Campaign Plan

Plan Book Check List

1. Cover Page
2. Table of Content
3. Executive Summary
4. Introduction
5. Situation Analysis
o Audits
 Organization Audit
 Communication Audit
 Audience Audit
 Social Responsibility Audit
o Secondary Research on the Situation
 Environment, Industry, or Competitors
o Problem/ Opportunity Statement based on Situation Analysis
6. Research
7. Goal and Objectives
8. Audiences/Publics
9. Strategies and Tactics (include samples)
10. Central Message Theme
11. Communication Channels
12. Schedule/Calendar & Responsibility Chart
13. Budget
14. Evaluation Plan
15. Summary
16. Administration/ Capabilities/ Agency Profile

Appendices: research references, calendars, charts, cost estimates, worksheets, etc.

 Suggested Organization and Components of Plan

1. Cover Page – includes a title (make it appeal to your client), “By” your team (create a professional
PR agency name), “For” the client, date, the names of each group members.
2. Table of Content – outlines the content with page numbers
3. Executive Summary – is usually one page, as the abstract of the whole plan proposal. It captures
the essences of the opportunities and challenges facing your client, and it outlines the key
information in your plan (e.g., identified goals and proposed time frame).
4. Introduction – brief statement describing plan and circumstances bring about creation of plan.
Could include initial, unfocused problem, assignment from management, organizational goal, etc.
5. Situation Analysis – background working toward problem statement. Uses audits and secondary
research to tell only fresh information or information directly pertinent to the plan. May be written
as brief narrative using audit material but not actually trotting through each audit report.
 Audits
(1) Organization Audit – although this audit includes observation about politics, power and
so forth in the organization, in the plan the main focus is on organizational goals and
objectives.
(2) Communication Audit –critical assessment of communication efforts pertinent to the plan.
Not appropriate nor tactful to make wholesale critique of communication programs.
(3) Audience or Publics Audit – this informal, usually secondary fact-gathering is an
essential start to developing plan, but often should be supplemented by formal, primary
research to segment the audience and to test assumptions made about the organization’s
publics.
(4) Social Responsibility Audit – less often pertinent to a plan. It reviews an organization’s
values and actions in social responsibility.
 Secondary Research on the Situation – this entails reading, phone calling to colleagues etc.
to learn more about the situation. It includes getting up to speed about the organization’s
industry.
 Identified Problem/ Opportunity – a brief conclusion on the problem/ opportunity.
6. Research – once the situation and problem are better focused, one would have some more
questions or assumptions that need testing. The purpose of the research is to find out the answers.
 Secondary Research – use library research and professional data to get information about the
problem/opportunity/goals/audiences.
 Primary Research –conduct research to confirm or revise problem. Findings should lead to
more sophisticated strategies and tactics. Select research methods based on research needs:
 o Qualitative/Informal Research Tools: interview, focus group, field observation, etc.
o Quantitative/Formal Research Tools: survey (telephone, mail, web, and mall intercept), etc.
7. Goal Statement(s) and Objectives– the situation analysis and research should result in a focused
idea of the whole point of the campaign. Goals statements can be relatively general, describing the
desired outcomes, while objective statements should be specific, measurable, and time-bound.
There can be (1) output objectives and (2) impact objectives. Output objectives are products that
you promise to create or deliver, while impact objectives are influences that you hope your
campaign can cast on people, such as awareness, knowledge, attitude or behavior.
8. Audiences/Publics – Explicit description of target audiences either as a result of situational
analysis, or a result of your primary research. You can describe audiences with demographic and
psychographic information.
9. Strategies and Tactics – These can be nested in any number of ways along with goals and
objectives. Mainly remember that strategies offer rationale and should reflect sophistication
derived from audits and research. Tactics, or Communication Tactics, are more specific actions,
serving to display your attention to detail. Your are encouraged to develop tactical packages the
reflect creative problem-solving skills and abilities to integrate different tactics in advertising,
public relations, interactive, direct marketing and sales promotion. Also be sure to discuss (media/
non-media) vehicles as part of your tactics.
After suggesting a communication tool, we usually would develop some samples to illustrate
to our client. For example, if you suggest a special event, you would present a sample program of
how it would run. If you suggest a print ad, you would present a mock ad. If you suggest a news
release, you would write a sample release.
10. Central Message Theme – Can be a slogan, a logo, or a set of key messages. The principle behind
this is the value and effectiveness of a focused, consistent message. Good message themes are
generally simple, creative right to the point, and easy to remember.
11. Communication Channels –This section can be slight repetition but further elaboration of your
communication tactics.
o Advertising Media Plan
o Media Contact List
o Direct Mail/ Email Plan
o Special Events
o Other Promotion Plan
12. Calendar and Responsibility Chart – Calendar, or Schedule, is the proposed timetable and can
be developed based on the proposed tactics. This is usually an impressive visual prop for your plan
and presentation of it. Takes many forms from Gantt Chart, to Calendar, to list. Responsibility
 Chart is about staffing or assignment of responsibilities: which will be done by employees of the
agency and which will be done by employees of the client.
13. Budget – While the budget for the campaign is determined by the client, your job is to propose
how to allocate percentages of the budget to various proposed activities. Detail is essential. Make
use of subtotals to enable review of components of the plan.
You also need to be able to justify your choices. Programmed decision making may be
necessary, and note that certain components may be out or scaled back. Always include a budget
rationale or a brief argument for the need to spend what you propose to spend with a cost-benefit
analysis where possible.
14. Evaluation – This is a description of the steps you will take to evaluate your proposed campaign.
In a preliminary proposal, this section is written in future tense and describes how planners intend
to evaluate the success of the campaign, including the criteria and the research methods. Usually
your evaluation criteria are based on your objectives, so if objectives are well-written, this section
should be fairly easy to write. Also, if earlier research established a baseline, you make a stronger
case for solid evaluation.
15. Summary – Final sales pitch. Should highlight strengths of the plan, stressing research, key
strategies, cost-benefit and such. End with strong pitch for impact of plan on organizational goals.
16. Administration/ Capabilities/ Agency Profile – The administration or capability of your agency.
You may put your own bio as your agency profile here.

Appendices –supporting materials such as rough-out of concepts, materials from secondary research,
details of primary research, record of client interaction, updated media list, agency profiles, etc.