Community

Managing the communications or marketing programs of government is a vast and complex undertaking – but having seen the communications business “from all sides now”, so to speak, I know these simple truths to be true:

Tell a story: people are engaged by storytelling. The more familiar the characters and the more compelling the plot, the better your chances for really getting through and affecting real change

Build relationships: people want to feel connected with each other. Challenges are meant to bring out the best in people – but that can only happen when you enable them to turn to each other for support.

Have conversations: as my mentor Yves once said to me (and, I confess, a few others since him), you have to listen first and talk second. As a PR practitioner, I’ve loved these conversations more than any other aspect of the profession. Get to know your publics and you can really deliver what they need, when they need it, in the manner they most desire – and lives can be changed.

Respect the sacred trust: once you have promised to deliver, you must never break that promise. Without integrity, all of our efforts turn into meaningless chatter, and we lose our audience. Game over.

Social media allows us to build virtual communities – where we can tell our stories to people who want to hear them. It reminds me of building a campfire on the beach, pulling out the guitars, and seeing who turns up. Miraculous things can happen. The advent of social media tools within government is finally allowing us to start building connected communities within this vast subculture we occupy 37.5 hours a week. Perhaps, if we really listen to what those folks getting ready to retire, and to those just coming into the public service, have to share with us, we can really learn how to make this machinery work better.