A couple of weeks ago I put out a call on LinkedIn for great government communications. Some really interesting examples came through.
Clever social media campaigns by Tourism Queensland and the police in various jurisdictions. The ATO on Facebook. Rural and regional engagement by VicRoads about country roads. And a remarkable interactive long form feature by DHHS in Victoria, helping people understand how services to help someone suffering a major trauma situation.
Not one person mentioned a great announcement or media launch.
Which I guess is unsurprising. But also frustrating when you think about how much time public sector communicators spend on these.
Now I’m not suggesting we ditch the ministerial media opportunity. I know it’s an essential part of the biz. But if all our effort goes to that, it’s like we’re acting as the town crier in the middle of a village square, shouting at the passers by. Who’s listening? What do they want to know? Why would they stop and pay attention to you?
The first global study into government communication last year (conducted by WPP) found that many public sector communicators struggle to move beyond one-way conversations and only 25 per cent actively tailor messages to specific audiences. WPP noted this in the context of OECD research which concluded that worldwide only 40% of citizens trust their government.
Great comms is more than a one-way broadcast or announcement. As communicators, we’ve got to do better. We need to inform more strategically. We need to interpret the decisions of government to help people understand them more deeply. And we need to engage way more effectively.