And the Homework Never Stops...

Apparently, not much changes after you graduate with four years of homework and a communications degree under your belt. The evident fact that homework never seems to stop became clear after Michael Lake, head of the Dallas Burson-Marstellar office, walked us through a presentation he and his team pitched to one of their latest big clients. Slide after slide of this impressive power point was filled with research and statistics from which campaign slogan would resonate better with different audiences to a table that shows which political affiliation is more opposed to online gambling and why.

According to Lake, extensive research like this is paid for by the client after the account has been landed, however Burson-Marstellar often does a small amount of research even before they meet the client for the first time in hopes of teaching them something about their field or industry they hadn't realized. "We've learned that clients love data," Lake said, "and we try to do some unique research so we can show the client something they've never seen before." Having the upper hand in an informational presentation is how this company became one of the best. 

So what kind of things go into this research? You might assume that it is very surface level and similar to a marketing focus group where a handful of people eat cookies to determine if they're good or bad. And to be honest, this may be the approach other PR firms take, but at BM? Not a chance. The 20+ slide research Lake presented to us was so thorough that no tactic, audience, potential procedure, website feature, or opinion was left unanalyzed. 

The intensity of this procedure may seem a bit over the top, however in a business where one not only has to promote or increase awareness about a product or campaign, but must change the opinions of others, the research helps Lake and his team completely understand his audiences and what they react to. In the process of developing this campaign, Lake presented both a negative and positive approach in an attempt to determine through research which would resonate better with his target audiences. As it turns out, different audiences reacted differently to each approach. With this information, Lake now knows how to address certain groups of people when promoting his campaign depending on either their political affiliation, demographic, age, etc. Talk about strategic communication. 

Whether you are promoting a new brand of toothpaste or attempting to change public opinion on a controversial issue, the importance of doing your homework never diminishes. Just as a future employer is more inclined to hire an interviewee that researched his/her company, large clients that are about to spend significant amounts of money want to be assured that the PR firm they are potentially hiring can provide a service that their own in-house team can't.