2nd Edition
A Manager's Guide to PR Projects A Practical Approach
A Manager's Guide to PR Projects, Second Edition picks up where classic public relations textbooks leave off. It provides hands-on guidance in planning the preliminary research for a public relations project and creating a plan to achieve specific goals, guiding the reader through managing the project's implementation. It contains worksheets that can be used for a visual representation of the planning process for both student edification and presentation to clients. The book is designed as a user-friendly guide to take the reader through the four-step public relations planning process from a number of vantage points. Intended as a learning tool for use in both the class and beyond, this book's approaches are based on real experiences in the management of communications projects designed to meet organizational goals through achieving public relations objectives.
This fully revised second edition offers PR students and practitioners new material that includes the following:
- The impact of social media on each phase of the planning process.
- Digital approaches to strategic and summative research, message dissemination and public engagement.
- Strategies to enhance accountability.
- Ethics considerations in the planning process.
- Updated print and web-based resources for PR managers.
List of Figures
Preface to the Second Edition
Chapter 1 PR Project Planning in the Twenty-first Century
Defining Public Relations
Defining Management
Defining a "Project"
Public Relations Process: A Systems Explanation
Updating the PR Process for the Twenty-first Century
Ethics and Integrity in PR Planning
Using this Book
Worksheet 1.1 Ethics Checklist
Chapter 2 The Research Phase
Data-gathering: An Everyday Process
What Research can Accomplish
Problem or Opportunity?
How Research is Done
Media Monitoring: Traditional and Social
The Public Relations/Communication Audit
Environmental Scanning
Social Media Metrics
Characterizing Relationships
Completing the Analysis
The Importance of Academic Research to Practitioners
Using the Worksheets
Worksheet 2.1 Data Table
Worksheet 2.2 Problem/Opportunity Analysis
Worksheet 2.3 Data Analysis Checklist
Chapter 3: The Planning Phase
The Plan
Strategies versus Tactics
Defining Publics
Constructing Objectives
Relationship Objectives
Considering Processes
Keying Objectives to Specific Publics
Developing Messages
Choosing Public Relations Tactics and Vehicles
Planning the Social Media Component of PR Projects
Rationales for Channels and Strategies
Summarizing the Planning Stage
Using the Worksheets
Worksheet 3.1 Identification and Categorization of Publics
Worksheet 3.2 Checklist for Outcome Objectives
Worksheet 3.3 Public Relations Plan Worksheet
Worksheet 3.4 Social Media Worksheet
Chapter 4 Managing Implementation
Revisiting Management Definitions
The Historical Context
Management and Leadership
Budgets as Management Tools
Deadlines and Time Management
Maintaining Quality Control
Managing People: Working With and Through
Using the Worksheets
Worksheet 4.1 Budget Worksheet
Worksheet 4.2 Time Management
Worksheet 4.3 Quality Control Checklist
Chapter 5 Evaluation
A Practical Definition
Why Evaluate At All?
The "Barcelona Principles"
What we Evaluate
Evaluating Relationships
Measuring Social Media Outcomes
The "Benchmark"
Using the Worksheets
Worksheet 5.1 Media Monitoring Tracking Sheet
Worksheet 5.2 Checklist for On-going Social Media Tracking
Chapter 6 A Resource List for PR Managers
Appendix: Public Relations Plan: Sample Format
Biography
Patricia J. Parsons spent 26 years as a Professor of Public Relations in the Department of Communication Studies at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Canada after a career in health communication and writing. She is the author of a dozen books including Ethics in Public Relations: A Guide to Best Practice and Beyond Persuasion: Communication Strategies for Healthcare Managers in the Digital Age.
