lliances and joint ventures; rebounds in showroom visits; membership applications on the rise; community service and sponsorship opportunities; enhanced activist group relations, and expanded feedback channels, not to mention new thoughtleader and special event contacts.

Over time, you'll notice customers making repeat purchases; prospects reappearing; stronger developing relationships with the educational, labor

And hurt bad if you are a business, non-profit or association manager. Especially when you rely too heavily on tactics like special events, brochures and press releases to get your money's worth.

Instead, pursue public relations that does nothing less than alter individual perception and lead to changed behaviors among those key outside audiences of yours.

In other words, the best approach does something positive about the behaviors of those key external audiences that MOST affect your operation.

That approach persuades your important external folks to your way of thinking, and moves them to take actions that allow your department, division or subsidiary to succeed.

Thus it creates the kind of stakeholder behavior change that leads directly to achieving your managerial objectives.

Best part is, once you digest the underlying premise of public relations, you'll understand how the right PR really CAN alter individual perception and lead to those changed behaviors you need. Here's how it goes: 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-to-desired-action the very people whose behaviors affect the organization the most, the public relations mission is accomplished.

Keep in mind that it requires more than good old special events, brochures and news releases if you really want to end up with your PR money's worth.

Fact is, business, non-profit and association managers who employ this kind of public relations can benefit from results such as new proposals for strategic alliances and joint ventures; rebounds in showroom visits; membership applications on the rise; community service and sponsorship opportunities; enhanced activist group relations, and expanded feedback channels, not to mention new thoughtleader and special event contacts.

Over time, you'll notice customers making repeat purchases; prospects reappearing; stronger developing relationships with the educational, labor,

about the behaviors of those key external audiences that MOST affect your operation.

That approach persuades your important external folks to your way of thinking, and moves them to take actions that allow your department, division or subsidiary to succeed.

Thus it creates the kind of stakeholder behavior change that leads directly to achieving your managerial objectives.

Best part is, once you digest the underlying premise of public relations, you'll understand how the right PR really CAN alter individual perception and lead to those changed behaviors you need. Here's how it goes: 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-to-desired-action the very people whose behaviors affect the organization the most, the public relations mission is accomplished.

Keep in mind that it requires more than good old special events, brochures and news releases if you really want to end up with your PR money's worth.

Fact is, business, non-profit and association managers who employ this kind of public relations can benefit from results such as new proposals for strategic alliances and joint ventures; rebounds in showroom visits; membership applications on the rise; community service and sponsorship opportunities; enhanced activist group relations, and expanded feedback channels, not to mention new thoughtleader and special event contacts.

Over time, you'll notice customers making repeat purchases; prospects reappearing; stronger developing relationships with the educational, labor

underlying premise of public relations, you'll understand how the right PR really CAN alter individual perception and lead to those changed behaviors you need. Here's how it goes: 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-to-desired-action the very people whose behaviors affect the organization the most, the public relations mission is accomplished.

Keep in mind that it requires more than good old special events, brochures and news releases if you really want to end up with your PR money's worth.

Fact is, business, non-profit and association managers who employ this kind of public relations can benefit from results such as new proposals for strategic alliances and joint ventures; rebounds in showroom visits; membership applications on the rise; community service and sponsorship opportunities; enhanced activist group relations, and expanded feedback channels, not to mention new thoughtleader and special event contacts.

Over time, you'll notice customers making repeat purchases; prospects reappearing; stronger developing relationships with the educational, labor

ery people whose behaviors affect the organization the most, the public relations mission is accomplished.

Keep in mind that it requires more than good old special events, brochures and news releases if you really want to end up with your PR money's worth.

Fact is, business, non-profit and association managers who employ this kind of public relations can benefit from results such as new proposals for strategic alliances and joint ventures; rebounds in showroom visits; membership applications on the rise; community service and sponsorship opportunities; enhanced activist group relations, and expanded feedback channels, not to mention new thoughtleader and special event contacts.

Over time, you'll notice customers making repeat purchases; prospects reappearing; stronger developing relationships with the educational, labor

lliances and joint ventures; rebounds in showroom visits; membership applications on the rise; community service and sponsorship opportunities; enhanced activist group relations, and expanded feedback channels, not to mention new thoughtleader and special event contacts.

Over time, you'll notice customers making repeat purchases; prospects reappearing; stronger developing relationships with the educational, labor, financial and healthcare communities; improved relations with government agencies and legislative bodies, and even capital givers or specifying sources glancing your way.

It goes without saying that you want your most important outside audiences to really perceive your operations, products or services in a positive light. So take pains to be sure that your PR staff has bought into the whole effort. Convince yourself that they accept the reality that perceptions almost always lead to behaviors that can help or hurt your unit.

Spend some time together and review the PR blueprint very carefully with your staff, especially regarding how you will gather and monitor perceptions by questioning members of your most important outside audiences. Questions such as: how much do you know about our organization? How much do you know about our services or products and employees? Have you had prior contact with us and were you pleased with the how things went? Have you experienced problems with our people or procedures?

Certainly you can count on professional survey people to handle the perception monitoring phases of your program IF the budget is available. But luckily, your PR people are also in the perception and behavior business and can pursue the same objective: identify untruths, false assumptions, unfounded rumors, inaccuracies, misconceptions and any other negative perception that might translate into hurtful behaviors.

We should spend a moment on your public relations goal. You need one that addresses the problems that cropped up during your key audience perception monitoring. Chances are, it will call for straightening out that dangerous misc