introduce new tactics into your PR strategy. In turn, the in-house team is freed to focus on the bigger picture, organizational strategies and other priorities, unlocking new avenues for growth and expanding the reach and strength of the brand.

Finally, keeping pace with the rapidly changing communications and marketing landscape is no easy task. Consumer behaviors, technological advancements and industry trends are constantly evolving. Businesses and nonprofits need to adapt constantly to stay relevant. In-house teams do not have to shoulder this responsibility alone.

Taking a Cue from History

In an increasingly competitive business environment, the value of cooperative but independent perspectives related to communications cannot be overstated. There are numerous examples to consider when it comes to people coming together from different backgrounds to collaborate for the greater good. With the US preparing to celebrate Independence Day, the Founding Fathers offer an apt example.

They came together with diverse thinking, representing 13 different and diverse colonies for a common purpose. They recognized listening to multiple voices with assorted perspectives may have proved challenging, but it was also a surer path to victory than working alone. They knew that the best outcome for all would be found in collaboration.

So, this Independence Day, consider the value an independent voice might lend to your organization’s communication strategy. A good PR agency will not just be another line item on your expense sheet. They’ll deliver results that will make a positive impact.  

5 Steps to Navigating a Crisis Situation

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Planning your escape while your house is engulfed in flames is, arguably, the worst time to try to develop an escape plan. Surprisingly, countless business leaders take this approach to crisis communications management; trying to make a plan to save the business as metaphorical flames lick at their hands and feet.

The smart move is to have a comprehensive crisis communications plan in place long before you need to use it. However, given the relative lack of thoughtful crisis communications planning among many organizations, the next best strategy is to try to navigate the crisis as best as possible without getting too badly burned.

If your business or non-profit lacks a crisis communications plan, but you find yourself trying to manage a crisis situation, here are five steps you can take to try to minimize the damage:

Gather the Facts

The worst thing an organization can do early in a crisis is make assumptions or speculate. The outcome of your crisis will be shaped largely by your initial response. What can you verify? Start with what happened, when, who was involved and how you expect this event to impact your organization’s stakeholders and the public. Keep emotion out of it, recognizing emotions will run high in a crisis. Remember, we all have different perspectives and opinions when we’re asked to recount a situation. This is where you must insist on only dealing with verifiable facts.

Assemble Your Team

Typically, this includes one or more people in leadership, your organization’s attorney and one or more crisis communications professionals; either your in-house communications person or an experienced public relations agency specializing in crisis work. Empower the team to examine the situation and guide the course of how you will message to internal and external audiences.

Take Control of All Communications

From answering phones and the receptionist greeting guests to the intern handling your social media and the company daily email newsletter, your crisis communications team has to have complete control over all your communication channels. It’s best to deactivate comments on your Facebook page, pause your company newsletter and instruct everyone answering phones or greeting the public to direct all questions to a member of the crisis communications team. Everyone must be in sync in managing how your organization communicates in the middle of a crisis situation.

Be Consistent in Your Messaging

While it is important to adapt your messaging as facts present themselves, the messaging strategy and tone you and your crisis communications team agree to should remain consistent. Shifting the premise of your messaging will only create chaos, creating further confusion and eroding trust in your organization’s ability to manage the situation. There is also a tendency by some to question the strategy if an immediate resolution does not manifest. Recognize that once in a crisis, there are no quick fixes but often rather only a series of unpleasant realities. Managing a crisis in progress is about being patient and, frequently, picking the least damaging option available among several less-than-ideal options.

Do Not Lie

A final point on messaging: don’t lie. Don’t guess and don’t try to obfuscate. As noted in step one, your messaging must be fact-based. You should never try to spin your way out of a crisis as doing so almost always leads to making matters worse. Be honest, even when painful. And while legally you may be advised to not admit guilt, there are ways your legal and communications team can work together to provide fact-based and forthright messaging that will ultimately move you toward a more positive outcome in crisis situations.

Applying the above steps can help your team better manage a crisis and help ensure you aren’t completely overwhelmed by circumstances, some of which may not be of your organization’s making or in its control. But when in doubt, contact a professional crisis communications team. Your reputation and bottom line are worth the investment.

The Untold Story of InsurTech Insights USA 2023

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When I first made the transition from being a journalist to working in the world of public relations, a mentor gave me the following tip: When you get a reporter on the phone, you only have about 10 seconds to prove you have a story worth their interest. If you can’t wow them in the first 10 seconds, you’ve lost them.

I was reminded of this lesson at the 2023 InsurTech Insights USA conference in New York City in June. There I participated in the conference’s speed-dating-style networking structure. It afforded me the chance to meet with nearly 30 different companies in less than two days.

What became apparent in those rapid-fire meet-and-greet meetings – and was noted by several of those with whom I met – was that many of them struggled with their elevator pitch.

These were brilliant minds: data scientists, computer programmers, academics, serial entrepreneurs and financial geniuses. Their struggle was in capturing the attention of their listeners in the first moments of meeting. This wasn’t just my observation; several told me this was the biggest challenge they faced as they took their start-up or early-stage companies to market. Given the highly technical nature of many of their insurtech models, clearly and succinctly connecting what they did with a business case for their prospect proved challenging. In fact, it was one of the major reasons some wanted to talk to me. They wanted assistance in getting their message out to stakeholders.

What I shared was another lesson I learned long ago as a young reporter: people care about stories they can relate to or in which they see something that reminds them of themselves. Yes, business professionals want to know how a particular product or service improves their bottom line. But before you can get to the features and benefits, you must be able to tell a story that will capture their attention. That’s the secret to a great elevator pitch, winning over the prospect in a sales meeting or capturing the imagination and interest of a reporter.

If you can develop a great story that has a dynamic and recognizable opening, based on use or case studies or even your business’s origin story, and give it a strong opening that will grab the listener, you’ve won their attention. And with that attention, you can present your product or service to a more receptive and engaged audience. That is how you effectively communicate value.

Many businesses, well established or otherwise, share this same struggle. Engineers, financiers, technologists and entrepreneurs rarely study communications in school or launch their professional careers focused on telling great stories. They focused on their expertise and problems to be solved. Having a talented communications team behind them can improve an organization’s ability to better connect the problem to be solved with a helpful product or service. That is the X-factor in countless success stories waiting to be told.