| Plexus Consulting Group | Success Stories | ||
|
National Association of Home Builders |
|||
|
Plexus Consulting Group, LLC |
|
Vital Stats: About one-third of NAHB's 203,000 members are homebuilders and/or
remodelers. The remainder of the membership consists of associates
working in closely related fields, such as mortgage finance and building
products and services, within the housing industry. The Challenge | The Solution | The Process |Unintended Consequences | Measurements & Results | Lessons Learned
How to identify good spokespeople and train them to be effective communicators in a hostile media environment? In 1978, the housing industry enjoyed approximately two million housing
starts, the greatest number for any year before or since. As a result,
1978 was a "good news year" for NAHB as housing led the
nation out of recession. However, the staggering number of housing
starts produced a proportional share of consumer quality complaints
to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Upon analysis, the percentage
of complaints did not exceed that of previous years, only the numbers
were higher due to above average industry activity. While NAHB had
all of the necessary communications tools at its disposal to address
the issue, including key messages and an effective consumer affairs
department, the association's senior officers were reluctant to enter
into a hostile media environment.
To create a comprehensive media-training program featuring targeted seminars, leadership programs and overview workshops to develop effective association spokespersons. During the 1970s, corporate America embraced spokesperson training,
which became particularly valuable to the oil industry in dealing
with issues emerging from the 1973 oil embargo. The number one complaint
of NAHB members who have had "run-ins" with the media is
that they are either misquoted or taken out of context. NAHB knew
that to deflect unfair public criticism of the housing industry, the
association's leadership and key members had to "get out there
and communicate." NAHB hired a media training team from the J.
Walter Thompson Agency to help. To begin with, the association developed
pilot media training seminars for its senior officers and national
vice presidents, focused on crisis communications training. The seminars
emphasized handling tough questions, message development, and taught
participants to become comfortable in the media environment. Together with the consultants from J. Walter Thompson, who were eventually retained independently by the association to deliver training, NAHB developed a media training menu that encompasses the following custom-tailored programs:
With the help of three crisis communications consultants, NAHB developed seminars for roll-out to its membership nationwide. At first, NAHB focused its seminars on crisis communications and subsequently migrated the content to address very basic communication issues, such as handling testimony and fielding questions from the media and various audiences during public speaking engagements. Topics covered include:
The purpose of the program was to develop comprehensive communications skills to enable NAHB members to deliver compelling messages to a variety of frequent audiences, including zoning boards, etc. The full day seminars provide one-on-one training in a mock studio and interview setting. Customized Training Programs
Unlike the other media training programs, these highly, custom-tailored leadership programs are not subsidized by NAHB headquarters. Two trainers facilitate each leadership training session. Leadership Training Workshops Basic and Advanced Training Very often, incoming association presidents know the basics but require assistance with the all-important acceptance speech and other more intricate communications opportunities. Advanced training provides a review of basic information and participants proceed to set their own agendas depending on their individual needs. One-on-one training is a key element of the advanced media training program. For example, advanced topics include:
NAHB uses the annual Spring and Fall Board of Directors Meetings
and annual conventions to provide from 2-3 days of media training
to conference participants, offering two basic and one advanced course.
While participants are often nervous at the beginning, the trainers
make every effort to put them at ease and to "have fun."
NAHB delivers up to 25 various media programs each year and charges
$125 per person for participants at the conference sessions, which
usually have a waiting list of prospective members. Unintended Consequences No one at NAHB had imagined at the outset the level of time and effort that would be required to promote the Home Builders Care initiative to such a wide audience. NAHB discovered many more community service projects in the field than could be promoted given existing resources. Because of the initiative's success, the program earned sufficient credibility with the association's leadership to inspire the Executive Committee and senior officers to commit an additional one million dollars to continue the campaign. Moreover, since launching Home Builders Care, NAHB has been contacted
by numerous charitable organizations seeking donations of goods and
services. In one case, NAHB funneled unused inventory belonging to
manufacturers and service providers to the American Red Cross. In
addition, numerous companies outside of the industry have phoned NAHB
offering to donate employee time to charitable activities as part
of their in-house team-building programs. Measurements & Results While NAHB has had no trouble promoting the program, and many affiliate
associations send their incoming leaders regularly, only so many participants
can be accommodated at any given time. Moreover, on a limited $88,000
annual budget, NAHB is unable to promote the program on a larger scale.
NAHB recommends that associations "go for the best media training they can get." Also, one key lesson that NAHB has learned in developing and delivering media training involves the critical importance of "getting the right spokesperson to deliver the right message." Either the spokesperson should be an expert on the issue or be willing to immerse him or herself in the subject at hand. NAHB endeavors to ensure that its members agree with reporters on the interview subject and understand the audience prior to delivering the message. NAHB's media team has found that by focusing members on communication
goals and proof in the pudding --such as "builders are committed
to producing quality homes and have warranties to protect the buyer"--
they reduce their chances of being misquoted or taken out of context.
By showing members that they can succeed, NAHB has been able to leverage
numerous media opportunities by giving members the skills and confidence
to communicate effectively. According to Christy, the media training
program ensures that "everybody wins."
|
|
