PUBLIC RELATIONS

Rotary SharesJuly 2007

Gretchen Cochran, Rotary District 6360cochranpr@acd.net, district 6360@cablespeed.com

Why share Rotary’s story ?

• Grow membership

• Increase loyalty

• Leverage power– Partnerships– Services– Money

Where to begin ?

• First step: make a p.r. plan

• Base plan on club objectives for year

• Then target activities, based on those objectives

• If you don’t have a website, get one. Print it on everything

Create a p.r. calendar

• Consider most-newsworthy efforts

• Put dates on a calendar

• Consider media news cycle– September school starts, UN International

Literacy Day Sept. 8– Promote Rotary literacy project

What is news?

• Making grants to the community.

• Group study exchange visit– Think in terms of outcomes, benefits:

Hundreds of Dowagiac families will enjoy dining in the park, thanks to a $1,000 Rotary donation for picnic tables.

Target marketing

• Get the right people rather than more people.

• Who do you want to reach?

• How do you reach them?

Calendar entire year

• Budgets manpower, media attention

• Work backwards to plan workload

• Assign tasks– Designate club photographer with a digital

camera

Be redundant

• It takes 7 to 13 impressions to get someone off his or her couch to do something

• People respond differently to different media. Use all forms at once.

Get Help

• Go to rotary.org• Click on Club-District Support• Scroll listing for Effective Public Relations• Check menu bar at left for tools• See right hand box to subscribe to bi-weekly PR

Tips newsletter

• E-mail Gretchen Cochran, cochranpr@acd.net• Check District6360@cablespeed.com for tips

A sample event: LiteracyDo Dah

• Does it meet one of Club’s objectives for year (Increase visibility to increase membership)

• Leverage partnership

• Make a deal with the school administration, include what it will do in return for what you will do

Hosting a press conference

• Commonly forgotten:

• Prepare a press packet• Have Rotary logo prominently displayed• Rotarians identified wearing ID• Designate spokesperson• Create a catchy slogan, e.g. “Readers are

Leaders”