Marketing Communications
Howard Partners has a leading edge capability and expertise in integrated marketing communications. Steeped in best practice from the combined fields of marketing and public relations, the field of marketing communications allows an organisation to strategically utilise many different tools to realise its goals.
The firm's Marketing Communications practice is focused on helping organisations achieve their business objectives. In particular, Howard Partners specialises in the following practice areas:
- Education and awareness campaigns
- Stakeholder consultation and dialogue
- Communications strategy and planning
- Knowledge communication and translation
- Preparation of case studies
- Communication audits
Education and Awareness Campaigns
Howard Partners has an established track record in designing, developing and implementing successful and cost-effective national education and awareness campaigns for both government and industry, across a wide range of industry sectors.
Campaigns of this nature can have many different objectives, but almost always they are focused on bringing about change in the attitudes and behaviour of specific target audiences. Howard Partners is highly skilled at understanding the issues involved, and working closely with its clients to formulate, and implement successful, cost-effective, people focused strategies.
The firm has worked with clients in many different industries including primary health care, the pharmaceutical industry, primary producers, rural land managers, agribusiness, biotechnology, information technology, venture capital, innovation and university research commercialisation, as well as campaigns that have targeted small and medium sized businesses.
In the health area, for example, prior campaigns have included the highly successful national MedAware Campaign designed to educate older Australians about their medicines. This campaign, backed by both government and industry, was extremely effective in creating greater awareness and understanding of the issues, and generated enormous behavioural response from the target audience.
In the primary industry sectors of agriculture and fisheries, the firm was engaged by FarmBis to encourage primary producers and rural land managers to undertake business and natural resource management training and education activities. Howard Partners undertook the research, case study writing and strategy design for this highly successful program.
Stakeholder Consultation and Dialogue
Howard Partners provides a very high level of experience in stakeholder consultation and dialogue, and works closely with its clients to put in place processes that will assist in developing and managing relationships with key stakeholders, both inside and outside an organisation.
Our success in this area stems from the firm's capacity to understand our clients needs, and to respond with innovative and effective solutions. Our consultants have worked with clients in many different industry sectors to help them deliver meaningful, two-way dialogue with multiple stakeholders.
Communications Strategy and Planning
All organisations need to communicate - internally and externally. Howard Partners is a leader in the field of communications strategy and planning. Our principal communications strategist, Anne Howard, has more than 20 years experience in working with organisations, large and small, to devise and implement successful communications strategies.
Organisations need communications plans for a wide variety of reasons - principally to assist them to achieve their overall business goal. A communications plan therefore must have a natural fit with the corporate objectives. Anne's experience and ability to understand organisational needs, aspirations, and constraints enables her to work effectively with clients to help them achieve their goals.
Knowledge Communication and Translation
More than ever before governments and business want to be able to access the latest knowledge generated through research to guide policy, strategy and implementation. But the issue that many decision makers face is how to access, and importantly, translate this new knowledge so that the organisation as a whole benefits.
Howard Partners has a leading edge capability and expertise in assisting organisations and whole industries benefit from, and capitalise on, new knowledge that has been generated through research. Our proven approach is based on considerable experience and research in human communication principles, including the use of new media technologies, and an in-depth understanding of how knowledge exchange networks are able to systematically locate, exchange and use knowledge to develop new products, processes and services.
Case Studies
Over the years, Howard Partners has been commissioned by many government and non government organisations to prepare case studies for publication that demonstrate or show case experiences, success stories and lessons learned.
The firm's capability and skill in researching and writing up case studies is unique. In particular, the firm prides itself on its ability to present narratives that provide factual information in an informative, objective and educational manner.
In addition, Howard Partners has produced guidelines for the preparation of case studies which it is happy to make available to clients on request.
Communication Audits
Howard Partners is highly skilled at performing communications audits.
A communications audit can be performed for an entire organisation, or it can focus instead on a particular part of an organisation or program. The audit aims to provide an organisation with a 'check up' of its internal and external communications to find out what is working well and what can be improved - communications audits provide a real-time picture of the effectiveness of the current communications effort.
Communications audits are extremely helpful if an organisation is trying to improve its relationships with stakeholders, build reputation, raise its profile, increase awareness and understanding, motivate staff, educate a specific target audience, and more.
The firm has undertaken communications audits for a wide range of large and small organisations that are keen to improve their organisational performance.
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