This article was originally published on Forbes.com on January 23, 2025
RACHEL KULE, PURSUIT PR
Forbes Councils Member
As one of our inspiring CEO clients astutely stated, in business, you cannot be stuck in neutral. Complacency allows your competitors to win.
When it comes to corporate reputation, stuck companies need a strategic plan for communications and marketing. Some have already tried to execute either on their own or with an agency and come to us wondering why they're not seeing the results, and others don't even know where to begin. In either case, a level of structure and purpose is needed.
A fresh perspective and a proven methodology can make a big difference. Often, as external advisors, we know our partner's business better than they understand the nuances of ours. We find that most companies have a sense of what they want but not what they need. When executives and their marketing and communications teams confide in us, we're able to get a strong sense of what's working, what's not and what needs to be explored.
Once a strategic plan is in place, it will be possible to examine the tactical execution.
Leveraging Communications To Drive Business Objectives
An effective communications team will be curious to learn your business objectives. It will also want to understand what actions have been taken to achieve them and how they are or are not working. One of the main assets that effective communications advisors can provide is thoughtful questions. They will want to ask questions that provoke fresh ideas and place you in the right direction. They will be genuinely interested in your responses, working analytically to understand your situation and enhance the value of communications across your entire organization.
What we're looking to uncover and create is your story—not just the "PR story" or "spin." We want the authentic story—the story of your business. Communication holds the most value when an organization leans into and leverages the bigger picture story.
What is the thread that connects your business objectives to your stakeholders? How do we portray that story, repeatedly and with nuance, across all touchpoints of the organization—internally and externally? How can we maximize the value of proactive communications to exponentially increase the organization's ability to scale and grow?
These are some of the questions a seasoned communications advisor will address. Understanding how to not only get the communications results you want but to bring them through the entire organization is the key.
With a bigger picture story, it will be possible to achieve relevance that will extend far beyond the traditional outputs of PR and communications; it will integrate communications, marketing and sales. This cohesion will increase workflow efficiency, increase productivity and, best of all, drive financial return on the investment.
Getting Started In Strategic Communications
Resource planning requires a delicate balance, and there is a difference between a tactical and a strategic approach. When a company is chartering new territory, it's natural to be unsure about how to begin.
A good place to start is evaluating what you are doing now. Look within. What have you been working on to date? What outcomes has that yielded? Do you think you can yield better outcomes by redirecting that budget, or might you benefit from additive work to take results to the next level?
Getting a sense of what's been done and what works or doesn't can help inform how to best deploy existing capital and plan for any additional financial needs. Consider working with a trusted, high-integrity partner that can thoughtfully review your situation and has high standards of excellence.
In summary, a smart communications team understands that in the race for market share, a strategic plan is far better than running in circles (or not at all) and is necessary for long-term success. Having a plan that advances business objectives and brings together communications, marketing and sales is the first step in shifting gears out of neutral and being off to the races.
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