The Cause Agency
The Cause Agency

Five-step process to succeed with your public relations plan

A thoughtfully developed public relations plan is important for any nonprofit. It should help the company learn about its clients, how best to serve them and be an integrated part of keeping up to their mission and vision.

The five steps will set you up for a successful public relations campaign.

1. Objectives
Writing down the objectives of your public relations plan is the most important step. It will be the foundation, the guiding directives. Creating clear and achievable objectives at the start provides direction for the nonprofit and helps motivate all volunteers toward known and attainable goals.

2. Goals
Nonprofits should create SMART goals geared toward achieving the objectives set in No. 1. SMART goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time bound. Setting goals improves focus and productivity. Additionally, they provide accountability and should be a factor in all decision-making for the nonprofit to help them run smoothly.

3. Target audience
Understanding and choosing your target audience in advance is crucial; it guides your nonprofit to direct resources and efforts to audience with the greatest potential for increased efforts. It also improves brand loyalty. Knowing your target audience is the foundation for a successful marketing campaign.

4. Create a timeline
Creating a timeline and setting milestones are important to your nonprofit’s plan. They will help you visualize time-related statistics, set deadlines, and will help hold volunteers and staff accountable for their tasks and deadlines. Additionally, timelines also help the nonprofits clients, giving them a better idea of what to expect during a campaign.

5. Plan of action and campaign launch
Having a plan of action will help your nonprofit map out strategies and small steps to achieve your long-term goals. A plan of action will help you focus all your time and energy on what you must do.

Once you have completed the steps above, the public relation campaign can start. The campaign should be monitored to ensure all goods and objectives set at the beginning are met. Call us at The Cause Agency at 817-335-0100 to help you plan a successful campaign because we want to see your story published!