It's an old Boy Scout saying, but particularly true here: be prepared. Once you get on the agenda, you need to do your homework. By doing some research on the Internet, in the public library, by looking through a legislative directory, or reading newspaper clippings, you can discover a number of things about your audience before you walk into a room to make your presentation. Your presentation should address the concerns that they may have with public safety in general and with your integration initiative in particular. Table 3 summarizes the kinds of presentations that are well suited to each kind of audience.

• If you are meeting with an elected official, you should know his political party, the committees he sits on, his occupation, and the justice governance structure in his district. If you are meeting with a specific justice agency, you should have a good understanding of its day-to-day operations and what its role would be in the integration project.
• If you are presenting to a community organization, ask what types of projects the group has sponsored in the community and request a list of recent speakers.
• If you are trying to get your story picked up by a media outlet, you should have a good understanding of how it covers stories in the justice system and how it feels about spending on government projects.

One good way to know that you are fully prepared is to ask yourself questions you think your audience will ask. Put yourself in their places and look for gaps, mistakes, confusion, past experiences, and points of view that could lead to questions about your idea and its feasibility.

When planning the meeting be sure you know who will participate, who will speak, what they will say, what you want to accomplish, what specific actions or decisions you want from the official, and any other important issues. Create and send an agenda to all participants, and plan to arrive at the meeting place with enough time to set up and become familiar with the meeting room. Be sure to brief all those who are attending the meeting with you about their roles and what you expect them to do.

Assume you will only have a few minutes to present your case. It is important to give a brief overview of your case, highlighting the problems, solutions, and benefits associated with justice integration. The details of your case-the perceived risks and the nuts and bolts of your initiative-should be included in the printed materials you leave behind. Be prepared to answer those questions in case they come up during your presentation. Have someone in your group record the comments and questions raised, and the main points of the discussion.

Regardless of the technology you use, keep your presentation simple and direct. Again, you must know your audience and prepare your presentation around its concerns. It helps to have an outline from which to build your slides. One general rule to follow when creating your slides: less is more. Screens crowded with words or special effects are difficult to read. Stick with one typeface, or two at the most. Make your key points with simple, short bullets. Be sure to carefully test the computer and projection equipment at the presentation site if possible. Have backup equipment or media available, since technology glitches can occur at any time.

Presentation methods for different target audiences

Presentation methods for different target audiences
Audiences	Preferred delivery method	Sample strategies
Elected officials and policy advisors	Presentations	you may have the opportunity to address a legislative committee or a group of elected officials
	Meetings	elected officials and/or their staff members may prefer to meet in their office or a conference room; the meeting is likely to be short
Justice professionals	Presentations	at regularly scheduled meetings of professional organizations, associations, unions, and groups of justice representatives
	Informal networks	actively encourage justice professionals to talk about integration to their friends and colleagues
Community groups	Presentations	at their regularly scheduled membership meetings
	Informal networks	actively encourage community group members to talk to family, friends, and community residents about the benefits of integration
Private sector interests	Presentations	you may have the opportunity to present your business case to a foundation board or a group of executives
	Meetings	corporation or foundation presidents may prefer to meet in their office or a conference room
Local and regional news media and the public	Press conferences	creating newsworthy events for your business case and integration initiative
	Press releases	announcing newsworthy events
	Op/Ed (opinion/editorial) articles	enlisting community leaders to write articles that appeal for public support for integration
	Letters to the editor	writing clear and brief letters highlighting key points of the business case
	Editorial board meetings	meeting with newspaper editorial boards to present and discuss your business case for integration
	Radio talk shows	one of the most popular vehicles for delivering news, community issues, and current events
	Video	can be used to supplement your presentations and meetings, and they can be sent to audiences you don't have the opportunity to personally visit
	Web site	the anytime, anywhere character of the Internet will help you put your business case before more people
Advertising media	Public service announcements	licensed media outlets are required to print or run a certain number of advertisements publicizing nonprofit community groups and public issues
	Public transportation billboards	billboards and poster advertisements on subways and buses often give good return for your advertising investment
	Print ads	in newspapers, magazines, and community newsletters may help you leverage news stories for your initiative

Be yourself and be enthusiastic about integration. Think of your delivery as a communication with your audience, rather than a presentation to the audience. Make eye contact with the members of the audience instead of looking at the overheads. Speak clearly and at a pace somewhat slower than normal conversation. Let your confidence, conviction, and support for integration show through-it will be contagious.

A good press conference takes a lot of effort, but if it is done well the dividends are worth every minute of planning. The first thing you will want to do is pick an optimum location for your event. Strong visuals play a vital role in whether or not your story gets covered on television, and how much time and attention it will receive. For example, you may want to consider the front of a courthouse with police cars on either side of your podium to highlight the public safety and justice aspects of your initiative. But be careful to make sure your vision is practical. If the courthouse is on a very busy street and there is no way to get police cars near your podium, then rethink your plan. There are other visuals that will be just as effective. You will also want to hold your press conference on a day and time that will allow the most reporters to attend. Conventional wisdom indicates that press conferences to trumpet initiatives are best scheduled earlier in the week and during morning hours. Stay away from weekends and avoid times when other public or newsworthy events are already scheduled. Check with your press office or some other local public relations professional to find out more about the media climate in your area, so you can make an informed choice about when to hold your press conference.

Next, line up a number of key supporters or champions to stand with you as you present your case. If they plan to say a few words during the event, now is the time to plan the order of the speakers and identify what they will say.

A day or two before the press conference, fax a one-paragraph press advisory to the news media. Your advisory should give the time and place for the event, and a brief sampling of what will be covered. It is important to give enough information to make an editor or reporter want to cover the event. You may want to highlight the supporters who will be at the press conference if it will help attract media. Also be sure to provide a contact name and telephone number for reporters to call if they have questions. Before you fax the advisory, make sure your fax records are up-to-date so that all the right people are notified.

On the day of your press conference make sure your podium is set up properly. Decide where you want the press to sit or stand. If you are using a sound system or microphone, make sure it works. If you are not, make sure all attendees will be able to hear you. Provide information packets with your printed remarks and all the supporting material so the reporters will have something to work from when they develop the news story later in the day.

If there is enough interest in the media and your efforts are building momentum in the community, you may want to set up a meeting with a newspaper editorial board. This meeting will provide you with the opportunity to thoroughly present your case to a captivated press audience and has the potential to create news stories, editorials, and an overall increased awareness of your integration initiative.

Having a reporter ride-along or shadow a justice professional can provide a great opportunity to highlight information sharing problems in a real time, real life way for the public to see. But before you ask a reporter to do a ride along with a law enforcement officer or to accompany an assistant district attorney to the courthouse, make sure all the necessary supervisors, managers, and decision makers have given their approval. As with your press conference, a ride-along has to be well planned so unexpected events don't undermine your message.

Local newspapers often provide space for community leaders to voice their opinions on topics. An op/ed piece provides an avenue to clearly present an argument for integration and back it up with the facts. An op/ed piece will be most effective coming from a recognized leader in the community. Therefore, you may want to ask your champion to write, or lend her name to, the article. A published op/ed piece is a good addition to the press packets and printed materials you use as you continue to market your business case.

Letters to the editor can help increase awareness of integration and keep it fresh in readers' minds. Letters to the editor should be brief, and they should cover the main themes of your message that need to be repeated often to take hold with the public.

Newsrooms receive dozens of press releases every day, so they should be reserved for newsworthy events. A press release can be used to announce key milestones in your integration effort, such as the support of a new champion, the introduction of legislation, the receipt of funding, or the implementation of the project. Press releases should include the details-the who, what, where, when, why, and how-of your story and a contact name and number for reporters to call if they have questions. Press releases should be kept to one or two pages.

Professional publications like union newsletters or association magazines provide a captive audience for your business case. These publications look for articles on current events affecting their members, and integration fits that category.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Experienced justice professionals, elected officials, and public policy leaders say you can expect any of the following questions when you present your business case. Can you answer them?

• What is integration?
• Why is it important?
• What are the risks?
• What are the benefits?
• How will this improve the justice system?
• What exactly is the problem? How can it be resolved?
• What are the long-term vision and goals?
• What is the time frame for completing the project?
• How long will it take to see results?
• Can you define the scope of the project?
• What are your milestones for showing progress?
• Who will manage this initiative and how?
• Who else supports this initiative and why?
• Who is against it and why?
• Are all the participants on board?
• Where has justice information integration been successful?
• Does legislation need to be written to accomplish integration?
• Can you specify the policy hurdles?
• What levels of government will it affect and how?
• In view of data privacy laws and issues, how much and what kind of information should/can be shared?
• What does the Mayor think about this initiative?
• Where does integration fit in with the Governor's crime-fighting agenda?
• Have you been to see the City Council yet?
• Does the County Executive know this is going on?
• What role will the Attorney General play in this initiative?
• Is the Chief of Police on board? How about the Sheriff?
• Has the Senator promised to support integration?
• Has the Chief Judge made a statement?
• Are the judges on board?
• How do the officers on the street feel about this?
• How much will it cost and where will the money come from?
• Didn't we [your audience] fund this already?
• Isn't a bureaucratic empire being built by this initiative?
• What about the millions of dollars we've already invested in justice in the past several years?
• What other funding is available? How are you pursuing it?
• What is the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)? (building, maintaining, training, etc.)
• What will be the Return on Investment (ROI)?
• What are the true total costs?
• Is there a way to share the costs?
• What do you want me (your audience) to do?
• How will this project help achieve other policy goals that I (your audience) care about?