Communicating Strategically
Synopsis of the topic
This chapter outlines the three components of the communication process: the organization, the constituencies, and the message. The communication process is an ongoing process. It works as a circle. Formulate the organization strategy implies the organization to set measurable objectives, resources (money, human resources, time), and diagnosing the organization’s reputation. The company must also analyze the constituencies: who they are, what they think about the organization and what they know about the communication of the organization. Employees are brand ambassadors (e.g. Nike). Analyzing the constituencies help the company to set the communication strategy. Then the organization must set the structure of the message.
Personal examples
Using the right channel to the right moment for a message is really important even in our every day life. Last time I try to reach one of my friends, I sent her a sms with my cell phone, asking her if she wanted to go out in the evening. Without any answer from her, I thought she had other plans for the evening and went out with other friends. The problem was that she did not get my message because her cell phone was broken. I should have tried to reach her with another mean of communication such as a phone call. It would have been more appropriate.
Another personal experience happened not long ago in class. We had to do an “elevator presentation”, which means that you have 30 seconds to deliver a certain message. It was not easy in such a short amount of time to deliver the message you want, make sure that you deliver the message interestingly and also structure the message in a way, that people would understand the message. I think, the biggest problem was the nervousness, and because of that I could not get across the message as confident as I wanted it to. However, I think you can get control over it by practicing.
Additional resources
- The Art of Rhetoric by Aristotle.
(n.d.), Rhetoric (Aristotle), [www page], Wikipedia, URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhetoric_(Aristotle)
- Scoot Shimamoto, (1994), Why your business needs a communication strategy, [wwwpage], Los Angeles Business Journal, URL: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m5072/is_n18_v16/ai_15484063
- Martin Roll, (2004), 10 steps for successful corporate branding, [www page], BizCommunity.com, URL:
