THINKing

Communications Planning 101

Developing a communications plan requires a disciplined approach. Your first order of business is reviewing your current program for impact and efficiency. Review your program by:

- Audience (employees, shareholders, in-channel audiences, consumers)

- Vehicle (personal visits, telephone calls, letters, invoices, e-mail, website, newsletters, advertising, POP, trade show)

- Subject Matter (corporate communications messages, marketing communications messages)

- Interval (daily, weekly, monthly)

- Existing programs (loyalty programs, CRM, advertising)

- Competitors (tactics, messages)

Next, as part of the strategic planning process, you need to define your audiences, and determine key business objectives that can be enhanced/supported by communications.

With the above elements completed, you now begin to develop an integrated communications plan.

- Conduct internal, in-channel and in-market communications audit

- Find and review research on audiences that were defined during strategic planning process

- If paid media is to be a part of the program, meet with media allies – editorial and marketing – to determine what programs they can bring to bear internally, in-channel, in-market

Finally, develop a complete communications program based upon the brand’s strategy/positioning that:

- garners internal support by making employees brand emissaries

- fully involves in-channel allies by communicating both corporate and brand messages

- uses a multi-media approach to surround customers with the brand message, and to bring the brand to life

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