Stalagmite Theory in Public Relations
By Madhavi Mukherjee on Jan 6, 2008 in PReducation
I would like to borrow a concept that is oft used for television viewership to Public Relations and I think it suits just fine. The concept is that of Cultivation Theory or the Stalagmite Theory. I quote “Black et. al. used the metaphor of stalagmite theories to suggest that media effects occur analogously to the slow buildup of formations on cave floors, which take their interesting forms after eons of the steady dripping of limewater from the cave ceilings above. One of the most popular theories that fits this perspective is cultivation theory.”
Cultivation theory (sometimes referred to as the cultivation hypothesis or cultivation analysis) was an approach developed by Professor George Gerbner, dean of the Annenberg School of Communications at the University of Pennsylvania.
One of the core assumptions and statements of the Cultivation theory is that television is responsible for shaping, or ‘cultivating’ viewers’ conceptions of social reality. The combined effect of massive television exposure by viewers over time subtly shapes the perception of social reality for individuals and, ultimately, for our culture as a whole.
I believe that Public Relations does that too…or rather primarily Public Relations is doing that all the time. Slowly and steadily honing the opinions and perceptions of the masses to cultivate attitudes, beliefs and notions about products, services and people. We are always cultivating our media, who are not just our vehicles but in fact they are our primary audiences. You grow on them by continuously orientating them about your Clients, the messages that you want to be widely spread, by convincing them about why they should write about your Clients et al. Just as a continuous dripping of limewater on the cave floor helps in the slow build up of formations on the floor, so also a continuous and steady feeding of messages leads to a slow and yet a sure formation of opinion and perception about the Client.
This holds true especially when you are carrying out a Public Relations exercise for a new and niche sector such as electronic home securities or a new brand in an already established market space. In either cases the effort of message dissemination has to be relentless, continuous and steady. And the results won’t be to your disappointment.
But as PR professionals, what you have to do is innovate, ideate and create new ways and means of getting the Client talked about…Cultivate the primary opinion makers (Media) to get talking about your Client, Cultivate your Client to have faith in the system and the process. The effects and the measurement of sucess of this model is difficult since it is a long driven effort and not related to a sudden burst of activity like a promotional campaign, but the long term effect is that it homogenizes a category of audience to see meaning into what your Client is doing and saying and to become ardent believers of your Client.
Next week, I will bring forth a Case Study to let you in into the effects of the Stalagmite Theory or Cultivation Theory that has been used in Public Relations.
Cheers
Madhavi.
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Madhavi Mukherjee
Senior Consultant and Practice Head Media&Entertainment
Hanmer&Partners
Email: madhavi@hanmerpr.com
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On Jan 7, 2008, Anonymous said:
Hey, Madhavi.
Good post. Quite interesting! The most important part to note is that since it is a slow process, many of the people (client or others) tend to lose the focus. But, this is the way many great companies and brands have been built.
Your case study will be of great interest.
On Jan 7, 2008, Googly said:
Its very strange and amusing too when you see such beautiful insights from a senior associate!! Quite sad to learn that clients still want burst of coverage, the message like this just dont reach the right people, may be we should suggest all our clients to log on to this blog
.. No client want to wait and follow the cultivation theory!! But I am sure some day…some way… PR in India will surpass its own benchmark (media clips i.e.).. Keep it going Madhavi!!
On Jan 21, 2008, Vipin Kandwal said:
Hi Madhavi,
It was an insightful article. However, when talking about cultivation theory is quite an old concept for any communications.How and to what extent does it bear upon the audience. None such experiments has been a fool proof research (Kindly correct me as I might not be updated). There is no way measuring the impact on perception of the people so how do you think we track of this slow build up of desired opinion of the target masses.
On Jan 21, 2008, Madhavi Mukherjee said:
Of course the theories are old, but like I said, I was trying to align them to see if those theories of Communications most specifically theories of mass media can be connected to PR or not…and my guess is they do. The concept does. Reputation or Image management in my opinion is a process of gradual and steady communication with the right message at the right time to the right audience.
As far as meausring the preception is concerned…here’s what i do personally.
Before you begin work on a Client call up a few key media (they are my influencers, the guys I deal with first) and get their views on how they percieve your Client, what do they know about your Client, the good, the bad…discuss the Client threadbarely with them (much easier if you know the journalists well). Now after about six months of structured PR for your Client, speak to the same guys again and see if their opinions have changed. If that has, then somehwere you can credit your job to have been effective
I do this all the time and in many cases its the Clients who have come back and said that their market perceptions have changed overa period of time… Cultivation Theory?…Sure! Measurable?….Of course.