Whether you’re preparing your team for an influx of media interviews or planning to launch a new marketing and communications campaign, getting everyone in your company on the same message is critical to the success of your efforts. Your company’s representatives are often the biggest influencers for your company and brand, after all. It’s critical to make sure this vital audience is helping – and certainly not hurting – your communication efforts. Here are five tips to help you.
1. Make your internal audience a key audience.
When building out key messages, always consider the internal audiences. Tailor messages for this audience and communicate using these messages frequently.
2. Have a solid internal communications plan.
No matter what business you’re in, you should have an internal communications plan that outlines how you’ll communicate with internal audiences. From what media you’ll use to what messaging you’ll incorporate, it’s important to consider this in your plans. Related: What is internal communications?
3. Remember two-way communication.
Getting the internal team on message starts with trust. A great way to build trust is to use two-way communication. Be as open and transparent as possible when team members ask questions about topics related to communications.
4. Media training.
Anyone from the organization who speaks to the media should be media-trained. And you should offer refresher sessions on an ongoing basis. Media training will improve the spokesperson’s ability to communicate key messages.
5. Address any issues.
PR professionals should monitor and respond to any off-message colleagues. If a colleague is using outdated taglines or messages in presentations, emails or other communication, take the time to address the problem and share the appropriate materials.
Managing messages is no easy task. Need help getting your internal PR program up and running? Axia Public Relations has helped many companies with their communications strategies – internal and external. Download Axia’s complimentary e-book Maximizing Your Public Relations Investment, which includes methods for using PR to streamline and maximize your communications systems.
Julie Miller is a marketing and communications professional with more than seven years of experience in the industry. She specializes in technology, digital marketing and communications. Julie has worked for Axia Public Relations since November 2015. Connect with Axia on Twitter @axiapr or tell us what you think in the comments below.
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Topics: public relations, PR tips
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