There are four Rs at the heart of effective PR – delivering the right message, to the right audience, at the right time via the right channel. The message is often misunderstood by both PR professionals and their clients.

Most PR agencies talk about the importance of creating “buzz” or “awareness” – you’ve only got to read the lede line of most press releases or the ‘about us’ section of the boiler plate [the section that comes after the end of the announcement] to see what I mean. Every product or service is either new, innovative, the only, the first, best-in-class… there has been very little work done to figure out what the target audience wants to hear.

When you’re thinking about message, don’t think about how you can impress the audience with hype. Instead, think about what outcome you want, who your audience is and what you can say to them that will either build or strengthen your relationship with them. This approach will move you closer to the desired outcome.

For more on messaging check out a post called, ‘It’s the message, stupid!’ http://thinkdifferently.ca/differently/its-the-message-stupid and before doing anything that is either PR or marketing related, establish what the 4Rs are. You’ll find your PR and marketing programs are considerably more effective as a result.

If you have specific questions you can always get in touch with +Lyndon Johnson on G+, email lyndon@thinkdifferently.ca or call me on 1 647.773.2677

@THINK_Lyndon