PBL 6: What does a communication plan involve?

Definition of communication plan by business dictionary:

Step by step process to ensure that the intended message is received, understood, and acted upon by the recipient. It involves: determining the objectives, choosing the audience, and selecting appropriate channels to reach them.

Different communication models

According to wisegeek.com, there are typically three different kinds of communication plans 1.  Internal business communication plan - Only for stakeholders inside the company, like owners, managers and employees. Different communication methods in this plane could be telephone, email, conferences and face-to-face meetings. Might contain sensitive information. 2. External business communication plan -Opposite of internal, used by external stakeholders who need information. 3. Crisis communication plan -Only used when a crisis occurs to inform stakeholders about the crisis, how the company is going to handle it, and maintain normal business operations.

Trends in communication

Business communication follows normal communication trends, such as social media and instant messaging, but on top of that it also has its own trends. Some of the trends mentioned online are:

• BYOD (Bring Your Own Device)
• Many people work and need to access company information remotely, so communication should be seamless with all devices, such as smart phone, tablet, computer.
• JOC (Join Our Cloud)
• Follows BYOD, as companies are not device centric, they focus on improving their platforms.
• Transition from print do digital
• Videos in internal communication
• Can be watched when ever. Many companies taking a YouTube kind of approach with a video library with the possibility to comment, tag, share and upload.

How to measure success of communication plan

How to evaluate a communication plan:

• Transmission
• Was the information received by the right party?
• verifying that the message was received.
• Understanding
• Was it interpreted the way the sender wanted?
• Avoid "broken phone" or "grape vine" effect
• Satisfaction
• Where the receivers/customers satisfied?
• Timing, mode of communication

Some experts also say that communication should be 

• Minimalist (As short as possible without losing important things)
• Automated if possible (Easier to monitor and share)
• Local (meet the needs of specific target audience)

Sources:

http://www.isae.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Crisis-Communications-795x1024.jpg?821bdd

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-the-different-types-of-business-communication-plans.htm

http://www.newsweaver.com/5-internal-communication-trends-watch-2015/#.VQiKsmSUeso

http://www.itbusinessedge.com/slideshows/top-five-business-communications-trends-for-2014-03.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/communications-planning.html#ixzz3Ug3AEVZE

http://www.commpro.biz/marketing/integrated-marketing/planning-success-14-top-pr-integrated-marketing-communications-trends-2014/

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/744865_7

http://toolkit.pellinstitute.org/evaluation-guide/communicate-improve/evaluate-your-communication-efforts/