Paying Attention to Details

I do not know who first came up with the phrase, "success is in the details." Whoever did and whatever the circumstances that inspired them to articulate it, this observation is applicable to so many aspects of life. One so-called aspect, of course, is communication. Public relations practitioners and other professional communicators need to be very sensitive to details because the success of their efforts is determined by how thorough they are in identifying as many details as possible in a communication plan and then how closely they are able to address those same fine points in actually carrying out the plan.

One example of this is in crisis communication. (This is something I discussed recently with one of my public relations classes. The discussion revolved around a scenario involving a fire in one of the residence halls at a university. It begins with the public relations director receiving a call at 2:30 in the morning that there is a major fire on campus.) As the institution's top communicator is driving into campus, what is on their to-do list in terms of dealing with this crisis from a communication perspective? How extensive this list is will in all likelihood determine how well they are able to meet their responsibilities during such a stressful time.

The details range from collecting information about the fire, including its causes and the extent of its damage, and the welfare of the students in the residence hall to contending with the media and ensuring timely and accurate information is made available to all pertinent publics. None of these steps are small and each one involves a number of specific tactics  One overlooked detail and/or one detail addressed poorly can result in a great deal of harm to the communicator's university as well as to those affected by the fire. For professional communicators, success or effectiveness is tied directly to their respect for and adherence to details.