What are Key Messages?
Key messages are strategic, carefully crafted statements that communicate the most important aspects of your organization, product, or position. They serve as the foundation for all communications and help ensure consistency, clarity, and impact across media interviews and other public relations activities.
Key messages are the core points an organization wants its audience to hear, understand, and remember. They are the essential statements that communicate your organization’s position, value, or story in clear, concise, and memorable language. Think of them as the fundamental building blocks of all your communications that remain consistent across different channels and spokespersons.
Why Focus on Key Messages in Your Communications?
Good communicators don’t just wing it. They take the time to prepare, developing key messages. Effective communication depends on clarity, and clarity requires developing key messages and using them consistently. The discipline is deceptively simple, but once mastered, key messages will make every communication process more effective, whether during speeches, presentations, or media interviews.
Key Message Strategies
You want everyone to understand the same basic message. Each individual may remember different details, but they should all be able to sum up your message consistently in one or two sentences. If they are properly developed and delivered, those sentences will be your key messages.
To be useful, key messages must:
- Be few in number, usually no more than two or three
- Be short and concise, generally no more than a sentence or two.
- Be written down.
Too many messages and you won’t have focus. If your messages are a paragraph each, you will not be effective. Writing your messages down makes sure they are short, concise, and understandable.
Applying Key Messages to Your Communications
You know the basic speech structure: Tell them what you’re going to tell them, tell them, and then tell them what you just told them. That, in a nutshell, is the proper use of key messages. You should start any communication with your key messages, return to them throughout, and then summarize with them at the end.
Henry Kissinger used to start off his media interviews by asking, “Does anybody have any questions for my answers?” The implication was clear: Kissinger had his key messages and he was going to deliver them.
Developing and Using Key Messages
Developing key messages becomes especially valuable in settings where other issues are likely to come up, such as employee meetings or media interviews. If you have formalized your key messages, you have something to return to so you can keep the discussion on track.
Key messages also provide a structure for the rest of the information you want to include in your presentation or media interview. All the information you want to include should support your key messages. Organize your communication in that fashion, and you will find your presentation easier to build and clearer for your audience.
Finally, any supporting materials you provide should convey the same key messages. If you use slides or overheads, they should be organized around your key messages.
To be truly effective, you must practice. There is just something about saying things out loud that brings a clarity that is not always possible just by looking at the written word. If you find that your key messages do not flow off the tongue easily, redraft them. Test the messages with someone you trust to see if they make sense and are credible.
Examples of Key Messages
Here are several examples of key messages across different scenarios:
For a Tech Company Launching a New Privacy Feature:
- “Our new encryption technology puts users in complete control of their personal data, setting a new industry standard for privacy protection.”
- “We invested three years and $50 million in developing this feature because we believe privacy is a fundamental human right.”
- “Every message, photo, and file is protected by the same security technology trusted by leading financial institutions.”
For a Healthcare Organization During a Crisis:
- “Patient safety remains our number one priority, and we’re taking immediate steps to address these concerns.”
- “We’ve implemented comprehensive new safety protocols that exceed industry standards.”
- “Our medical team is working around the clock to ensure every patient receives the highest quality care.”
For a Sustainable Fashion Brand:
- “Every garment we produce saves 500 plastic bottles from entering our oceans.”
- “We’re revolutionizing fashion by proving that style and sustainability can coexist.”
- “Our transparent supply chain ensures fair wages and ethical working conditions at every step.”
For a University Announcing a New Program:
- “This innovative curriculum bridges the gap between academic theory and real-world application.”
- “Our partnerships with industry leaders provide students with unparalleled internship opportunities.”
- “Graduates of this program will be equipped to solve tomorrow’s most pressing challenges.”
For a Food Company Addressing Product Quality:
- “We source ingredients from local farmers we’ve partnered with for over 20 years.”
- “Every product undergoes 12 quality checks before reaching store shelves.”
- “Our commitment to quality means never compromising on ingredients or food safety.”
Notice that Each of these Messages is:
- Concise and memorable
- Supports a larger narrative
- Contains specific, actionable information
- Appeals to both rational and emotional aspects
- Can be backed up with evidence
- Avoids industry jargon
- Focuses on benefits rather than features
Developing Key Messages Needs to be a Habit
Many people in the public relations industry find the concept of key messages to be so basic that they don’t think they need to devote time to them. But truly effective communication means developing key messages must be a regular part of preparing for public presentations and media interviews. The process doesn’t need to take a long time, but the effort of developing key messages, writing them down, and then organizing your communication around them will pay huge public relations dividends in the end.
This article, written by Neal Linkon, appeared in PR Fuel (https://www.ereleases.com/prfuel), a free weekly newsletter from eReleases (https://www.ereleases.com), the online leader in affordable press release distribution. To subscribe to PR Fuel, visit: https://www.ereleases.com/prfuel/subscribe/.