Swaying Public Opinion with your Strategic Communications Toolbox

Written by Emily Dowsett

As Louisiana’s regular legislative session is now underway, I have been reminiscing on my time spent lobbying on Capitol Hill and the pivotal role a sound public relations strategy plays in successful issue advocacy efforts. From educating the public on issues of importance to your organization, to building public support on a matter or mobilizing the masses to take action and contact their legislators, the significance of having a comprehensive and coordinated PR strategy at the ready cannot be overstated.

I often think public relations is equated solely to media coverage, and yes, that is absolutely part of public relations, but there is so much more that falls under the strategic communications umbrella. There’s a myriad of tactics to employ, including helping craft messaging, identifying target audiences, designing eye-catching backgrounders or leave-behinds, penning guest columns and securing speaking opportunities, creating a social media strategy or toolkit, identifying spokespeople, writing blog posts or newsletters, advising on advertising efforts, or simply helping get you in the room with the right people.

Public relations is a continuous and evolving process. Shaping perceptions and motivating people to take action takes time; these things do not happen overnight. That’s why it’s important to involve your public relations team from the beginning. From the get-go, we’ll help you deliver the message that will best resonate with the audience you’re trying to reach. Then we’ll come up with a strategy and timeline for how and when to amplify this message across various media, and then get to work!

Throughout the process we assess what’s working, whether or not anything could be improved, and if need be, we pivot. We’ll stay abreast as to what the opposition is saying, what the chatter is on social media or in the comments sections of news articles and change our plan of action accordingly. As I said, it’s evolving and ever changing, and Gambel is with clients every step of the way to help ensure a favorable outcome.

Ultimately, every campaign is different, but one thing rings true — you need to use every strategic communications tool in your toolbox to set your campaign up for success. From traditional media relations to nontraditional approaches, we’ll help you communicate your message in a digestible manner, get that message in front of your target audiences and ultimately make sure the message resonates and garners public support. If you have an issue on the horizon that you think would benefit from an all-inclusive strategic communications strategy, please let us know. There is nothing we love more than helping our clients achieve their goals.

NOTE: Gambel Communications is proud to announce the promotion of Emily Dowsett to Senior Communications Strategist.