1. Post Graduate Diploma in PR & Exhibitions Management
Marketing Public Relations and Audience
Lecture 7
Planning MPR
Developed and Presented by
Roy Ying, Msc., BSG, B.Comm., MHKIoD
Note: Pictures used in this power point file
is for academic Purpose only 1

2. Table of Contents
• Steps in planning MPR
1. Conduct brand survey
2. Set SMART goals
3. Evaluate MPR inventory
4. Implementation of MPR activities
• Measuring MPR
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3. Step 1: Brand Survey
• Conduct a brand survey
– What your customers are saying
– What’s important to them
– What perception people have on your brand
– What they like and dislike
– What key messages you need to address
– What are their behavior
– How do they think of you vs. your competitors
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4. Brand Survey
• Example: Reader’s Digest Trusted Brand
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5. Methodology
• You need a professional partner. RD
picked Synovate. It’s one of the biggest
research firms in the world with 5,900 staff
in 64 countries.
• This is for credibility.
• People tend to trust
professionals.
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6. Methodology
• Identify your target market
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7. Methodology
• Scope:
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8. Methodology
• Structure of questionnaire – It’s about find
out what’s important for your customers.
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9. Methodology
• Ways to reach target audience
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10. Results - Insights
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11. Results - Behavior
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12. Results - Comparison
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13. Results – Priority Agenda
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14. Results – Working Across Region
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15. Results – Punch Line
• This is the selling point
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16. Step 2: SMART Goals
• Identify SMART goals in the
following MPR objectives:
– Credibility
– Trust
– Long term relationship
• Brand survey tells you where you are.
Now you have to think of what’s most
important to your firm and set goals,
preferably quantitatively 16

17. SMART - Credibility
Which of the following factors do you need
to improve?
1. Source credibility
2. Corporate credibility
3. Third party credibility
Where do you want to be in the future?
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18. SMART - Credibility
1. Source credibility: Trustworthiness
– Which source is more credible?
– Even if you are comfortable with your position,
what do you need to do to maintain?
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19. SMART - Credibility
1. Source credibility: Expertise
– Which source is more credible?
– Is there a need for them to improve?
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20. SMART - Credibility
2. Corporate credibility: Celebrity
Endorsement on advertising
– Is the current celebrity bringing you the level
of credibility you want?
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21. SMART - Credibility
2. Corporate credibility: Corporate endorser
on marketing campaign
– Are these clients you are proud of?
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22. SMART - Credibility
3. Third-party credibility: Sponsorship, Awards
and Surveys…Which ones do you want?
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23. SMART - Credibility
• Objectives should be based on the factors
affecting brand credibility
• For example:
– Apple Daily: to be viewed as reliable a news source as
South China Morning Post
– CL: to be the leading financial institution with the
expertise in predicting stock market
– SAP: to service clientele who are among the Fortune
500 companies
– MO: to be the preferred choice of hotel among the rich
and famous
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24. SMART - Trust
Which of the following factors affecting
brand trust do you need to improve?
1. Reputation
2. Competence
3. Predictability
Where do you want to be in the future?
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25. SMART - Trust
2. Competence
• A competent brand is one that has the ability to
crack a customer’s problem and to meet the
need (Butler and Cantrell, 1984; Butler, 1991).
• In MPR, the activities are:
– Use of well-judged opinion leader or expert figure.
– Association of brand with authoritative programs or
schemes
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26. SMART - Trust
1. Reputation
• Consumers assess a brand’s reputation
from past experience of third party’s
trustworthiness, integrity, and honesty.
• What do you think
of ATV’s reputation?
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27. SMART - Trust
1. Reputation: Trustworthiness
• Can you be trusted?
• For these 2 cases, what is your perception?
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28. SMART - Trust
1. Reputation: Trustworthiness
• How you handle crisis will shape people’s
perception on your trustworthiness.
• For these 2 cases, what is your perception?
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29. SMART - Trust
1. Reputation: Integrity
• Are you willing to do go the extra mile to
do the right thing? Or are you just looking
for financial gains?
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30. SMART - Trust
1. Reputation: Honesty
• Are you telling your customers everything?
• Full disclosure is key to honesty.
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31. SMART - Trust
2. Competence: Can you name the brands?
– Do you think these spokespersons help
improve the brand’s level of competence?
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32. SMART - Trust
2. Competence: What impression do you
have on companies carrying logos of
these programs? Do you want them?
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33. SMART - Trust
3. Predictability: Do you trust brand with
longer history?
– Although MPR tools cannot create history, the
objective is to draw comparison with
competitors
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34. SMART - Trust
3. Predictability: Do you trust brand with
performance pledge? What benefit will
they bring?
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35. SMART - Trust
• Objectives should be based on the factors
affecting brand trust
• For example:
– Sausantong: to create word-of-mouth by turning every
client into their spokespersons
– HKU Canteen: to receive honour as a recommended
outlet by Michelin Food Guide
– Citibank: to project the image of a very reliable bank
with a long history
– IKEA: to be viewed as a quality product retailer
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36. SMART – Long Term Relationship
Which of the following factors affecting the
long term relationship between you and your
clients that you need to improve?
1. Competitor activities
2. Responsiveness to client’s needs
3. Level of customer engagement
Where do you want to be in the future?
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37. SMART – Long Term Relationship
1. Competitor
– How do you want your clients to react when
your competitors are offering discounts?
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38. SMART – Long Term Relationship
2. Responsiveness
– What level of customer service do you want to
offer?
• Face to face?
• Online chat?
• Call centre
• Performance pledge?
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39. SMART – Long Term Relationship
3. Customer Engagement
– How much of a voice do you want your
customers in shaping your brand?
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40. SMART – Long Term Relationship
• Or engage people who don’t come to your
store, but rather online…
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41. SMART – Long Term Relationship
• Objectives should be based on the factors
affecting long term relationship
• These are strategic direction that drives
your organization’s relationship with
customers.
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42. Step 3: MPR Inventory
• Before thinking of new initiatives, compile
an inventory of your company’s existing
public relations activities.
– Evaluate how well they are contributing to
your MPR objectives
– Identify areas for improvement
– Propose offerings to fill the gaps
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43. MPR Inventory
Which tools are you already using? Are they
effective? What do you need to improve?
• Advertorials • Surveys and researches
• Contests • Seminars and forums
• Special events • CSR initiatives
• Public service tie-ins • Certifications
• Trade shows and • Grooming of spokesperson
exhibitions
• Social media
• Festivals & parades
• Customer engagement
• Sponsorships
• Press conferences, media
tours & receptions
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44. Example
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45. Example: Colliers
• What more can they do?
She is an analyst for Colliers
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46. Step 4: Implementation
• Implementation planning
– Identify resources based on scale of MPR
activities proposed
– Each proposed MPR activity should include
resources such as:
• Financial
• Top management support
• Manpower talent
• Spokespersons
• Working partners
• Time line
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47. Example: Tennis Classic
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48. Financial
• Profit / Loss Statement
– This will determine whether the MPR activity
is financially viable
• Cash Flow Statement
– This will help you identify the financial risks in
implementing the MPR activity
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49. Profit / Loss Statement
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50. Cash Flow - Revenue
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51. Cash Flow - Expenditure
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52. Top Management Support
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53. Manpower Talent
• Do you have internal resources to put this
activity together? Can you outsource?
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54. Spokespersons
• Everyone has to show up and speak!
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55. Working Partners
• Identify Stakeholders
• Solicit Sponsorship
• Develop Supplier List
• Manage Request For Proposals (RFP)
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56. Time Line
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57. Gantt Chart
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58. MPR Evaluation
• Examples are:
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