10 essential elements of a PR plan

It’s time to plan for 2018.

When crafting public relations strategy, it’s wise to develop a long-term outlook, but you should plan to test, measure and adapt over time. Modern PR teams must be agile and ready to pivot at a moment’s notice.

Here are 10 elements to consider before finalizing your 2018 PR plan, regardless of your organization’s size or market:

1. Objective

What is the overarching goal of your public relations campaign?

How can you hit the target if you don’t know what you’re aiming for? Every campaign should have a tangible, clear objective.

2. Goals and measurement

What do you want to achieve, and what will success look like?

Measurement is typically an afterthought in public relations programs. That’s a fatal mistake. Measurement should be defined at the outset and tracked throughout a campaign to gauge performance.

3. Publics or audience

What target audience do you want to influence?

The key to good PR practice is defining your public, or audience, as robustly as possible. This may be based on behavior, location or a demographic. Segmenting your audience allows for more targeted, relevant, effective messaging.

4. Research