In today’s accelerated news cycle, the window for shaping public understanding around major (often complex) issues is smaller than ever – and shrinking.
At the same time, the omnipresence of digital media means narratives are forming and spreading in minutes, regardless of their authenticity or accuracy. A single headline, social media post, or viral video clip can impact public perception in an instant, and the margin for error to change opinions once they’ve been formulated is slimming as attention spans diminish.
Case in point: a national survey examining how people spend their time found that Americans 75 and older spend an average of 46 minutes per day reading, while those aged 15 to 20 read for only 9 minutes.
This trend is reshaping the realm of public affairs, where private and public sector stakeholders work to educate their audiences with the goal of influencing opinion and policy.
Substantive debates which used to unfold on the newspaper editorial page and television are now taking place across digital mediums like social media, online petitions, and neighborhood chat groups.
For organizations navigating high stakes issues – think voter referendums, land use and zoning changes, and real estate development proposals – this new normal makes the intersection of public affairs and communications more important than ever before.
At Schwartz Media Strategies, our public affairs team has seen firsthand how integrated communications strategies can move major initiatives forward.
Over the years, we have led public affairs campaigns in support of transformative projects including the $6 billion, 27-acre Miami Worldcenter development, Terra and Turnberry’s Grand Hyatt Miami Beach Convention Center hotel, Gencom and Hyatt’s mixed-use Miami Riverbridge development, and BH3 Management and Merrimac Ventures’ Watson Harbour in Miami.
Each of these campaigns brought their own set of challenges, but all were successful because our team developed a clear strategy for keeping key decisionmakers informed, while building trust with the public across a range of channels – from earned editorial coverage and community events, to paid advertising and social media content.
No two campaigns are identical, but we’ve identified a series of five best practices that each of these winning initiatives have in common:
- Align strategies early. Communications, legal, and public affairs teams should collaborate long before issues become public, and everyone involved should be clear on timing, message, and tactics.
- Embrace a ‘no surprises’ mindset. Sensitive matters increasingly unfold in the media and online, so the communications team must be fully briefed on what’s public information and where potential pitfalls lie. The revelation of a single public document – say, a public hearing agenda item – could render the best laid plans useless if the team is unprepared.
- Maintain message discipline. The most effective public affairs campaigns are those where public benefits are clear and compelling, and where challenges and risks are well accounted for. Once those factors are identified, consistent messaging builds credibility with stakeholders.
- Prepare for rapid response. Public affairs is fraught with reputational risk, so a central goal of any campaign is protecting the parties involved. That’s only possible if there’s a clear protocol in place for managing media inquiries and navigating crises, beginning with establishing a central clearinghouse for fielding media inquiries in real time.
- Focus on building and preserving trust. A client may lose a referendum one year, then go on to do business in that same community multiple times over the next decade. Always prioritize humility and transparency with an eye toward the next deal or vote.
As the communications landscape evolves, one thing is clear: the line between public affairs and public relations is growing increasingly blurred and in many cases, it’s non-existent. Organizations that understand this convergence will be best positioned to build support, manage risk, and advance meaningful change.
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