CPC Strategic Communication & Planning 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A city government wants to communicate a new zoning policy to diverse community members. Which approach best ensures inclusive strategic communication?
- Translate materials into multiple languages and use culturally appropriate visuals (Correct answer)
- Rely solely on official government websites for policy announcements
- Use only formal press releases directed at local media
- Issue a single English-language flyer distributed at city hall
Correct answer: Translate materials into multiple languages and use culturally appropriate visuals
Translating materials and using culturally appropriate visuals ensures equitable access to information for all community members regardless of language or background.
Question 2: When setting SMART communication objectives, what does the 'R' stand for and why is it important?
- Reactive — ensuring plans adapt to media inquiries
- Relevant — objectives must align with overall organizational goals (Correct answer)
- Resourced — every objective needs a dedicated budget line
- Rapid — timelines must be kept as short as possible
Correct answer: Relevant — objectives must align with overall organizational goals
Relevant objectives ensure that communication efforts directly support the organization's broader mission, preventing wasted resources on misaligned activities.
Question 3: Which stakeholder mapping dimension helps determine how much communication effort to invest in a particular group?
- Geographic location of the stakeholder
- Level of interest and level of power/influence (Correct answer)
- Stakeholder's preferred social media platform
- Years of relationship with the organization
Correct answer: Level of interest and level of power/influence
Mapping stakeholders by interest and influence helps communicators prioritize engagement strategies, investing more in high-power, high-interest groups.
Question 4: A nonprofit's communication strategy fails to account for limited digital access among its target population. This oversight represents a failure in which planning phase?
- Message development
- Audience analysis and channel selection (Correct answer)
- Budget allocation
- Post-campaign evaluation
Correct answer: Audience analysis and channel selection
Thorough audience analysis should identify barriers like limited digital access, prompting selection of channels that actually reach the population.
Question 5: What distinguishes a communication strategy from a communication tactic?
- A strategy is short-term; a tactic spans multiple years
- A strategy defines the overall approach; a tactic is a specific action to implement it (Correct answer)
- Tactics require board approval; strategies do not
- A strategy is written for internal use only; tactics are external-facing
Correct answer: A strategy defines the overall approach; a tactic is a specific action to implement it
Strategy sets the overarching direction and rationale, while tactics are the concrete, specific actions taken to execute that strategy.
Question 6: In agenda-setting theory, what role does strategic communication play?
- It prevents media from covering organizational topics
- It influences which issues receive public attention by emphasizing certain topics (Correct answer)
- It guarantees positive media coverage for the organization
- It replaces the need for media relations entirely
Correct answer: It influences which issues receive public attention by emphasizing certain topics
Agenda-setting theory holds that by emphasizing certain topics in their communications, organizations can influence what the public and media consider important.
Question 7: A communicator needs to build long-term trust with a skeptical community. Which strategic approach is most effective over time?
- Delivering one high-impact press conference to address all concerns at once
- Consistent, transparent, two-way communication over an extended period (Correct answer)
- Increasing advertising spend to reach more community members
- Avoiding media contact to prevent negative coverage
Correct answer: Consistent, transparent, two-way communication over an extended period
Trust is built through sustained, transparent dialogue that demonstrates reliability and responsiveness to community concerns over time.
CPC Strategic Communication & Planning 3
A city government wants to communicate a new zoning policy to diverse community members.
Which approach best ensures inclusive strategic communication?