Are PR and marketing a comms power couple?

Do PR and marketing make a perfect comms couple?

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Public relations and marketing – two interlinked comms functions whose connection has been under debate for years. Since at least the 1970s, in fact, according to Stephen Waddington, who led our latest webinar on the subject, ‘PR & Marketing: The Ultimate Power Couple?’.

Sign up to watch the webinar. 

‘In researching our ‘Trends in the integration of marketing and public relations’ white paper, I found a piece from 1978 highlighting how the two functions should work together. That relationship in the headline is always going to be situational depending on size and scale, but there’s one thing that’s certain; this debate has been going on for 50 years and will keep going.’

Download the white paper ‘Trends in the integration of marketing and public relations’.

If this is a conversation that hasn’t yet started at your organisation, whether you’re working in-house or agency-side, take advice from Stephen, Mastercard‘s Suman Hughes and Hotwire Global‘s Tara O’Donnell shared during the webinar to consider the benefits of bringing your PR and marketing functions closer together.

Is this a debate for everyone?
As pointed out by Stephen, the CEOs, customers and celebrities that PR and marketing teams serve won’t really care so much about what is integrated and what isn’t – what matters is that the results are good. Who it is important for is those working towards the results, who have had to weave key messaging and strategy, such as ESG, into every aspect of their planning and actions over the last few years.

‘The pandemic has led to a reappraisal of organisations,’ believes Stephen. ‘Teams need to work together to understand their business’ place in the market and in wider society.’

‘An idea can start from anywhere’ – Mastercard’s Suman Hughes on the in-house perspective
On taking on her current role as Mastercard’s director of communications, UK, Suman Hughes joined a comms team already integrated. PR and marketing work closely together to communicate the brand’s message to its global audience and worldwide workforce and this connection aids every part of their strategy and execution.

‘Working as one team means offering a single unified voice. Whether it’s marketing, comms, public policy, HR, accounts, it all comes back to our employees and them as brand ambassadors – we talk as one, as Mastercard.

‘Integration means we can pool our resources and break down silos to make the most of what we have, making the biggest impact for our stakeholder groups and audiences.

‘It’s a global model that we run – not just across our international team, but across all our agency groups, too – we approach every piece of work this way, from paid, owned and earned. An idea can start from anywhere and become a campaign that’s holistic. It’s a level playing field and it makes it super-interesting for me to do my job.’

‘It’s all about business impact’ – Hotwire Global’s Tara O’Donnell on the agency perspective
‘In teams that have integrated marketing and PR, it’s all about business impact and how you measure it. When companies work in this way, it is more efficient, but depends on the organisation.

‘When companies had to go into ‘protect revenue’ mode in 2020, we realised that many were struggling because traditional marketing channels had shut down. Our comms clients, maybe for the first time, were tasked with having business impact – everyone in their organisations were tasked with improving business results. That’s what led us to look at what we do and evolve it to impact reputation along with revenue.

‘We’ve found it’s an incredible marriage; reputation to revenue resonates across the board. If you’re talking to a comms client about thought leadership – you’ve based it on insight about an audience they’re trying to reach; you should do that with your marketing anyway. You can use that insight all the way through the pipeline.

Is integrating PR and marketing for you?
‘It’s a really natural progression of using what you’re already creating to have different impact,’ says Tara.

‘The value to clients is really simple to show; our comms clients will understand it and our marketing teams do, too. It’s not necessary that they always work together, but we can show that there will be business impact when they do.

‘From a comms point-of-view, to be able to go to the business and show how you’ve impacted revenue… that ability to show value is incredible.’

‘Give it a go!’ says Suman. ‘If you’re really clear on your business objectives, you’ll all be pulling in the same direction’.

Watch the fullPR & Marketing: The Ultimate Power Couple? webinar here for more on integrating your comms functions.

The white paper, ‘Trends in the integration of marketing and public relations’ , can be downloaded here.

This is how journalists want you to reply to their requests

PRs: this is how journalists want you to help with their requests

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Answering requests from journalists for comment, launch details or products for review should be pretty easy, right?

A myriad of media professionals from across the UK media send requests straight through to the inboxes of relevant PRs with the Journalists Enquiry Service every day. That means plenty of opportunities to get it right, but taking even one chance on sending something irrelevant can result in a very annoyed journalist. Are you replying with what journos are actually asking for?

Find out more about the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service and book a demo here.

To make sure your replies are relevant, here are dos and don’ts from three journalists writing for national, regional, consumer and trade titles regularly using the service:

Samantha Brick, freelance journalist for titles including the Daily Mail and The Sun…
Do: ‘Email is best for getting in touch, WhatsApp okay in an emergency/deadline.’

Don’t: ‘Phone out of the blue (I usually have interviews lined up in the day).’

Useful PRs? ‘Specialist PRs who work in the wellness/spiritual world are fantastic. They send case studies and information that I can – and do – use and that’s because they read what I write.’

One more thing: ‘Most PRs who get in touch with me have a good idea of what I do and offer only appropriate press releases, profiles of individuals – thanks!’

A freelance journalist and columnist for consumer magazines…
Do: ‘Read the request in full and answer the request itself rather than just sending something over. Be as specific as possible in your response. “I have a couple of experts; shall I send over” probably won’t receive a response if I have asked for experts in the request… just send the suggestions from the get-go with information about what you have sent is relevant to what I am working on. Sometimes journalist receive so many responses that there really isn’t time to respond to vague or irrelevant emails.’

Don’t: ‘Follow up super quickly… I understand why you do this, but usually it takes time to get back to people especially as journalists have to speak to editors, etc, and figure out which suggestions from the enquiry work best. Also, please do not send stuff that is irrelevant to the query unless there is a REALLY good reason for it.’

Useful PRs? ‘They explain who they are, who they are working for, why what they are sending is relevant and information on what a potential interviewee will speak about or even some quotes to use… or what they can provide. Very simple and easy.’

One more thing: ‘Even if you have a journalist’s number do not call them or text them without their permission. Not okay!’

An interiors journalist writing for the Metro…
Do: ‘Read the callout! Often there are specific requests and details that don’t work if not in the reply. A specific pic, detail, etc. Maybe 30% of replies I get aren’t relevant or fit at all. When there is 100 replies to go through, this can mean half hour wasted.

‘Make sure the person is available, too. It can be a bit chicken-and-egg but often I get replies from people where, say, I’m looking for someone who has bought a first home. After a week of back-and-forth they tell me actually that person doesn’t want to talk property…

‘Have everything ready, if poss. If I need a great pic to go with it, if this takes two weeks to source it might fall to the bottom of the pile!’

Don’t: ‘Send tenuously linked (or not linked at all) ideas. I’m looking for a sportsperson for interview so sending a press release on a new nutri bar doesn’t really help me.’

Useful PRs? ‘Anyone who doesn’t need to check with a dozen people to get a green light, then put five people to oversee a zoom call. I like it when PRs show confidence in their clients and work with me to get it all out the way as soon as poss. As a freelancer, you don’t get paid for endlessly chasing.’

One more thing… ‘RS is a great service and without it and all the PRs signed up I’m not sure how I would do my job tbh, so keep up the great work!’

Want to get the most out of the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service? Here is more advice on how to respond to requests from journalists as well as reasons to try the service before searching #JournoRequest on Twitter.

CIPR Communicating in a Crisis

CIPR celebrates the value of PR with publication of ‘Communicating in a Crisis’

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The Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) is showcasing the strategic value of PR to organisations with the release of its new guide ‘Communicating in a Crisis’.

21 case studies – entries from the 2021 CIPR Excellence Awards’ Best COVID Response category – detail the way organisations utilised public relations to manage crisis and includes tips for businesses on making the most of their own PR teams.

The award-winning case studies featured include:

– King’s College London & ZOE (Giving scientists real-time data to fight COVID-19
– NHS in the North East and North Cumbria (The Great North NHS Comms Network
– Lloyds Banking Group (Helping Britain Recover)
– Scouts #TheGreatIndoors (The Scouts’ response to COVID-19)
– AstraZeneca (Emerging strong from the pandemic)
– Liberty Communications Limited (Tech for good – hacking for humanity)
– Ascenti (Using health and wellbeing to support staff returning to work after lockdown)
– University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust (Communications: a critical role in an effective response

Examples of valuable work done by the featured comms teams include their fight against misinformation, uniting remote teams, vaccine rollout support, and adapting to a changing economic environment.

‘The breadth of case studies in this guide demonstrates how public relations enables organisations to confidently communicate through difficult times,’ said CIPR President Rachel Roberts.

‘This guide demonstrates the versatility of public relations and how irrespective of the challenge faced by organisations, communications consistently acts as the bridge to enable organisations to inform and reassure their stakeholders. This guide will act as a great resource for all PR professionals as they scenario plan for the future and is a welcome addition to our industry knowledge resource.’

CIPR’s Alastair McCapra said:

‘PR professionals have shown what can be achieved in the midst of an overwhelming crisis. Now, however, the world has shifted again. We [had] all believed that COVID-19 was something that would leave scars but something that as a society we would be able to put behind us and return to normal. From the vantage point of early 2022, perspectives are now shifting on this.

‘COVID-19 has taught the world many lessons, one of the lasting ones must be that the resilience and power of communications professionals should never be doubted.’

The full ‘Communicating in a Crisis’ report from CIPR can be downloaded here on the website.

For more on managing communications effectively during difficult times, read this guest post from Onyx Health’s managing director Karen Winterhalter on learning the lessons from the COVID-19 crisis.

B2B PR Strategy

12 ways to maximise your B2B PR strategy

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B2B PR doesn’t often grab the headlines, especially when it is compared to what is seen (incorrectly) as more creative consumer communications. But the benefits of good PR for business to business activities are plentiful, and clear to everyone working in this industry both in-house and in agency.

To gather the best expert advice for anyone putting together a B2B public relations strategy, we submitted an enquiry through the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service. The response was enormous, and very clear – B2B PR is valuable and for many businesses, vital to their success.

James Murray, client services manager at Definition Agency spelled it out quite simply: ‘PR is about building brand awareness so organisations feel comfortable aligning themselves with you. After all, brand trust is an important part of the buying decision.’

Trust is at the heart of every relationship, and relationships are what PR are all about. As Claire Lamb, director at B2B agency Skout said: ‘A B2B relationship marketing renaissance is coming. Companies need to get human interaction back into their businesses. And remember, people don’t want to be sold to, they want to be helped.’

While some of this advice may prove valuable for all PR, B2B requires special attention. Sarah Carpin, head of PR for Spike explained: ‘Effective B2B coverage, whether it be coverage for brands looking to increase their wholesale client base, or to position themselves as respected and trusted brands within their sector, needs specialist management. B2B PR also covers things like non-competing brand collaborations and charity partnerships, providing client support at trade shows and conferences; hosting customer networking events; submitting award entries and supplying relevant content for LinkedIn, blogs and email newsletters.’

Without further ado, here are 12 tips to improve your B2B PR strategy:

Think about your business strategy
‘A well-thought out, strategically driven media relations programme that’s closely aligned with your business goals will deliver impact, credibility and authenticity, drive loyalty and communicate values. You want the reaction from your customers that they see you “all over everywhere”. If you’re front of mind, you’ll be first on the call list.’ – Felicity Read, managing director, Leapfrog PR

‘It all begins with your objectives – tell us what they are, and we’ll deliver a holistic strategy which is measurable. That’s because we may love words, but we’re big fans of data too. Every decision we make and piece of content we write, all loops back to those long-term ambitions.’ – Katie Mallinson, founder and MD at Scriba PR

‘As a business, pretty much everything you do is public relations so connecting your business strategy with your PR strategy will help you create impactful campaigns that communicate the right messages to the right people at the right time. It will also make you aware of new opportunities while keeping you ahead of the competition.’ – Anastasia Psarra, account director, Cerub PR

Connect through thought leadership
‘When crafting a B2B PR strategy, it’s important not to forget that people buy from people. B2B PR provides an invaluable opportunity for businesses to authentically connect with their target customers through thought-leadership.’ – Julia Clements Roche, Write Thought Communications

‘Thought leadership remains crucial to B2B PR strategies, as it helps to build trust, credibility and influences brand perception and purchasing decisions. To make an impact, thought leadership needs to be original and deliver real value and expertise to the intended audience.’ – Gemma Eccleston, associate director at PR Agency One

‘A strong thought leadership led public relations campaign helps businesses to get heard above the background noise and create brand awareness that amplifies other marketing campaign elements, while also providing critical ‘air cover’ to the sales campaign.’ – Ashley Carr, founder and managing director, at Neo PR

Build up internal profiles and personal brands
‘Contributing articles, making yourself available for comment and securing interview and podcast opportunities will all help to build your organisation as a trusted source of information and opinion and hopefully someone that other companies will want to consider doing business with.’ – The PR Team at Progeny

‘Newsrooms are shrinking, content is increasing digitally and editors are looking for vendor neutral thought leadership bylines on an ongoing basis. If you have subject matter experts on your team, you are missing a huge PR opportunity if you are not writing and having your PR agency place these articles with your target media.’ – Joanne Hogue, partner at Smart Connections PR

‘Think about smaller-scale, but potentially more effective, comment opportunities around industry news and trends. Although the client may not have a huge pull to their name, and may not get featured in nationals, don’t forget to send these insider comments to lesser-known, but still extremely valuable, industry-relevant blogs.’ – Lydia German, marketing and outreach coordinator at Tao Digital Marketing

Think digitally
‘Join things up. B2B can provide fundamental support to other marketing functions, such as lead gen and SEO, so make sure you fully leverage the opportunities available.’ – Louise Findlay-Wilson, funder and managing director of Energy PR

‘Not only does digital PR help with building brand awareness, but it can also be used to increase the overall domain rating of your website, drive traffic to specific product pages and help to rank above your competitors for certain terms.’ – Chloe Deans, PR and content manager at Access Mintsoft

‘Over 70% of B2B purchase decisions start with a search, according to Google. Allow PR to do what it can do best – leverage relationships, create link-worthy PR stories and earn coverage with links.’ – Proactive PR, which specialises in B2B technology PR

Make your content work for you
‘PR is not an isolated tool – amplification is a core part of any PR strategy. Simply sending out a press release or a thought-leadership article is not enough. It deserves more. So, make sure you’re using your other assets – your blog, social, email – to amplify that message to your core audience. Make your content work as hard for you as possible.’ – Tom Bestwick, content marketing and PR consultant at Hallam

Keep it simple
‘Make your copy to the point, jargon free and easy to understand. If the journo has spent three years writing for Coil Winding Intl and then moves to Mobile Europe as feature editor, they are not going to understand the importance of the 5G frequency spectrum for connecting to multiple IOT devices in the first few months. Guide them.’ – Mark Casey, founder and CEO of Dais Comms

‘Simplicity is at the heart of B2B PR. Not simplistic ideas or lazy thinking, but the ability to make complex and nuanced information understandable. Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex. It takes a touch of genius – and a lot of courage – to move in the opposite direction.’ – Lynsey Barry, co-founder of B2B PR agency Five not 10

Provide context in your content
‘We’ve found that a greater focus on macroeconomic data helps. Adding more background to communications can help clients make sense of what’s happening in the wider world and how the service/product you are marketing resonates in context. We’ve been focusing on this over the past year and saw an almost 50% increase in coverage in 2021 as a result of this and other actions.’ – Leor Franks, business development & marketing director at Kingsley Napley LLP

Be creative and collaborate
‘Reach out to other brands who aren’t direct competitors but whose service offering can interlink with yours. At the very least, propose a blog post exchange. Or go bigger with a podcast/webinar!’ – Heather Wilkinson, content manager, Addition

‘There are now various mainstream examples of B2B brands being as creative, if not more, as their B2C counterparts. The likes of Slack, Salesforce and NICE are all investing huge sums in ad space that would historically be reserved for B2C brands, often with big name celebrity endorsements. So, you shouldn’t feel restricted in your creativity as a B2B brand.’ – Lee Simpson, account director at Fourth Day PR

Uncover opportunities in your data
‘If content is king, data is queen. Many B2B companies are already sitting on a wealth of useful data that can be used for PR. Highlighting product/service trends, regional variations or industry insights within a particular targeted sector is usually really appreciated by journalists and has the resulting effect of positioning the organisation involved as an expert on the subject.’ – Ali Cort, client services director, Browser Media

‘Data is your friend: Make the most of the research and the data team. Find out what they can pull from customer experience or from the back end of the site and see if there is a story within it.’ – Jodie Harris, head of digital PR at www.BlueArray.co.uk

Maximise your social channels
‘Social media can be your biggest asset. A little bit can go an awful long way to drive additional reach and engagement with a brand, if you get your strategy right. Don’t let clients tell you their audience isn’t on social – they just haven’t found them yet.’ – Louise Watson-Dowell, PR & digital strategy director at Definition

Understand your audiences
‘Really understanding your audience — PR at Degreed is about building our authority as a market leader. We cannot achieve this if we aren’t hyper-focused on the major opportunities and pain points facing our target market today. Our PR outreach is global, so instead of a one-size-fits-all approach, we tailor everything to each region including our angles, research, experts, and even our timings.’ – Jade Emmons PR manager at Degreed

‘Know your verticals – B2B brands often have very specific sectors they’re selling into and the message and offering may change wildly from sector to sector. As a PR professional, you must be able to adapt the message and adapt your pitch to secure coverage in a range of publications, across different verticals.’ – David Clare, head of PR at B2B tech marketing agency Fox Agency

Adapt for a sectorised approach
‘In the property sector, the best B2B results often come from integrated corporate and consumer campaigns, with audiences sourcing news and information from a range of sources.

‘Whether developers, agents, funds, charities or other, all organisations working in real estate need to earn trust from their stakeholders to achieve their objectives – if you’re considering whether to grant planning permission or invest millions, that market-wide reputation really matters to seal the deal. That means B2B PR in the property sector needs to ensure you’re building authenticity in your brand, in everything that you do, whether it’s how you show up in your audience’s LinkedIn feed and your share of voice in the investor circuit to what is being said about you or your projects in the weekend papers they read, by an influencer they trust or by your customers.’ – Laura Leggetter, one of SEC Newgate UK’s heads of communications

For more information on how Vuelio can help your B2B public relations and marketing, find out more here.

Want to try out the Journalist Enquiry Service for yourself? Start contributing relevant data, expert comment, product news and much more to the UK media – book a demo.

Brand personality

How to showcase your brand’s personality

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This is a guest post from EverBold marketing executive Orla McCormack.

If you asked a marketing director or public relations manager what is meant by the term ‘brand personality’ twenty years ago, you may have got a response along the lines of, ‘What did you put in your coffee this morning?’

Nowadays, you are more likely to come across a human being lacking in personality traits rather than a brand that lacks them. Brand personality is a central focus for all marketing and public relations efforts of any brand looking to stand out among the crowd.

Here are some tips on how you can best portray the personality of a brand within a competitive sector, using the car insurance industry as an example.

Identifying and defining your brand personality
Just as an individual’s personality affects how others view them, your brand personality will determine how your customers view your brand. Therefore, it’s important that you strategically outline the traits of your brand’s personality from the get-go, rather than leaving the development of the brand personality to chance. So, the first thing you should ask yourself is simply, ‘Who are you?’ and ‘What are your core goals?’

Look: Brand appearance
Sectors like insurance can be perceived as quite boring and mundane – a task that requires lots of paperwork. But with the right brand appearance, it could be aligned with the liberation of being able to travel anywhere we like, alongside the security of knowing you’re covered. For our work with MissQuote.ie, for example, we use fun, bright and bold colours – orange, pink and white.

Sound: Brand voice
The next thing to identify is the tone of voice of the brand; in other words, how do we want to be heard? The voice of your brand contributes significantly to the perception of the brand personality. Should your tone of voice be formal or casual? Serious or funny? Traditional or on trend?

Once you have decided the tone of your brand’s voice, it is critical to keep the sound of your voice consistent – consistency is essentially the only way to build a recognisable and memorable voice.

Action: Brand behavior
Once you have established the appearance and voice of your brand, you need to start emulating this defined sound and look within the behaviour of your brand. The brand behaviour is demonstrated through the way in which your brand interacts with real customers. Essentially, you need to show that your brand can walk the walk. Engaging with your community online and offline through the content you post on social media, sponsorships and online interactions are all fantastic ways to engage with the brand’s community.

It’s vital to ensure that the content you are posting to your social media channels is emulating the brand’s personality; this could be funny, yet relevant memes, question polls and compelling blogs. You should also put real effort into replying to messages, comments and posts from social media followers, with all comments consistently relaying the brand voice.

Those working in the marketing, comms or public relations departments of any company, big or small, that operate within a competitive industry will appreciate how difficult it can be to get your brand to stand out among the rest. Consumers are more likely to trust and engage with a brand that resembles traits of their own personality. Therefore, it is important to really focus on the target market of the brand when defining your brand personality. Ultimately, it’s better to have a defined personality rather than one that is undefined and unheard, even if it means you won’t catch every fish in the pond.

For ensuring your brand is finding the right audience, book a demo of Vuelio’s monitoring, insights and media database solutions.

Want more on brand personality? Here are 3 tips for keeping your brand consistent across social media platforms , top tips for finding an effective tone of voice for your online brand and how to pick the right ambassador for your brand.

How to tackle vague requests from journalists

How to tackle vague requests from journalists

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While the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service enables the UK media to send out targeted requests to PR and comms professionals, sometimes exact detail on what would be most useful to them isn’t included.

If you’ve received a vague but intriguing request from a journalist, here is how to approach it.

1) Check all of the information that is available to you
When filling in the Journalist Enquiry Service form, a journalist has space to add plenty of detail on what they’re looking for in the ‘Query’ field but, like PRs, journalists are often working to set deadlines and might not have time to include everything. That can occasionally mean a short and slightly vague description of what they want coming to your inbox.

However, there will be useful detail included in the request. Enquiries sent out via the Journalist Enquiry Service have to include certain details before they’re distributed to the PRs signed up to receive them – giving you a good start on determining their relevance to you, even without a lengthily-written Query section.

When a journalist fills out the form, they will have picked out what they’re ‘Looking for’:

What journalists are looking for

They will also have picked from the ‘Select categories’ section, choosing which PR sectors they want to receive contributions from for the request (which will be decided by the sectors and topics they’re writing about as well as the audiences their content is being written for – meaning you’ll know if their audience is also likely to be yours):

Categories on the Journalist Enquiry Service

If you’ve received the request, there’s a good chance you can help, but there are other elements to check first:

Don’t: Pitch news about products, even if you think it might be related to their topic. Quotes and expertise are what is being asked for here – they aren’t working on a product piece this time.

Do: Offer time with a person who can offer expertise, obviously, but you could also send over a recent press release with information about a related project your expert is working on, with how journalists can get in touch.

2) React to their deadline
Dreaded deadlines – everyone working in the creative industries has them. And as in comms, the research that goes into the writing/filming/production of a piece or project for a journalist has its very own timeline, separate from the filing of the finished piece, and its sharing with the wider world.

The deadline a journalist adds to a request distributed via the Journalist Enquiry Service will be for the research gathering part of their piece – not for the filing or the finishing. That doesn’t mean you have extra time to play with when collaborating with them.

Don’t: Offer something you won’t definitely, absolutely be able to provide in time for the journalist to finish and file their piece with their editor. Check your client is available before you arrange a time to call, make sure you can post a product to the journalist before they need to hit ‘send’ on their copy. A journalist will remember a PR who has let them down.

Do: Be clear about what exactly you can provide and when, making sure it’s before the deadline on the enquiry. ‘I might be able to to…’ won’t work – a journalist isn’t likely to take a chance on a lead that won’t lead to anything.

3) Use the opportunity to introduce yourself as a useful connection – not as a hindrance
The Journalist Enquiry Service is a great first step for creating a connection with media contacts you want to keep working with. Like introducing yourself in person, first impression is important. You might not know at the start exactly what the journalist wants, but be cautious and clever with your introduction.

Don’t: One thing to never do is send something only very vaguely connected to the subject the journalist is writing about. It’s too much of a long-shot. Rather than be filed away for another day, the irrelevant press release, product info or offer of expertise could get you added to a ‘not a helpful PR – possible spammer’ list in the journalist’s memory bank, or even straight-up blocked from their inbox.

Do: If the journalist is someone you’d love to work with, but this request they’ve sent just doesn’t seem to be for you? Hold back this time – there will be another request you can help with in future.

Not signed up to receive requests from the UK media via the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service yet? Book a demo here, and check out why it might be more effective for you than searching #JournoRequest on social media.

BBC

PR needs the BBC

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Dead cat or party policy, the very real threat to end the BBC licence fee announced by culture secretary Nadine Dorries – before she partially backtracked – should be a concern to all in PR.

The announced two-year freeze to the BBC licence fee will impact its output, and director general Tim Davie has said ‘everything’s on the agenda’, including news and programming. While commentary on the small amount of money the freeze is saving each household – compared to the costs of rising energy bills or tax changes – suggests this move was politically motivated during ‘partygate’, the conversation around BBC reform and its replacement has been present in Westminster for many years.

Jessica Morgan, owner of Carnsight Communications, believes the end of the BBC ‘Would be devastating for so many.’ She added: ‘We are so lucky to have a quality national broadcaster in the BBC and I’ve benefited from it so much, both professionally and personally.’

The BBC is by no means perfect, questions continue to be raised on its editorial position on certain subjects, and its funding model is not as progressive as public broadcasters in some neighbouring countries. But it has the biggest audience, its output and content streams are vast and, though it is often criticised for not achieving it, the corporation is required to be impartial and deliver content without commercial association.

This is one of the reasons the BBC gets such a hard time in much of the press – in a digital age, it has become one of the news sector’s biggest competitors and it is not reliant on consumer payment to justify its content.

But for PR and comms professionals, this should be seen as one of its virtues.

Jessica said: ‘It’s still incredibly discerning – you always have to have a very strong angle to be featured, and I think that’s fantastic. No commercial tie ups ever come into it, certainly within the UK, and I think that makes the content all the more powerful.’

PR rightly focuses on the increasing threat of mis and disinformation, audience trust and journalistic independence. The BBC, despite its flaws, generally manages these issues to a high standard and trust in the organisation remains high. Securing PR coverage with the BBC means your story has passed quality control and will have a greater impact on your target audience.

And if your target audience is niche, which organisation is better able to serve them appropriate content than the BBC? Not needing consumer payment for content cuts both ways in this respect. All things to all people is usually a terrible approach – and the BBC has at times wildly missed the mark – but it is required to serve as much of the population as possible, often giving unique or underrepresented communities a greater platform.

Media strategist and How to make your company famous author Jon Card points to niche audiences as something that would be lost if the licence fee was scrapped: ‘The BBC produces such a broad range of content any reduction in its output would spell bad news for people in comms and PR.

‘It covers a lot of areas which are either quite niche or the public interest. I very much doubt the commercial sector would fill these voids if it stopped doing that.’

The BBC is under threat but 2027 is still a long way off and PR and communications is well placed to support and campaign for improvements to the BBC now, so it can benefit from the BBC of the future.

As Jon concluded: ‘Overall, we are better off for it and anyone working in media would miss it.’

Vuelio media monitoring covers BBC news and programming as well as every other media outlet and publisher.

Getting through Blue Monday and beyond in PR and comms

Getting through Blue Monday and beyond

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While the term ‘Blue Monday’ has no real basis in fact, you might be feeling extra blue today. It’s January, we’re in year three of a global pandemic and PR just happens to be an incredibly stressful industry at the best of times.

Looking out for the mental wellbeing of your colleagues and employees can help take the blue-filter off of the day-to-day – here are just some industry initiatives helping to support mental wellbeing. Have the best Blue Monday you can, everyone.

Flexibility
‘I always encourage my employees to go for a walk and stretch their legs,’ says Marketing Signals’ managing director Gareth Hoyle.

‘Although our mantra is “work from anywhere”, most of the team work from home, which can start to take its toll on your mental health if you don’t take regular breaks, so I’m happy for my team to close their laptops whenever they need to. Whether it’s to go for a walk, pick the kids up, take a long lunch or just switch off. Doing this helps improve my employees’ wellbeing and makes sure that everyone is taking the time they need to relax out of hours.’

Team Bonding
Missing being in close enough proximity to your team mates to steal post-it notes can be tough – that’s where online groups come in:

‘23red recently set up a wellbeing working group,’ says PR communications assistant Dylan Brown. ‘On Tuesday 18 January, following Blue Monday, 23red have enlisted the help of environmental drag artist Timberlina, where they will be having a fun full agency virtual bingo session to brighten up staff. 23red were really keen to lift the mood when working from home and decided to recently send all members of staff a peace lily to brighten up workspaces.’

Glass Digital also encourages relationship building outside of work:

‘Some of our teams get together every week to deliver a Fri-YAY session, involving members of the team going round to say who they are proud of in the company that week and what they are proud of themselves for. This not only boosts morale, but allows people to reflect on the good work they’ve done that week.’

Bootcamps
Fox Agency has introduced plenty of wellbeing initiatives to keep the team in tip-top mental shape, according to senior operations manager Natalie Noble:

‘We offer weekly bootcamp style personal training sessions in worktime, now held remotely to ensure all can join. We also do yoga, meditation, mindfulness and even gong sound bath therapy sessions to help us find a little zen in the sometimes hectic agency world.

‘There’s a 24-hour confidential helpline for people to get help on any matter, and as our trained mental health first aider, I am always available to chat with colleagues.’

Cake!
‘When we started WFH we would have ‘Coffee & Cake’ days,’ says Francesca De Cata, marketing and communications executive at Mr Lee’s Pure Foods. ‘We would jump on a call at 10 in the morning every Wednesday and talk about anything that was not work-related. We also arranged quite a few events online; we celebrated Pancake Day by having breakfast on a call, we had online lunch breaks together and we also did a little Easter activity online.’

Learning
‘For this Blue Monday, SEO agency Blue Array, are making it Blue Array Monday instead,’ says Jodie Harris. ‘Each week, the agency has an all-hands meeting, but this Monday’s will be a special one, as it’ll include recent industry news and guest speaker, Adnan Ebrahim, co-founder of a new mental health app called MindLabs.

‘These meetings are normally for Blue Array employees only, but for Blue Monday, it will be open to anyone in the industry to attend. Afterwards, we can grab a virtual coffee and have an industry catch-up. For anyone who would like to attend, see this post for details.’

Music
‘We have a flexible working model in place, so we’re always looking at new ways we can stay connected when working remotely and still feel the benefits of our office culture that has been built over 20 years,’ says Liz Lean PR’s account manager and culture & welfare officer Shona Byrne.

‘For Blue Monday, we’re treating the team to a proper coffee on us and we will then regroup for a virtual coffee break to discuss why January doesn’t have to be depressing. The team has also built a motivational playlist to blast loud and proud during the day (which can be found by searching LLPR Team Motivation Playlist on Spotify).’

Putting people first
‘Gone are the days when organisations can afford to pay lip service to mental health – we have a duty to recognise colleagues as people, not just employees,’ believes Grace French, Head of Culture at Stand.

‘Our evidence-based approach to mental health is proactive, not just reactive. We provide £250 annually to spend on wellness, however you define it. We embrace flexible and hybrid working. Our mental health first aiders lead activity to maintain positive wellbeing and provide support. Everyone has a tailored Wellness Action Plan (an evidence-based resource backed by charity Mind) detailing how they can maintain positive mental health at work. A colleague-led approach helps ensure support is authentic and impactful.’

Charity
Helping others helps everyone, believes the team at Full Fat:

‘We donate time and money to charities and organisations like The Trussel Trust and Show Racism the Red Card,’ says senior account manager Cheryl Chia. ‘We also work pro bono with charities each year. It brings staff together with a common aim to do good. We’ve also organised volunteer days and external workshops with charities such as LGBTQ+ ‘Not a Phase’ for a recent trans-inclusivity talk.’

Sleep
Did you get enough zzzs over the weekend? HR manager Greg Diamond at Finn Partners encourages it:

‘We have an agency Wellness Collaborative to coordinate activities and information for employees aligned to the five pillars of wellness: a good night’s sleep; a sense of community; exercise; healthy foods; and stress reduction.’

For help with getting back into work in January, check out advice from mental health practitioners and your peers in PR here as well as our accessmatters session with Katie Phillips, KDP Coaching & Consulting on avoiding burnout.

Top 10 PR and comms guest posts from 2021

10 top PR and communications guest posts of 2021

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Upskilling and investing in yourself is always worthwhile, and what better time to get started than the beginning of a new year?

Our PR and comms community shared plenty of know-how and experience throughout 2021 – here are ten of our top guest posts from practitioners on topics including digital campaigning, influencer marketing and ESG.

1. How to nail a PR story to an awareness day
There are over 1,500 awareness days each year – how do you determine which ones to include in your content plan? From Gorgeous Grandma to Lost Sock Memorial Day, Bottle PR’s lead publisher Jamie Wilson highlights how to pick out the most interesting and relevant examples for your, and your clients’, upcoming projects.

2. Ideation tips for successful digital PR campaigns
Are your creative juices running a little dry at this time of year? Inspiration doesn’t have to come from places particularly grand or fateful – practical planning works well, too. I-COM’s digital PR strategist Chloe Rowlands shares steps to include in your ideation process and some evergreen topics to get you started.

3. Reactive PR: Turning something out of nothing
Reactive PR isn’t just for counteracting brand or celebrity scandals – it’s a skill worth having in every PR’s toolbox, believes Fibre’s digital PR specialist Alice Wilks. Boost your company’s online presence and improve your own SEO prowess by taking notes from this guest post on what can be a positive and proactive approach.

4. Influencer marketing: 5 dos and don’ts
The influencer marketing industry continues to grow, despite occasional controversy regarding creators, their processes and differences to ‘traditional’ media professionals and journalists. Investment in influencers is smart strategy, as is avoiding the potential pitfalls – here Smoking Gun’s managing director Rick Gutteridge lists the dos and don’ts.

5. 4 reasons why introverts make great PRs
An enduring stereotype about public relations is that the industry is made up of extroverts ready to network at a moment’s notice – Prezzybox’s Alex Spencer advocates for the introverts among our ranks, pointing out why there’s room for everyone in the creative industries.

6. Building on the lessons of 2020 for 2021’s opportunities in PR and communications
Working through a pandemic (we managed to get through half of this post without mentioning it) has been a very steep learning curve for the majority of us, who hadn’t faced times as stressful or unpredictable in our professional lives before. With the lessons to be learned came opportunities, writes Kerry Sheehan in this guest post.

7. Stress Awareness Month: How to support staff wellbeing
And on the subject of stress (another enduring issue in PR and comms), this piece from Hotwire’s head of people and culture Kam White has ideas for managing how it impacts you and your team. Stress Awareness Month isn’t until April, but it’s never too early to get a start on looking out for yourself and your colleagues.

8. How to implement a PR strategy for a local charity
‘More than ever before, it matters to do good things, not just for your clients, but for those who need it the most’ believes Spike’s PR & Outreach Manager Andre Gwilliam, whose step-by-step guide to working with a local charity explains how to make the most of your PR skillset to help others in your community.

9. 6 reasons why ESG is something comms should care about
Environmental, Social and Governance – a huge trend for last year in comms, and one you definitely need to care about this year, too. The Media Foundry’s associate director Kat Jackson has the main reasons ESG isn’t just a trendy initialism.

10. How to build a close-knit team when working from different places
Hybrid working has changed the way teams interact – is it really possible to form lasting bonds with your colleagues when water cooler conversations about Bake Off aren’t possible? Yes, says Degreed’s global head of comms, content & client advocacy teams Sarah Danzl – read up on how teamwork really can make the dream work (for business-related matters, and important TV catch-ups).

Have knowledge you’d like to share with others working in the PR and comms industry as part of our PR Club? Get in touch: [email protected].

Stay connected with the media and up-to-date with the latest trends and big stories – find out more about the Vuelio Media Database here.

Challenges and triumphs of 2021 in comms

What were the biggest challenges and triumphs for comms in 2021?

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And we thought 2020 in comms, marketing and PR was difficult – 2021 brought yet more challenges, forcing everyone to adapt to the constantly changing environment we found ourselves in.

In this part of our series of features looking back at this year, and forward to the next, seven practitioners from across the industry share what they saw as the biggest challenges of 2021 and some of the organisations, people and brands that did great work in 2021.

Sarah Waddington, Astute.Work and #FuturePRoof
Main challenges of 2021?
‘The biggest challenge for comms practitioners this year has been battling fatigue. Working practices and client expectations have changed throughout the pandemic, in part through people working from home, and it seems to have exacerbated the ‘always on’ culture we’ve been trying to move away from. The biggest challenge for the year ahead will be managing this and re-establishing boundaries so the workplace is a happy and healthy one.’

Comms winners this year?
‘I thought the Don’t Be That Guy video by Police Scotland was particularly well thought out and timed in the wake of the murder of Sarah Everard and following the wave of anger up and down the country relating to violence against women. It actually looked at the cause of the problem, rather than place responsibility onto women to stay safe.’

Sudha Singh, The Purpose Room
Main challenges of 2021?
‘The world has changed and like everyone else comms practitioners have had to adapt to the fast-changing world. I think the biggest challenge has been to understand how best we can serve our clients’ needs, help them to stay authentic and relevant. The other big challenge was providing adequate support to the disparate (and ever evolving) needs of team members and employees.’

Comms winners this year?
‘Brands that were true to their core purpose and were authentic were the winners – Zoom, IKEA, UK Gov Comms (…not politicians), Deliveroo, football campaign against racism, Raheem Sterling’s campaign, and the Aldi Free Cuthbert campaign.’

Gavin Devine, Park Street Partners
Main challenges of 2021?
‘Maintaining focus has been really difficult in 2021. The year has been a rollercoaster of lockdowns and normality, international travel being impossible and then opening up, office working prohibited, frowned upon and then encouraged. It hasn’t always been easy to know how in practice to deliver for clients and to keep colleagues motivated and positive. These challenges are not unique to comms but we perhaps feel them particularly acutely because often we have been called in to help clients shape and communicate their responses to COVID-19. Entering more of a ‘steady state’ of near-normality in the last couple of months has been an enormous relief.’

Comms winners this year?
‘I can think of so many individuals and organisations who had a bad year in terms of comms in 2021. There were few real winners, although it would be hard to argue that Kate Bingham and Nadhim Zahawi didn’t have a great year in terms of their personal ‘brands’.’

Emmanuel Ofosu-Appiah, Mercer
Main challenges of 2021?
‘One clear challenge has been constant news flow and sheer amount of change since the pandemic hit. This has made it harder for clients and stakeholders stories to penetrate into the mainstream. PRs really need to think about what they are sharing externally and what key messages they want to get across. There has also been a shift with organisations focusing more on ESG and sustainability issues which has required practitioners to think outside of the box to get their stories heard.’

Comms winners this year?
‘I was blow away by the FIFA and EA Sports campaign for The Kiyan Prince Foundation and QPR. It was a genius creative idea from Engine Group with such a strong and moving message following such an unfortunate incident. I know many young people will be inspired by the campaign.’

Anne Gregory, University of Huddersfield
Main challenges of 2021?
‘Resilience and stamina, given the relentless nature of the on-going crisis. Working remotely – the watercooler moments are so important to ‘temperature check’ the organisation, particularly what is happening internally. Major flop to digital/online working. Educating senior managers on how to be really competent in genuine communication and not talking in soundbites.’

Comms winners this year?
‘Pfizer, Unilever and health scientists!’

Tolu Rachel Akisanya, Ariatu PR
Main challenges of 2021?
‘Not just this year, but for several years now, is the industry has struggled with the ability – or lack of – to switch off. This has always been an issue, however with the pandemic and working from home, it’s been harder to separate work life and personal life. Especially when both happen in the same room now (my front room is both my office space and leisure space). Additionally, with the growth of new social media platforms and media outlets, it means we’re constantly consuming media, even in our downtime, which often means we never really ever switching off. Whether we consciously or subconsciously realise it, we’re always looking for the next opportunity or connecting with a new contact online or horizon scanning – it can sometimes be information overload.

‘However, this has led to a positive movement and we’ve seen the wider industry acknowledge this issue and work towards raising awareness, providing support and resources, and creating more open and wider discussions about how to improve the mental health and well-being of PR practitioners.’

Comms winners this year?
‘I’ve really enjoyed seeing the work Ariatu PR has done with podcasts, such as Broccoli Content and Coiled. In a market that is oversaturated, being able to ‘cut through the noise’ and deliver impactful campaigns, generate coverage (in the likes of the Financial Times and Stylist magazine) to raise awareness and lead to listeners, for shows that are not celebrity led, has been incredible.’

Stuart Thomson, BDB Pitmans
Main challenges of 2021?
‘In public affairs, we have had to put up with seemingly continuous outrage caused by the behaviour of some serving and former Parliamentarians and their lobbying activities. It has done little to help the reputation of politics or public affairs. The CIPR and PRCA have been very firm in their condemnation of the activities but sadly such behaviour damages us all.

‘A large part of public affairs is the development of relationships and, however good online activity is, there is nothing to really replace face-to-face interaction. The extended lockdown at the start of the year and now worries about another wave has curtailed that. We really do need to get back to normal in-person political activity.’

Comms winners this year?
‘The Beatles. The brand of a band that ceased to exist before even I was born continues to astound. The release of Peter Jackson’s Beatles documentary Get Back has been trailed and tantalised for more than a year building up on the anticipation of its release on Disney+. A great piece of communications.’

Read predictions for the trends PR and comms professionals can expect in 2022 here and start your campaign planning with Vuelio’s media, PR, public affairs and political services – find out more here.

International campaigns

Ensuring effective and successful communications across different cultures

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This is a guest post by Life Size‘s PR Intern Martha Lane.

If you’re running an international communications campaign, adapting your approach towards each individual audience is essential. However, this means much more than simply translating content into the appropriate language. Instead, a deep understanding of each of your target cultures must form the basis of your campaign. Here is how to achieve this and set your international communications campaign up for success.

Stage 1: Check the relevance of your topic in your target country
A good place to start is to dedicate some time to researching how the topic of your campaign is viewed in your target country. While it would be easy to assume that consensus on your topic is similar to your native country, this won’t necessarily be the case. Your research should provide answers to some key questions, such as:

– Is your topic widely discussed in the news there? Is it discussed by the mainstream media, or is it limited to industry press?
– What is the political importance of this topic? Is there any relevant legislation in place in your target country that you should be aware of?
– What are the current societal or environmental impacts and benefits relating to this topic? How do they meet the current discussion about the environment or other ongoing social issues?
– Has it received any negative press, or do you get the impression that it is a sensitive topic? If so, it would be worth offering a fresh perspective that can provide a positive spin on the topic.

It is worth noting that negative or lukewarm press coverage on your topic does not have to be a disadvantage. Rather, you can utilise your communications campaign to be one of the first to highlight the benefits of what you are offering, giving you a unique position in the target market.

This is also an excellent time to identify your audience and decide who will be the best group to direct your campaign in a particular country. Once you have identified who you are communicating with, you can move on to the next vital step: working out how to talk to them.

Stage 2: Take the time to understand the culture of your country
At this point, it’s essential to get to the very root of your target country’s culture, such as identifying the values and beliefs that form its basis. This may sound quite overwhelming, but some useful models can be used to break down cultures into a handful of the most important underlying characteristics.

Hofstede and Trompenaars are two cultural experts who have created models that, though built with business management in mind, are equally applicable in the world of international communications. Both see culture as existing on various spectrums, within which any culture can be placed with considerable accuracy. This way of quantifying culture makes the job of communicators slightly easier.

Of course, there is variation within cultures, so the models should be applied with a degree of caution to avoid stereotyping, as personal experiences within cultures create differentiation. But the research of these experts has found that there are some predictable ways in which people within a certain culture are the same, especially when it comes to the workplace, making them valuable guides.

Stage 3: Use research to adapt content to your culture
Having researched the reception of your topic in your country, now is the time to use the understanding you have gained from the cultural models to adapt your tone. Ask yourself, how does your audience want to be spoken to? This is a crucial stage of the process that requires thorough planning. It’s easy to lose your audience in the delivery of your campaign due to cultural misunderstanding, no matter how relevant your product or service is to them.

Final stage: Don’t forget the simple things
There are the more routine details of a communications campaign to consider that may seem obvious but can be easily missed when dealing with the more complex aspects. Before releasing content, make sure to consider:

– Translation: aside from making sure your communications are translated accurately into your target language, check the translation of your product or service – make sure it isn’t offensive or hasn’t got a confusing double-meaning.
– Time zone: what time are you sending out content for your campaign in your target country? Make sure you respect any time difference and different working days.
– Visual materials: the images you use as part of the campaign may also need to be adapted. For instance, make sure that images such as landscapes are relevant to your target country as they will then resonate more with the audience there.

Following all these steps should ensure that your international communications campaign will be a success. Admittedly, it can be a long and sometimes monotonous process. However, the potential negative impact if done incorrectly, and the high rewards if the time is taken to do so properly, make the thorough process outlined above worthwhile.

Connect with the right journalists, political contacts and influencers from around the world for your international campaigns with the Vuelio Media Database – find out more and book a demo. 

Combating COVID

Communications and Combating the Omicron Variant

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This is a guest post by Louise Flintoft, associate director at Onyx Health.

The UK’s public health is in a precarious position. We’ve all seen in the news that the Omicron COVID-19 variant has been identified as a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organization.

At the time of writing, there are still a lot of unknowns about the new variant. However, early indications are that it is likely to be more transmissible than the dominant Delta variant and that our existing vaccinations are less effective against it.

In response to the uncertainty, the Government has announced a series of new measures to reduce the spread of the new variant. These currently include compulsory facemasks for public transport and retail, expanding the booster jab programme to all UK adults, new requirements PCR tests and isolation for people entering the country, and ten-day quarantine for people in contact with an infected person

The last cycle of lockdowns and compulsory COVID-19 restriction prompted one of the biggest acts of civil obedience in our peacetime history. With new restrictions looming, the Government will need to communicate behaviour change again to avoid a potential crisis. At Onyx Health, we are healthcare communication specialists and have some ideas about how we use the power of PR to re-engage the public.

Fighting COVID-19 fatigue
Let’s be honest; we’re all sick and tired of the pandemic. The success of the Government’s initial vaccine rollout and the removal of official legal restrictions earlier in the year had led many people to conclude that it was mission accomplished. However, the threat has never gone away, and it risks getting worse again.

One of the biggest dangers from a public health communication perspective is that complacency, and an unwillingness to take the potential new threat seriously, derails the effectiveness of the new rules. Re-engaging the public will be essential to make the latest changes work in practice. There is also a balance to be struck between taking things seriously and avoiding mass panic. This needs a strong, emotionally resonant message that the public can connect with.

Encouraging people to get masked up and booster jabbed to save Christmas can link behaviour change to a shared desirable outcome. Last Christmas was tough for us all. We all want to make this year’s festive season better than the last.

Helping our healthcare heroes avoid a winter crisis
The NHS is always close to the nation’s heart, but this is especially true during a public health crisis. It is arguably the closest thing we have to a national religion. During the first lockdown, the weekly clap for healthcare workers brought the nation together to thank those frontline staff who risked their lives to help us through the pandemic.

Today, the NHS faces a perfect storm of a new COVID-19 variant, the seasonal spike in winter flu cases and a general public fed up with the pandemic. Calling on people to follow the rules to help our healthcare heroes has the potential to reconnect people with that shared sense of solidarity we saw at the beginning of the pandemic. People may be willing to go the extra mile to help those who got us through the COVID-19 crisis by caring for our friends and loved ones.

Accelerating booster jabs and getting people doubled dosed
The booster jab programme was originally targeted at the elderly and vulnerable to increase their immunity to COVID-19. This week, the Government announced that it will be extended to all adults over 18 in the UK. Problems beset the initial rollout of booster vaccines for complex reasons, including the rollout’s speed, limited uptake, and confusion over eligibility. The expansion of the programme magnifies the scale of the communication challenge.

There are specific audience demographics that require specialised targeting. Increasing the immunity of those most at-risk through medical education is a key priority. We need to reach out to the elderly, vulnerable and underrepresented groups using community groups, local champions and NGOs to foster grassroots engagement and build trust from the ground up.

Another big issue is getting younger people doubled dosed. The figures show that people aged 25-29 are more vaccine-resistant and statistically less likely to have taken up the offer of a single or double vaccine dose. Targeting young people through viral content, social media influencers and pop-cultural icons provides part of the answer to create a generational mindset change. Getting through the latest stage of the pandemic requires a renewed collective national effort; as communicators, we need to do our bit.

Keep track of the conversation in the media with Vuelio’s Media Monitoring services and our sister brand Pulsar’s series of social listening solutions. 

Anouska Leon and Rebecca Wagstaffe

PRCA relaunches Business Development Group

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The Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA) has relaunched its Business Development (BD) Group with co-chairs Rebecca Wagstaffe of 3 Monkeys Zeno and Anouska Leon of Richmond & Towers.

The relaunched group will aim to help PRCA members with business development activities by sharing materials on best practice, insight and opinion. Part of this will be its 7 December inaugural event with partner Ingenuity to explore the evolution of business development within the last 18 months as well as how agencies can make sure their channel strategy is right for attracting new business. Tickets for the free event can be booked here.

New co-chair Rebecca is the Head of Business Development & Marketing at 3 Monkeys Zeno, helping its European offices.

‘When it comes to agency growth, business development has always acted as the thread that ties together a company’s functions or departments,’ said Rebecca. ‘Coming out of the pandemic, our role as experts needs to be more sharp-focused than ever and I am very excited to co-chair this group, helping hone skills and best practice to develop the brightest minds in business development across our industry.’

Co-chair Anouska began her career in corporate sales before making the move into the creative industries. She moved to Richmond & Towers in 2014. Of the importance of the BD Group, she said:

‘Agency growth is always a top priority, but the last two years have shone a spotlight on Business Development like never before, proving once again that it is the lifeblood of agencies. During uncertain times, the going gets tough for BD professionals and the last 18 months threw a few curveballs our way with everything on Zoom, clients and prospects working from home and navigating the sensitivities of ‘selling’ during a global pandemic.

‘The inevitable consequence is ever more stringent procurement processes, budgets that need to ‘work harder’ and a focus on delivering tangible ROI.  I’m thrilled to have been invited to take up the position of co-chair of the PRCA Business Development Group during such an exciting period of change.’

Ingenuity’s CEO and founder Chris Kemp sees lots of opportunity for PRCA members:

‘As part of Ingenuity’s ongoing relationship with the PRCA, we’re thrilled to be working closely with the leading PR and Communications trade association to help their agency members understand the true potential of new business and B2B sales & marketing. We’ll be exploring the themes that are consistently of relevance to business development professionals, and to their agency’s growth potential.

‘Having worked with hundreds of leading agencies in our 16 years, and running 160+ pitches annually, we’ll be collating insights from both sides of the fence to deliver workshops around best-in-class agency shop windows, what brands are truly looking for in their partners, how to win pitches virtually and the evolution of effective channel strategies. This also coincides with a new chapter for our Events (link), of which PR, Social and Content will continue to be a focus next year.’

More information on the Business Development Group can be found here on the PRCA website. To book tickets for the 7 December event, find out more here.

To keep track of your business development, try Vuelio’s Stakeholder Management solutions – book a demo.

Alex Silver

PR Interview: Alex Silver, director of Alex Silver PR

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Moving from a career as a Junior Sister in the Casualty Ward to beauty PR extraordinaire probably isn’t the most common way of getting into comms, but it’s led to 25 years of industry success for Alex Silver and her beauty, celebrity and digital agency Alex Silver PR.

Having started her business from her kitchen table, Alex has been at the forefront of many star-studded events, red carpet moments and headline campaigns over the years. Alongside a passion for building start up brands into household names, Alex also happens to be the publicist for some well-known and long-established clients (including Dame Joan Collins, no less).

Read on for the lessons she’s learned on building strong relationships with the media, why inclusivity is so important for success, and what to do if your client hasn’t been behaving quite as they should…

What are the main lessons you’ve learned through your career?
Always have a plan B! Things can change with the drop of a hat so having a backup option and being able to think on your feet is essential in PR.

It’s not a done deal until the papers are signed – contracts and agreements can still fall through, even at the last stages of negotiations.

Credibility is everything – bringing credible experts to a campaign is like gold dust.

Don’t skip the venue recce. Even if you’ve been recommended a venue by a reputable source, I always recommend popping down to map out your event – you don’t want any nasty surprises on the big day.

How do you think the pandemic has changed comms, and are the changes here to stay?
Well, we’ve certainly all mastered the art of zoom-events, but joking aside, I believe the pandemic has helped shape a modern communication approach in many ways. Many companies (including press houses) are still testing the water when it comes to their new hybrid working arrangements, and I don’t think we’ll fully see the outcome of this until the dust from the pandemic settles.

In the meantime, communications should accommodate both in-person and online arrangements across meetings, events, launches, briefings and so on. Journalist contacts have shared that they enjoy online events as they don’t lose precious time travelling to/from venues and a recent influencer poll that we ran showed a 50/50 split in their popularity.

Celebrities are being increasingly held to account for bad behaviour/outdated views – what approach would you take with a high-profile client that runs into trouble with this?
Crisis management is at the core of many PR campaigns, whether you’re working with a celebrity or not. The art of addressing issues in a sensitive, effective and timely manner is an art that takes a carefully thought-out strategy.

It’s a case-by-case issue but sometimes it’s simply best to hold up your hands and apologise. Education and information on the topic at hand is key here – why has this caused upset and how can the talent become informed on this so that this doesn’t happen in the future.

Which high-profile celebrities/politicians/brands do you feel have really great PR teams (apart from your own clients, of course!)?
People change teams often and can make a blunder at any point so it’s hard to say, however I did see something recently that I was impressed by! At the end of October, Chief Exec and Founder of Spanx surprised employees with two first-class plane ticket and $10,000 each to celebrate the company’s $1.2billion deal with Blackstone. The announcement was filmed live on Instagram and showed employees crying with happiness. The news was quickly shared around the word on national news sites such as The Independent, Good Morning America, MSN and the New York Post. I think this was a very clever, effective, and of course, generous communication strategy. It certainly grabbed the headlines!

Which campaigns have you seen from big brands that have made you think ‘I wish I’d worked on that’?
I really loved the recent Dove Self Esteem Project. The campaign aimed to bring light to young people’s self esteem and help to raise awareness of the pressures that social media puts on developing minds. With a 15-year-old daughter, this really resonated with me and I’d loved to have been part of this campaign with Dove’s aim to have helped a quarter of a billion young people with educational courses by 2030.

Over your time in the industry, how have things improved for women practitioners?
Working within the beauty sector, the industry is saturated with women so, luckily, I haven’t felt being female ever held me back. I understand this is a big contrast to other sectors and that while some areas have drastically improved, there is still a lot to be done in order to close the gender equality gap.

What more needs to be done to make the industry more inclusive and welcoming, on gender, race and class?
An inclusive workplace culture is essential for a strong workforce of empowered employees. It needs to come from the top and I think the more people in power address these issues, speaking about them openly, the bigger changes we’re going to see. There’s so much that can and needs to be done. Everything from integrating inclusivity into core company values to building trust by encouraging a culture of frequent check-ins and creating safe spaces. There are small changes that everyone can do, no matter their company structure, and I think smaller companies need to incorporate this as much as larger ones.

How do you maintain good relationships with journalists?
Do your research! Journo friends often share frustrations at being pitched stories and items that would never fit within their column space. Keep up-to date with what your target journos are writing so that you can make your communications relevant and targeted. Building relationships is a hard balance in today’s climate; journalists are under more pressure and time constraints than ever. A catch up over zoom/coffee, carefully curated pitches and developing events/mailers that will attract attention, all go a long way.

It can be hard for people in PR to keep a healthy work/life balance – how do you manage this (If you do…)?
While there’s definitely a work-hard, play-hard culture in PR, I think it’s about striking balance in all areas of your life. I like to get up earlier in the week so that I can have a bit of ‘me’ time, I’ll kick off with a run around Primrose Hill with my puppy Bella or a yoga session. In the evenings you’ll either find me catching up with a friend over a cocktail (or two) or unwinding with my latest book in an aromatherapy bath. My advice? Find what works for you and block out that time for yourself!

What do you think the big trends will be for comms and PR in 2022?
Honesty, transparency and sustainability. Gone are the days when we printed out press releases and posted them out in thick paper packages! Journalists, influencers and celebrities are rightly conscious of the packaging brands are using. It’s the PR’s job to advise on the most sustainable, eco-friendly ways of gifting and sampling products. This is a theme I expect to see become even more prevalent in 2022 with brands delivering what consumers are striving for – products which don’t harm the planet in their making. Online sharing of files and information is here to stay. In the same vein, while gifting can be a super effective way of communicating new launches, USPs and brand values, items should be considered, useful and something that the receiver will actually want or use. We’re increasingly seeing brands choose to give a charitable donation in the receiver’s name and I think this is another trend which might grow in popularity next year.

Authenticity is also a big theme in beauty. Consumers are highly informed on ingredients, ethos and social purpose. PR communications need to be carefully structured to authentically convey what the business stands for. I believe this movement for transparency, equality and positivity will continue to snowball in 2022. Good PR teams will set out guidelines and continue to learn, grow and adapt as the year progresses.

Monitor how your brand or clients are faring in the media with Vuelio Media Monitoring and get deeper analysis from our Insights team – find out more here.

5 PR webinars and online events to catch up on

5 PR webinars and online events to catch up on

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The popularity of webinars and online panels boomed during the early days of the pandemic, and they continue to be extra convenient for those who can’t, or just don’t want to, attend in-person meet-ups and events.

Is that you? Here are five super-useful webinars and online panels for PR and comms pros that are worth a revisit or first-time viewing if you missed them…

Building better relationships between PRs and journalists
While the public relations and journalism sectors rely on each other for the mutually beneficial exchange of information and coverage, it can be a very difficult relationship. Journo Resources’ Jem Collins, national press and freelance journalist Faima Bakar and Freelancing for Journalists’ Lily Canter and Emma Wilkinson offered advice on building useful connections with journos working across a variety of sectors – watch it here or read our summary.

Building better relationships between PRs and journalists

One Step Forward Two Steps Black
UK Black Comms Network partnered with Opinium to conduct the first ever report into the lived experiences, pay and promotion of Black comms professionals – this webinar revealing its findings featured insight and reaction from the network’s founder and CEO Kamiqua Pearce, Opinium Research’s Susan Bello, Black Woman in HR’s Adesse Okojie and Birchwood Knight’s Seri Davies. Sign up to watch it via the UK Black comms Network and check out some of the key findings here.

Statistics on Black communications professionals

Neuro PR: Strengthening the Brain and Brand Connection
Harvey & Hugo PR’s managing director and Leader of the Pack Charlotte Nichols led this webinar on creating lasting impressions on your audience by engaging their minds with neuroscience. No pHd in brain chemistry required – watch and see how you can fire up neuro pathways with your day-to-day PR activities here. You can also read our write-up on the Vuelio blog.

Neuro PR Vuelio webinar

Discovering TikTok and Pinterest data
TikTok and Pinterest – two very different social media platforms filled with useful insight on audience behaviours and preferences. Luckily, there’s one place where you can mine both –the team at our sister brand Pulsar shared analysis of datasets from studies covered by Vogue Business and Elle Décor to demonstrate how to get the most out of data analysis. Sign up to watch here.

Discovering Pinterest & TikTok data

Making Sense of Net Zero – Corporate rewards of being in the climate action driving seat
This New Statesman live event from September featured The Climate Group’s Communications Director Luke Herbert, JLL’s Global Chief Sustainability Officer Richard Batten and Vuelio’s Insights Lead Amy Parry speaking on the risks and rewards for comms and PR teams leading on environmental action. Not only is working towards net zero the right thing to do, it will also future-proof your business. Sign up to watch the full webinar or read our summary of the key points.

Net Zero New Statesman webinar

Find out more about Vuelio’s webinars here.

Ready for more knowledge-sharing? Check out these Vuelio accessmatters sessions covering disability in PR, how to be antiracist and supporting transgender and nonbinary colleagues in this round-up.

6 reasons to stop using JournoRequests and start using the Journalist Enquiry Service

6 reasons to stop searching #JournoRequest and start using the Journalist Enquiry Service

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In need of media coverage for your brand, client or research? Ransacking the #JournoRequest hashtag for asks from UK journalists might seem like a quick solution for finding contacts, but here are six reasons why you should give the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service a try instead…

1. Requests come straight through to your inbox
No searching required – relevant requests from UK journalists looking for contributions for their upcoming pieces (whether products for review, expert comment, statistics or survey results) are sent directly to the inboxes of Journalist Enquiry Service subscribers. And how often requests come through is up to you – sign up for a steady stream of requests as they’re released, or a daily digest of enquiries you might be able to help with.

Screengrab of ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service digest email

2. You’ll receive all the details you need
Sometimes 140 characters just aren’t going to tell you everything you need to help a journalist fill and finish their feature; you need to know exactly what they want, and when for. While you won’t want to read through an enquiry that’s the same length as the article the journalist is writing (nobody has time for that – certainly not the journalist), the Journalist Enquiry Form has enough space for the media professionals using it to be clear on what they want.

Screengrab of Journalist Enquiry Service email

You’ll find which publication they’re writing for, when the piece is likely to be published and more.

3. You can filter requests so they’re relevant to your specific sector
#JournoRequests is a busy hashtag filled with enquiries from journalists writing across almost any sector you can imagine – that’s a very noisy place to navigate when you need to find something useful for you, fast. The Journalist Enquiry Service, in comparison, requires journalists to target their requests to the sectors they’re writing about, right from the get-go.

Journalist Enquiry Service categories for journalists

Working in the Home & Garden comms space? The service has a category for that. After requests from fashion journalists? Retail & Fashion is for you. You can pick the request categories relevant to you when signing up and start receiving enquiries from UK journalists you can help with relevant contributions.

4. It’s secure
DM etiquette and email sharing doesn’t even have to be a consideration when starting a (hopefully long-term and fruitful) relationship with a journalist working in your sector. Once a journalist has sent their request via the Journalist Enquiry Service, contact between you starts through the service’s internal network. Email replies come via [email protected], until you’re ready to share your contact details.

5. You have a set deadline to work to
While there are many differences between those in comms and those working in the media, keeping to strict deadlines throughout the day are a necessity for both. Knowing when you need to get information over to a journalist is a vital part of information easily missed on tweet threads. Requests sent through the Journalist Enquiry Service include the date and time the journalist needs the contributions by, as well as when their piece is likely to be published. When request deadlines are up, they fall off of the system, meaning no confusion – just fresh requests to look through.

6. Journalists at high-profile media outlets use the service
The Journalist Enquiry Service has many different users working across the media landscape. As well as staffers and commissioning editors on national press dailies, there are freelancers writing for a variety of consumer and trade magazines, broadcast journalists reporting for mainstream television and digital channels as well as influencers with swathes of followers across social media. Many who use the service have created useful working relationships – instead of searching for journalist connections across social media, sign up for targeted requests from media professionals who want what you have to offer.

Examples of recent requests sent via the Journalist Enquiry Service

Find more information about becoming a ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service subscriber here.

Already a subscriber? Get the most out of the Journalist Enquiry Service with this piece on how to respond to journalist enquiries as well as these quick tips.

Get started now and track all your mentions across every type of media channel with Vuelio Media Monitoring.

COP26: what PR and comms need to know

COP26: What comms and PR teams should know

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‘We have fires, floods and droughts in all corners of the Earth currently. Many, many people are suffering in the Global South already with famine and untold hardship – our world is only heading one way. To be frank, Mother Nature will simply not allow us to slip back into “business as usual” after COP26,’ believes Compassion in World Farming’s Philip Lymbery.

Exhibiting in the Blue Zone and preparing to release a report into the impact of animal agriculture on the climate crisis later this week, Philip sees COP26 as ‘one of the most crucial meetings of nations the world has ever seen’. He isn’t alone. While the long-term impact of the decisions and agreements that will be made during the summit remain to be seen, business leaders, decision makers and the communications industries can – and should – support and continue what the summit has sparked; increased awareness of what needs to be done on climate change.

Read our sister brand Pulsar’s deep-dive into the social media conversation in the lead up to COP26.

‘There is significant movement in this space already, as many companies are starting to increase their plant-based offerings, manage food waste more effectively and promote more sustainable diets to their customers,’ says Philip.

‘Compass Group, IKEA, Aldi UK, Globus, Unilever, Tesco, Nomad Foods and Premier Foods are all doing good work promoting their sustainable diets and encouraging a decrease in meat consumption, for example.

‘Other noteworthy food brands are Barilla, who won the Compassion in World Farming 2021 Special Recognition Award under the Planet Friendly Award banner. Another example of action is McDonald’s UK & Ireland and Danone, who are actively working on regenerative agriculture projects.

‘The big brands across the world have a huge responsibility to accelerate significant change so that we can avoid dangerous climate change.’

Philip Lymbery

What can businesses do to continue the work, without greenwashing?

‘These days, greenwashing covers a range of claims, from the vague text on packaging to marketing USPs. Luckily for consumers, amidst a sea of companies and manufacturers under pressure to be more sustainable, regulators are becoming more proactive. However, it’s still hard to spot the integrity of claims and to a large extent consumers rely on companies fearing a loss of brand ‘trust’, should they over-exaggerate their environmental efforts and be discovered.

‘Some brands are prepared to act in some ways, for example, by introducing plastics recycling, but not in others. For example, Coca-Cola has been criticised for stating the business would not move away from plastic bottles on the basis that customers “preferred plastic”.

‘The tragedy is that many global brands have been caught greenwashing. It’s long past time for corporate technical and creative teams to work on becoming genuinely sustainable, rather than using smoke and mirrors marketing approaches.’

Optimism dominating talk about COP26

While the social media conversation leading up to the summit showed much optimism from the public, Sir Vince Cable’s take on the British Government’s previous assessment of the odds of a successful summit at 60:40 was that ‘my heart is with the 60%; my head with the 40%’. Does Philip agree?

‘I hope and pray that this will not be the case – the stakes are simply too high. It is easy to become pessimistic, but the world is watching COP26, conversations are happening and the future of our children, and their children, is in the balance.

‘However, according to national pledges already made, the numbers have been crunched and world leaders are falling short of the action that needs to be taken.

‘This is undoubtedly a time for unity and for all parties, all countries and all peoples to come together to help solve the greatest crisis we will ever face in our lifetime. We all have a part to play.’

Philip Lymbery is Global Chief Executive of Compassion in World Farming, Visiting Professor at the University of Winchester, President of Eurogroup for Animals, the Brussels-based umbrella for 70 leading animal welfare societies in Europe and founding Board member of the World Federation for Animals (WFA), a membership organisation that maximises the efforts and resources of the animal protection movement. Philip has also been appointed as a United Nations Food Systems Champion for the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit. He’s an award-winning author, ornithologist, photographer, naturalist and self-confessed animal advocate.

Read former leader of the Liberal Democrats and a former Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Sir Vince Cable’s look at COP here on the Vuelio blog as well as Green peer Baroness Bennett’s guest post on the importance of protecting our biodiversity.

For more on the importance of sustainability for future-proofing your business, download the Vuelio Insight Team case study Sustainability Initiatives and the Impact on Businesses.

Find out more about monitoring coverage of your brand, competitors and the issues that affect you in print, broadcast, online, blogs and social media.

Solutions for difficult clients

When client relationships go wrong: two sides of the story and a solution

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This is a guest post from ADPR owner and MD Kate O’Sullivan.

As much as I hate to admit it, client relationships don’t always turn out the way we expect or hope. If you work in the service industry, the chances are you will have experienced ‘that client’. The one where no matter how hard you try, something always feels off kilter and you constantly find yourself on the back foot. If you haven’t come across them yet, I’m sorry to say that you almost certainly will at some point.

Clients are critical to many businesses, and any decent service provider will endeavour to go above and beyond to keep them happy. Equally, it takes a lot of trust (and expense) for a client to allow an outsourced provider into their business. So, if it’s safe to assume that both the client and the service provider anticipate a successful relationship, why does it sometimes go wrong, and can anything be done about it?

One thing we can all agree on is that when a relationship fails it’s a horrible feeling and prevention will always be better than cure.

Rather than entering into a game of blame, let’s consider some of the common frustrations on both sides of the relationship, and whether a slightly different approach and a deeper level of empathy could result in ‘that client’ becoming a dream client.

That Client: The one who always lands something on you with an urgent deadline.

Your perspective:

You’ve started the week with an orderly task list and before you know it a client has asked you to complete a ‘quick’ unplanned task for them that is needed urgently. You know that you have deadlines to meet for other clients, you know that very few jobs are actually quick, and you also know the urgent deadline probably isn’t a matter of life and death.

You want the best for your client, so you juggle things around and work late to ensure you can complete the task without letting any other clients down. You finish work feeling tired and grumpy, and don’t feel that you’ve been given the time to do the task justice. You’re more than happy to put in the extra graft now and again, but when it becomes a habit it’s hard to avoid feeling frustrated.

Client’s perspective:

You’ve started the week with an orderly task list and before you know it your boss has asked you to complete an unexpected task for them. You’ve recently brought on-board a skilled provider to help you with such tasks, and really need their help if you’re going to get everything else on your list done, without letting anyone down.

You know it isn’t ideal, but the agency never seem to mind and always have time to help. In-fact, they’ve actively encouraged you to reach out if you need them. You’re actually under pressure to prove their weight in gold to your boss, so this is the perfect way for them to support you right now.

That Client: The one who ghosts you.

Your perspective:

You haven’t heard from a client for a while. A nagging feeling that something isn’t quite right starts to set in, and you start to imagine what you’ve done to upset them! You know they’re busy but you really need to speak to them in order to get the agreed work done. You’ve tried everything and there’s only so many ways to send gentle reminders without seeming like a) a complete nag b) desperate or c) a stalker.

You don’t know what else to do but you keep trying, because you really want to get good results for them.

Client perspective:

Your agency won’t stop hounding you! You have a huge task list and you have to prioritise. You have received a lot of emails from them and each one seems to be asking for something different.

You brought in an agency to help with your workload. They’re costing a lot of money and you don’t understand why they can’t be more self-sufficient. You do want to communicate, but surely there’s an easier way? The way they’re going about it at the moment isn’t helpful and you really don’t appreciate being nagged.

That Client: The one who likes to tell you how to do your job.

Your perspective:

There is nothing worse than being micromanaged! You’re an expert in your field and you know what you’re doing. Instead of placing value on the work you’re producing, the client does nothing but question or make changes to everything you do. Nothing is getting signed off in time and all of the amends are starting to knock your confidence. The situation is preventing you from achieving results and you are wasting precious time and budget making unnecessary changes. You can sense your client’s dissatisfaction, but you know you’re right and they don’t seem to listen!

Client perspective:

You had great hopes for your agency and want to be wowed by them, but you don’t really like the work they’re producing. They keep explaining why they’ve done something in a certain way, but it’s not the way you would do it, and they don’t know your business the way you do! You don’t have time to be ‘correcting’ their work and are rapidly losing your patience as well as your trust in their ability to deliver.

Good communication is always the solution!

Whether you sit on the side of the client or the service provider, you’ve probably encountered at least one of the above scenarios. It probably comes as no surprise that establishing good communication and clear boundaries from the outset will always be the best way to prevent problems further down the line.

In reality, new relationships are often seen through rose-tinted glasses and this step often gets overlooked among the excitement of winning a shiny new client.

Learn from experience and invest some time thinking about the reasons why previous relationships have come to an end and how they could have been prevented from the outset. Make a conscious effort to pre-empt all eventualities by discussing them with your client in advance.

For example, the above scenarios could have been avoided by the following:

Let your client know that you understand that last minute things happen and you will always try to help. But if they want to be certain of your assistance they need to try and give you adequate notice to do the job (and be sure to spell out what you deem to be adequate!). Of course, if something really is a matter of life or death – drop everything and help!

Ask your client how they like to be communicated with and how often. Make them aware that you will need their input and let them know what they can expect and what is required from them. Agree a communication process and always encourage them to give you more than one point of contact to go to when urgent information is requested.

Make sure your client is fully aware of your expertise and always explain the rationale behind the decisions you make and the approach you’re taking with your work. Encourage them to focus on the outcomes rather than the outputs and make it clear that they are hiring experts, not yes men.

If your gut is telling you that something isn’t right in the relationship, don’t bury your head in the sand, instead address the situation. Uncomfortable conversations are never easy, but it will always be better than crossing your fingers and praying for change! Most clients will respect your integrity and will welcome the opportunity to discuss the issue with you before it escalates further.

Remember that you never need to accept outright rudeness or abuse from your client. We are all human and all have a right to demand a basic level of respect from others. Sometimes the chemistry just isn’t right and when this happens it is better to face the situation, draw a line under the experience, hold your head high and move on.

The reality is that once a client relationship turns sour it can be difficult to recover, but it isn’t impossible. The key thing to keep in mind is that everyone will have entered into the relationship with the right intention, and nine times out of ten a negative situation can be resolved through good communication and compassion for others.

For keeping track of your client and stakeholder communications, check out Vuelio’s Stakeholder Management solutions. 

A week in the life of an in-house PR

A Week In The Life Of An In-House PR (and what to consider when looking for an in-house role)

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This is a guest post from Prezzybox PR & marketing executive Alex Spencer.

As in-house PRs, it’s the job of me and my colleague Chloe to manage Prezzybox’s brand reputation, promote the brand as much as we can, plan and run events and, of course, secure coverage – both in print and online.

But our roles don’t stop with PR. Like many other in-house PR roles, our jobs extend to copywriting, creating email newsletters and even getting involved with design!

Here’s an insight into life as an in-house PR exec…

Monday

It might only be mid-October, but we’re in the full swing of Christmas here at Prezzybox HQ. In fact, for us, planning for the festive period starts in June and doesn’t slow down until the day itself.

People always ask us if focusing so much on Christmas makes it harder to enjoy it, but we’re the complete opposite – the more time spent talking about the festive season, the better! We do have a ban on playing Christmas songs in the office until November, though. We’re not crazy…

Chloe starts the week off by sending some product samples out to journalists at top-tier publications for their Christmas guides. We check every journo request that comes through because we can often help journalists out with high-res imagery and samples. It goes without saying that reacting quickly to these requests is key!

As every PR does, we also start the week by checking our social feeds, the news and what’s trending.

Tuesday

We recently attended our first in-person event since the start of the pandemic – The Big Christmas Press Show – where we showcased our favourite gifts for Christmas, and we spotted coverage today that we secured as a result of the show.

We’re also working on gathering data for our hero Christmas campaign, the idea for which came up completely randomly in a meeting (about something else, bizarrely). It got everyone in the office talking, so we decided to turn it into a full campaign! Watch this space…

Wednesday

A big part of my role is ensuring all of Prezzybox’s communications are on-brand and our tone of voice is consistent. I spend most of the day writing copy for our newsletters, and get some product description copy done, too. I absolutely love the variety of my job.

My colleagues and I also get together to discuss how we’re going to push our Christmas campaign. We figure out a strategy and come up with a plan B (and C!) too. As every PR knows, flexibility is key!

Thursday

Today we’re discussing next year’s events (yep – already). We’ve taken part in some awesome virtual PR events in the last couple of years, for obvious reasons, so we’re deciding which would be best for us to continue with. We think a mix of in-person and virtual events is definitely the future.

We’re also testing out some of our new products in the office today. And by ‘testing out our products’, we mean cracking open boxes of our personalised Celebrations.

Friday

We end the week on an exciting note – choosing how to redecorate the office. Some of us are back in the office part time and we’re thinking about how we can extend our branding to the walls! We already have the best office, thanks to our resident dogs and goats, but talk of neon Prezzybox signs, flower walls and floating egg chairs has got us excited… it doesn’t take much, really.

Things to consider when looking for an in-house role

1. The brand

Working as an in-house PR means working for one brand, and one brand only. Spending every day thinking about how you can promote the company you work for is heaps easier when you genuinely love the brand, and what it stands for!

2. The role

Many in-house PR roles encompass much more than just PR. My role isn’t just about gaining coverage – it’s my job to make all of our communications consistent and on-brand. My week varies from securing product PR to acting as the brand’s spokesperson to building email newsletters to writing blog posts. I love the variety, but it’s worth bearing in mind.

3. The team

Will you be part of an in-house team focusing on PR or will you be a one-person band? Will you have the budget to outsource work to PR agencies or freelancers if you need to? Knowing what resources you’ll have and what you’ll be expected to achieve is key before you make the move in-house.

Looking to help with finding and listening to your audience to make connections? Try out Pulsar’s social listening solutions and Vuelio’s media database and media monitoring.

Reactive PR and newsjacking

Reactive PR: Turning Something Out of Nothing

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This is a guest post from Fibre’s Alice Wilks, digital PR specialist.

When you hear the term ‘reactive PR’ you might imagine frantically releasing press releases to counteract a scandal. That’s one kind, for sure!

But what if there was another kind of reactive PR, a far more positive and proactive one? One that could bolster your company’s presence online, and improve your SEO game?

Good news – there is! And the best part is that it’s a relatively straightforward strategy to implement. It turns out you don’t have to spend a fortune to gain publicity for your company. All you have to do is keep on top of the news…

In our busy modern world, the news cycle moves fast. To use reactive PR successfully, you’ll have to be even faster. However, making this effort is definitely worth it. After all, reactive PR (also known as newsjacking) has the potential to be even more effective that expensive marketing campaigns.

Intrigued? You should be! Read on to find out what reactive PR consists of, its multiple benefits, and how to successfully incorporate this strategy into your public relations plan.

What is reactive PR?
Reactive PR consists of responding to trending news topics within your industry and the wider media. It’s an alternative to waiting around for something newsworthy to occur within your organisation, and it’s one smart way to gain free coverage for your company!

The value of reactive PR can be found in the fact that it’s fresh and relevant. When people rush to understand unfolding news, your company’s content can position itself at the top of their to-read list.

If you’re lucky, the day’s headlines might directly relate to your industry. If they don’t, you’ll just need to be a little more creative. Don’t worry – there are unexpected ways you can connect your business activities to the news, no matter what it is!

Examples of reactive PR:
• A jewelry company that releases a blog analysing engagement rings every time a celebrity announces their upcoming nuptials.

This information might be used by traditional media sources to complement their celebrity coverage. The company could also take this opportunity to compare rings from their collection, thereby promoting their own products.

• Any company that launches competitions or campaigns in line with significant events such as the Oscars, the Superbowl, the World Cup, or a Royal Wedding.

People are likely to search for information about these events, which could attract a whole new audience to the company if they stumble across their content.

• A business that acknowledges a period of political or societal upheaval in its content.

It may promote a positive message or show how its products or services could be useful at this time. One example would be how the Calm mindfulness app suggested using its services to relieve tension during the US election cycle.

The benefits of reactive PR
Some of the benefits that a reactive PR strategy could bring to your company include:

1. Attracting a new audience
When you ‘newsjack’, you have the potential to reach people who may never have come across your company otherwise. Their interest in the topic will lead them to your content, and from there it’s up to you to convert this interest into sales.

2. Improving SEO
Successful reactive PR will generate links from external sources, which will boost your rankings in search results. Effective ‘newsjacking’ could place your company at the top of Google’s news search, too.

3. Gaining coverage in traditional media
Traditional media is hungry for content that can supplement their coverage of current events. If you can provide a unique angle on today’s trending topic, you might make headlines of your own!

4. Saving money on advertising campaigns
Writing a blog post is more cost-effective than crafting a full advertising campaign, but it could be just as impactful if done correctly. You may find that people disseminate your content independently, helping you go viral.

5. Building your brand
If your business is constantly reacting to the news, it gives the impression that it’s a dynamic and switched-on company. That means your business will seem cutting-edge, relevant, and ahead of the trends.

Keep up with trends in the media with recent article and category searching on the Vuelio Media Database – find out more here.