Archive for: Blog Posts

This is a guest post from White Rose PR director Louise Pinchin.

I’ve always believed in the power of regional PR and marketing; it’s a vital element to being party of a community. In fact, being born and bred in Yorkshire, it’s one of the reasons I named my company White Rose PR. As a Yorkshire-based business we want to support other businesses local to us.

Over the past year, I’ve had the pleasure of working with several local businesses and in these challenging and unprecedented times it is always good to know that our work is keeping the wider business community thriving.

Why undertake local PR?

Local PR is a great way to build brand awareness in the community, to reach new and existing customers and build your brand reputation among an audience that is waiting to be reached.

By creating and maintaining a positive relationship with your local press, print and online, you are setting yourself up for ongoing coverage opportunities and positive press stories about you in the future. Regional PR has many advantages, one of which is that it is often less expensive than larger national campaigns. It’s also easier to see a direct impact on sales or business leads from a piece of regional PR, especially if it is done in isolation of other marketing activity. You are also targeting readily accessible customers through local PR, something that is entirely different with national activity.

Don’t think of regional PR as the poor relation to any other type of coverage your brand, company or service receives. It’s not a throwaway, easy-to-get activity and it shouldn’t be bottom of the priority list. Start thinking of it as a powerful tool in your marketing armoury when used in a timely and appropriate way.

As I always say to my clients, why wouldn’t you want the coverage? Why give your competitors column inches that you could be taking up?

Here’s a recent example from us…

Case study: Rubicon Technical

We work with Rubicon Technical, a technical services provider to the medicines, medical devices, food supplements and cosmetics industries. In late 2020, they opened their first European office in Amsterdam, just before Brexit. Why was this a good story? Because it was a positive story of a local entrepreneur who built up her business here in Yorkshire to a 15-strong team and expanded into Europe during one of the most challenging years this country has ever faced and at a pivotal time in our country’s political and economic history.

The result was extensive regional media coverage including the Yorkshire Post, Yorkshire Business Daily and Business Live as well as local coverage in Holland. The outcome was an increase in enquiries and business as well as increased social media engagement.

So, give it a try, because regional PR works.

You can follow White Rose PR on Instagram @whiterose_pr and the new company website will be launching soon.

Women in PR has appointed HERA Communications MD Anna Geffert as its president. Anna replaces Bibi Hilton, who will step down after three years of leading the organisation.

Other announcements made at the virtual AGM for members last week included the appointments of Powerscourt senior consultant Ngozi Emeagi as vice president and Prudential Group communications manager Addy Frederick as treasurer.

The Romans managing director Roxanne Kalha, Ariatu Public Relations founder Ronke Lawal, Ketchum managing director of consumer brands Sophie Raine and GSK communications consultant Jennifer Thomas were also voted in as Committee members.

‘Last year saw unimaginable difficulties and loss for our members; many of whom lost friends and family, employment and security, and the ability to lean on networks and contacts for guidance and confidence,’ said incoming president Anna Geffert.

‘As a result, Women in PR has taken on a new role in helping women to rebuild and shape their careers – balancing the professional with the personal and supporting each other to overcome these challenges and lay the foundations for growth and success in the year ahead.

‘It has been such an honour to work with Bibi and the inspiring women on the Committee over the last three years. Together, we have begun to breakdown barriers of inequality for all women in our industry. As ever, there is always more work to be done and the pandemic has raised fresh challenges for us all to face. I look forward to welcoming our new Committee members to continue our campaign for equality and also to provide new, supportive tools, skills and opportunities to inspire and empower our members into senior leadership roles.’

Bibi Hinton – who steps down from her position along with Vice President Sarah Samee and committee members Davnet Doran, Ebony Gayle, Abbie Sampson and Jo-Ann Robertson in line with Women in PR’s constitution – is looking forward to seeing what the new senior leadership team will accomplish.

Hinton said: ‘It’s been an incredible privilege to lead Women in PR and to work alongside such a brilliant and inspiring committee and ambassador group. I’m immensely proud of everything we’ve achieved – from becoming a more diverse and inclusive organisation to launching our first group in Wales.

‘With her experience both of big agency and setting up her own business and her ambition, energy and exceptional leadership, Anna will be a fantastic new president for Women in PR. I know in partnership with Ngozi, Addy and the new committee will continue to drive WPR forward in our mission to increase the number and diversity of women in leadership in our industry.’

Find out more about new committee member Ronke Lawal in our previous interview and check out Addy Frederick’s work with UK Black Comms Network in our write up of its Two Steps Forward, One Step Black event.

The PR and Communications Tracker from Carta Communications and The Pulse Business has found that mental health challenges and issues with staying motivated are bigger threats to UK PR teams than COVID-19.

Starting in late December 2020, the PR and Communications Tracker surveyed senior communications leaders in both in-house and agency MD positions and will run on a quarterly basis.

While 26% of industry leaders polled said that adapting to COVID-19 was the biggest threat being faced, this was behind the challenges of staff motivation and mental health, which was the top choice for 28% of those surveyed.

Despite this, 87% feel positive about the future of their business over the next year.

‘There are actually two pandemics running concurrently – COVID-19, and a shadow pandemic of mental health issues caused by social isolation, uncertainty and changes to working and living patterns,’ said Carta Communications’ founder and director Matt Cartmell.

‘We are fortunate in PR that we can work remotely and that there are always new opportunities, whatever the economic landscape. It’s great to see that so many leaders are feeling so positive – I look forward to seeing how sentiment changes through the coming year.’

The Pulse Business’ owner Imogen Osborne also sees potential in the results of the survey: ‘The findings from this Pulse suggest that once more, the PR and communications industry is bracing itself for re-invention. Some respondents are talking about how they are developing their company culture inside a flexible working model while others are coming up with new products and services that will appeal in a post-pandemic world.

‘Many of our comms leaders are bullish about the next 12 months, driven by an understandable focus on the numbers. Yet most acknowledge the issues around mental health are building and given the period for self-reflection the pandemic has necessitated, you wonder if this will lead to some radical changes in how people treat one another in an industry renowned for its competitiveness.’

The next Tracker is set to go live in March 2021 – those who wish to take part can email Imogen Osborne at [email protected].

Want more on PR trends to prepare for this year? Check out ten PR and communications trends for 2021 from industry thought leaders.

Results from the Global Women in PR Annual Index for 2020 reflect a lack of advancement when it comes to gender equality in the public relations industry, but highlight areas of opportunity for women with children.

Part of a five-year plan to measure and track the working practices of women in PR and communications across the globe, latest results from the GWPR Annual Index cover working environment, barriers to leadership, the pressures of work, impacts of being a parent and the continuing gender pay gap.

Despite two-thirds of the PR workforce identifying as female, men still held 64% of boardroom seats in 2020. Key findings in the index include:

– 80% of PRs believe that having women in the boardroom improves working practices, with 89% believing that more needs to be done to welcome women into board-level roles.
– 78% cited childcare and caring responsibilities as the biggest barrier to the boardroom
– 60% believe men promoting in their own image is a major barrier to senior roles
– 47% of women reported a negative impact on their career due to being a parent

Despite longer working hours for women in PR who are also tasked with homeschooling during the pandemic, the ability to work remotely is seen by many who took part in the Annual Index as a path to future advancement.

GWPR joint president Angela Oakes said: ‘We can see from our research that there has been little change in 2020 in the gender imbalance in the boardroom, despite the widely acknowledged link between boardroom diversity and a company’s financial performance.

‘However, the COVID crisis has created change and quickly accelerated the trend towards remote working. Two-thirds of PR professionals believe that flexible working allows women to have a family, or caring responsibilities and still progress in their career. There is clearly a demand for this, as 69% say they would be more likely to choose a job that offered flexible working over one that did not. Employers need to recognise this and acknowledge the benefits of flexible working, so we can retain female talent in the PR industry.’

PRCA Director General Francis Ingham also sees the positives that have come from homeworking: ‘COVID can provide us with a reset moment for women in PR. It can replace the painfully slow progress of the past decade with true transformation through flexible working. And when we get through this period of crisis, it will be one of the positive changes that will last.’

Read the full results from the GWPR Annual Index on the website.

The theme of ‘optimism and opportunity’ in PR ran through all of the presentations at the PRCA’s ‘PR Trends 2021’ event on 20 January.

I joined five industry leaders – Stephen Waddington, Vikki Chowney, Adrian Ma, Shayoni Lynn and Rohan Shah – to explore the emerging trends impacting public relations and communications practice in 2021.

We delivered quick-fire presentations on an industry trend that we felt would define this year, and beyond.

At a time where ‘Zoom fatigue’ is high, the number and quality of the questions from attendees highlighted both the desire and energy that exists to shape modern PR practice.

Here’s the video for those who were unable to attend the live event.

In my presentation (which starts at 31:20), I suggested history has taught us that a crisis and shocking global events can provide a reset button and be catalysts for reflection, focus and innovation.

Many comms and marketing professionals have seized the opportunity to think differently and approach their challenges in a different way.

I highlighted that leading comms and PR agencies, specialists and in-house practitioners are using data in a smarter way.

There is a growing ‘data maturity’ in PR.

Comms professionals need to capture, track and analyse media, social media, search data, web analytics and first party data to inform corporate comms, brand messaging, creative, content strategy, campaigns and even which influencers or communities to focus on and work with.

The really smart ones are, of course, using Vuelio and our sister platform Pulsar to capture and blend this data.

Here’s a summary of what was discussed by each panellist.

Vikki Chowney, H&K Strategies

Vikki joined us from New York during Inauguration Day and focused on content trends:

• We’re still ‘in the weeds’ but there is much optimism
• The pandemic has meant that we’ve found new ways to be creative and we have found a real “creative resilience”
• There are cost efficiencies to content today – clients are much more accepting of what can be realistically achieved against the backdrop of COVID and production restrictions
• The five core themes in content in 2021 are:
  • Remote Directing – teams and individuals from around the world can be successfully brought into the creative and production process using remote technologies.
  • ‘Rough & Ready’ content is okay – content was mostly raw and realistic in 2020 and the world of content didn’t stop turning
  • Creator Inclusivity – events that would have been exclusive, behind closed doors or only seen by a few people can now be accessed by wider and global audiences
  • Humanising the spokesperson – we’re seeing a whole new side to corporate comms and company spokespeople. Virtual events have brought us into the homes of business executives and leaders and we’re seeing a new side of them
  • Influencers finding shared values – influencers are seeking to work with brands and businesses in ways that go beyond product placement. They want to work with those who share their values and are seeking partnerships and campaigns with meaningful societal impact

Stephen Waddington, Wadds Inc

Ever the consummate pro, ‘Wadds’ published his presentation during the event on his PR Top 10 Vuelio blog.

He highlighted the opportunity for value creation for PR agency start-ups and agencies scaling in 2021.

Stephen acknowledged that 2020 was a difficult year for many PR professionals working in sectors that have shut down, including culture, entertainment and travel.

But he also highlighted the 30 new agency start-ups in the UK that have seen the opportunity of building a business in a pandemic.

He recommended agency propositions should focus on the opportunities for value creation by helping organisations navigate these key topics:

1. Britain’s place in the world
2. COVID-19 recovery and rebuild
3. Climate crisis
4. Societal fractures
5. Dispersion of education, healthcare, retail and work
6. Media change: social and mainstream media
7. Misinformation
8. Workflow automation and artificial intelligence

Shayoni Lynn, Lynn PR

Shayoni focused on the trend towards increased application of data-driven behavioural science in communications campaigns.

As one of the ‘new breed’ of PR agencies carving a niche in this area, Shayoni and her team use audience data, behaviours and testing to inform their activity for their clients.

• Behavioural insights help us understand conscious and the unconscious motivations that drive decision making
• The application of behavioural science in communications campaigns can help improve vaccination take-up, convince people to adopt protective behaviours, engage with mental health services, etc.
• We can’t afford to ‘stumble blindly’ anymore and we need to adopt a data-driven approach to communications planning
• We need to understand audiences more deeply, including why they behave the way they do, why they make certain choices that they do, and what will drive them to take action.
• Deeper insights into attitudes, habits and preferences can ensure our communications remain relevant, meaningful and effective
• Nudge theory strengthens content, increases the visibility of calls to action and encourages users to take action
• Cognitive bias are unconscious motivations that affect things like brand proposition, brand recall, consumer action, retention and loyalty
• Consider yourself a ‘choice architect’ and design the optimum choice environment using human factors to help your audiences make better decisions quicker
• Data has to monitor audience behaviour in real time
• Behaviour changes are about context and what works once may not work again in a different context
• Test in a randomised way, extract your data insights, learn from your test insights, and continually adapt your programme to ensure that you’re responding to your audience’s responses

Adrian Ma, Fanclub PR

Adrian talked about the role of PR in creating data and delivered the best joke of the day: ‘There were two types of forecasters, the ones that don’t know anything. And the ones that don’t know, we don’t know anything.’

• Successful companies are deploying the use of big data and automation really well
• Marketing has a larger technology ecosystem than PR
• PR is one of the most powerful and impactful and cost-effective methods for generating brand awareness and managing reputation, but it hasn’t moved as fast as other marketing disciplines
• BUT, more comms people are using the same data-driven language as marketers
• 61% of all PR and comms departments are responsible for both digital and social content
• PR provides a ‘smell test’ that marketers can use – ‘if we come up with an idea, and we can pitch it to a journalist and editor and a publisher, that is a proof point’
• When PR is combined with content marketing it can drive much more value
• PR should be tracking leads and mapping against customer journeys where we can
• If we can do that, we create more trust in PR as an effective tool and can demonstrate ROI to ‘upper left brain’ results-focused marketers

Michelle Goodall, Access Intelligence

I highlighted that the leading comms and PR agencies, specialists and in-house practitioners are starting to use blended data in a much smarter way.

Drawing and acting upon evolving audience insights from blended data sources should be a big focus for comms professionals in 2021.

• Crisis can provide a reset button
• It’s an opportunity to think differently and approach our challenges in a different way
• Many PR and marketing professionals are doing exactly that and looking at innovative ways to evolve and improve
• It’s right to be optimistic about things – it’s a time of change in the industry
• Many PR professionals have adapted to marketing and the converged space around paid, owned, earned and shared content and campaigns
• There’s an evolving understanding of the breadth of data that’s available to PR practitioners to help shape messaging, creative campaigns and content.
• Leading brands, organisations and agencies and specialists increasingly have ‘data maturity’
• At a basic level, data enables us to develop insights and to measure the impact of our work
• But there is an increasing sophistication in the way that agencies and brands and organisations capture, track and analyse that data to inform corporate communication strategies, brand messaging, creative content, strategy, campaigns, and even which influencers all communities and communities of interest to focus on to drill into
• We’re moving from simple brand, competitor and messaging monitoring towards something much more sophisticated
• For example, different groups of people talk about the same topics, brands and issues differently in social media
• The shape of conversations around topics like Brexit, COVID, shopping, fashion and the way I talk about them and discuss them in my groups will be different to other audience groups or ‘communities’
• Communities discussing the same topics can be segmented by demographic data, socio economic data, media, influencer and brand affinity, their interests, their habits, their mindsets, etc.
• Identifying how multiple audience segments or communities discuss specific topics, brands and issues differently in social media, and how that evolves, can inform the shape of your campaigns and messaging over time
• Technology enables this and we offer solutions to do this

Rohan Shah, Reuben Sinclair

And finally, Rohan provided an optimistic overview of the state of Comms and PR recruitment:

• In April 2020, PR recruitment activity dropped by 80% with an uptick in September
• Today, we’re back to pre-COVID levels and it looks promising – Tech, Finance, Healthcare are buoyant markets
• Competition is fierce for talent – ‘be open to seeing good quality candidates when you can’ and tap into your network
• No real evidence of change in salaries
• Not having to travel to the office doesn’t mean a reduction in salary for job seekers – candidates should hold on to their true value
• There is still demand for ‘publicists’, but agencies have been diversifying their services
• Future proof your skills
• There is demand for social media content marketing, research and insights and paid social media
• Comms professionals need to understand data and connect it with impact
• The industry is focusing on attracting people with these skill sets at entry level.
• Get ahead on your remote training and development programmes now
• Protect and enhance your employer brand – ensure the recruitment and retention experience is no different to how you treat your clients.
• Make your recruitment processes robust and fair as possible. It’s an indicator to people of the type of company they want to work for

The optimism from the panellists was also shared by attendees on Twitter after the event.

It feels like 2021 could well be the start of a new and exciting era in the communications industry.

If you’d like to find out how tools can help you capture, track, analyse and provide insight for your communications campaigns, please book a demo.

The PRCA has welcomed Rob Colmer as Vice-Chairman on its PR and Communications Council for 2021.

Rob brings experience from in-house and consultancy work across the private and public sectors at an SME and a multinational company. He currently leads Shell’s global sustainability communications and reporting and has been with the company since 2002.

Council members involved in the election process were swayed by his manifesto focusing on the support of the public relations industry during recovery as well as continuing work on improving diversity, inclusion and professionalism.

‘I’m honoured to have the opportunity to support the Public Relations profession, particularly at such a challenging point in time,’ said Rob Colmer.

‘With close to 100,000 people working in this sector, the PRCA is committed to addressing the immediate challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic and supporting the continued growth and success of the PR industry.’

PR and Communications Council Chair Julia Herd is looking forward to working with Rob on this year’s challenges: ‘I’m very happy to have Rob on board to help drive positive change in what will be a pivotal year for the PR industry.

‘I have no doubt that his expertise, combined with the expertise of the other council members, will be a huge asset in addressing some of the challenges that have arisen off the back of Covid. I am very much looking forward to what this year will bring and would like to thank Rob in advance for his support and commitment’.

More information on the appointment can be found here on the PRCA website.