Communication: Implementing the PR plan (PART 2) Matt Ragas Principles of Public Relations

ABC News – How to Stop an Oil Spill

Using triggering events to gain attention for your message Trigger event: events that pre-dispose the public to behave in a certain way; serves as a catalyst for action Examples: Hurricane Katrina, Gulf Oil Spill, September 11th, tsunami in Indonesia, a widely publicized computer virus, celebrity news (Chris Brown/Rihanna, Lindsay Lohan DUI) What organizations might have integrated these trigger events into their PR campaigns?

Remembering the message Repetition, repetition, repetition Not all members of your audience will see or hear the message at the same time; prevents erosion Repetition helps break through the clutter Effective communication and retention of a message requires conveying it using multiple channels

Five-stage adoption process for acting on a message Diffusion of innovation theory by Everett Rogers outlines a five-stage adoption process: Awareness Interest Evaluation Trial Adoption Note: Not everyone goes through all five stages before adoption of a message, idea, or product. The audience may terminate the process at any step i.e. not everyone will end up adopting.

Where do publics get information at in each stage of the adoption process? Awareness  mass media (publicity, ads) Interest  seek out in-depth articles, seek brochures/related materials, go to organization website, meetings to learn more Evaluation, Trial and Adoption  Personal experience, opinions of friends and family, personal contact with credible sources/experts (“word of mouth”) more influential than mass media

Categories of adopters (also Everett Rogers) Innovators: Earliest adopters; eager to try new products/ideas/messages Early Adopters: Savvy, keep up with new trends, often an opinion leader Early Majority: Take deliberate, pragmatic approach to adoption Late Majority: Tend to be skeptical, resistant, but bow to peer pressure Laggards Very traditional, last in group to adopt something “new”

Word-of-mouth in PR campaigns Diffusion of innovation research shows that the influence of peers and colleagues (“opinion leaders”) is important in the adoption process Word-of-mouth (WOM): Innovators and early adopters are important in PR campaigns since they are at the vanguard of forming public opinion on a new product, idea, cause, etc.