Strategic communications

Why a good communication strategy is vital

An effective communication strategy drives and manages an organisation’s internal and external flow of information. It makes sure the right content gets to the right people at the right time via the right channels. Ultimately, it protects and strengthens the trust that audiences have in an organisation’s brand and reputation.

Without it, an organisation risks broadcasting inconsistent and unclear content. This will confuse its audience and weaken its reputation, and the organisation will fail to fulfil its brief to serve the public.

We have a long track record in creating effective communication strategies for the government and the public sector, and helping teams implement them successfully. We have also created a unique and powerful strategy tool—Direct-to-Citizen Communication Engagement framework. This allows us to fulfil our mission to help the government and public sector strengthen communities and improve the wellbeing of citizens through effective content communication.

Our approach

We take a holistic and value-for-money approach to help government and public sector communication teams create efficient and effective strategic communications.

This applies to all good communications management, whether we are creating a new communication strategy or advising on and improving an existing one.

We research before we write, which invariably saves time and money later. We find out exactly what an organisation is trying to communicate and who its audiences really are. We look for facts and not assumptions; evidence not guesses.

We get the communication mix right by carefully choosing from a wide variety of communication tools—from vision/mission statements to social media posts and the latest digital transformation and change management techniques.

Our approach is enabled by our Direct-to-Citizen Communication Engagement Framework, a best-practice, evidence-based business model that gives staff a workable, accountable and consistent way of planning, creating, distributing and evaluating content.

Our process

We follow a proven, logical, step-by-step process for helping government and the public sector create efficient and effective strategic communication. We work hand-in-hand with the client, based on a client-approved scope, risk register and project plan.

We first help to perform a communication audit to fully understand the current state of the client’s communication strategy and plan, and how aligned they are with the organisation’s overall purpose, or mission.

We clarify (among other things):

who audiences and stakeholders really are, what they really need to know, how they best consume information and what they expect of the organisation
which elements of the current communication strategy and plan are helping to meet communications objectives and which are not.

The audit acts as a baseline from which we can write the most tailored and fit-for-purpose communication strategy and plan, based on the client’s actual rather than perceived needs.

Our unique Direct-to-Citizen Communication Engagement framework

Our unique Direct-To-Citizen Communication Engagement (D2CCE) framework is a best-practice, evidence-based business model for government and public sector organisations.

In the short term, it gives staff a workable, accountable and consistent way of planning, creating, distributing and evaluating content, especially as they undergo digital transformation.

Longer-term, the framework will embed a more effective and efficient communication culture within organisations. This will help them to build internal and external communication capability and deliver more measurable, consistent and impactful content.

We developed the framework in partnership with the Australian National University, adopting best practices and guidelines in areas such as strategic planning, government communication, project management, risk management and public relations. This included guidance from the Australian Government’s Digital Transformation Agency.