In PR we talk a lot about messaging. We subscribe to the notion that there is a formula for good communications. If you factor in all the various messages that surround a particular issue, the varying views that publics hold towards that issue and future trends expected to unfold in relation to that issue, you can 'position' yourself to achieve thought leadership status by cutting through the noise in such a way as to bring a clarity and guidance that people are often seeking.
And yet, despite all this, what is less talked about is why two people can say the same thing and publics react positively to one person and negatively to another. It's the most frustrating element to PR because it reminds us that there is no absolute set formula that guarantees resonance with one's audience.
In this blog I've attributed much of this phenomena to what I call authenticity.
Recently we've seen Chris Christie, the government of New Jersey, went through a bit of a PR whirlwind as party stakeholders urged him to get in the presidential race. He recently made it official that he would not be entering the race.
Christie is fascinating because he has a lot of brand variables going against him. He's highly outspoke (which makes him prone to saying something off-message), he's overweight, and he's more than happy to be curt with both the media and his own constituents.
And yet, the media and his constituents love him.
The reason? Authenticity.
He comes across as someone who is completely transparent, who has nothing to hide, and who is giving it to you straight, whether you like it or not.
All great PR stems out of authenticity, which when you think about it, is almost the opposite of how PR is traditionally done. Normally people and companies are told to put their personal views aside and STAY ON MESSAGE. PR people cringe when their spokesperson goes off-message because anything can happen. And there are endless examples of how going off-message utterly destroys a brand / reputation in mere seconds (just look at various bank executives who have shot themselves in the foot over the past three years!).
Yet, if you have a spokesperson who is genuinely authentic (remember you can't fake authenticity, by definition, it's not authentic if you are faking it), then you have to throw out the traditional PR model and approach things from a completely different perspective.
If your spokesperson is a 'wild horse' (which is what authenticity is somewhat analogous too) then your focus must be on anticipating various issues that will arise from being outspoken. You must anticipate what messages may end up conflicting with each other, what positions may be misunderstood by the public and how opposition may twist your messaging openness against you. Upon doing this, you must then equip your spokesperson with said knowledge.
With an authentic candidate you can't pigeonhole them in to rigid talking points. You have to let them run free - your job though is to make sure that they understand the various dangers that await them. My experience is that authentic spokespersons are often fearless and as such rarely think of the dangers, yet once they are made aware of them, they often take heed and will show caution around certain topics or how they handle certain questions.
The resonance we see in Christie is purely a function of authenticity, yet at the same time, while he is clearly not a talking-point machine, he exhibits an in-depth understanding of the PR process. While he is outspoken, he is not out of control. While he is blunt, he's not offensive. While he is serious, he is self deprecating.
Watch a couple Christie clips below to see how authenticity plays such a huge factor in messaging resonance. Try to imagine others saying the same things Christie was saying and imagine the uproar in the media that would ensue (and yet when Christie says what he says, people tend to laugh).
This is the biggest issue facing Obama today is that he's lost his authenticity with the public. Which would not have been a big issue if he had simply been a talking-point machine from the beginning. Yet, he did what few ever manage to do, he actually managed to take canned speeches and make them sound authentic back in 2008, leading the public to believe that what he was saying was truly who he was deep down inside. That Hope and Change and Yes We Can weren't just bumper stickers, but rather they were in his DNA, they were his belief system.
Yet, in general the public now realizes that Obama isn't authentic (a good person, a smart guy, but not authentic) and that is the reason why no matter what the president says, his talking points resonate only with his most ardent supporters and fall flat with the rest of the public.
Authenticity is an essential element to success in PR, even if it is rarely factored in to the equation for success.
And yet, despite all this, what is less talked about is why two people can say the same thing and publics react positively to one person and negatively to another. It's the most frustrating element to PR because it reminds us that there is no absolute set formula that guarantees resonance with one's audience.
In this blog I've attributed much of this phenomena to what I call authenticity.
Recently we've seen Chris Christie, the government of New Jersey, went through a bit of a PR whirlwind as party stakeholders urged him to get in the presidential race. He recently made it official that he would not be entering the race.
Christie is fascinating because he has a lot of brand variables going against him. He's highly outspoke (which makes him prone to saying something off-message), he's overweight, and he's more than happy to be curt with both the media and his own constituents.
And yet, the media and his constituents love him.
The reason? Authenticity.
He comes across as someone who is completely transparent, who has nothing to hide, and who is giving it to you straight, whether you like it or not.
All great PR stems out of authenticity, which when you think about it, is almost the opposite of how PR is traditionally done. Normally people and companies are told to put their personal views aside and STAY ON MESSAGE. PR people cringe when their spokesperson goes off-message because anything can happen. And there are endless examples of how going off-message utterly destroys a brand / reputation in mere seconds (just look at various bank executives who have shot themselves in the foot over the past three years!).
Yet, if you have a spokesperson who is genuinely authentic (remember you can't fake authenticity, by definition, it's not authentic if you are faking it), then you have to throw out the traditional PR model and approach things from a completely different perspective.
If your spokesperson is a 'wild horse' (which is what authenticity is somewhat analogous too) then your focus must be on anticipating various issues that will arise from being outspoken. You must anticipate what messages may end up conflicting with each other, what positions may be misunderstood by the public and how opposition may twist your messaging openness against you. Upon doing this, you must then equip your spokesperson with said knowledge.
With an authentic candidate you can't pigeonhole them in to rigid talking points. You have to let them run free - your job though is to make sure that they understand the various dangers that await them. My experience is that authentic spokespersons are often fearless and as such rarely think of the dangers, yet once they are made aware of them, they often take heed and will show caution around certain topics or how they handle certain questions.
The resonance we see in Christie is purely a function of authenticity, yet at the same time, while he is clearly not a talking-point machine, he exhibits an in-depth understanding of the PR process. While he is outspoken, he is not out of control. While he is blunt, he's not offensive. While he is serious, he is self deprecating.
Watch a couple Christie clips below to see how authenticity plays such a huge factor in messaging resonance. Try to imagine others saying the same things Christie was saying and imagine the uproar in the media that would ensue (and yet when Christie says what he says, people tend to laugh).
This is the biggest issue facing Obama today is that he's lost his authenticity with the public. Which would not have been a big issue if he had simply been a talking-point machine from the beginning. Yet, he did what few ever manage to do, he actually managed to take canned speeches and make them sound authentic back in 2008, leading the public to believe that what he was saying was truly who he was deep down inside. That Hope and Change and Yes We Can weren't just bumper stickers, but rather they were in his DNA, they were his belief system.
Yet, in general the public now realizes that Obama isn't authentic (a good person, a smart guy, but not authentic) and that is the reason why no matter what the president says, his talking points resonate only with his most ardent supporters and fall flat with the rest of the public.
Authenticity is an essential element to success in PR, even if it is rarely factored in to the equation for success.
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