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Companies spend millions - large corporations billions - on marketing products to business customers and consumers each year. All marketers are looking for their brands to stand out and have a competitive advantage. And at the end of the day, we want customers to choose our products and services when they make a purchase.
Public relations is extremely valuable to build your company's reputation. Especially when engaging 3rd party news media to report about your company's competitive advantages. It can be challenging to develop a compelling story to entice reporters to write about your products. So, we need to have a number of creative strategies for developing newsworthy content that presents our products or their attributes in the context of information about trends, product uses, or marketplace needs.
One such powerful strategy is the survey. A survey gathers information meaningful to strategic customers that demonstrates both your company's expertise in a relevant subject or its competence at satisfying customer needs. Companies like Harris Interactive and J.D. Power and Associates have fielded surveys for years that have captured attitudes and needs of consumers, as well as industry trends. They have leveraged their surveys to demonstrate credibility by conducting them scientifically and strategically, and then dissecting the results and communicating their meaning effectively.
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The regular publication of surveys enables a company to establish a unique franchise, with each new survey reinforcing the effectiveness and the impact of the earlier studies. The easiest way to explain how newsmaker surveys work is to describe a few examples.
Monster, the global online employment solution, released its 2017 Job Salary Index report that found that the highest wage earners were in the services, banking, and insurance sectors. Widely quoted in many outlets, this was an excellent way to encourage people seeking better paying jobs to search on Monster for positions in those fields.
A 2017 survey commissioned by ZocDoc found that patients held doctors to a similar or higher standards than their significant others when it comes to maintaining a relationship. This was reprinted and quoted in many media outlets, and supports the case to encourage people to take the time to use ZocDoc for their doctor selection process.
One of the key findings of Deloitte's 2017 Global Millennial Survey is that millennials were seeking greater stability in their lives in terms of careers and finances. Fielding such a survey and sharing results is a great way to demonstrate the company's knowledge and capability to help organizations retain talent or attract top prospects with strategies that match targeted demographics.
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Newsmaker Surveys:
Research as a Public Relations Vehicle
Over the years, the use of reputable services such as Harris Interactive's newsmaker surveys has developed to the point where they are recognized arrows in the quiver of many public relations executives.
The purpose of this research is to increase the visibility and enhance the reputation of corporations with audiences they want to influence.
Because these surveys are not traditional market research, they are usually paid for out of advertising or public relations budgets. They are an alternative to advertising as a way of reaching key publics with a favorable message about the company.
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What Benefits do Corporations Obtain from these Surveys?
Newsmaker surveys are designed to provide some or all of the following benefits: - Widespread coverage in national, regional, and trade media
- The enhancement of the image of the organization as a responsible leader in its field, providing valuable information that is not readily available.
- The strengthening of the image of the organization as uniquely responsive to the needs of the public or their customers. Sponsors can claim that, through such surveys, they are empowering the group surveyed, and making their voices heard to the media and policy makers.
- The opportunity to make uniquely important speeches and presentations of the survey results to public forums.
- The opportunity to place by-lined articles in prestigious publications using the survey findings as a platform.
- As a sales tool which provides their sales force with a unique door-opener.
- The opportunity to present unique information to special presentations before policy makers including the White House and Congress.
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Ivy Cohen Corporate Communications, Inc. helps companies build reputations and differentiate in a competitive market through thought leadership, public education, issues management, content strategy, and strategic communications. To find out how ICCC can help you and your company build your reputation contact ivy@ivycohen.com, call 212-399-0026 or visit www.ivycohen.com.
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