The objective of most PR and communications work is to convey messages, frequently to multiple audiences. Whether it is internal communications within an organization, or formats to reach external audiences such as news releases, press conferences, and earned media, this work is designed to reach others.
It’s logical, then, to suggest that collaboration is beneficial. Working with others can help you to identify the right messages, refine wording so that it resonates, and extend the reach of your PR and communications programs.
If you’re going to collaborate, finding the right partners is a critical first step. Recruitment, development of the relationships, finding middle ground when there are conflicts, and designing plans that keep everyone on target to meet goals are all important steps.
In many collaborative efforts, there may be times when partners disagree. But, if you have the right elements in place and have done the necessary background work, these conflicts shouldn’t derail your efforts—and, the resolutions might even make your programming stronger.
Find the Right Partners
The first, most crucial step is to find the right partners for communications success. For most organizations, this likely will mean identifying multiple internal and external partners who will help you to achieve business objectives. There will be varying levels of intensity within these strategic partnerships, again depending on objectives.
Working with others is such a natural outgrowth of communications work that before you start identifying new partners, it makes sense to take stock of current efforts to see if such partnerships already exist.
For internal communications, you might start by making a list of anyone in the organization who supports your internal comms efforts. For example, if you work with HR to develop content for a corporate internet, HR is an internal partner. If email communications are supported by someone in your IT department, IT is an internal partner.
Conversely, if the PR or Comms department is currently doing it all, take stock of your efforts and see where working with an internal partner might help to make your messages more effective. Would the addition of graphic design to a newsletter make information more accessible? Would providing more internal data and information bolster messages, making them more memorable?
Externally, your partners will most frequently be paired in some way with target audiences. Whether it’s for consumer goods or public affairs messaging, the best partners are the ones that your target audiences trust. Identifying potential partners by building a list of trusted individuals or professions is a great way to get started.
Using your media monitoring tools can help at this stage of determining who might make for an effective partner. Media analysis can point to key themes, identify influencers and prominent voices in a sector, and help to determine which audiences might be most receptive to the type of strategic partnerships you are considering.
Don’t underestimate the importance of this research step, it really can set the tone for all that follows.
Nurture Relationships
If you’ve found the right partners, you want to ensure a good working relationship so that they are with you for as long as it works for both of you. Nurturing a working partnership begins with respect—respect for the partner’s time, energy and commitment, and contributions.
While this applies to any of the partnerships your organization pursues and builds, internal or external, influencer relationships offer a clear example.
When a brand begins work with an influencer, both parties are focused on the new partnership. As the partnership matures, other priorities can arise. Messaging can get stale, or audience attention can move elsewhere.
Nurturing that relationship can mean different things, depending on the long-term objectives of a PR program. In some cases, it might mean allowing the influencer more control over messaging or outreach over time. In other situations, it might mean providing data-based feedback to the influencer, in order to shift focus. Setting clear benchmarks at the outset of an influencer partnership can be key to ensuring everyone is on the same page.
Conflicts are (probably) inevitable
Every relationship has its ups and downs, and strategic partnerships are no different. There will be times when priorities are not aligned, schedules conflict, or other tasks take precedence.
Having an effective working partnership means that you may need to course-correct on occasion, particularly if there have been gaps in the nurturing of the relationship.
When conflicts do arise, the best way to work through them is with data. If you’ve been tracking your successful (and not-so-successful) moments over the course of the partnership, you’ll be addressing challenges from a much stronger vantage point than emotion.
Monitoring data can help you to pinpoint what works, and if you know that, there’s a path to get back on track. Or, if the partnership has run its course, data can help you have that conversation too. Dissolving a relationship with a high-profile external partner is a step that should be handled with intention, because the last thing a brand needs is to find itself in the midst of a crisis over a bungled exit.
Celebrating Goals
Establishing goals for PR and communications programs is important. Setting objectives and steps to show progression demonstrates PR value, and it helps to clarify what yet needs to be done. In short, goals keep you on track and focused.
Sharing in the achievement of hitting those goals with your strategic partners can solidify the relationship, and demonstrates to both parties—and the business—that these types of strategic partnerships are beneficial to the organization. This, in turn, can help to make the case for other similar partnership opportunities.
Building strategic partnerships can take time and effort, but the results can be well worth it. Collaboration can bring in new voices and additional perspectives, and amplify your PR and communications programs, leading to bigger successes and helping to reach business goals.