S.M.A.R.T. When Setting PR Objectives

S.M.A.R.T. When Setting PR Objectives

You must know what you are measuring before you can accurately measure the return on investment of your public relations program. You’ll find a common theme in many PR plans – they all have great-sounding objectives and goals, but on closer inspection, these are little more than guesses about program outcomes.

If you want to improve the performance of your public relations program, I suggest you put more effort into getting S.M.A.R.T. Your objective definition. You may not have heard of S.M.A.R.T. It’s a project management acronym that is used to set project objectives. This is a very relevant and useful tool for public relations planning and strategy.

To develop an effective marketing or PR campaign, it is important to have a set of goals and objectives that are consistent. This allows managers to create and implement strategic campaigns.

You should set measurable, clear objectives so you know when you have met them or exceeded them. The audience should be considered when defining PR goals. When should the program start and end? The outcomes can be measured in behavioural terms (did the participants do what they were asked to do? Attitude (does the person feel what we want them to? Informational (does the person know what you want them to? ).

A S.M.A.R.T. If it’s measurable, you can measure its impact and tell if the objective has been met.

Before you can accurately measure the Return on Investment (ROI), you need to know what you are measuring. You will find that good PR plans have clearly defined goals and objectives.

S.M.A.R.T. is the key to improving your Public Relations programs. Your objective definition is important. Public relations strategy and planning can benefit from this. S.M.A.R.T. stands for – a shorthand acronym that means – a strategy and planning tool to improve public relations. To remember what the acronym S.M.A.R.T.

S = Specific
M = Measurable
A = Actionable
R = Realistic
T = Time-based

This is the acronym I have used for years to plan PR.

• Specific Setting objectives ensures everyone understands exactly what your aim is and helps reduce confusion. Aiming for this clarity ensures efforts are aligned toward one common goal; rather than setting vague objectives such as “doubling coverage in A-level trade magazines”, which could be interpreted in various ways, it would be wiser to set specific and measurable targets instead.One more specific objective could be setting an ambitious yet attainable goal, like “secure placement on the New York Times Bits blog each quarter.” Doing this provides a tangible benchmark and timeline to track progress and measure success more easily. By setting this publication as your target publication and setting quarterly deadlines, your plan becomes clear and focused.Additionally, you can take a structured approach to press release distribution that can further support your objectives. For example, perhaps issuing two press releases every month on either Monday ensures consistent communication and keeps your brand or message in front of people’s minds. By adhering to a systematic distribution plan you increase the chance of media attention and coverage and will likely gain the desired coverage results.

• MeasurableMeasure Your Progress Relating to Objectives It is key that you track and measure your progress against objectives to ensure they are being achieved and that their intended impact has taken place. In terms of meeting these goals, such as landing placement on the New York Times Bits blog each quarter or sending press releases out on specific Mondays, measuring success can often involve going deeper.To accurately track progress, identify and report on activities directly tied to your goal. For instance, if your objective is securing quarterly placements on high-profile blogs, track activities related to this objective such as pitch send-outs and responses received from editors of such blogs – this allows for a fuller picture of both outcomes (like placement in said blog) and actions and efforts that lead to reaching them.
•  Actionable To achieve your goals successfully, it is key that they are completed within an acceptable timeline. When faced with complex or long-term goals, breaking them into more manageable tasks may help lessen their impact and maintain focus and motivation throughout. For instance, if your overarching goal is to distribute two press releases each month, begin by breaking this goal down into manageable steps. One concrete and measurable action step might include creating and sharing with your team before Friday an individual calendar that outlines press release publication dates and deadlines – this ensures everyone involved knows their responsibilities as you chart a course forward.Step Two involves more detailed tasks for each press release. For instance, for your first release, you might schedule and conduct interviews as part of its preparation. Breaking the process down into more manageable steps – such as drafting, editing and finalizing content before distributing the release – makes achieving its ultimate goal more attainable.

• Realistic honesty is key when setting goals. While it’s essential to aim high and be ambitious with your expectations, be realistic about what can be accomplished within the project’s timeline and evaluate whether an objective matches up with your organization’s capabilities and history before making commitments.Assuming your organization typically issues one press release every quarter, setting an unrealistic and overly ambitious goal such as issuing two per month might be too ambitious. Consider whether your current resources and processes can support such an increased pace; whether your team can handle an increased workload quickly and whether your legal department can review content quickly enough – answering such questions will help create more realistic and obtainable goals.Data can provide vital guidance in the goal-setting process. Examining historical performance metrics to inform your objectives, for instance, if your website traffic increased by 50% last year it is worth exploring whether doubling that traffic this year is achievable given this trend. Reviewing historical performance can shed valuable insight into what goals can realistically be set.

• Time-Based Your goals must be set against a clear timetable or calendar date, providing a tangible target that keeps you focused and motivated throughout the process. A clearly outlined deadline provides clarity in achieving success with goals.Experience has taught me that setting and meeting specific deadlines has been one of the most powerful motivators. Without a definite timeline in mind, there can often be an impressive gap between my estimate for task completion and when it gets finished; this discrepancy often causes delays and hinders momentum – which makes setting and adhering to precise deadlines all the more crucial.To efficiently track deadlines and progress, consider employing a project or task management system that encourages deadline setting while flagging overdue tasks. Tools like Basecamp and ActionMethod are particularly helpful here – their features allow users to set deadlines, track their progress, see when tasks are due, as well as group them into larger milestones to provide a comprehensive view of how individual tasks contribute towards overall project goals.