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The Importance of Communication

So, why is communication important?

First of all it helps to further the strategic objectives of an organization because it is the vehicle used to enlist the support of all the various groups or key publics by ensuring the vision and values of the chief executive and organization are understood. The point of the communication is not just to pass information about the vision, but to gain active pursuit of or at least assent to those objectives (depending on the public). The communication is designed to influence behavior.

Of course, if the organization listens as well as speaks and acts, its communication will have been influenced by research undertaken with those key publics as mentioned earlier, but it will continue to be affected by them as it continue to listen. It is, therefore, more likely to be effective in its communication and action, as it is not likely to say and do things that are opposed by its stakeholders.

Second, it positively fosters relationships with key publics. These publics are ultimately responsible for the destiny of the organization for good or ill. Good communication enhances the opportunities for incremental intelligence providing an 'early warring' system for the organization. In this way it capitalizes on opportunities that are presented by both identifying them early and facilitating the actions that are to capture them (for example if this is a sales opportunity or an opportunity to influence legislation). It also helps minimize the threats by spotting problems or potential conflicts early (for example, identifying increasing employee disquiet,...

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...or discontent with a proposed company action coming from an influential blogger).

Communication Theory

Books have been written on the subject of communication theory. Consequently, we won't attempt to provide an all-encompassing discussion on how people ensure that their massages get through to others. But in its most basic sense, communication commences with a source, which sends a message through a medium to reach a receiver, who, we hope, responds.

One early theory of communication, the two steps flow theory, stated that an organization would beam a message first to the mass media, which would then deliver that message to the great mass of readers, and viewers for their response. This theory may have given the mass media to much credit. People today are influenced by a varity of factors, of which the media may be one but not necessarily the dominant one. Another theory, the concentric-circle theory, by pollster Elmo Roper, assumed that ideas evolve gradually to the public at large, moving in concentric circles from great thinkers to great disciples to great disseminators to lesser disseminators to the politically active to the politically inert. This theory suggests that people pick up and accept ideas from leaders, whose impact on public opinion may be greater than that of the mass media. The overall study of hoe communication is used for direction and control is called cybernetics.

One key element in communication- and particularly in public relations- is feedback. In cybernetics theory, feedback is communication that helps a source control a receiver's behavior. However, just as a thermostat...

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...gives indication as to how to adjust temperature, so, too, feedback doesn't necessarily imply "active communication" from a receiver. By contrast, in a theoretical communications approach called the two-way systematic model, dialogue is key-form both senders and receivers. In this model of public relations communication, both senders and receivers have an equal chance of persuading and being persuaded.

Although there are numerous models of communication, one of the most fundamental is the S-M-R approach. This model suggests that the communication process begins with the source (S), who issues a message (M) to a reservoir (R), who then decides what action to take, if any, relative to the communication. This element of receiver action, or feedback, underscores that good communication always involve dialogue between two or more parties. The S-M-R model has been modified to include additional elements:

1.	An encoding stage, in which the source's original message is translated and conveyed to the receiver.

2.	A decoding stage, in which the receiver interprets the encoded message and takes action.

This evolution from the traditional model has resulted in the S-E-M-D-R method, which illustrate graphically the role of the public relations function in modern communications; both the encoding (E) and the decoding (d) stages are of critical importance in communicating any public relations message. Let's look- in brief- to the five stages (S-E-M-D-R).

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The source (S):

The source of a message is the central person or organization doing the communicating. The source could be a politician giving a campaign speech, a school announcing curriculum changes.

Although the source usually knows how it wants the message to be received, then in no guarantee that it will be understood that way by the receiver. In many cases - a public speech, for example -the speaker is relatively limited in ability to influence the interpretation of the message. Gestures, voice tone can be used to odd special importance to certain remarks, but whether the audience understands what is intended may ultimately depend on other factors, particularly the encoder.

The encoder (E)

What the source want to relate must be translated from an idea in the mind to a communication. In the case of a campaign speech, a politician's original massage may be subject to translation by at least three independent encoders.

1.	The politicization may consult a speech writer to help put ideas into words on paper. Speech writers

become encoders in first attempting to understand the politicization's message clearly and then in

translating that message effectively into language that an audience will understand and, hopefully, accept.

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2.	Once the speech is written, it may be further encoded into a news release. In this situation-perhaps a

different individual from the speech writer- selects what seem to be the most salient points of the speech

and provides them to media editors in fairly brief format.

3.	A news editor may take the news release and retranslate it before reporting it to the voters, the ultimate

audience for the politician's message. Thus, the original message in the mind of the politician has been

messaged three separate times before it ever reaches the intended receiver. Each time, in all likelihood,

the particular encoder has added new subjective shadings to the politician's original message. The very

act of encoding depends largely on the encoder's personal experience.

Words/semantics. Words are our most personal and potent weapons. Words mean different things to different people, depending on their backgrounds, occupations, education, or geographic locations. The study of what words really mean is called semantics, and the science of semantics is a peculiar one indeed.

Words used in the encoding stage have a significant influence on the message conveyed to the ultimate receiver. Thus, the source depends greatly on the ability of the encoder to accurately understand and effectively translate the true message- with all its semantic complications- to the receiver.

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The message (M)

Once the encoder has taken in the source's ideas and translated them into terms a receiver can understand, the ideas are transmitted in the form of a message. The message may be carried in a variety of communications media: speeches, newspapers, news releases, press conferences, broadcast reports, and face-to-face meetings. Communications theorists differ on what exactly constitutes the message, but here are three of the more popular explanations:

1.	The content is the message. According to this theory, which is far and away the most popular, the

content of a communication- what it says- constitutes its message? According to this view, the real

importance of a communication-the message- lies in the meaning of an article or in the intent of a speech.

Neither the medium through which the message is being communicated nor the individual doing the

communicating is as importance as the content.

2.	The medium is the message. Other communications theorists- the late Canadian professor Marshall

McLuhan being the best known- argue that the content of a communication is not the message at all.

According to McLuhan, the content is less important than the vehicle of communication.

McLuhan's argument stemmed largely from the fact that many people today are addicted to television. He

said that television is a "cool" medium -that is, someone can derive meaning from a TV message without

working too hard. On the other hand, reading involves hard work to rasp an idea fully; thus,...

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...newspapers, magazines, and books are "hot" media. Furthermore, he argued, a television viewer can

easily become part of that which is being viewed. This has particular implications as television-and

streaming Internet video for the matter-becomes more and more interactive.

One direct outgrowth of this medium -is-the message theory was development of the friendly team style of

local television news reporting. Often called the eyewitness approach, the format encouraged interaction

among TV newscasters in order to involve viewers as part of the news team family.

3.	The person is the message. Still other theorists argue that it is neither the content nor the medium that is

the message, but rather the speaker. For example, Mustapha Kamil (Egypt), Churchill (UK), and Gandhi

(India) were masters of persuasion. Today, in a similar vein, we often refer to it as a leader's charisma.

Frequently, the charismatic appeal of a leader may be more important than what that individual says.

Often people cannot distinguish between the words and the person who speaks them. The words, the

face, the body, the eyes, the attitude, the timing, the wit, the presence-all form a composite that, as a whole

influences the listener. In such cases, the source of the communication becomes every bit as important as

the message itself.

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The decoder (D)

After a message has been transmitted, it must be decoded by a receiver before action can be taken. This stage is like the encoding stage in that the receiver takes in the message and translates it into his own common terms. Obviously, language again plays a critical role. The decoder must fully understand the message before acting on it; if the message is unclear or the decoder is unsure of its intent, there's probably little chance that the action taken by the receiver will be the action desired by the source. Messages must be understood in common terms.

How a receiver decode a message depends greatly on that person's own perception. How an individual looks at and comprehends a message is a key effective communication. Remember that everyone is biased; no two people perceive a message identically. Personal biases are nurtured by many factors, including stereotypes, symbols, semantics, peer groups pressures, and -especially in today's culture- the media.

It is clear that people often base perception what they read or hear, without bothering to dig further to elicit the facts. Although appearances are sometimes reveling, they are often deceiving.

The receiver (R)

You really aren't communicating unless someone is at the other end to hear and understand what you're saying. This situation is analogous to the old mystery of the falling tree in the forest: Does it make a noise when it...

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...hits the ground if no one there to hear it? Regardless of the answer, communication doesn't take place if a message doesn't reach the intended receivers and exert the desired effect on those receivers.

Even of a communication is understood clearly, there is no guarantee that the motivated action will be the desired one. In fact, a message may trigger several different effects.

1.	It may change attitudes. This result, however, is very difficult to achieve and rarely happens.

2.	It may crystallize attitudes. This outcome is much more common. Often a message will influence

receivers to take action they might already have been thinking about taking but needed an extra push to

accomplish.

3.	It might create a wedge of doubt. Communication can sometimes force receivers to modify their points

of view. A persuasive message can cause receiver to question their original thinking on an issue.

4.	It may be nothing. Often communication results are no action at all.

Feedback is critical to the process of communication. A communicator must get feedback from a receiver to know what messages are or not getting through and how to structure communications. Occasionally, feedback is ignored by professional communicators, but this is always a mistake.

Whether the objectives of a communication have been met can often be assessed by such things as the amount of sales, number of letters, or number of votes obtained. If individuals take no action after receiving...

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...a communication, feedback must still be sought. In certain cases, although receivers have taken no discernible action, they may have understood and even passed on the message to other individuals. This person-to-person relay of received messages creates a two-step flow communications: (1) vertically from a particular source and (2) horizontally from interpersonal contact. The targeting of opinion leaders as primary receivers is based on the hope that they will distribute received messages horizontally within their own communications.

Internet Challenge to Public Relations

Use of the Internet by public relations practitioners inevitably will grow in the future for these reasons in particular.

1.	The demand to be educated versus being sold. Today's consumers are smarter, better educated, and

more media savvy. They know when they are hustled by self-promoters and can artists. So

communications programs must be grounded in education-based information, rather than blatant

promotion. The Internet is perhaps the world's great potential repository of such information.

2.	The need for real-time performance. The world is moving quickly. Everything happens instantaneously,

in real-time as media visionary McLuhan predicted four decades ago, in the twenty-first century the world

has become a "global village," wired for immediate communications. Public relations professionals can

use this to their advantage to structure their information instantly to emerging issues and market change.

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3.	The need for customization. There used to be three primary television networks. Today, there are more

than 500 television channels. Today's consumers expect more focused, targeted, one-on-one

communications relationships. More and more, organizations must broadcast their thoughts to narrower

and narrower population segments. The Internet offers such narrowcasting to reporters, analysts, opinion

leaders, and consumers.

Such is the promise of the Internet to the practice of public relations. Beyond its role as an integral component in the Internet marketing mix, public relations have become prominent in several other cyber areas:

1.	E-mail. It has become the most pervasive internal communication vehicle. In a growing number of

organizations, e-mail, delivered on-line and immediately, has replaced traditional publications and fax

technology as rapid delivery information vehicle. An outgrowth of e-mail-intranets or internal Web sites- are

another growing phenomenon.

2.	Web sites. Another rapidly expanding use of the Internet by public relations professionals is the creation

and maintenance of Web sites to profile companies, promote products, or position ideas. A Website

gives an individual or institution the flexibility and freedom of getting "news out" without having it filtered by

an intermediary. But there are more than one million Web sites sitting there, waiting for visitors. Public

relations agencies have been born that specialize in creating winning Web sites.

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3.	On-line media relations. Beyond the creation Web sites, public relations practitioners are using the

Internet to communicate to the media. An increasing number of journalists use the Web as a primary

source of organizational information. More journalists, too, are communicating with public relations

sources via e-mail. This is especially true in the high-tech reporting area. Finally, the growing number of

on-line spin-offs of major print publications and the development of a growing number of e-zips present a

new, enlarges field of potential publicity play for public relations practitioners.

4.	On-line monitoring. The Web's easy accessibility has also ushered in a whole, new challenge to public

relations professionals to monitor on-line for negative comments and even threats against their

organization. The preponderance of "rogue Web sites" that condemns organizations makes it a necessity

that public relations professionals regularly monitor such Web sites, chat rooms, and discussion groups.

5.	Product promotion. The ability to reach customers and potential customers directly is another benefit

created by the Web. In this area, public relations support integrated marketing efforts on the Web.

6.	Investor's relations. Speaking directly to investors and potential investors is yet another new challenge

to public relations people. The Web allows investors to check the activities of their holdings on a daily

basis, enabling companies to increase their communications efforts relative to their shareholders.

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In a general sense, what television and cable TV were to the advertising industry, the Internet is for public relations. For the first time in communications history, organizations are able to build reputations with the public, investors, consumers, and the media. Unlike the past, they face no "obstruction" from their message being filtered by some third- part intermediary. This is the true challenge of the Internet to public relations.

Intranets, Extranets, and CD-ROMs

Among the growing selection of additional cyberspace communication vehicles, three- Intranets, Extranets, and CD-ROMs- deserve special reference.

1.	Intranets. Is another rapidly expanding phenomenon among large companies. The vast majorities of large

businesses either have developed or will deploy an intranet. What is an intranet?

Generally defined, an intranet is an internal vehicle, which integrates communication with workflow,

process management, infrastructure, and all other aspects of completing a job. Intranets allow

communications, management, and employees to exchange information quickly and effectively, much

more quickly and effectively than any similar vehicle. Intranets, in other words, are internets for specific

organizations, designed to provide necessary proprietary information to improve productivity.

By communicating through their intranet, organizations try to create an "ownership culture" in which all

members share in comprehensive knowledge about the firm. With an intranet, every employee can...

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...learn about company finance, update project schedules, exchange messages on computer bulletin

boards, consult more frequently, and engage in live "chat sessions" for brainstorming and work teams.

2.	Extranets. On the other hand, allow company to use the internet to communicate information to targeted

external groups, such as the media, investors, vendors, and key customers. In segmenting their

information in such a focused fashion- and protecting its dissemination through a complex series of

firewalls- the targeted audience is assured that the date will remain confidential to it alone. Only approved

individuals can access the information by using an assigned ID and password, restricted to extranet users

exclusively.

3.	CD-ROMs (also DVDs). Has become an important tool to public relations work, because it boasts great

storage capacity, capable of holding hundreds of megabytes of information. Public relations professionals

have begun to dispatch CDs and DVDs in place of print handouts and videotapes.