Whenever I get award entries (or PR proposals for that matter) to review, I am always struck at how much confusion there is between what constitutes a strategy versus a tactic.
Generally what I will find is that the strategies and tactics are mixed together in some sort of strange PR stew that is like covering seasoned beef with strawberry jam. Both are tasty on their own, but together they just don’t quite work.
This confusion becomes more evident on entry forms that ask for deeper details. If all the competition is asking for is some company details and 300-word description of why whatever you did is award-worthy you don’t have to spend a lot of time separating strategy and tactics.
If, however, the entry form asks for 500 words on strategies around the objectives, then another 500 words on the tactics/execution you used to achieve the objectives, well, you’re going to need to understand the difference. Or find someone who does. Or hope the judges don’t understand it any better than you do.
Basically, the strategy is the overall plan of action – the big picture of what you intend to do. The tactics are the actions you take to get it done.
In baseball, for example, the strategy in a close game might be to advance a runner on first into scoring position (i.e., second or third base for those not familiar with baseball lingo). Doing so will give you a heightened opportunity to add a run to your total (at least in theory; SABRmetrics has shattered a lot of those beliefs in recent years).
HOW you advance that runner is where the tactics come in. You could lay down a sacrifice bunt. You could have the hitter try to bunt for a hit. You could do a hit-and-run, where the runner on first takes off for second and the hitter tries to hit the ball behind him to the right side. You could have the runner on first steal second while the hitter covers him with a swing and miss.
All of those are valid tactics or ways of getting the runner to second. Which you use depends on your personnel and a whole bunch of other factors.
Now let’s talk about PR award entries and why it seems so difficult to tell the two apart. Let’s say one objective of the program is:
“Company A was losing sales to larger competitors, so it needed to create a larger-than-life image to overcome this hurdle.”
How did they plan to do that? The strategy was to use PR to increase its visibility in the marketplace without the huge investment advertising would require. But here’s where it starts to go wrong.
The next sentence in the “strategy” section will talk about how Company A started issuing press releases and thought leadership pieces on a regular basis.
No, those are tactics. They required specific actions from Company A or its agency. The same is true with launching a media relations or analyst relations program. Those, again, are actions the company took.
Again, strategy defines what needs to be done on a broad scale – in other words a business issue. Tactics describe the steps you will take/are taking/have taken to accomplish the strategy.
Here are a few more quick examples that will help stratify the three areas – goals/objectives, strategy and tactics – in your award entries and other materials:
Goals/Objectives
Increase share of voice
Improve company reputation
Establish new market
Attract funding
Position for sale
Strategies
Create a thought leadership program
Engage subject matter experts (SMEs) in developing content
Improve understanding of what media outlets clients/prospects rely on
Gain a better understanding of what product features/benefits are important to customers/prospects
Make messaging more concise/easier to understand
Tactics
Issue X number of press releases for the year
Write byline articles on these specific topics
Develop a media list
Media-train SMEs and other company spokespeople
Apply for awards/speaker opportunities
The beauty of understanding the differences is that award entries then practically write themselves. They tell the story of how you started broadly, then worked your way through the process to achieve the results.
Taking that little bit of extra time to think through what is a strategy versus a tactic isn’t always easy. But it’s worth the effort – especially when you receive that happy notification that you’ve won the award you were targeting.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., June 30, 2020 – Amendola Communications, a nationally recognized, award-winning healthcare and health IT public relations and marketing agency, has promoted Philip Anast to the position of General Manager, the agency announced today. Anast is a PR agency veteran with more than two decades of experience in account leadership and executive roles at B2B, healthcare/health IT and technology agencies. In alignment with Amendola’s policy to promote from within, Anast previously served as a Senior Account Director at Amendola, providing strategy and oversight for numerous client accounts over the past three years.
As General Manager, Anast is taking on a number of leadership roles. On a daily basis, he handles employee and client relations, and is managing agency-wide best practices. He also manages major agency projects and evaluates and implements new products and services that expand the agency’s digital marketing, social media and analytics capabilities.
“Philip has built an impressive career at PR agencies of all sizes and is ideally suited for the role of Amendola’s General Manager,” said Jodi Amendola, founder and CEO of Amendola Communications. He is objective, solutions-oriented, and cares about agency employees and clients. Philip is not only an exceptional account director, he also brings to the table strong managerial experience.”
In addition to his General Manager role, Anast serves as strategist for a number of accounts.
Anast has served in senior positions in large and small agencies over the years. Prior to joining Amendola, Anast was Vice President at Chicago-based PR firm Tech Image. During his 15-year tenure there, Anast was instrumental in managing client programs, providing strategic counsel, pitching new business, growing client relationships, teaching best practices and managing finances.
During his prolific career, Anast has provided public relations expertise to clients such as HP, Language Analysis Systems, Motorola, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Kaufman Hall, Vocera (VCRA), Capsule Technologies, Lightbeam Health and others.
“I’m pleased to step into the role of General Manager at Amendola. I see Amendola growing on multiple levels, including our client portfolio, service offerings and account director and support teams,” Anast said. “My chief goal for the new role is to set us up for success as we expand our footprint in public relations, digital and content marketing, and social media.”
About Amendola Communications Amendola is an award-winning, national public relations, marketing communications, social media and content marketing firm. Named one of the best information technology (IT) PR firms in the nation four times by PRSourceCode, Amendola represents some of the best-known established brands and groundbreaking startups in the healthcare and HIT industries. Amendola’s seasoned team of PR and marketing pros delivers strategic guidance and effective solutions to help organizations boost their reputation and drive market share. For more information about the PR industry’s “A-Team”, visit www.acmarketingpr.com, and follow Amendola on Twitter and LinkedIn.
Media Contact: Marcia G. Rhodes Amendola Communications 480.664.8412 ext. 15 mrhodes@acmarketingpr.com
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. June 4, 2020 Amendola Communications announced today that it has won two 2020 Bulldog PR Awards, solidifying the company’s reputation as a top public relations (PR) and marketing communications agency for healthcare and health IT. The Bulldog PR Awards, which celebrate the best and brightest corporate communications and PR efforts, honored Amendola with a Gold award for a Crisis Communication campaign for its client Air Methods and a Silver award for a Business-to-Business (B2B) Product Launch campaign for long-time client Vocera Communications.
“We are proud to be recognized for the hard work that our team put into executing both metrics-driven campaigns,” said Jodi Amendola, CEO
of Amendola. “From September 1, 2018 to July 30, 2019, Air Methods saw their positive PR coverage double from 28% to 45%. The success of the Vocera campaign in generating both traditional and new media hits will serve as a blueprint for future product introductions.”
AIR METHODS
“Amendola Helps Air Methods’ Reputation Take Flight” campaign took Gold in the Best Crisis Management category. Emergency air medical transport service Air Methods called upon Amendola after facing ongoing negative coverage about their pricing model which had been misrepresented by former patients in the media. Amendola took innovative steps through social media outreach, proactive storytelling, localized base engagements, and digital media to change the public perception of Air Methods and the quality of media coverage about the company.
Amendola created an all-encompassing, 40-page, multi-pronged crisis communications playbook to anticipate and help address a myriad of potential challenges. Additionally, the agency crafted a proactive storytelling pipeline that included information about Air Methods’ business goals to curb balance bills, showcased positive patient stories and highlighted the innovative clinical processes that Air Methods created that were impacting the industry. With the proactive storytelling, a large element of the strategy was to implement Air Methods’ first-ever integrated marketing campaign to leverage more channels than ever before to ensure all stakeholders received the message.
By placing a human face on the company Air Methods has been able to use their visibility as an industry leader to encourage other changes to industry practices. For example, it eliminated “memberships” that offered little value if patients were transported by a different company and is now pushing the industry as a whole to do the same.
VOCERA COMMUNICATIONS
“Vocera Calls on Amendola to Introduce Smartbadge Wearable Communications Device” campaign took Silver in the Best B2B Product Launch category. Vocera Communications, whose mission is to simplify and improve the lives of healthcare professionals and patients, while enabling hospitals to enhance quality of care and operation efficiency, launched a voice-activated communications badge, the Smartbadge. A new category of wearable communication devices, the “Smartbadge” enables clinicians to communicate using all the options available in the expanded Vocera Platform voice calling, messaging, clinical alerts/alarms and more.
With intentions of making a splash from the start, Vocera turned to Amendola to develop an integrated PR/marketing strategy that encompassed generating quick visibility during the introductory period (January-February) while also being sustainable throughout 2019. To seed early coverage, Amendola pre-pitched a press release to healthcare and national media journalists, including broadcast media and podcasts. Furthermore, the
plan called for the creation of various writing pieces as it relates to communication in healthcare, aggressive content marketing efforts for infographics, and the submission of Vocera executives for a broad range of speaking opportunities.
The initiative resulted in 29 high value, single-focus features or interviews, four byline placements, three confirmed speaker opportunities, and a prestigious MedTech Breakthrough Award. Additionally, the campaign significantly impacted its Twitter presence resulting in 173% rise in @mentions received, 145% rise in new followers, 312% increase in retweets, 429% increase in click-throughs, and nearly 50% rise in impressions to 12,200.
About Amendola
Amendola is an award-winning national public relations, marketing communications, digital and content marketing firm. Named one of the best information technology (IT) PR firms in the nation four times by PRSourceCode, Amendola represents some of the best-known brands and groundbreaking startups in the healthcare and HIT industries. Amendola’s seasoned team of PR and marketing pros delivers strategic guidance and effective solutions to help organizations boost their reputation and drive market share. For more information about the PR industry’s “A Team,” visit”http://acmarketingpr.adesignfoundation.com, and follow Amendola on Twitter and LinkedIn.
Amendola Communications CEO recognized in the “Leader” category for her outstanding achievements in building a high-performing PR and marketing agency
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., May 19, 2020 Ragan Communications confirmed what most healthcare and health IT companies (and her employees) already know when it recognized Jodi Amendola in the “Leaders” category in its inaugural “Top Women in Communications” Awards.
Ms. Amendola was honored for her achievements in leading Amendola Communications to become an award-winning, “go-to” agency for PR and marketing within the healthcare and health IT industries. The agency has consistently developed award-winning campaigns and programs for start-ups, mid-tier and large industry organizations, and has helped take multiple clients to initial public offerings, merger and acquisition or other positive financial outcomes.
“I am thrilled to receive this recognition from Ragan, but none of it would be possible without our great clients and the outstanding team we have built,” said Amendola, who is CEO of her eponymous agency. “When I first started Amendola Communications there were just three of us working out of a spare bedroom. It was hard to imagine then that one day we would have 25 brilliant PR and marketing professionals spread across every
region of the country and more than 40 of the top healthcare and health IT companies on our client roster. It’s been an incredible journey so far, and the best is yet to come. I am grateful and humbled to receive this award, and to stand with so many other tremendous women leaders.”
Ragan’s Top Women in Communications Awards are presented annually to women who are making a significant impact in their day-to-day job and career, advancing the profession while accelerating growth for their organizations. A Top Woman in Communication inspires she is fearless and an indefatigable player in the game. To qualify in the Leader category, the nominee must lead with conviction and empathy, and have a team that looks up to her.
Amendola Communications has been on a hot streak this awards season. The agency recently had three client campaigns earn recognition in the 2019 MarCom Awards, and won “Campaign of the Year” for its work with client Health Catalyst in the Business Intelligence Group 2019 Public Relations and Marketing Excellence
Awards.
About Amendola Amendola is an award-winning national public relations, marketing communications, digital and content marketing firm. Named one of the best information technology (IT) PR firms in the nation four times by PRSourceCode, Amendola represents some of the best-known brands and groundbreaking startups in the healthcare and HIT industries. Amendola’s seasoned team of PR and marketing pros delivers strategic guidance and effective solutions to help organizations boost their reputation and drive market share. For more information about the PR industry’s “A Team,” visit acmarketingpr.com and follow Amendola on Twitter and LinkedIn.
Media Contact:
Marcia Rhodes, Amendola Communications, mrhodes@acmarketingpr.com
Healthcare PR and marketing agency offers guidance on getting your message out to a significantly reduced pool of reporters
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., May 5, 2020 The global COVID-19 pandemic continues to dominate almost the entire news cycle. And with good cause, given its devastating impact on every aspect of our lives. Still, it poses challenges to break through, compounded by mass furloughs in the media of reporters, producers and other staff. That makes it harder to get messages out about any topic, especially those unrelated to COVID-19.
To navigate this difficult news environment, Amendola Communications, a national public relations, marketing and social media agency, offers several key suggestions. The agency has successfully used a number of strategies to secure placements for clients in outlets that include the Boston Globe, Business Insider, Computerworld, ABC News–Dallas, CBS News-Chicago, Forbes, US News & World Report, Wall Street Journal, Yahoo! News, Fierce Healthcare, Healthcare IT News, HealthLeaders, MedPage Today, STAT, and dozens of other national and trade media outlets.
“Pitch feel-good news. People need to hear goodwill stories now more than ever,” said Jodi Amendola, CEO of Amendola. “Pitch stories that educate and spark thinking. Be a true thought leader. What sorts of things will people want or need in the post-COVID-19 world to get back to normal. Start priming the pump with such stories now.”
Looking for additional guidance? The Amendola blog is one of the industry’s most comprehensive collections of advice on all things PR and marketing. Subscribe to the blog today.
About Amendola Amendola is an award-winning national public relations, marketing communications, social media and content marketing firm. Named one of the best information technology (IT) PR firms in the nation four times by PRSourceCode, Amendola represents some of the best-known brands and groundbreaking startups in the healthcare and HIT industries. Amendola’s seasoned team of PR and marketing pros delivers strategic guidance and effective solutions to help organizations boost their reputation and drive market share. For more information about the PR industry’s “A
Team,” visit www.acmarketingpr.com, and follow Amendola on Twitter and LinkedIn.
