Objectives : Fun? Not exactly. Worthwhile? Absolutely.
In all honesty, when it comes to having a job in public relations (or anything for that matter) there will be parts that don’t fit into my definition of “fun.” However, there’s something more to benefit from other than temporary happiness. We need to focus on the picture of our organization that will make it worthwhile.
That same kind of worth comes from what we all dread … Research!
Forrest W. Anderson, author of Guidelines for Setting Measurable Public Relations Objectives: An Update, gives 6 reasons behind “setting clear, concise and measurable objectives in public relations.”
Objectives create a structure for prioritization.
Objectives reduce the potential for disputes before, during, and after the program
Objectives focus resources to drive performance and efficiency
Objectives help create successful programs by identifying areas for prescriptive change and continual improvement.
Objectives set the stage for evaluation by making it easier for sponsors and team-members to determine if the PR program met or exceeded expectations.
Objectives link the PR objectives to the business objective.
All 6 of these reasons are based in the overall well-being of the company and everything that they stand for. As a PR professional, it is our duty to put our best foot forward and continue to pursue the best future for our company.
How do we do that? By giving the team something to look forward to. These are set through our objectives placed for the company.
https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/12/worldbuilders-at-the-heifer-ranch/
As an example, I’ll look towards Heifer Ranch in Perryville, Arkansas as we explore outputs, outcomes, and business results as described in Anderson’s, Guidelines for Setting Measurable Public Relations Objectives: An Update. Below you will find examples for each.
Outputs: “We had a total of 200 students attend our weekly educational programs at Heifer Ranch during the month of November.”
Outcomes: “Through these educational programs, the families we given an evaluation sheet. ⅔ of the families completed the evaluations all with high praise.”
Business Results: “In the future, we plan to implement and raise profit for the educational classes by at least 20% to complete our goal of raising 100 new livestock for families living in poverty.”
So, no. Research is not fun. Setting objectives for the future is not fun (depending on how comfortable you are with the unknown,) but it is so worthwhile to your personal being and the overall future of the company that you are representing, and because of this point, it is so important to look through all three types of areas: outputs, outcomes, and business results.
As my challenge to you, I encourage you to take the time to do the things that aren’t as fun in order to further the image of the company to represent. It’s not fun, but it is worth it.
