Not including traditional public relations elements, the campaign has three components:

Radio

The radio campaign consists of both English and Spanish language stations. The English-speaking market is served by four radio stations owned by NextMedia Chicago. These stations are part of the Chicago MSA but located in Joliet, Illinois. The initial campaign will broadcast for two weeks, which coincides with the first round of community vaccination clinics.

English

The first commercial in the series is designed to educate the public on the Health Department’s vaccination clinic program as well as the guidelines for priority groups (people who should receive the vaccination first as a result of the limited nationwide supply of the vaccine).

General Education – English

Spanish

Chicago is the second largest Spanish-speaking media market in the United States. Behind Chicago and Aurora, Illinois, Will County has a sizable Spanish-speaking community. One of the Health Department’s objectives was to provide this important health information in Spanish to Spanish-speakers. This deliverable comes from the fact that most of the early confirmed H1N1 cases were among people of Mexican descent.

The Spanish-language commercial is identical to the general education spot in English.

General Education – Spanish

Newspaper

The dominant newspaper group in Will County, Illinois is owned by the Sun Times Media Group. These papers include the Chicago Sun-Times, Joliet Herald News, Southtown/Star, and several weeklies. In addition to these papers, there are weekly publications owned by Russell Publications. The Kankakee Daily Journal also services a sizeable portion of the county’s eastern population.

This display advertisement will run in parallel with the radio campaign.

Streaming Video

The Will County Sheriff’s Police has an in-house video facility that produced a short video explaining the H1N1 vaccine clinic program. This video has been added to the Health Department’s YouTube Channel and will begin airing as part of Comcast Cable’s video on demand offering in early November.

Follow the Will County Health Department on Twitter @WillCoHealth.

Earlier this week I had the pleasure of lecturing on Crisis Communications to a Corporate Communication class at the University of St. Francis. Part of my presentation discussed the need to manage expectations. As I finished my presentation, I asked the students who they would fault for the unsuccessful bid by Chicago for the 2016 Summer Olympics.

“Obama,” one student said. Others agreed quickly.

“What about Mayor Daley,” I asked. No takers.

“Oprah?” Still no takers.

“What about the public relations team for the U.S. Olympic Committee?”

The lights started to switch on. “Oh, yeah, managing expectations!”

Back Story: I Want My USOC-TV

In July, 2009, the United States Olympic Committee announced their plan for a cable television channel dedicated solely to the Olympic Movement. The channel, to be carried by Comcast, would program around-the-clock and on-demand content from Olympic and Paralympics Games.

At the time, I expressed my belief that the move made sense.

With the Major League Baseball network earning 20 to 30 cents per subscriber per month, and the National Football League network earning 75 cents to $1.10 per subscriber, it doesn’t surprise me that the United States Olympic Committee plans to enter the cable television market next year.

Now we learn that profit sharing, or rather the lack of profit sharing as the case may be, was at the center of a rift between the U.S. Olympic Committee and the International Olympic Committee. Chicago’s bid might have been a finalist had the Americans been willing to spread the wealth around.

The USOC has been locked in a bitter dispute for years with the IOC over its share of revenues from U.S. TV rights deals and global sponsorship agreements. Based on long-standing contracts, USOC’s share of revenues from these IOC deals has been bigger than all 200-plus other national Olympic committees put together.

The IOC insisted on a revision of these deals at a time when many federations and Olympic committees were feeling the credit crunch, a change the USOC vehemently opposed.

The USOC raised tensions further in August when it announced plans for an Olympic TV network without consulting the IOC. After an angry response from the IOC, the USOC put those plans on hold.

As Deep Throat said in All the President’s Men, “Follow the Money.”

A Poorly Managed Set of Expectations

In the days leading up to the final presentations before the International Olympic Committee, most Americans believed that Chicago would be a finalist. As the decision drew closer and closer, nearly everyone thought that Chicago might even take the prize. The only thing the Chicago bid needed to produce was a personal appeal by the President and the Games were ours.

But Chicago lost in the first round.

The immediate political response was to blame the President, First Lady, Oprah Winfrey, and Mayor Daley. Too much American arrogance, Conservatives shouted. Too much war, Liberals countered.

I say, too much in the way of expectation. And for that, we must blame the people who manage those expectations, the public relations professionals.

Let’s say you’re an attorney on a zoning issue. Tonight, your client’s issue is set for the final vote. If you are worth your salt, you have a feeling, based upon your work with the city’s zoning attorney, whether or not you will get the approval your client seeks. If you believe the petition will be denied, you will manage your client’s expectations. This is something the USOC did not do.

The public relations professionals, especially when the President decided to board Air Force One to make a personal pitch for the Games, should have kicked into overdrive in order to let the American press know that there was a chance of failure.

They should have said, “Hey, look, Chicago’s got a good bid. The President is doing his best to help, but we’re having some problems. Some of the International Committee isn’t happy with us for reasons outside our bid. This isn’t in the bag.”

Had the USOC communicated that simple message, the media wouldn’t have frothed themselves into a lather, and the public wouldn’t have been nearly as perplexed and confused as they were.

The Biggest Public Relations Failure in a Generation

The public relations management of the Chicago 2016 final bid was the biggest public relations failure in a generation. Not only did they allow runaway expectations by the general public, they set up a particularly stunning embarrassment for the President of the United States. I don’t care what your politics are (I am a Republican), as public relations professionals it is our job to mitigate damage to our clients. We don’t set up our CEO for failure. We don’t ignore rumor mills. We backchannel accurate information and help set realistic expectations.

A loss by Chicago would have been less embarrassing had some of the back-story been communicated to the press during the days and weeks before the final bid presentation. The President might have gone to Denmark anyway, but at least he would have been able to say, “I tried, but we knew…”

If you are interested in consultation or media availability, please visit my contact page.

photo credit: joebeone

In many ways, what I tweet is pretty much what everyone else tweets. I tweet about projects, meetings, and my passion for Crimson Tide football. I also use Twitter as a tool to promote new blog posts. But after I dumped most of my auto-following spambots a month ago, I started thinking about how I could use Twitter as a networking tool rather than a broadcasting tool.

Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty

I have written about Harvey Mackay’s book, Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty, on two occasions already (here and here). In that book, Mackay explains not only why networks are valuable, but also how to build one from scratch. Since I was wanted to view my Twitterverse as a networking tool, why not employ a few time-tested tricks for building my new virtual network?

Sixteen New Cornerstones

My edition of Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty is a decade old, so Mackay’s original Sixteen Cornerstones for a Solid Network are a bit out-of-date with respect to the way people do business today. For example, many people use online travel services rather than a travel agent. Knowing this dilemma, I’ve tweaked Mackay’s list to me more “Twitter friendly.”

• Real Life Friends because your network always begins at home
• Athletes because they offer perspective on the game and motivating commentary
• Attorneys from your area where possible but also include national voices
• Bankers that include CEOs as well as mid-level experts
• Celebrities can be as local or global as you want
• Community Leaders, like Celebrities, can be as local or global as you want
• Entrepreneurs because they are creative and revolutionary
• Headhunters relevant to your industry or an industry you want to join
• Industry Experts to keep abreast of issues and ideas related to your career
• Insurance Experts that are practitioners not a company’s marketing department
• Media Contacts in your area as well as producers and editors at national outlets
• Medical Experts offer good advice on many issues…for free
• Police such as the FBI, your state police, and your local agency
• Politicians that include both liberal and conservative thinkers
• Real Estate Experts because you may decide to buy or sell a home one day
• Religious Leaders from the major faiths (I opt for the ordained before the laity)

I also like to include Philanthropists, hobbies and a few other categories, but these 16 will give you a well-rounded portfolio from which to build a strong network of people.

Build Your Network Around Who You Want to Know…

…not who you already know. My philosophy towards Twitter is simple: Where LinkedIn is your business world, Facebook is your water cooler, Twitter is the cocktail party. It’s an opportunity to socialize and network with people as if you’re attending a business after hours or other social event. It is an opportunity to expand your network and build relationships that are both professional and personal.

How Do You Build a Twitter Network?

Where do you find the people in these categories? Personally, I use WeFollow. Although I encourage people to Help End WeFollow Abuse, I still believe it’s one of the best Twitter Directories right now.

When I enter the names of categories, I browse the people in the list…all of the list. I’m not interested in the people with the most followers. I prefer reading who they are and what they tweet. Just as people determine the centers of influence at work and elsewhere, I vet my list the same way. I try to follow people who are genuinely involved or active in a particular arena.  I unfollow anyone who DMs me with a spam offer to increase my followers.

What’s the Right Size of a Twitter Network?

Well, I must ask, what is the right size of your real-life network? There is no good answer. From the standpoint of Twitter, though, I like to keep the conversation manageable. I am building a network of around 250 real people beyond those people I actually know. That number, for me, keeps the conversation interesting without overwhelming me. Some people can manage more, others less.

Center for Mission and Identity

Around the nation, many Catholics are questioning the level of dedication that Catholic universities are placing on the faith. This situation most recently surfaced at Norte Dame when President Obama delivered the commencement address early this year.

Benedictine University’s Center for Mission and Identity, which I was unfamiliar with until yesterday, promotes the characteristics and values that enhance the university’s Catholic and Benedictine identity. Under the direction of Alicia Cordoba Tait, CMI is becoming a national voice on the integration of the faith into the curriculum as well as all facets of campus life.

For the past two years, Benedictine University has hosted the Benedictine Pedagogy Conference. Next year the conference will move to St. Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, and is receiving attention from Catholic universities around the world as well as from the Vatican itself.

2015 Strategic Plan Update

Dr. Don Taylor, the Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs, presented an update on Benedictine University’s 2015 Strategic Plan. The University has a number of goals it wishes to accomplish, and it appears that the school is moving in the right direction.

Taylor wants each of the colleges to develop their own unique brand identity. For example, the Moser College of Adult and Professional Studies is building a strong identity as an adult-focused academic entity that offers non-traditional undergraduate and graduate degrees as well as certificate programs.

My own college, the College of Business, is branding itself as a strong corporate partner. And the College of Science continues its push as a quality research program as well as having a solid pre-med program.

Eagle Athletics Strategic Plan

The Athletic Department at Benedictine University has embarked upon a five year strategic plan that features six goals.

1. Enhance and sustain programs that foster champions of character development.
2. Enhance and sustain programs that foster champions of academic excellence.
3. Enhance and sustain programs that foster competitive athletic excellence.
4. Improve internal and external marketing and communication systems to raise awareness of Benedictine Athletics.
5. Execute prudent financial responsibility with strategic and fair allocation of resources to ensure the ability to foster champions.
6. Acquire the financial resources necessary to advance the student-athletes as students, competitors and people. Steadily increase revenues from current and new sources.

The centerpiece of the Eagle Athletics Strategic Plan is a $14.7-million renovation to the Dan and Ada Rice Center. The preliminary architectural drawings are impressive, and the silent capital campaign has already raised over $4-million for the project.

Benedictine University Alumni Wanted

Finally, the Benedictine University Alumni Association needs alumni to reconnect. We’re recruiting alumni to lead chapters in various cities around the United States, to serve on the Board of Directors, and help spearhead various projects that touch anyone who attended the school regardless if your diploma came from St. Procopius, Illinois Benedictine College, or Benedictine University.

Hope to see you on campus this weekend!

photo credit: acme401

A Really Big To-Do List

Over the past ten days, I have focuses on actions you should take to prepare for the fall influenza season as well as interruptions to your organization that might arise from H1N1 influenza. By now you probably have a long list of things to do in order to prepare. It is here where many people suffer from mission paralysis. They have so much to accomplish, they freeze. What do you do first?

What is a Top Priority?

Miles Nadal, the Chairman and CEO of MDC Partners, has a fascinating filter for determining whether or not a priority is a real top priority.

If a priority is not Mission Critical and Time Sensitive, it’s not a Top Priority.

Note the two conditions that a task must satisfy to become a Top Priority.

• Mission Critical events are activities whose failure or disruption in normal business hours will result in the failure of business operations.
• Time Sensitive events, as the term implies, are activities whose failure to complete within a specified time frame will result in the failure of business operations.

The combination of the two, according to Nadal, is the lens to establish your Top Priority.

Top Priorities for H1N1 Framework

No two organizations are identical. As a result, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to managing your H1N1 influenza plan. Only your organization can establish what you plan to do. The question now becomes one of selecting the priority.

• Do you roll out an internal communications channel for employees and key stakeholders?
• Should employee benefit plans offer circumstantial options related to social distancing, extended absenteeism, or care for ill family members?
• How will your organization manage suppliers and sub-contractors?

There are many other mission critical questions you could also ask. If these issues face a time constraint as well, then you must look at the possibility of that question as a top priority. Once you determine your Top Priority, it is time to set the ball into motion and address that priority.

Today’s To-Do: Have a Team Briefing

Regardless of what Top Priority you establish for your plan this fall, it is paramount that you communicate your objectives to three groups.

1. Senior Management to whom you report
2. Employees to whom the policies affect
3. Your team to whom the responsibility will rest to achieve the objectives

Today’s To-Do is a Team Briefing. You should review important information such as an overview of the CDC’s H1N1 policy guidelines, your organization’s expectations and business framework, and what you have determined to be your Top Priority in addressing seasonal and H1N1 influenza.

Depending on the size of your team, and the nature of their normal work, it might serve all parties that your meeting take place off-site in order to bring focused attention to the work.