In our line of work, there are two questions we hear more than any others: What is strategic engagement, and is it the same as public relations? If you’re here, you probably have these questions too. Many people aren’t as familiar with the idea of strategic engagement as they are with public relations (PR).
While strategic engagement usually falls under the PR umbrella, it can serve distinct functions at times. The goals, tactics, measurements, and approach are different from traditional PR. Knowing the differences can help you decide which type of firm to hire.
What Is Strategic Engagement?
Strategic engagement is an approach to brand communications and event planning. It aims to inspire key opinion leaders to action by connecting them with the brand and its representatives.
Think of this approach like the 80/20 rule: a small number of people tend to have most of the impact on consumer behavior. With strategic engagement, you identify the most helpful 20% (or 2%, or 0.02%, or just ten people) and focus your efforts there.
Strategic engagement firms figure out how to use moments and policy priorities to forge meaningful connections with influential audiences. They maximize events to bring the right people together, building relationships that last.
Public Relations vs. Strategic Engagement
Focus
Traditional PR focuses on building, maintaining, and repairing a brand’s positive image. It’s a PR firm’s job to find a positive way to spin negative situations and to get the general population to recognize the brand’s accomplishments.
Strategic engagement can also help with brand reputation management. The difference is that it usually focuses on a select group of people who can lead others to change. A strategic engagement firm aims to get people to take action in ways that build the brand’s positive image.
You can think of PR as scattering a lot of seeds in a large field, knowing that some will probably grow. Strategic engagement plants a smaller number of seeds, but it ensures that they’re seeds for fruit trees that can grow well in your climate and that they’re planted under the right growing conditions.
Strategy and Tactics
PR typically includes crisis management and communications to the general public. Most public relations firms work to build strong relationships with the press, using the resulting press coverage to reach as many people as possible. They may also try to build relationships directly between your brand and current or potential customers. However, these relationships are usually distant and somewhat one-sided.
PR has a very broad scope. If you work with a public relations firm, you can expect help with some combination of:
- Crisis communications
- Press releases
- Press conferences
- Social media management
- Other efforts to boost public perception of your company.
That said, most PR firms do not produce events at the same scale as strategic engagement firms.
Strategic engagement involves building relationships between your brand representatives and the people who can effect the most change. Key opinion leaders tend to feel more invested in brands related to other people they’ve connected with, so these relationships can have an outsized impact.
In strategic engagement, firms are more likely to use highly targeted events and campaigns rather than general press communications. Their work often includes:
- Full-service event planning and execution
- Narrative development
- Social and earned media strategies
- Efforts to identify relevant influencers and stakeholders
Strategic engagement firms determine the brand reputation management strategies that will make the most difference and then focus their efforts there.
Measurement
Public relations are hard to measure. Firms can track statistics like media coverage, social media engagement, or brand awareness based on large surveys. At the end of the day, though, you can rarely measure the full effect of a PR campaign.
Strategic engagement is a little more immediate and tangible. You can measure the results of your efforts by asking a simple question: Are the right people in the room? If your brand leaders have meaningful interactions with people at an event, they will likely feel some of the impact right away.
Integration
Both PR and strategic engagement can involve events, digital strategies, and traditional communications. PR firms typically take a siloed approach to these three verticals, though. Their communications tend to be one-way, and they’re often separate from each other.
Strategic engagement firms take a more holistic approach. They create integrated strategies that allow events, digital strategies, and communications to build on each other. All of these verticals work together to motivate your audience and stakeholders into action.
Strategic engagement firms also tend to be more hands-on. They guide you from the initial strategy stages to the details of event planning and implementation.
Does Your Brand Need PR or Strategic Engagement?
If your company is dealing with a scandal or struggling with public perception, you likely need a public relations firm’s help. A PR specialist who focuses on crisis management will be the best choice for this situation.
On the other hand, strategic engagement often sets the stage for growth. If you’re looking for hands-on help with reaching influential stakeholders to grow your brand faster, strategic engagement will likely make the most impact. Strategic engagement recognizes that change comes from people and sets the stage to encourage them to take action.
At Immersive Strategies, we are a strategic engagement firm that has worked with brands ranging from “Big Five” tech companies and major sports organizations to small startups and non-profits. We know how to plan events and campaigns that help you connect with your ideal audience. Our expert team can help you with:
- Planning impactful events and experiences
- Identifying your target audiences
- Creating a narrative and telling it through targeted platforms
- Building relationships to reinforce your campaign’s credibility
- Communicating in a way that resonates with your audience’s current situation and leads to positive results
Reach out to us today to see how you can connect with the right audiences for your brand’s goals.
