Internal Communication

With an ever changing face on business, internal communication is becoming more important than ever before. Employees need to feel they are part of the bigger picture. They need to believe that they are valued and appreciated within the company. Executives also need to find the most appropriate means of communicating with their employees. This can be very challenging depending on the type and size of the company. Many outlets of communication can be available from visual postings to company intranet to corporate newsletters. The main challenge is to determine the course of communication that will be most effective in reaching all employees.

When I worked for Wal-Mart, they took many avenues to keep open communication. At the beginning of each shift, a shift meeting was held to inform all employees at the beginning of their shift of the previous days sales, profits, and any company news for the day. This method was effective in reaching all employees within the store. As an employee of Sheetz, we held monthly meetings that were mandatory to all employees. In addition, to allow for company bonding, they held annual picnics for all employees and their families to help ensure that all employees felt appreciated and gave them a sense of importance within the company. These picnics were attended by the owners of the company who made a point of socializing and listening to employee concerns.

A common pitfall to avoid is a form of communication that would only attract those with high opinions. Many methods, such as ratemyprofessor.com attracts only those with very high opinions and very low opinions of the professors. An executive needs to make sure that lines of communication is open to all employees equally.

Here is a link to an article that discusses different methods of internal communication and the reasons why they work.

MEDIA RELATIONS

Media Relations is the act of involvement with various media for the purpose of informing the public of an organization’s mission, policies and practices in a positive, consistent and credible manner. Typically, media relations involve coordinating directly with the people responsible for producing the news and features in the mass media. The goal of media relations is to maximize positive coverage in the mass media without paying for it directly through advertising.

I think its the best way to come-up with some special cause and come into the eyes of the world, for example in INDIA people are very crazy about CRICKET game, so it usually happens that some organizations like (DLF) usually come up with a cause and organize a cricket match so that they be good in the eyes of media and get more advertisement.

Other Real world example would be during the time of financial crisis '09 banks had to win the confidence of the customers to be in business for example Citigroup or Bank of America, released a large campaign for its business. Furthermore, some video examples of smaller financial institutions can be seen with advertizing measures. The banks use all kinds of media, for example newspaper, billboards, television etc. Especially in interviews, banks have the chance to give an awesome statement about the capability and the security for their customers.

Also from my perception this kind of advertising is becoming too much attractive these days not because of ease in selling there products but also making their audience aware about the social causes which every organization should get into.

Here's a link of the video i found in youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSUvYvgTBZQ