Industrial Process

Archive for September, 2009

Hey MrMs Manager!

Does it really make sense to bet your PR budget on results like newspaper mentions and zippy brochures while your allimportant outside audience behaviors are probably receiving much less attention than they need?

I mean the concern is valid. What your most important external audiences believe about your organization and then to what behaviors those perceptions lead has a lot to do with whether it and you succeed.

Ignore that reality and you invite a lot of pain and suffering. But bite the bullet now and you can begin seeing results like growing repeat purchases higher levels of membership applications new engineering firm specifications of your components a boost in capital contributions or brand new community support.

Public relations isnt that different from any other professional discipline you employ on the job you need a plan to succeed. And the plan must be based on a foundation that makes sense.

Try on this fundamental premise for a moment and see if you can live with it: People act on their own perception of the facts before them which leads to predictable behaviors about which something can be done. When we create change or reinforce that opinion by reaching persuading and moving todesiredaction the very people whose behaviors affect the organization the most the public relations mission is accomplished.

Because if you CAN live with it youll soon be working with a blueprint that helps persuade those important stakeholders to your way of thinking. And that should move them to take actions that lead to your success as a business nonprofit or association manager.

Give it a try. Sit down with the public relations folks assigned to your department division or subsidiary and tell them youre going to find out what those external audiences whose behaviors affect you the most REALLY think about the organization then list them in priority order i.e. which audience behaviors have the greatest impact on your organization so that we can work on the one you assign first place.

Because this approach to public relations may be unfamiliar to those PR folks assigned to your unit you must take a personal role in getting it off the ground as well as inputting each major decision point. Your incentive to do so lies in the fact that dealing effectively with key stakeholder behaviors talks directly to your own success on the job.

First big question? How do members of your key target audience actually perceive your unit that is your department division or subsidiary? You can commit a large portion of your budget to professional survey counsel or you and the PR folks assigned to your unit can do it the grass roots way and interact with members of your target audience and ask a number of questions.

What do you know about us? Have you had any contact with our people? Did it work out to your satisfaction? Is there a problem with our products or services? All the while you remain alert to exaggeration inaccuracies misconceptions untruths or rumors as well as paying attention to hesitant or evasive answers to your questions.

The responses you collect will help you set down your public relations goal which could read this way: tone down that exaggeration neutralize that rumor or clarify that misconception.

Next challenge? How do you reach that public relations goal? It may surprise you but there are just three strategy choices when it comes to matters of perception and opinion: create perception where there may be none change existing perception or reinforce it. But be sure that the strategy you select fits your new public relations goal.

This step in the public relations problem solving sequence may be the most challenging preparing the message you will count on to correct the offending perception you discovered during your monitoring session. Since it will be delivered in online print telecommunications speaker and broadcast modes it must be prepared in a compelling yet believable manner. It must explain why the current perception is untrue and unfair. And it must be written clearly. After all you are trying to alter what people believe in a way that leads to the target audience behaviors you need to achieve your unit objectives.

How you deliver the message turns out to be less complex. There are dozens of communications tactics at your disposal ranging from newsletters open houses media interviews and brochures to emails speeches seminars and many more.

Curiosity will soon overtake all concerned as to whether the program looks like it will reach the goal. Quickest way to find out is another QA session with members of your target audience. And you and your PR team should ask the same questions used in the earlier monitoring session.

Big difference the second time around is youll be on the lookout for signs that you have actually altered the offending perceptions as planned. And that is a giant step towards creating the target audience behaviors you need.

Yes as a manager what you now have is your own workable department or division public relations program that will work well on behalf of any business nonprofit or association. In other words a PR blueprint that will help lead you directly towards achieving your operating objectives.

end

About the writer:

Bob Kelly counsels writes and speaks to business nonprofit and association managers about using the fundamental premise of public relations to achieve their operating objectives. He has been DPR PepsiCola Co.; AGMPR Texaco Inc.; VPPR Olin Corp.; VPPR Newport News Shipbuilding Drydock Co.; director of communications U.S. Department of the Interior and deputy assistant press secretary The White House. mailto:bobkellyTNI.net. Visit: http://www.prcommentary.com

Insurance Providers Weather The Storm While Consumers Claims Flounder

We have just had the first years anniversary of the flash flooding which occurred at Boscastle in Cornwall. The floods saw some of the worst damage wrought by sudden rainfall in the UK for many years.

The flood was caused by the remains of a hurricane which crossed the Atlantic collecting vast amounts of water crossing and was then pushed high above an area inland of the village depositing around 1500m litres (330m gallons) of water within two hours.

At the time insurance companies were estimating the bill for commercial damage to local businesses would be as high as 15m.

There is perhaps some comfort for insurers in that it could have been worse. Hurricane Charley which hit Florida around the same time cost over an estimated 6bn.

In August this year just a week after Birmingham was battered by a tornado residents in Bristol witnessed a twister which was up to 1000 ft (300metres) long sweeping across the skies over the southern suburbs. The twister swept across a 15mile area including the suburbs of Whitchurch and came close to causing widespread property damage.

Both government organisations and insurers have admitted that with global warming increasing they have seen an increase in the number of serious weather related incidences.

The Governments environment agency has stated that climate predictions also indicate that Britain will be windier. One study suggests 30 percent more gales in Wales and southern England in winter increasing the risk of another storm like that in 1987 which left 2 billion of damage in its wake.

According to the environment agency current estimates are that peak river flows in Britain could be 20 percent higher by 2080. This could have important implications for the flood zones of rivers in a review of flood defences last year the Environment Agency found that a tenth of the population in England and Wales now lives on flood plains The combination of sea level rise with high tides and changes in winds could increase the frequency of extreme water levelsand hence risk of floodingin some east coast locations by ten or even twentyfold.

The Association of British Insurers ( www.abi.org.uk/ ) support this view stating in a recent report that in the UK climate change could increase the annual costs of flooding by almost 15fold by the 2080s under the high emissions scenario leading to potential total losses from river coastal and urban flooding of more than 40 bn (22 bn).

Some insurers had threatened to start cancelling high risk policies unless the Government invested heavily in providing improved flood defences. As part of cost benefit studies the Government has introduced new flood planning procedures which mean that highlypopulated flood plains like the Vale of York will receive additional help with defences but less populated areas may end up with nothing. These measures go some way to helping some of the more highly populated areas against flooding but do nothing for regions with lower population densities and provide no protection against other costly emergencies such as hurricanes or acts of terrorism.

A recent report by the insurer Axa warned that fewer than 50 of small firms do not have a plan in place to ensure that their business could survive should they be hit by an emergency or disaster. Axa highlighted that many businesses especially in the South East are not covered against environmental risks such as fire and flood and fewer have any protection against the now high profile terrorism threats.

Following a claim such as for a fire or flooding most household insurance policies will cover the cost of alternative accommodation if the property is uninhabitable; likewise many companies have business interruption cover which will pay the cost of alternative accommodation however this is not always guaranteed and you need to carefully check the policy wording.

Even if you do have insurance you need to ensure that it is suitable for your needs. Wherever you obtain your insurance whether it is from a direct insurer such as Norwich Union brokers like Endsleigh or through comparison sites such as Moneynet ( http://www.moneynet.co.uk ) it is vitally important to check all your coverage details. Many people in Boscastle believed that they were completely protected only to discover after the floods that they had become victims to underinsurance. If the level of cover obtained is not adequate then insurers may only pay a proportion of a claim taking the view that you have been underpaying on premiums. Several residents in Boscastle faced insurance shortfalls of up to 50 per cent.

Thankfully in the Boscastle flooding despite fears from the emergency services there was no loss of life; however as the fire fighters union fears following the London bombings exclusion clauses placed into life insurance policies could mean that many individuals do not currently have any cover for certain unpredictable emergency events which are out of their control.

The upshot appears to be that the current situation is one of caveat emptor or “let the buyer beware”. A situation that is likely to get worse with global warming causing increased extreme weather conditions and rising terrorism threats. At the end of the day for consumers to ensure they have the correct financial protection they must actually read all the official cover documents check the details and examine all the clauses when they take out any financial product if they are not to find themselves out of pocket when a claim needs to be made.

About the writer:

Richard lives in Edinburgh occasionally writing for the personal finance blog Cashzilla ( http://cashzilla.blogspot.com/ ) and reciting Vogon poetry.

Credit Problem For New Car Buyer The Soothsayer Speaksr Speaks

Are problems with credit keeping you down? Do you have troubles in getting car loans? Do you feel you must drive a 10yearold beater around for the rest of your life due to a past problem with credit? What can you do to mitigate the problem and help restore your credit rating? And how can you get that car loan you so desperately now need?

Perhaps the first thing you need to do in the case of a problem with credit is get a decent honest evaluation of your financial picture done. An important part of this would be a current credit report. In order to 8220;cleanup8221; your credit report you need to pay off any outstanding debt that you can especially if it’s overdue. Work with your creditors to set up payment plans and get those creditors to make positive reports to your credit bureaus as you improve your profile. Eventually the positive information will 8220;bury8221; the negative and show that you are on the track towards financial stability.

Another thing the current credit report does for you is let you know what you are dealing with when you go into a new creditor for a loan. Even if the information about any previous or current problem with credit is bad its better to know it when you go in than have it brought up to your surprise. If you know about it you can explain to your new creditor how it happened and how its being repaired. This can help them to make their decision about granting you new credit.

Lowering your overall debt is also an advantage since; people who need less money are more likely to get loans than those who need more. Strange though it seems people who have a problem with credit though they are more likely to need money have a tougher time getting loans. When a bank or financial institution sees that you have less debt it shows them you are able to control your spending and that you have more available income with which to pay their new loan. This can make it easier for you to get approved. Also you will be building a record of paying your creditors and new creditors will assume that they too are more likely to be paid on time.

Another way to help yourself is to maintain some savings. This is another way to show financial stability and responsibility especially while trying to overcome problems with credit. It shows perspective too. The old adage 8220;pay yourself first8221; is the key when you start saving. The idea is that when you get paid if you first set aside say 10 percent of your income for your long term savings and yet still have money for your bills and discretionary spending you will maintain a secure financial picture.

Obviously this program of overcoming a problem with credit is not a quickfix deal. It must be a lifelong program. If you are aggressive at first and have enough money to lower your overall debt quickly and dramatically you will be well ahead of the game. But it must be recognized that you may not be able to overcome this issue in just a few weeks or even months. It may be necessary to find some means of getting to work without a new car while you get your program off to a good start.

When the time does come for you to apply for your new car loan several items must be taken into account. A past problem with credit can be a large burden to carry so you must plan how you will approach your prospective creditor. Honesty is the best policy but more information than the bank needs can also be damaging. Don8217;t volunteer disparaging information unnecessarily.

Also try to be prepared to make a significant down payment on your new loan. This does several things for those trying to overcome a problem with credit as well as anyone else. For one it lowers the necessary loan amount. For another it shows your earnestness to pay off the loan. For both reasons it can also lower the rate you will be asked to pay for the loan. If the down payment is sufficient it can also lower the term of the loan costing you much less in the long run. Lowering the term of the loan can often be more of a costsaver than a lower rate so keep both in mind.

Often car lenders will request something in the neighborhood of 30 percent of the value of the auto as a down payment against the new loan if the vehicle is used. Because of the markup involved new car loans often require much less of a down payment. But a new car paid for with such a loan will often lose more value quicker. People with past problems with credit can ill afford to give away so much for a car that loses so much value so fast.

It’s important to gauge the use of your new vehicle against its expected lifetime. Ensure that you have the car paid for before it is expected to be worn out. In general used car loans are best kept at below 3 years. A new car loan should not be extended over 5 years if at all possible and the lower the better. You just have to look hard at your budget and ensure you are not asking for future problems with credit by overextending yourself especially for a shiny new car that you can ill afford.

The car you buy can actually be a large part of your overall plan to overcome a problem with credit. If used properly it can save you time and money in commuting to work make you more productive and allow you to move forward in your program of getting back to financial stability.

About the writer:

RNCOS (rncos.com) formed in 2002 offers outsourcing solutions for your business needs and aims to put an end to your information pursuit. We provide epublishing solutions which constitutes articles newsletters and content for magazines and bespoke work. At RNCOS we provide you complete epublishing solutions and online help. We offer the best in technical writing editing and illustration for digital and printed documentation. For further information write us at inforncos.com.