According to Wikipedia, “Communication planning is the art and science of reaching target audiences using marketing communication channels such as advertising, public relations, experiences or direct mail for example. It is concerned with deciding who to target, when, with what message and how.”

OK, so there are some things I like about the definition, but there’s a lot left to wonder about. As I continued to untangle the concept of Communications Planning, an idea hit me. Planning is a simple process and we all do that in our daily lives. We plan our days, vacations, even careers. What constitutes a successful Communication plan?

The challenge is—communicators attend to unrealistic service expectations and accept tangential business partner’s requests all the time. The Communication function is struggling to serve and be recognized as a valuable business partner and demonstrate its impact in achieving organizations’ goals.

Need of the hour – Find Alignment

To maximize Communications’ strategic contribution to the organization, you must align the priorities of the function with organization’s priorities. A communication plan is your best aid to achieve this goal. A well articulated Communication plan helps the team focus on the areas where they can have the most impact.

Many might disagree on the degree of importance of having a Communication plan. Not so long ago, a colleague of mine, Rick DeLisi wrote about a radical idea of No-Plan Planning. Some communicators believe that planning is quickly becoming a thing of the past and with frequently changing environment, you cannot succeed with a fixed plan for an entire year. While I do agree that the time has come for having a super-flexible adaptable strategic plan, going without a plan still seems like a risky ride to me.

Do you have a strategic plan in place? What purpose does it solve? Share your ideas with us—are you thinking about setting up a Communication plan in near future?

Get Started

CEC members, access our Communications Planning topic center will help you to:

• Create a New Plan: develop your plan off corporate strategy and make a plan which is simple and easy to translate into actionable steps.
• Cultivate Alignment with Business Partners: seek partner’s support for plan’s general direction and welcome their participation in the identification of communications support tactics. 
• Implement and Report on the Plan: set up mechanism to ensure that your plan is implemented and is in continuation. Measure communication tactics effectively and drive accountability.

I wish communicators good luck for their plans for H2 and 2012, however always remember planning can ONLY enable, but cannot ensure, better performance.

Related Resources

• Strategy-Centric Communications Planning Process (Royal Bank of Canada)
• Taking Your Communications Planning to the Next Level
• Communications Measurement and Reporting
  

Related Blog Posts

• Communicating Communications’ Value
• Radical New Idea In Comms Planning: DON’T PLAN!
• Cracking the Nut of Business Partner Support