Intensive Communication & PR for Public Sector

Introduction

This 10-day communications course is a comprehensive programme for PR professionals.
You will learn best practice across the full spectrum of communications and PR disciplines.
Topics include strategy, campaigns, media, events, writing and live TV interview training.

Course Objectives of Intensive Communication and PR for Public Sector Objectives

• Understand how the media are organised, and how journalists think and work
• Engage confidently and effectively with journalists
• Plan a communication campaign using practical tools
• Apply and adapt 10 universal platforms for creative PR
• Prepare venues, resources, materials and spokespeople for a press conference
• Navigate and manage interpersonal dynamics in important encounters
• Develop enhanced PR writing skills to amplify the impact of everything that you write
• Write powerful and memorable speeches
• Manage your organisation’s reputation in social media by shaping perceptions and conversations
• Create an internal communication strategy for your organisation

Course Intensive Communication and PR for Public Sector Outlines

Day 1
Essential Media Relations

• The media landscape: how to map out the full range of forms of news media, and how to engage effectively with different media
• Journalists: how to understand and work with journalists to influence and shape coverage
• News judgment: understanding how journalists decide what makes news
• Pitching stories: how to sell-in stories to journalists by creating and executing effective pitches

Day 2
Creativity in Communications and PR

• Creativity in PR: principles of creativity and its importance for PR
• Creativity showcase: a case-study driven rolling workshop in which learners examine the key success factors behind creative PR campaigns and extract practical lessons
• Facilitating creativity: a toolbox of practical creativity techniques and processes
• Creativity in practice: an in-class creativity workshop applying all of the creativity concepts and techniques covered during the course

Day 3
Strategic Media Engagement

• Creative news and media management: how to generate creative news angles and secure prominent coverage even for borderline stories
• Innovative media engagement tactics: how to engage journalists using innovative techniques
• Online media relations: how to conduct media relations on the Web and align your media relations work with online social media
• Preparing and coaching spokespeople: how to brief and debrief spokespeople so that they perform effectively in media interviews

Day 4
Media training

• Effective preparation for interviews
• Body language, such as appearing engaged
• Voice – including tone, projection, variation and emphasis of key points
• Confidence and clarity (ability to be understood and avoidance of jargon)
• Avoiding tricks, traps and pitfalls

Day 5
Press Conference Management

• Press conference planning: best practice in planning press conferences
• When and how to use press conferences, based on case studies of successful and effective execution
• Press conference preparation: how to prepare venues, resources, materials and spokespeople for a press conference
• Press conference execution: a practical primer in how to make a press conference happen
• Press conference facilitation: the role of the PR professional in hosting, chairing, stage-managing and troubleshooting a press conference

Day 6
Advanced Communication Strategy

• Evidence-based communication strategy: how to measure and prove the value of communication
• Advanced strategy tools and concepts: specialised techniques for developing complex PR strategies
• Justifying strategy: securing management support: how to get support from the top for ambitious PR strategies
• Rolling out and managing a communication strategy: the systematic process of creating and deploying a PR strategy

Day 7
Speech Writing

• Speech planning
• Structure and flow
• The spoken word
• Key elements and delivery

Day 8
Reputation Management in Social Media

• Monitoring and engagement
• Search optimisation (SEO)
• Media engagement online
• Blogging and content

Day 9
Internal Communication

• Core principles and defining concepts that underlie practical and strategic internal communications
• How to create an internal communication strategy complete with organisational systems and a practical action plan
• Internal communication platforms and channels: a toolbox of practical internal communication techniques and channels
• Internal communication campaigns and programmes: a how-to guide to launching internal communication programmes, based on case studies of award-winning campaigns from around the world

Day 10
Advanced Communications and PR Management

• Strategic management for communications and PR departments
• Operational communication management: policies, processes and resources
• Programme management, measurement and evaluation
• Managing and leading a PR team