Don’t stop talking
We’ve known for a while that things were going to change. We’ve now had the CSR and pictures are gradually emerging as to what this might eventually mean.
Without going into the wrongs and rights of what’s happening we can safely assume that cuts in the public sector spending are inevitable and significant.
There are many areas in which savings have been identified and much has been made in the build up of the need to reduce spending on publicly funded marketing and advertising campaigns, along with so-called spin doctors.
In a climate of austerity it’s reasonable to expect that all areas will be under scrutiny and sacrifices will have to be made - there’s no reason why communications should be any different.
But, and this is a big but, just as much has been made of the need to protect frontline services, there is also a need to ensure that effective communications remains at the heart of the delivery of public services. Properly understood it is a frontline service in itself.
When change occurs expectations need to be managed. People need to understand what’s changing, why and what impact it will have on them. Across the country departments, organisations and individuals are making difficult decisions. But, political equity to one side, the real difficulties come not in the decision but in the way they affect the millions of people in the UK.
The fundamental importance of communications applies to both the big picture strategy and what it means for our society and economy but equally, it concerns the practical changes that occur on an individual and very personal level.
The danger is that if communications is wrongly blanket targeted as an easy win, the whole process of building any level of understanding and support among the public will quickly vanish.
That’s not to say we need massive advertising campaigns to explain change and it’s not to say that marketing should be prioritised above frontline services. But it is to say that the principles of effective communications must remain at the heart of the Government and public sector agenda.
There are many ways to engage in conversations and build dialogue. We’ve seen a growth in Government use of online communications in recent years. Good communications doesn’t have to cost the earth, but it does have to be well considered and planned.
There are countless examples of the ways in which effective communications can not only manage expectations but actually increase perceptions of quality when it comes to evaluating a service.
That’s why, at a time when services are undergoing unprecedented periods of change, communications has to be at the top of the agenda and why it can’t be viewed as a luxury.
Talking at us won’t work, talking with us could.
And silence could be very costly.