Public Perception

We all know that public employees are under scrutiny and getting beat up by the public in the current economic environment.  They see us as lazy and overpaid.  They think our pensions are unfair and that we do nothing but sit around and watch TV all day.  We know this is not a fair judgement of what we do and obviously we want to change that perception.  We know it is our job to get out there on the streets and work to change the public perception of what we do.  Before you go running to the next block party or PR event let me ask you this.... What is your perception of the public?

Why am I asking you this question and why is it important?  Well lets think about it for a second.  We know one of the ways to build a better image of ourselves is to be out in the public and work to garner their support.  This is a sure fire plan right?  Wrong...  I am not telling you that public involvement is a bad idea or that it isn't the right idea but I want you to think about a few things before you do it.  There are a lot of things you need to consider such as the demographics of your response area.  What is the average age, what is the median income, what is the percentage of residential vs commercial properties. The list goes on and on but my point is, just like you review your 1st due area for the types of fires you will have to fight you need to size up your residents before you launch your PR campaign.  Plan your events around those demographics.  Blood pressure checks for seniors are not going to go over very well if you have no seniors in your area you know what I mean?

One last thing I want to touch on is this.  What is your personal attitude towards PR events and what is your perception of the public in your area.  Do you do PR events because you have to or do you get excited about them?  What do you think of the public you serve?  Are they merely patients and residents or do you feel part of the community.  Do you genuinely want to provide a service and help these people or are they just another run?  These are things you need to think about before you go out and do a PR event.  If you go into these events with a negative perception or a negative attitude you may win some people over but your results won't be as good as they could be.  I know that it can get tedious at times going to all the different PR events but we can't let that show when we are out in the public.  Go out there and have fun.  Try to provide PR that is value added.  Look at this not as volunteering your time but rather as an investment into the future of your department.  It truly is an investment.  The more support and allies you can generate the better.  If there is ever a situation were cuts are being considered these allies will come to your aid and help fight for your department.  If they feel you are a part of their community and you have put in the time to build those relationships they will show up and they will show up in droves.  They will stand beside you and fight to protect your department.  Trust me, it works.  We just have to put in the time and effort to build those relationships and let the public know what we are really about.