Your Bullshit PR Strategy is Cringe, Sorry

A bull­shit PR strategy is just cor­por­ate cringe.

Strategy is an over­used and inflated term, espe­cially in PR and marketing. 

Many con­flate strategies with spe­cif­ic plans, codes of con­duct, mis­sion state­ments, vis­ions and val­ues, etc. 

Those are the hall­marks of a bull­shit PR strategy.

Here goes:

Your Bullshit PR Strategy is Cringe

In short: Many PR strategies are cringe-worthy.

A strong PR strategy should out­line how you expect to out­per­form your com­pet­it­ors. Most of everything else should go into your PR plan instead.

A strategy is how you win at some­thing. Nothing more, noth­ing less. Otherwise, your strategy is bullshit.

But we often get this wrong.

To put it as simply as possible:

Many PR strategy doc­u­ments and present­a­tions are filled with any­thing but the essen­tial parts needed to make the PR strategy work.

The why, where, when, how and what are import­ant ques­tions to answer, but you can save them when cre­at­ing an actu­al plan. Many people talk about “strategies” when they mean “plans” — and vice versa.

Identifying a Good PR Strategy

How To Identify a Good PR Strategy

Your PR strategy should answer one simple question:

• Does this strategy provide a guid­ing prin­ciple for how our organ­isa­tion should win the war for atten­tion, trust, and sup­port in our com­pet­it­ive landscape?

If your PR strategy fails to answer this ques­tion, it’s just orna­ment­a­tion (i.e. cor­por­ate cringe).

Learn more: Your Bullshit PR Strategy is Cringe, Sorry

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How To Write a Good PR Strategy

How to Write a 1‑Page Strategy

My inspir­a­tion for writ­ing “no-bull­shit” strategies comes from the clas­sic Good Strategy, Bad Strategy by Richard Rumelt. The 1‑page strategy focuses on how to win.

Here’s how you can write a 1‑page strategy that fits one page — using the myth­ic­al battle between David and Goliath as an analogy:

1. Analysis

• David can­’t beat Goliath using his size or raw strength, but he has an advant­age in speed and accur­acy from a distance.

2. Guiding Principle

• David should­n’t engage in close com­bat but rather use tools that will allow him to strike from a distance.

3. Coherent Actions

• David should­n’t use any heavy armour because that would slow him down.
• David should use a sling­shot, a weapon he is famil­i­ar with and can strike from a distance.
• David should lever­age the sur­prise ele­ment and not advert­ise his advant­age beforehand.

If you write 1 – 2 clear sen­tences per bul­let, your strategy should fit nicely on one page.

Read also: The Easy Street PR Strategy: Keep It Simple To Win

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PR Resource: More PR Strategies