Training for Public Agency Communicators and Partners: Putting It All Together - Planning Your Communications Strategy

About

Training for Public Agency Communicators and Partners: Putting It All Together - Planning Your Communications Strategy

Communications plans are an important element in successful messaging. Learning the elements of a well-developed communications plan and the best practices for its development can make a significant impact on your communications efforts. This course will introduce you to the main elements of a communications plan, as well as how to create successful plans.

Course Schedule

Elements of the course:

• Interactive practice activities
• Learn More opportunities
• Supplemental reference materials
• Information assessment quizzes
• Final assessment

• Unit 1 - Best Practices and Elements of a Communications Plan
• Unit 2 - Identifying Goals and Key Audiences
• Unit 3 - Crafting Messages
• Unit 4 - Creating a Communications Plan
• Unit 5 - Evaluating the Success of Communications Plans and Products

Learn To

• Define best practices for planning agency communications.
• Outline the elements of a communications plan.
• Define the goal of an agency communication.
• Identify audiences important to achieving the goal.
• Identify the interests of the audience and where and how they receive the information.
• Discuss why developing the message is important.
• Explain ways to craft a message for different audiences.
• Outline steps to craft a communications message.
• Develop a communications plan that:
• Describes the communications goal
• Indicates which communications tool will be used to connect with key audiences to advance the goal; and
• Tailors and adapts the message(s) for each tool and audience.
• Outline the steps to create a communications piece from beginning to end, addressing a specific situation using best practices.
• Outline the metrics to evaluate communications plans and products.
• Examine the value and effectiveness of communications efforts based on the evaluation results.
• Describe how to apply findings to improve future efforts.

Recommended Background:

There are a wide range of public agency communicators, their partners, and members of the public who may qualify for and benefit from this training. The primary users have been identified as National Park Service employees who, at a minimum, have collateral duty responsibilities pertaining to communications, marketing, and/or public affairs. This training is also designed for and applicable to park professionals in state, county, and municipal agencies and non-profit organizations who are responsible for communicating with the public.