Top 5 FAQ's to Consider When Developing a Corporate Communication Strategy

 Hello,
Internal and external corporate communication need to be carefully planned for it to be effective. A mistake in the message being delivered, or the methods for delivering it, can result in important people not getting the information or misinterpretation. Your company should consider some main questions that each communication strategy needs to answer prior to developing your plan.


Here are few frequently asked questions according to Arnold Anderson a communication professional which are to be considered and to be asked to yourself on a regular bases while designing a communication strategy and which are universal.


What Is Your Message?


Your message is the focus of your communication strategy. Everything else that you develop in your strategy depends on the message you are trying to convey. For example, if you want to alert your customers to a new order-entry system on your website, then the audience you choose and the method of message delivery will depend on the content of your message.


Who Is Your Target Audience?


The target audience is the group that you are trying to reach with your message. Identifying the target audience is important because it dictates how you will develop your message and the form in which your message will take. A message sent to your younger customers about a pending new product release will be much different than a message sent to internal recipients about changes to the company's production schedule.


What Information Does Your Audience Need?


Giving your audience too much information will confuse it and not giving enough information will weaken your message. Communication content for an external audience can be developed using marketing demographics that give information about your audience. For example, if the demographic for your target audience indicates a high level of technical skill in your recipients, then you will want to include technical information to make your message more appealing. For internal audiences, it is important to only give the necessary information to avoid rumours and confusion.


How Will the Message Be Delivered?


The purpose of a communication strategy is to reach as much of your target audience as possible. As with the process of developing information, you can use marketing demographic information to determine the best mediums for delivering your message. For example, if your marketing research shows that your target audience gets information from the radio more often than from the Internet, then your communication strategy will focus on using the radio to deliver the message.


How Will you Gauge the Success of Your Communication Strategy?


Develop performance measurements for your communication strategy to try and determine its success. The way to improve future communication plans is to learn from the success and failures of previous programs. If you release a message to your staff regarding changes to the vacation request process and many of the staff members still use the old system, then you need to determine why the information was not received and how to create a more effective plan in the future.

How to Manage Corporate Communication..

Hello,

This post will tell you about managing corporate communication and why is it necessary to do so. As we all know Corporate communication is the process of communicating with stakeholders such as customers, employees, suppliers, investors and journalists so that they gain a better understanding of your company. Effective corporate communication helps to build a positive attitude toward your company and improves your chances of market success. 

These are the few steps or we can say parameters drawn by Ian Linton which teaches us the way to manage corporate communication have a look at it..

Step 1

Identify your target audience. Include the stakeholders that have the greatest influence on the success of your business. Make customers aware of your product range and your capability as a reliable supplier. Build enthusiasm and commitment among your employees. Strengthen relationships with suppliers by convincing them of the value of working with your company to build stronger relationships. Build confidence in investors and financial analysts to ensure funding for your business. Cultivate relationships with journalists to build a positive reputation for the business.

Step 2

Carry out preliminary research to identify attitudes and levels of awareness among stakeholders. Monitor social networking sites, blogs and media that mention your company or your products. Ask your sales representatives for their views on levels of customer awareness. Compare understanding and awareness levels with the levels you would like to achieve. Identify any areas where there is poor understanding or awareness as a basis for prioritizing corporate communication.

Step 3

Develop a plan for your corporate communication program. Set objectives based on your preliminary research and your communication priorities. Examples of objectives include “make customers aware of your new product development program,” “raise awareness of customer care among employees,” and “convince investors that your company has a viable future.” Outline the communication activities that you will use to meet the objectives, including press releases on new products or customer wins, case studies on customer successes and financial press releases on annual results, management appointments or major investments.

Step 4

Choose media that reach your stakeholders cost effectively. Distributing press releases to local newspapers, for example, is a low-cost way of communicating with employees and local customers and suppliers. Your website is also an important medium. Post company information of interest to different stakeholders. Set up a forum and allow customers, employees and others to post comments about your products and the company. Respond to the comments to build dialogue with stakeholders.

Theory of Mary Munter's Corporate Communication Framework..

Hello,

Today I have come up with this update which reads the communication theory put forth regarding corporate communications frameworks by Mary Munter, a professor of Management Communication at Dartmouth University, this theory has been accepted by many business and academic communities. It is worth giving a second look as it appears to get to the heart of the matter regarding the failure of corporate communication.

What does the theory has to say..

One-way Communication

Many people think of communication as a one-way flow of information from one person to another. The communication may be received and flow back from the recipient to the original sender in the form of a response, but the communication is still just one direction, either forward or backwards. Some corporations adopt this model of communication where the information often flows from the top of the organization to those at the bottom. Many times, the information does not flow back the other direction.

Mary Munter

Munter has noted that a more cyclical view of communication strategy can be more effective in increasing communication within the organization as a whole. This cyclical framework, as noted by Joel Kurtzman, Glenn Rifkin and Victoria Griffith, very much resembles the Aristotelian notion of rhetorical communication. In their analysis, Munter's corporate communication framework begins with the organization as a whole, rather than with a specific speaker. From there, the organization uses messages to communicate to its constituencies who then respond to the organization's messages. It is a cyclical pattern of communication that requires the organization to again respond to the responses by its constituents.

Limits

The strength of the Munter's organizational framework is that it provides a model for communication. However, it is limited in the fact that it stops there. It cannot provide an organization with all of the knowledge it needs to carry out this communication strategy. 

Putting It Together

The essence of Munter's framework for corporate communication is the recognition that communication is a dialogue, rather than strictly a flow of information. This dialogue has to be ongoing and cannot simply be one that results from the typical message-response form of communication. Julie Lang, president of Kaikias Consulting, notes that this type of communication often involves activities such as teaching, learning and doing, rather than just talking or teaching for the sake of conveying information. The message has to be structured in such a way that it benefits the audience and vice versa.

Corporate Communication Games

Hello,

Today I'll be telling you about corporate communication games. These games are strategized to build a strong communication bond amongst the employees. Growth of the company depends upon the work of the employee and when the company grows, the employee also sees his growth. So its a give and take relation.

For the growth of the business or the organization the employees should be dedicated towards their work and company. Building a Strong communication amongst them will help the company grow. Leadership expert Stephen Covey says trust is an essential component of effective communication. Building trust among employees in a small business typically involves providing opportunities for them to get to know each other better. Corporate communication games offer a perfect chance to exchange information, develop new skills, try out new techniques and have some fun.

These are the few games which Tara Duggan in her article suggests..

Cooperation

Productivity improves when employees work together effectively. To practice good communication, a facilitator can organize a drawing game. This involves dividing a group into pairs, having them sit back to back and giving one a person an index card with a shape and the other a pad and pencil. The person holding the shape gives instructions to the other person. The facilitator stops the game after 10 minutes and displays all the results. To conclude the game, he conducts a vote to determine the best drawing. Participation in this game allows people to experience describing and interpreting under pressure.

Survival

Playing a survival game forces a group to communicate and agree on critical issues. To play, a facilitator divides a large group into smaller teams and provides each group with a scenario, such as a plane crash on a deserted island. The object of the game is to select 12 items. Participants have to figure out how to make decisions, rank alternatives and prioritize actions. The team that identifies 12 items first wins the game.

Storytelling

In many corporate environments, employees work in different locations. Good communication does not have to occur only in person. Learning to tell a collaborative story develops good communication skills. During an audio conference call, a facilitator begins this game by setting the scene and states the first sentence. Then, she designates someone to add the next sentence until everyone gets to add something to the story. At the end of the story, the participants vote on the best addition. The winner starts the next story. Participants learn to listen carefully.

Disagreement

Some conflict is inevitable in small-business operations. Innovation and creativity typically require discussion and collaboration. Good communication prevents minor spats from turning into events that damage personal relationships and negatively impact productivity. To practice, a facilitator divides a large group into smaller teams of three people. The facilitator directs each group to choose a volatile topic. One person states his view for three minutes. Then, the second person listens and disagrees with one or more points for the next three minutes. The third person observes, provides feedback to the participants for the final three minutes and selects a winner, deciding who presented his case with more conviction. Then, they switch roles and repeat the exercise. Role-playing exercises allow people to practice in simulated settings before they have to perform for real.

Difference Between Corporate & Marketing Communications

Hello,

Here's an update which will help you all the differences between corporate communication and marketing communication.

There are two different types of messages created by a company or organization  which can be called as Corporate and marketing communication. Corporate and marketing communication is targeted at distinct audiences with varying intent. Corporate messages are structured to convey the attitudes, beliefs and goals of an organization or company as an institution, while marketing messages are meant to inform the consuming public of a good or service.

Corporate Communication Defined

Corporate communication is broadly defined as a corporation's attempt to inform or persuade the public, including all its consumers, private Investors and the media. Corporate communication represents the very voice with Which corporate institutions interact with the outside world and is included of communications regarding investor relations, government relations, labor Employee relations and development. Where marketing communication is intended to focus on a particular product or service offered by a company, corporate Communication distinctly focuses on news, strategies or opinions of the corporation that makes that product or service.

Marketing Communication Defined

Marketing communication is created to influence consumers to purchase a particular product or service. Marketing messages are often specifically tailored to particular groups of the consuming public broken down by age, sex and gender. Companies create marketing messages based on the perceived preferences of these groups, or demographics. Marketing messages also vary widely from product to product. Corporations that produce a wide variety of products and services across numerous markets create diverse marketing campaigns across myriad demographics.

Major Differences

The major differences between corporate and marketing communications lie in the audience each type of communication is intended to target and the particular entity each message is intended to represent. Where corporate communication is intended to represent the uniform opinions, strategies and motivations of a singular corporate entity, marketing communications are designed uniquely to influence consumers to purchase the goods and services that corporate entity produces.

Other Considerations

Corporate and marketing communications should not be confused with other channels of corporate communication, particularly public and community relations. Public relations is broadly defined as a corporate body's attempt to influence and control the perception of their organization in the eyes of the general public. Community relations represent the interaction of a corporate entity or institution with the citizens who live and work in and around its place of business.