Public Relations
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Build Your Reputation Before You Need It
by Frank L. Williams At its heart, public relations is about building and maintaining relationships with key publics. Relationships that stand the test of time are rooted in trust. Trustworthiness and credibility are joined at the hip. Credibility can be defined as the quality of being trusted and believed in or the quality of being convincing or believable. If you lack credibility,…
Read MorePR: It’s About Relationships, Not “Spin” or “Free Publicity”
by Frank L. Williams Over the years, I’ve run across more than a few people who think public relations is about nothing more than “spin” or “free publicity.” They are wrong. Stereotypes such as those dramatically oversimplify the public relations process. In 2011 and 2012, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) conducted a member-engagement process to…
Read MoreWhat is Credibility and Why Does it Matter?
by Frank Williams Public relations and communication professionals will tell you that establishing, building and maintaining credibility is one of the most frequently mentioned purposes of a public relations program. I’ve heard about the importance of credibility ever since my first public relations classes at N.C. State (longer ago than I want to admit). But…
Read MoreCornerstone or Afterthought?
by Frank L. Williams A cornerstone can be defined as an important quality or feature on which a particular thing depends or is based. For a public relations program to be truly effective, it must be a strategic cornerstone that helps leaders guide an organization’s decision-making, not an afterthought that only receives sporadic attention when the…
Read MorePlanning for PR Impact: The Right Tools for Your Strategy
by Frank L. Williams In last month’s article, I continued my series on Planning for Impact by discussing how to identify strategies to achieve your desired outcomes. As a refresher, planning for impact means that, instead of starting with desired outputs such as sending a certain number of press releases or posting a certain number…
Read MorePlanning for PR Impact: Identifying Strategies
by Frank L. Williams In last month’s article, I continued my series on Planning for Impact by discussing the importance of defining your desired outcomes. Planning for impact means that, instead of starting with desired outputs such as sending a certain number of press releases or posting a certain number of items on Facebook, you should begin…
Read MorePlanning for PR Impact: Defining Your Desired Outcomes
by Frank Williams In my most recent article, I discussed the importance of planning for impact. By this I mean that instead of starting with desired outputs, such as sending a certain number of press releases or posting a certain number of items on Facebook, you should begin by discussing your desired outcomes. Put another way,…
Read MorePlanning for Impact
by Frank Williams Over the years, I’ve heard clients and colleagues offer a number of reasons why they want to engage in a public relations or marketing communication campaign. When I ask about their goals, the responses often center on outputs like sending a certain number of press releases, posting a certain number of items…
Read MorePublic Relations: A Strategic Cornerstone, Not an Afterthought
by Frank L. Williams In last month’s column I focused on the fact that public relations should be a leadership function within an organization. The prior month’s column sought to dispel a few misconceptions about PR. Today’s column will further connect the dots between those two issues by touching on a common misconception many organizational…
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