Don't want to fail spectacularly? Research and evaluate!

This post reflects on readings for week 8.

Sponsorships and special events are mentioned as a high-profile aspect of public relations that focuses public attention on a place or issue intensely over the period of time it takes place. This can be a double-edged sword; the event can be a spectacular success, or an equally spectacular failure. To prevent catastrophy, proper research into stakeholder expectations and evaluation of previous efforts and outcomes of similar recent events should be conducted to ensure that any planned special event stays special.

The Living Heroes VP60 shows clearly how research into input, output and outcomes played a significant role in not only meeting public expectations of a good and fun event, but also in keeping activities relevant not only to veterans who fought in a war that took place more than half a century ago but also the general public who were not old enough to have experienced the war.

Another point I found interesting was that the Taronga Zoo case study illustrates how corporate social responsibility can have a tangible benefit for the organization. In exchange for corporate sponsorship, Taronga Zoo provides zoo membership and special zoo events to organizations, who then pass this on to top-level staff in the form of incentive or salary packages. This can be a crucial differentiating point when fighting to hire top talent in a crowded corporate world.