1 Who Am I? Gabrielle Loring 2018-2019 IABC Awards Committee Chair - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Who Am I? Gabrielle Loring 2018-2019 IABC Awards Committee Chair 12-Time Gold Quill Award Winner Senior Consultant ROC Group 2

What We’ll Cover Today • Divisions, categories and special awards • Evaluation • Key elements of a strong Gold Quill award entry 3

Divisions 1 2 3 4 Communication Communication Communication Communication Research Management Training & Skills Education 4

Categories DIVISION 2 DIVISION 4 DIVISION 1 Communication Communication Communication Management Research Skills 1. Internal 10. Community relations 18. Research 22. Special & 19. Student entry experiential 2. Employee 11. Government relations events engagement 12. Financial 23. Web 3. HR & benefits 13. Issues management & DIVISION 3 24. Audio/visual 4. Change crisis communication Training & 25. Social media 5. Safety 14. Corporate social Education 26. Publications responsibility 6. Leadership 27. Writing 20. Training & 7. Marketing, advertising 15. Government • Journalism education communications & brand • Corporate 21. Student entry 16. Nonprofit campaigns 8. Customer relations • Promotional 17. Student entry 9. Media relations Nonprofit • Special projects 28. Student 5

Sample Rubrics Evaluation • International Blue Ribbon Panels • Rubrics provided to evaluators for consistency • Each entry receives feedback from evaluators • Scored on IABC’s Seven-Point Scale of Excellence 6

IABC Seven-Point Scale of Excellence 7 Outstanding: An extraordinary or insightful approach or result. Significantly better than average: Demonstrates an innovative, strategic approach, 6 takes all elements into account and delivers significant results. Better than average: Demonstrates a strategic approach and aligns the communication 5 solution with the business need to deliver meaningful results. 4 Average: Competent approach or results, professionally sound and appropriate. Somewhat less than satisfactory: Several key elements that are critical to the 3 strategy or execution are missing, incorrect or underrepresented. An inadequate approach or result: A significant number of critical elements are 2 missing. 1 Poor: Work that is wrong or inappropriate. 7

Scoring DIVISIONS 1, 2 & 3 Communication Award of Excellence Management, DIVISION 4 Education & 5.75 or higher Communication Skills Training, Research Award of Merit 5.25 to 5.749 1/3 1/3 Professional Strategic Standards Alignment of Execution 1/2 Work 1/2 Work Plan Sample 1/3 Creativity, Resourcefulness or Innovation 8

Special Awards • Best of the Best: Most exceptional work across all divisions • Jake Wittmer Award: Exceptional use of research in a communication strategy • Business Issue Award: Exceptional use of strategic communication to address a significant business issue • Sharon Berzok Student Award: Student achieving the highest standard of communication excellence in the student categories  All entries winning Excellence are considered.  Announced after entrants receive results. 9

Special Awards • Of the Year Awards: – Corporate Communications Department of the Year – Not-For-Profit Communications Department of the Year – Agency of the Year: boutique, small, mid and large  Based on the number of winning submissions from an organization.  Announced at the Excellence Gala at World Conference. 10

Strategic Communications Defined  Planned to meet a measurable objective to make a noticeable difference in something that matters  Includes direct steps that let you demonstrate to company leaders or clients that you have contributed meaningfully to what the company is trying to accomplish  Thought about it ahead of time Holtz, S., McCauley, M., & Wah, J., (2017, February 16.) Circle of Fellows #18: Strategic Communication Planning. Retrieved from: https://firpodcastnetwork.com/circleoffellows/ 11

Work Plan for Divisions 1, 2 & 3 1 The Business Need and Communication Opportunity 2 Stakeholder Analysis 3 Goals and Objectives 4 Solution Overview 5 Implementation 6 Measurement 12

Questions 13

Business Need & Communications Opportunity “ You must know where you are now before you decide which way to go”* • Business goal(s): – Why important? – Why now? – How will it help the business? – How do you know? • Research • Communication opportunity *Potter, Les R. (2008). The Communication Plan The Heart of Strategic Communication. International Association of Business Communicators. 14

EXAMPLE: City of Airdrie Communication Campaign Gets Residents to Recycle Organics Business Need • Rising landfill fees • Sending organic matter to compost costs 50% less than landfill – costs had increased 65% since 2009 • City developed 5-year, phased-approach waste management strategy – Curbside organics recycling program to divert 52% of food and yard waste away from landfills – Cost savings of CDN$175,000 in first nine months of program • Boost city’s reputation as environmental steward Communications Opportunity • Citizen Satisfaction Survey showed lack of knowledge on organic material collection • Educate residents about organics recycling impacts and support participation in first citywide curbside recycling initiative http://cw.iabc.com/2016/01/04/city-communication-campaign- organics-recycling/ 15

Stakeholder Analysis • Who is the audience? • What do you know about them? – Audience preferences – Attitudes – Demographics – Psychographics • How do you know? – Research 16

Link audience analysis to the business need 17

EXAMPLE: City of Airdrie Communication Campaign Gets Residents to Recycle Organics Stakeholder Analysis • 50,000 residents • 24% used backyard composter • Recycling carts curbside are new concept, city had not offered before • Citizen Satisfaction Survey – 93% said recycling programs important – 59% supported food and yard waste collection – Don’t understand organic materia l collection • What materials are considered organic, odor, cost, logistics http://cw.iabc.com/2016/01/04/city- communication-campaign-organics- recycling/ 18

Goals and Objectives • Goals – Overarching, broad, simple • Objectives – Help you manifest goal into reality – Where you want to be? – How will you measure them? • Strategy – How do you go about achieving goals and objectives? – General direction and priorities • Tactics – What to do? Based on the work of Les Potter, ABC, IABC Fellow 19

Three Types of Objectives Volume against channels Outputs • Coverage • Number of posts What audience takes away Communication • Better understanding Outtakes Objectives • Embrace a position What audience does, actual behavior • Buy a product Outcomes • Sign up for benefits • Act safely 20

Objectives Contributes Includes a Describes a Quantified as Challenging to business completion desired an output, but within the goals in a date range of outcome outtake or meaningful influence outcome way 21

Link goals and objectives to the business need & stakeholder analysis 22

EXAMPLE: City of Airdrie Communication Campaign Gets Residents to Recycle Organics Goals • Creating awareness of the program and convincing residents of its importance • Encouraging proper use of program to ensure material collected met contamination guidelines set by vendor http://cw.iabc.com/2016/01/04/city-communication- campaign-organics-recycling/ 23

EXAMPLE: City of Airdrie Communication Campaign Gets Residents to Recycle Organics Output-Based Objectives • Achieve 80% accurate and positive media coverage of key messages and program facts, based on content analysis • Reach 1,000 residents through community presentations and grocery store intercepts • Generate more than 100 tweets from residents about organics • Hits on web pages specific to organics will increase by 500% (from 439 hits to 2,200 hits) between January and July 2014 24

EXAMPLE: City of Airdrie Communication Campaign Gets Residents to Recycle Organics Outtake-Based Objectives Increase residents’ understanding of the harm organics post in landfills by 40%. (Benchmark survey-68% felt not harmful for organics to decompose in landfill) 25

EXAMPLE: City of Airdrie Communication Campaign Gets Residents to Recycle Organics Outcome-Based Objectives • Reach a 65% participation rate among residents by 1 Sept 2014 (using cart at least monthly) • Decrease residential waste by 25% by 1 Sept 2014 • By 1 Sept 2014 the contamination rate of organic waste picked up curbside is less than 5%, indicating we effectively disseminated accurate information that would reduce costs associated with fines for over-contaminated materials • More than 50% of city staff will become ambassadors for the program 26

Solution Overview How you approach the project • How you go about achieving goals and objectives • Making choices and trade-offs • Seizing opportunities • Key messages 27

IABC Gold Quill Award of Excellence Earned by work that is… • Truly unique, • Resourceful, or • Setting new standards of professional execution within the category, industry or geography 26

Link solution overview to the business need, stakeholder analysis & goals and objectives 29