Posts By Sandy Evans Levine

Want Lots of Responses to Your Contest? Think PR!

Alice Lipowicz of Federal Computer Week wrote an interesting article about different government contests going on – some very successful, some not so much: http://fcw.com/articles/2010/10/04/low-participation-ssa-contest-remedies.aspx?sc_lang=en I expect we’ll be seeing more of this trend, so if you’re planning to try this approach, I’d like to offer some advice on how to ensure your organization’s contestsRead… Read more »

Paradigm shift: Use Consultants Surgically

We applaud Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ recent announcement of his proposed initiative to cut costs, as we also applaud the Office of Management and Budget’s move to halt IT modernization efforts that have consistently cost more and delivered less than promised. We see a paradigm shift in how government is working – instead of justRead… Read more »

How to Ensure Effective Outreach

How many spokespeople does your organization have? How many officials from your organization are tasked with ‘spreading the word,’ and talking with different constituents about your mission, the services and support you provide, or new programs that you’re implementing? When it comes to implementing effective outreach, it is crucial that every spokesperson for your organizationRead… Read more »

Focused Crisis Communications Saves Savings and Loan

So how prepared are you, really, for a disaster? How often do you review and update your crisis communications plan? How frequently do your spokespeople go through a refresher media training course? And have they been prepped in working with different types of media and different challenging scenarios? Those organizations with actual plans that areRead… Read more »

Winning with the Media

Winning with the Media How to work with the media so they help you accurately and effectively deliver your message to the public By Sandy Evans Levine, President, Advice Unlimited In today’s environment, government activities are of great interest to the general public, and a hot topic among TV, radio, web and print media. InRead… Read more »

Creating an effective crisis communications plan

We live in an “instant information” age, with 24-hours news channels on TV, radio, and the Web, all needing information and wanting exciting, attention-getting headlines. This creates an environment where managing the message to the media takes on heightened importance, since the chance for a misstep to go unnoticed is slim. We have all seenRead… Read more »

Reaching Government Decisionmakers

The government marketplace has always been regarded as one with high barrier to entry – the perception was that you need to make a significant commitment of resources and manpower, there are a myriad of rules and regulations to comply with, and that its an extremely complex market to break into, requiring a long timeRead… Read more »