Strategy + Creativity = Brand Success

Need help communicating your company’s brilliance to the right target audiences in the channels where they live, work and play most often?

No matter who they are, you’ll save time, money, and heartache by being proactive and matching every communications effort to organizational goals. And to do that, you’ll need a great strategic framework.

That’s where I come in.

I’ve worked with dozens of companies and nonprofits using a cross-departmental planning process that explores the current communications activities of the business, then leads to a realistic, workable plan targeted at the audiences most critical to your success.

This four-phase framework – Research, Planning, Implementation & Evaluation – is the gold standard for planning. We establish realistic goals and an achievable timeline designed to ensure a steady stream of activity that moves your business forward.

The typical timeframe from start to finish is 6-8 weeks, but can extend longer based on the size of your organization, availability of staff for sessions, and research required.

The process allows us to consider your business from multiple angles. It always takes a long-term view to ensure the resulting communications strategy has a lasting, positive impact on your brand.

Strategic public relations planning requires coordination with various stakeholders in your organization – sales, marketing, HR, product development, legal, and finance – all of whom are critical to communications success.

Your Fractional Chief Communications Officer

My Fractional CCO services are a premium offering designed to support organizations that have staff who do great work but are so often “in the thick of it” that they miss the opportunities to connect their work to the big picture.

The services include a thorough due diligence and onboarding process, the development of an annual communications plan rooted in the realities of your business needs today and tied to strategic priorities, and a variety of quarterly check-in services to keep the plan on track, evaluate progress in a meaningful way, and course-correct as needed.

Getting this kind of high-level support is a win both for the communications staff I’m passionate about helping to “level up” so they work more strategically and the organizations that need greater discipline so they can reach, engage and motivate their most important audiences wherever they communicate, market or sell.

Ideal for small-to-mid-sized growing businesses or nonprofits that:

  • Need strategic CCO-level expertise but can’t afford the premium salary that comes with it
  • Have revenue of $5 million+
  • Maintain at least 2 internal PR/communications/marketing staff
  • Require greater communications discipline as they rapidly expand
  • Represent any industry

Includes:

  • Company backgrounding and onboarding
  • Strategic Communications Plan development
  • Quarterly check-up to track progress, review successes, address challenges, course-correct as needed
  • Strategic support for a minimum of one year

The communications plan is only half the battle.
It’s the doing that makes it comes alive.

Your final plan may require media relations, speaking engagements, employee communications, social media, crisis communications, or a combination! I work with you as a trusted advisor to either guide the effort to bring the plan to life or help you find an awesome support team. I do this by leaning on my experience managing large and small agencies, freelancers, and other vendors around the world, and on a global network of contacts.

Ready to go? Let’s talk about how we can plan together to create a strong beloved brand for your business.

Strategic Communications
Planning

The strategic communications planning process I use is a tried-and-true way to ensure you highlight the bright spots in your communications and close the gaps.

The typical timeframe for planning is 6-8 weeks, but can extend longer based on the size of your organization, availability of staff for sessions, and research required.

Here is a snapshot of what’s involved:

Helps ensure we really know what you think you know about your brand!

  • Insight and intelligence-gathering phase to avoid guesswork prior to planning. Helps me understand your company, its place in the market, target customers/key stakeholders, and competitors
  • Requires primary and/or secondary research tools like client surveys, focus groups, SWOT analysis, market research, and case studies
  • Results in a solid situation analysis and recommendations that inform the Planning phase

The creative phase where your communications program comes to life!

  • Establishes the target audiences, key messages, goals, objectives, strategies, and tactics
  • Determines which communications channels (employee communications, media relations, executive visibility, social media) make the most sense based on available resources of staff, time, and budget
  • If needed, includes a cross-departmental strategic corporate messaging workshop to create messaging that is clear, consistent, aligned and targeted at the right audiences

Want to learn how to lead these sessions?

Click here to learn about my 5-month corporate messaging program for PR and marketing professionals

Outlines how the work gets done!

  • Includes a realistic timeline for strategies and tactics
  • Considers available resources, including a critical “Roles and Responsibilities” document that outlines project owners
  • Details the budget needed and available for implementation

Determines what success looks like!

  • Decides which objectives to measure, why, how, and when
  • Outlines availability and cost of measurement tools
  • Includes regular intervals to evaluate progress and alter the plan as needed

Client Love

Testimonials