PROS A Newsletter for Pubic Relations Professionals in Alabama Education PROS February 2001 Public Relations in Our Schools

Section 1 Editor’s Notes Article Section 2 Media Tips Success Stories Section 3 Quotes! Web Notes! Calendar

Section 1 Editor’s Notes If you have any comments, suggestions, or submissions for PROS, please email them to us. Thanks! Tom Salter Editor Dealing With Complaints A Mobile, Alabama seafood restaurant, now closed, was famous for its hand-lettered signs that served as wallpaper. There were a variety of sayings with caustic comments about everything from mothers-in-law to taxes. One sign proclaimed, “Helen Waite is complaint manager. If you have a complaint, go to Helen Waite!” It often took patrons a minute to realize that they had just been insulted. Thankfully, the food and service were generally both excellent, so a visit to the land of fire and brimstone was unnecessary. Unfortunately, many people who call public schools with problems must feel they have spoken with Beelzebub’s Executive Assistant. While many of those voicing concerns are less than angelic in their presentations, it is OUR responsibility to treat them with respect and, if possible, solve their problems efficiently and with a smile. Many of our employees don’t worry too much about the way they treat the people who pay our salaries. They seem to think they would have to kill someone in a cafetorium full of witnesses before they would face even a disciplinary hearing, much less termination. Others are counting the days until retirement. Those folks watching the calendar should go ahead a quit. Life is too short to do something that makes you unhappy for one more day. And our jobs are too important to do them halfway. Yo Quiero Taco Bell! Good customer service has long been recognized as a necessity in the business world. Taco Bell estimates the average customer will spend $17,000 at its restaurants over the course of a lifetime. If you go to a manager of a Taco Bell with a complaint, how do you think they will respond? Will they call Helen from the back? Will they suggest if you don’t like it you should visit the McDonalds down the block? Not likely. They know that if you stay happy you will spend another $16,994 and some change in their restaurants. They will do what it takes to solve your problem. Many of those handling complaints in our schools are overworked, underpaid, and UNDER TRAINED. A school secretary/bookkeeper who is behind on her postings and just had a kid upchuck on her monthly report is unlikely to be pleasant when a parent calls with a gripe about the way a coach made her child run laps for not bringing his gym shorts. That is, unless she has been taught the importance of treating people as customers. It is important for anyone who has contact with the community to have some level of customer service and public relations training. Unfortunately, that is everyone in your school system. From the part-time bus driver to the superintendent and board president, we are all Complaint Managers. I know, you are trying to pass a bond issue and the legislature is about to go into session, and you are promoting a new reading program, etc. First, there is no good time to do training. Secondly, IF you take the time to do the training and your internal publics understand their role in the system’s PR effort, it is MUCH more likely your bond issue will pass, your legislative agenda will be approved, and your reading program will be a success! Use Common Sense It doesn’t take a degree in public relations to understand how to provide good customer service when someone has a complaint. Most of it is common sense. First, understand your attitude and actions in handling the complaint can have a lasting effect on: Your reputation. Your school’s/system’s reputation. Your future employment. The life of the person with which you are working. Offer an apology if appropriate, even if you didn’t cause the problem. Have a friendly attitude. Solve the problem; find someone who can; or simply explain why you can’t solve the problem. Remember, no matter how trivial the matter seems to you, it is a BIG deal to the person with the complaint. Put yourself in their shoes. Don’t brush them off. Listen carefully and don’t interrupt. Take notes. Make sure you get their contact information so you can call with questions or information. Restate the problem in your own words. This shows you were listening and allows the person to make any corrections in case you misunderstood or he misspoke. Tell the person exactly what you plan to do to help them solve the problem Don’t make promises you can’t or don’t intend to keep. It is better to do nothing than to promise action and not deliver. Do exactly what you said you would, or if the circumstances change, get in touch with the person and update them on your actions. Follow up. A phone call two or three days after you solve the problem to double check on everything will go a LONG way toward showing people you care about them and their problem and you (and the school) are there to help. Good customer service is best summed up in a phrase that has been around for a very long time. Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you! It’s that simple. How would YOU want to be treated if you had a complaint about your child’s school? Observe and Respond It is up to You to make sure your employees offer good customer service. If they don’t, your system will suffer and it will be almost impossible to accomplish the goals you have set. The first step in this process is to lead by example. How are your customer service skills? Once you are sure your own house is in order, take some time to observe your staff. Reward those who do a good job with customer service and train those who do not. If you invest the resources in the necessary training, community support will grow. Parents and community members will find it a joy to visit your schools. And those with complaints will think your school system is caring and wonderful, even if your complaint manager’s name is Helen Waite. Section 2 Media Tips Tired of your news releases going unnoticed? When you prepare a release, ask yourself these questions: Relevance: How valid and appropriate is this story? Impact: Does this story affect a large number of people? Timeliness: Is the story current? Novelty: Does the story have an unusual or unique twist to it? So What: Does your topic tie in with current news issues and/or subjects that concern the public? The BBC won’t fly from England to come to a 2^nd grade play about Betsy Ross. Target your news releases and try to give the public AND the media a reason to care about whatever you are promoting! Success Stories Last October, Opelika City Schools PIO Kate Larkin worked with Superintendent Phil Raley and Opelika Mayor Barbara Patton to invite all 191 realtors in Lee County to tour Opelika Middle School and have a catered lunch so they could see for themselves what they THINK they don't have in Opelika!  Sixty-five attend (way beyond their expectations) and the Realtors were absolutely BLOWN away! Comments like “I had no idea Opelika had these kinds of things in their school system” were heard over and over.  In December, the same group was invited to a primary school. In March, they’ll be invited to Opelika High School, and in May they will tour and have lunch at an intermediate school. This was a great opportunity to SHOW these realtors FIRST HAND that what they tell their clients about how “much better other schools are” simply isn't true!  Kate says the tours will continue it through the next two years until every school has been visited. For more information, contact Kate at larkinkate@mindspring.com. *TIP: Direct realtors to the SDE Web site at www.alsde.edu for system report cards. It can be a great recruiting tool! Section 3 Quotes! “The race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but that’s the way to bet!” Daymon Runyon “You can have anything you want, you just can’t have EVERYTHING you want.” Peter McWilliams “There are three kinds of lies; lies, damn lies, and statistics.” Benjamin Disraeli “When a man blames others for his failures, it’s a good idea to credit others with his successes.” Howard W. Newton “A powerful agent is the right word. Whenever we come upon one of those intensely right words. The resulting effect is physical as well as spiritual, and electrically prompt.” Mark Twain Web Notes! Use The Web to Stay Current www.journals.uchicago.edu/AJE/ American Journal of Education www.edweek.org Education Week www.sisweb.com/math/tables.htm Dave’s Math Tables www.math.psu.edu/dna/graphics.html Graphics for Calculus Teachers www.exploratorium.edu/hockey/ The Science of Hockey Calendar Access the SDE calendar at: http://www.alsde.edu/ver1/calendar/calendar.asp