Guidance for PR pros to build on successful events
A postmortem is a wise idea, but why rely on hindsight alone? Try these real-time approaches to ensure that every effort surpasses its predecessor.
The hours and days immediately following a public relations event offer a great opportunity to identify what worked and what could be improved.
Clients should expect certain fundamentals when a PR team plans and executes any publicity event.
Here are seven important steps for getting it right:
1. Plan the timeline down to the last detail.
The team should schedule every aspect of the event from the moment the idea is confirmed. This begins with date selection—avoiding proximity to holidays and seasonal happenings, for example.
A good PR team will check event calendars on different sites so as not to compete with any other similar goings-on. It’s also recommended to ask potential attendees what time is ideal. From there, time the dissemination of attendee invitations, press releases, media alerts and post-event pitches with precision.
2. Have a structured, detailed rundown.
Ideally, the PR team is using the original event plan to structure a comprehensive rundown. Collaborate with other teams and vendors through a Google doc or other cloud-based program. The document will include all pre-event tasks, times and project owners up through each element of the event, the full script and post-event work.
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