Like all functional areas of a company, the Communication Department plays a key role in helping an organization achieve its objectives. Makes an organization understandable; emphasizes their differences; prioritizes messages for your key audiences. Ultimately, Communications works to package and position an organization, to make sure its messages are clear, coherent and consistent, only then can stakeholders provide the most support.

This packaging and positioning is specified in a Strategic Communication Plan. Whether you focus on the organization as a whole or its products or services, it addresses two important areas: Internal Communication and External Communication. Internal communication is concerned with creating and promoting a positive and productive workforce. External communication deals with messages directed to external audiences, with the aim of increasing visibility, improving reputation and influencing perception.

Below is a six-step process for developing such a plan. Every organization, no matter its size, should follow these steps.

1. Understand the challenge.

Don’t guess. It is important to start by taking the time to determine your mission: the real communication concerns and opportunities for improvement. Are stakeholders confused and can communication clear up the mystery? Have internal or external audiences been neglected? Is this the year to raise awareness and increase media relations efforts?

2. Perform a communication audit.

If objective research is not conducted, the plan will not be customer-centric and will tend to be based on past experiences, historical knowledge, or hearsay. Take a look at the communication tools in place and the messages that are being sent. Talk to people inside and outside your organization about their perception of the organization. Consider the competitors. Who does it make sense to emulate?

3. Package and position.

Formalize your messaging. How will you talk about your organization so that your internal and external audiences understand what you are doing? What are the differential advantages that you need to emphasize? Be sure to create official corporate communication tools to ensure consistency, for example a branding document, key messages, and an elevator pitch.

4. Map audiences.

Determine the audiences you need to reach and devise a plan to connect with them. Think about existing communication channels and current messages. Take advantage of what is already in place.

The goal of a Communications Department is not necessarily to create new communication tools or establish new channels, but to make communications more effective.

5. Improvement plan.

Determine how to measure success. What quantitative and qualitative data will show that your communication strategy is on the right track? Make sure you have a consistent and sustainable process to connect with your audiences, measure it, and don’t forget to link your results to the goals of your initial communication plan.

6. Execute the Plan.

Create an implementation plan, work on it, and stick to it! It is as simple and difficult as that.

An important point to remember when developing your plan is that you do not need to focus on all stakeholder groups at once. The best strategy is to target those who will have the most immediate and positive impact on your business, and those who are a specific source of concern.

For example: do your employees have a deep understanding of your mission so they can work productively toward your goal? Do your customers have enough information about your products or services to know when to call? Does your media understand your business enough to use your executives as subject matter experts? Is there a possibility that your business has a negative impact on the community?

The last thing you want to do is develop and commit to a process only to find that it cannot be sustained due to limited company resources.

Clearly, your strategic communication plan will become a useful and powerful tool. You will focus your stakeholders on what is truly important in the eyes of your organization and create reality, simply by putting words on paper and sharing information in a consistent and predictable way. Your plan will be an important catalyst for change, ultimately leading to organizational development, higher productivity, higher employee satisfaction, and better performance.