Publicity and how to gain it

[hops_scout]

This thread got thrown off-place with the very first line of the second post:

"Ahh, PR -- the magic bullet."

 

If you'll reread the opening post, it mentions nothing about PR, but about ways of getting publicity and putting Scouting into the public eye.

 

I do not believe that qualifies as PR.

[Bob White]

Hops perhaps we can begin fresh. Could you review your original post and ask a specific question or make a specifc statement that others could build upon?

[eagle90]

Just for the heck of it I called our DE and asked if the district and/or council has the means to publicize an upcoming Pancake Breakfast we are having. His answer was "NO! We do not have the time to publicize things for individual units. That's the unit's job". So much for asking for help from them!

 

[Bob White]

I would not expect him to view an advertisement for a unit fundraiser as publicity.

[eagle90]

Either I am very dense or my brain is shut off over the weekend. What is this discussion about? I am confused. PR, publicity? Whats the difference? Let the council and district do it? Individual units do it?

 

BW - You have said -

 

"Let them know your needs, that is what they are there for"

 

"The district has specific responsibilities to help and support the units, and PR is one of these."

 

"Why would each unit extend energies and resources when it could be done better and more efficiently on a larger scale by the support services of the district/council"

 

Now when I do call them and are turned away, you say that is NOT their job. Which is it? Are you wavering again? Bob, is there ever a case where a unit scouter can do a better job than a district, council, national?

 

 

[Bob White]

Not waivering, defining.

 

You want the District to advertise a fundraising event for your unit. The District's responsibility is to promote scouting. You are looking at what is good for the program through the blinders of "what is good for my unit", the Volunteers and professionals look at "How can we promote and support scouting for the good of all units."

 

Advertising a unit fundraiser is not publicity it is advertising. The District and Councils responsibility is publicity. Keeping the values and positive attributes of scouting in front of the public.

 

Hops thinks scouting doesn't get enough publicity, some, perhaps even many agree with him. Yet even people who have never been scouts say "scouts honor" when making a promise. People throughout the world recognize the scout emblem. People refer to persons who won't break rules as "what are you some kinds Boy Scout?". Ask anyone what characteristics they would expect of someone who was an Eagle scout and they will list a variety of positive characteristics. Ask an employer or a college recruiter if Eagle Scout makes a difference on a resume. Reite the scout promise and ask someone what it is and I'll bet better than 9 out of ten people can tell you.

 

How much better can our publicity be?

 

Do a 'good' Good Turn Project and ask your district if they would want to publicize it and see if you get the same response. If you do your district needs to reconsider how it serves you. But don't cry about the fact that they don't want to help you advertise you wanting others to help you rather than you helping others.

 

There is a difference between advertising and publicity.

 

 

 

[Cubmaster-Fred]

BW,

 

I made the same points before in this thread and you told me that the district and council are there for PR not publicity. Yet you tell eagle90 that if asked the district to publicise a good turn they might give him a different answer.

 

My question to you is what does the district and/or council do PR or publicity?

 

 

[Bob White]

Many will do both, many do both, just stop refer to your fundraiser as public relations or publicity for scouting. It isn't it's advertising for your unit only, and while the district may have a media list for you or a suggestions of things others have done to advertise fundraisers, the District is not there to advertise for your unit only.

 

 

[hops_scout]

I wore my uniform to school the other day. (except the pants b/c I dont own a pair at the current time; I did wear OD so it was similar at least)

 

I did have a few people ask me why I wore it. It was Veterans' Day. 2 other people also wore theirs that day.

 

I had one person ask me if I was in the service as well! I couldnt believe it.

[dsteele]

Congrats Hops! You're the only person who's posted so far that actually furthered the cause of the BSA through positive public relations. At least in my eyes.

 

He did what I meant when I started with "ah, PR the magic bullet." I apologize to Hops. I did not mean to derail your thread. I meant to amplify it.

 

To me the best public relations the BSA can possibly have is the human interaction between known, visible Scouts, and the general public.

 

Case in point -- the reputation the public expects and the actions they expect of an Eagle Scout were NOT built on television commercials, newspaper articles about projects, photos from courts of honor. The reputation expected of an Eagle Scout was built by Eagle Scouts . . . live, human, in person and in action, over the past 90 years.

 

That's public relations. Relations with the public.

 

Just one man's thoughts on a Sunday afternoon.

 

Unc.

[Bob White]

I will not only agree but amplify Unc's opinion. The best contribution to promoting scouting that an individual unit can do, is make every effort to deliver a real Scouting program at the unit level.

 

Forget complaining about the uniform and wear it, motivate others to wear it. Forget about your personal feelings about the handbooks and just use them. Forget about your personal opinion of the Patrol Method and just do follow the program. Go out into the community and show your neighbors Scouting in action. Give kids the positive, educational, fun, experience promised them in the Scout handbook and you will have all the public support you can possible deal with. You do not need articles in the paper or your name in the media to gain publicity. You need a living breathing scouting program in the unit you serve.

 

 

 

[Hunt]

It seems to me that troop-level PR might be useful in recruiting--although I think word-of-mouth recruiting is much more effective. Will the district or council assist in unit recruiting, beyond providing tools?

Also, I think that some PR is beneficial to the troop, because it's a morale-booster. Everybody in my son's troop was proud when they saw an article in the local paper about the latest Eagle's project. I also think it's likely that such articles do in fact contribute to positive feelings about Scouting in many communities. Indeed, those kinds of articles are probably more effective in creating positive feelings than any kind of national PR could be.

Will the district or council publicize Eagle projects and similar unit-level activities?

[Bob White]

I know the council I am in provides mass media publicity throughout the districts each Fall in support of cub recruitment.

[ozemu]

Once I had as part of my paid employment the job of PR for our Army unit.

 

The area we covered was 800km long and covered two major newspaper cahins and a few tv stations. The radio was fairly serpate.

 

I tried to get a good story for each newspaper chainś area each month.

 

I would get photos, learned how to write and layout stories, would ask our formations PR officer for advice, and found out who were the reporters by name and when their deadlines were. I had a few real successes.

 

But in the end all we were doing was to get good PR in before the papers found something not so good to report on. Dampeneing down the fire. I dont think it helped with funds, recruits etc. Other units did that and had very little success.

 

So BW is right that if one exists a PR manager at District would be good and would have a good link with Council PR and higher. The reporters have one person to talk to and not dozens. Makes some sense.

 

However your local aims may be different to District or Council. There is always room for a local PR effort.

 

 

[ozemu]

Another aspect. I spent a lot of time doing flyers, talks, newspaper articles etc to build the Troop. It was a new Troop. I never got a single recruit. Not one. Tried for over a year.

 

But I did build the Cub pack up a bit. And eventually they end up in my Troop. SO the delayed actiuon works okay.

 

Why is it easier to advertise for and get Cub Scouts than it is to get Scouts?