“A little good publicity will take care of that,” or “If we could just get in the newspaper more” or “nobody knows the great things this company does!”  We have all heard it.  When clients think it is time to turn to public relations for help, it is often because their own spells and voodoo dolls don’t seem to be working.

Dear client…PR is about relationships.  Experience has shown me that companies that want publicity also want to improve sales, raise their stock price, reduce the number of product complaints, reduce employee turnover, boost morale and get rid of the CEO’s idiot nephew that is running the PR program.

Make that “so-called PR program.” Just like most companies, public relations programs may have no plan.  Rather, the communication program is a collection of products – flashy annual report, lengthy news releases, narrative for analyst teleconference, unseen Facebook fan page or a CEO speech for the chamber.  There is nothing that defines, establishes, or builds relationship with a public or group.  Imagine if you dare, a relationship with your wife made up entirely of a Hallmark card each month, a couple of text messages each week, and a Facebook page with photos of you and the children.  I think you get the picture.

When I go into a company to help with their public relations or media relations programs, the topic of measurement frequently comes up.  Most companies have PR measurement programs built on the number of newpaper clips, number of annual reports requested, and/or dollars given to charity, but any reference to real relationships is just plain missing.  The discussion with PR staff about their relationship with news media, analysts, local leaders, industry trade publications is depicted as “we called the newspaper about our release so we know they got it”, or “ the CEO doesn’t go to Chamber events because they are so boring”.  And when the inevitable crisis arises, the staff analysis is short and sweet – “the newspapers are out to get us.”

If your company does not have a communications plan built on relationships, have fun when the crisis comes.