Vuelio Canvas

How to make stunning coverage reports with Canvas

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You’ve planned and executed a successful campaign and need to report on the results to showcase the incredible coverage your team achieved.

You could spend hours pulling the coverage together in a PowerPoint or PDF. Or you could make a stunning visual presentation, that’s both interactive and easily shareable, in just minutes.

With Vuelio Canvas, full coverage reports are made by simply pasting in URLs of online coverage, uploading hard copies of coverage or resources, or using highlights to emphasise key metrics and quotes.

See an example we created following our recent acquisition of Pulsar – which took just seven minutes to make.

How do you make a Canvas?
Bookmark links to your coverage as these appear in your monitoring alerts, which will save you time when it comes to building your Canvas.

To add a tile:

  1. 1. Click ‘Add new tile’
  2. 2. Select ‘External Source’
  3. 3. Name your tile
  4. 4. Paste the URL into the ‘source’ box
  5. 5. Hit Save…
  6. 6. …and Voila! You’ve made your first tile in less than 30 seconds (proof is in the video below!)
  7. 7. Repeat the process with all the rest of your awesome coverage and then share with your team, the board and your clients with a single link.

Ready to make your own Canvas? Find out how, here.

Liz Saville Roberts post

Liz Saville Roberts: The nasty party is well and truly back – the Remain alliance offers a stark contrast

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Plaid Cymru’s Westminster Leader Liz Saville Roberts writes that ‘the last few days have seen the mask slip for the Conservative Party’ and argues that her party’s agreement with two other Remain parties to work together in 60 key seats ‘offers a stark contrast’.

Politics is pointless if it is not underpinned by principles. The values which we hold define our world-view. The last few days have seen the mask slip for the Conservative Party and the arrogant, yahoo, old boys’ club mentality that they have desperately tried to distance themselves from returned to centre stage.

The election race has barely begun, and we have already seen Conservative Party candidates taking deplorable moral stances and engaging in dubious backtracking.

A day-one resignation marked the beginning of their election campaign this week.

The Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns was forced to stand down when he lied about ‘categorically’ having no prior knowledge of a former aide’s role in collapsing a rape trial.

This deplorable behaviour exposes the lengths to which the Conservative Party will go in order to cover their tracks, not only demonstrating a flagrant disregard for our justice system, but also a disturbing lack of morality, let alone empathy.

My only hope is that his resignation brings some comfort to the victim. But a fundamental question still remains: if it was bad enough for Mr Cairns to resign as Secretary of State, why does he think himself fit to stand again for public office?

Mr Cairns’ resignation follows Jacob Rees-Mogg’s horrendous comments regarding the victims of the Grenfell Tower tragedy. Mr Rees-Mogg alleged that leaving the building was the ‘common sense thing to do’.

From these comments we can only conclude that Mr Rees-Mogg believes the advice of either the Fire Brigade lacked common sense, or the victims of fire themselves did.

This not only shows a fundamental lack of empathy on Mr Rees-Mogg’s part, but also calls into question his views on public services such as the Fire Brigade, seemingly presuming he is above the advice of those trusted with protecting us in dangerous situations. Or possibly that those who follow the advice of these services have no one to blame but themselves.

His equally repugnant Tory colleague, Andrew Bridgen, proceeded to exacerbate the situation when he leapt to defend Mr Rees-Mogg, claiming the comments were a ‘by-product of what Jacob is’.

These comments reflect precisely what ‘Jacob’ believes he is – a man whose over-inflated sense of intellect and authority makes him believe he is above any of the trials faced by those of us who weren’t born-to-rule.

Mr Rees-Mogg later stated that he was ‘profoundly sorry’ for the comments and that he would have in fact ‘listened to the fire brigade’s advice’. However, I’m sure these words ring hollow for those who witnessed the horrors of Grenfell first hand, especially when coming from a man so far removed from the harsh reality of the situation.

The actions of these two men not only showcases their incompetent and negligent attitude, but also draws attention to a much greater issue at the heart of the Conservative Party: a reckless disregard for those they hurt. An entrenched belief in victim blaming. A party so enamoured of the old boys’ network mentality of ‘anything goes’ that they are not only permitting but encouraging damaging and disgraceful behaviour toward the public. A party whose interests are solely their own, and to hell with who they hurt in the process.

These are values we cannot allow to find their way back into our politics.

So, slogans and Facebook adverts aside, this Tory party is far from modern and relevant. More back to the past than forward to the future.

It is a leap to past principles that even if they were not eradicated from our politics, parties should be embarrassed to harbour.

The grown-up principled politics of my party, Plaid Cymru, in coming to an agreement with two other opposition parties to field one pro-Remain candidate in key seats offers a stark contrast.

We have put our countries before parties, where others are putting their parties before all else. In the case of the Conservative party, it could even be argued that they are putting themselves before their party.

This is a guest post from Rt Hon Liz Saville Roberts, Plaid Cymru’s Westminster Leader and the party’s candidate in Dwyfor Meirionnydd.

Online Influence Awards 2019

Lights, camera, action! The Online Influence Awards 2019

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There’s just two weeks to go until the Online Influence Awards 2019. Celebrating the hottest talent from the world of influencer marketing, the Online Influence Awards will have top guests, critically-acclaimed host Jen Brister, fine food and entertainment into the very early hours.

The most influential night of the year is at The Bloomsbury Ballroom on Friday 22 November. We’re currently finalising a number of surprises for our guests, which this year will include the all-important photo booth from London-based Showtime Photo Booth. This special GIF photo booth is perfect for influencers as it will allow our superstar guests to create their very own GIFs live, which can then be easily shared across social media.

Unlike the traditional photo booth there’s no limit to the number of photos, or in this case, GIFs, you can create plus as soon as it’s made, you can get it sent directly to you through Twitter. Good news for our groups of guests, unlike traditional booths, this is not contained in a small room, so you can grab your whole table and all your friends, and make a GIF memory of the evening (dad bloggers, that means you).

Congratulations again to all our finalists, the Online Influence Awards is a night where we celebrate the best in blogging, vlogging, podcasting and Instagramming alongside agencies and brands who have collaborated with influencers to set the agenda and lead the conversation.

It’s not possible without the continued support from both influencers and brands, and the excellence they display in their work. We’re proud to work with and recognise the finest names in the industry.

The final available tickets are available for the awards here. If you’re not able to attend you can still keep up with all the excitement of the evening on social media by following our hashtag #OIAwards19.

Alfie's Diary

Pet Blogger Spotlight: Rosemary Kind, Alfie’s Diary

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‘Dogs and cats are not like cans of beans. You don’t just take them off the shelf in the supermarket,’ says Rosemary Kind of her love of animals and blogging about them. Alfie’s Diary – written from the point of view of her canine collaborator Alfie – chronicles the adventures of her pets as well as their care. For Rosemary, the pet blogging community are a pretty good bunch, only slightly bonkers, here to help with getting the word out on how to care properly for the animal pals in your life.

We talk famous alpacas and keeping things authentic – also important: there are pictures of puppers being good boys on location with Rosemary (very important).

How did you get started with blogging about pets?
It all began as a way to discipline myself to write every day.

I’d left a ‘real’ job to become a full-time writer and was suddenly adrift from all the corporate structure, goals, to do lists, etc. It would have been all too easy to say I was a writer while achieving very little indeed. If I started a blog then not only would I write every day, but as we’d recently moved to live in Belgium for a short period, I could use it to keep the family posted on what we were up to.

The arrival of Alfie, as a ten-week-old puppy, into our lives gave me a fun way to approach things. Watching him looking at the world and reacting to all the new things around him just led to the obvious (to me) conclusion that I should be writing about the world through the eyes of my dog.

What’s your favourite thing to post about?
Definitely travelling. Wilma, my youngest dog, is my sidekick these days and travels almost everywhere with me. We also get to go to some pretty cool places, so get some good photo opportunities.

Alfie's Diary travel

 

What are the best things about the pet blogging community that other blogging sectors might not have?
From the bloggers I’ve talked to, we all care passionately about our animals. We’re probably all slightly bonkers too, but in a good way. It’s easy to like people who put the needs of their pets first; in my book, they are generally a pretty good bunch.

What are your thoughts on pets/animals becoming celebrities through blogging and featuring on social media?
I’ve stopped being surprised by who becomes famous and why. If it’s possible for humans to become famous just for being famous, then any cat or dog with that inclination should just go for it. One of my absolutely favourite Instagram accounts is Alfie the Alpaca in Adelaide – he seems none the worse for it and has a pretty good life compared to the average alpaca. It’s great to see owners combining their pet’s celebrity with including excellent advice on the animals. When it’s clear that the animal’s needs come first, that’s a good thing.

Is there something you would never feature/write about on your blog?
We won’t feature products we haven’t actually tested. If we recommend something to our readers it has to be because we’ve tried it and think it’s worth telling them about. It also has to be relevant to our blog.

Do you think it’s necessary to have pets of your own in order to blog about pets/animals?
I’ve written a crime novel with a number of murders, but I’ve not actually killed anyone. No, I don’t think having a pet would be necessary. I think you have to understand what you are writing about and if it’s issue-related you need to care about the issue, otherwise you come over as inauthentic. I suspect if you approached this from a ‘professional’ point of view, without an interest, then that would come over to the reader. Dogs and cats are not like cans of beans. You don’t just take them off the shelf in the supermarket. They are sentient beings and I think being on their wavelength makes a big difference in writing about them. I’m odd in a way as I write from their point of view. I can’t do that and be distant from how they think. It wouldn’t make a convincing read.

Very important question here – which are really better, cats or dogs?
Not better, just different. Cats suit some people’s lifestyles better and years ago I did have cats. Now, I’d go crazy if I didn’t have a dog. We have readers who have cats and I wouldn’t want to upset them. Having said that, we have a dog who thinks she’s a cat. I have never seen such a condescending look in a dog’s eyes as Shadow can give if she’s not happy about something. She makes me laugh.

Alfie's Diary At The Polling Station

How do you work with PRs and brands – are review products and new launches useful?
Review products which are relevant are always welcome. I won’t change the food my dogs are on for the sake of a review, but I can gauge their reaction to it using it as a treat. Other things we happily test, as long as we can see it. I won’t take on a review that is obvious won’t add any value for readers.

We don’t just carry press releases which come in, unless there is a relevant angle. Too many press releases are adverts dressed up as news but without a newsworthy element.

We do like some of the infographics that come in, but again here question data and rule some out as being contrived. At the end of the day, we are interested in anything that will be of genuine interest to our readers.

For PRs looking to work with you and your blog, how would you prefer they approach you?
Always by email. Please bear in mind we can receive a lot of enquiries, so if we have not replied in five minutes that doesn’t mean it will be considered helpful to send us a follow up email. I have dogs to walk and other books to write as well.

What other blogs do you read?
I dip into blogs rather than reading them religiously. They are a great source of information on a whole range of subjects, not just pets but every area of life. There are very few answers that you can’t find on the internet these days.

Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database

A Question of Ethics

Keeping the influencer industry responsible

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Despite growing pains and continuing flux, the influencer industry continues to expand into mainstream culture and creep its way further into marketing and PR budgets. According to a Markets and Markets report cited in the #FuturePRoof guide We’re All Influencers Now, the international influencer marketing sector is predicted to grow 30% by 2024 – that’s £4.5 billion to £18.4 billion.

Big money means big responsibility for an industry still catching up with the accountability that comes with success, and ethics and regulation is what many speakers at this year’s Influencer Marketing Show were advocating for.

Speakers across the breadth of agency, creator, brand and tech brought up the issue of how to keep the industry accountable and ethical. For influencer marketing guru Scott Guthrie, influencers themselves have a moral obligation, as well as a legal requirement, to do the right thing by their audience.

Some obviously poor choices from those making a living from social media were highlighted by Scott – the hijacking of California wildfire hashtags by some Instagram influencers being one particularly unfortunate example. That influencers should make more ethical choices was also urged by artist and activist Alice Skinner. Fully aware of the responsibility she has to the young girls who make up a large portion of her following, she works to stay true to them as well as her own values: ‘It’s hard, but I want to be able to live with myself. I’m learning not to work with brands that don’t align with what I make, that don’t align with my beliefs and ethics’.

Working with those brands that align with their values doesn’t just help influencers avoid a guilty conscience, it also helps with keeping that authentic voice necessary for holding on to an engaged following.

During the panel with Alice Skinner on re-defining influence, fellow creator Rob Eades mentioned the dwindling effectiveness of product review posts, an early mainstay of the industry that don’t work as well in a post-sponcon world. In Rob’s experience, ‘people see through that stuff now’. After missteps like the Kardashians using their influence to advertise weight-loss teas, followers are smarter and are less likely to engage with inauthentic brand alignment or unethical promotions (which the slimming tea controversy most definitely was).

But what of the brands and agencies that work with influencers? Industry professionals certainly don’t escape the blame. Being an ethical industry extends to finding influencers and high-profile voices that match with what’s being promoted – actress and vocal feminist Maisie Williams working with The Body Shop on its #ForeverAgainstAnimalTesting campaign being a good example of a natural fit. A bad example was Mystery Brand working with Jake Paul, whose young audience shouldn’t, ideally, be visiting gambling websites.

Agencies have a responsibility to choose the right influencers, and that includes making sure their choices and reach are diverse. Stephanie Yeboah (interviewed in Vuelio’s Women of Colour series), on noticing brands choosing to only work with white influencers, spoke up about it on Twitter and wrote a Metro piece that got a lot of attention in the industry. ‘Brands are actually trying’, said creator Adanna David during the panel with Alice and Rob, but they need to go beyond tokenism, ‘Sometimes I have been a token. But maybe it’s a sign that things are changing’.

Where individual sense and conscience checking won’t do it, future regulations on the influencer industry will. For Gary Csiszar, CEO and Founder of Post for Rent, speaking during a panel on creators and branded content at IMS, the future is going to bring restrictions: ‘Regulation will be more strict on influencer marketing – that’s what I’ve started to experience in different countries.’ It’s unavoidable, and bound to bring positive change, but self-regulation for individuals and companies working in the sphere is a good foundation. Asking: is this authentic? Is this ethical? Is this inclusive?

And not promoting gambling sites and slimming teas to children – that’s a given.

For more on ethics in influence and influencer marketing governance in public relations, sign up for our upcoming webinar ‘We’re all influencers now with Stephen Waddington, Sarah Waddington and Andrew Terry. The guide from FuturePRoof can be read here.

Psychreg

Mental Health Blogger Spotlight: Dennis Relojo-Howell, Psychreg

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Dennis Relojo-Howell – AKA The World’s First Blog Psychologist – covers mental health, psychology and wellbeing over on his blog Psychreg. Starting as a directory of people interested in psychology back in 2014 (Psychreg being a portmanteau of  ‘psychologists’ and ‘registry’), the blog now provides resources for those who need them, as well as mental health-related stories and articles.

Dennis shares his thoughts on the growing awareness around mental health issues as well as the advantages of being a part of the blogging community when you happen to be an introvert.

How do you describe what you do to other people?
I’m a freelancer, a content creator – which is a millennial job. I work from home running the mental health website Psychreg. I also organise mental health events. Another aspect of my work is that I get invited to deliver lectures on mental health in different countries.

How much of a community is there around mental health bloggers?
As mental health is being pushed into the spotlight, I would imagine the community to be as vibrant as that of other sectors (such as marketing and politics). For instance, there are now events and awards dedicated solely for those within the mental health field. There is also a wide audience for mental health.

What’s the best thing about being a professional blogger (if you consider yourself to be one!)?
I consider myself to be a professional blogger because this is my full-time job. Prior to taking this role, I worked for a PR agency in London, and before that as a university lecturer (I taught psychology and sociology). One of the best things about being a blogger is I get to attend some free events and I also occasionally receive gifts. I am also a bit of an introvert so I love working on my own, at my own pace and style. I’m also honoured to have been dubbed the world’s first blog psychologist by a number of publications.

What does the future of blogging look like?
Promising. More and more people are now looking for independently-produced content – be it podcasts, videos, or blogs. Also, there’s a thriving community of bloggers who keep on thinking of fresh content to offer to their audience, so the blogging landscape will definitely continue to be more dynamic.

It seems like mental health is attracting more attention in society recently, why do you think that is?
I feel that this is because our attitude as a society has evolved. Although more needs to be done, we have already made significant progress in that there are now more people who can comfortably talk about their mental health issues. It also helps that there are high-profile celebrities and personalities who champion mental health.

Are businesses/employers doing enough to support the mental health of their staff?
I would say so. There are now programmes in place in some companies which are aimed to support staff in relation to their mental health and well-being. This is of course still a luxury, because you cannot expect all companies up and down the county to have such a programme.

What’s the best mental health initiative you’ve seen?
I would say the Neurodiversity Celebration Week. It was launched by the teenager Siena Castelon, an award-winning autism advocate. Her passion and commitment in raising awareness about autism is remarkable.

How do you work with PRs and brands?
I harness the power of social media to look for potential brands to collaborate with. For PR agencies, I still don’t know how it started but I receive press releases from different agencies on a daily basis. I publish most of these press releases on my blog.

What advice do you have for PRs looking to get in touch?
Feel free to send an email to blog creators. They are always on the hunt for content, so it is a win-win situation for bloggers and for your clients. I welcome content relating to mental health and well-being from PR agencies. You can find my contact details on my website.

What other blogs do you read?
For mental health blogs – I don’t read my competitors’ blogs! Aside from mental health, I am also interested in politics and social issues, so I regularly read spiked, Unherd, and Quillette.

Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database

Mike's Open Journal

Mental Health Blogger Spotlight: Mike Douglas, Mike’s Open Journal

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Mike’s Open Journal originally started as an outlet for blogger Mike Douglas to write about his own experiences with mental health. It now features an archive of content on lifestyle, health, fitness, dating, and relationships alongside the useful information on mental wellness.

Mike tells us more about how blogging has helped him with his own mental health journey, how it’s attracting more attention in society, and some examples for how workplaces can support the mental health of their staff.

How do you describe what you do to other people?
I started to write about my experiences with mental health illness because I was in a particularly bad place with my mental health and needed a healthy outlet. At that time, I could not see a way out of the darkness or how I could continue.

Writing/blogging (and subsequently, podcasting) provided me with an opportunity to express my thoughts and feelings – something I have always struggled with. Though, as a dyslexic male, that may not be a surprise. Fortunately, I am now in a much better place and am delighted to be able to share my experience with mental health (illness and wellness) through the blog and share conversations with guests via the podcast.

Blogging has grown so much in the last five years or so. There is such a huge range of blogs you can follow. Just last year I discovered pet bloggers through Vuelio, so there is definitely something for everyone.

It is a great way to share your experience/thoughts with other people without the limitation of geography or transport.

How much of a community is there around mental health bloggers?
My experience is that there is an ever-growing number of us and creating your own community is increasingly easy to do. For the most part, mental health bloggers are very supportive and are great at signposting to information and relevant material.

Like in any community, there are times when people disagree, there are cliques and closed groups. However, this is true of any ‘real life’ community and isn’t something exclusive to us or blogging in general. I have found the mental health blogging community to be particularly accepting in that we all have our own views and experiences and there is often a very positive non-judgmental environment.

Linked to community, I am so very proud to mention the Mental Health Blog Awards which I founded in 2017. We have held two events focused on providing recognition, sharing resources/supportive tools and growing our own networks. The third annual event will be held in July 2020.

What’s the best thing about being a professional blogger (if you consider yourself to be one!)?
I do not consider myself a ‘professional blogger’, I think because of how I started. Blogging was a coping strategy for me and has grown into being a tool to share, connect, educate (others and myself) and signpost.

Last year I tried to keep to a weekly schedule, this year I have reverted back to posting when I want or need to. That works much more for me. Part of being a blogger is working out what schedule you want to keep to and if that is realistic and worthwhile.

The best thing for me is hearing from people who have found acceptance, recognition, or the confidence to seek support after reading one of my posts. It is a privilege to be able to support other people by sharing my story.

What does the future of blogging look like?
I believe blogging will continue to grow. We have already seen the platforms used expand and evolve. Business websites regularly have a ‘see our blog’ section, there are Instagram posts with captions longer than some ‘traditional blog’ posts.

That’s all before we talk about the expanding topics, subjects and fandoms.

It seems like mental health is attracting more attention in society recently, why do you think that is?
National campaigns like #TimeToTalk, #GetBritainTalking, World Mental Health Day and World Suicide Prevention Day (there are many more) have raised the public profile of mental health. There is now much more awareness of mental health, illnesses, symptoms and how people can be affected. Slowly people are also becoming aware of the support available.

Campaigns like Heads Together have seemingly provided people with permission to talk about mental health, which is great. It is however important to remember there are still many people who are unaware of how mental ill-health can affect someone and how to support them. Or that mental health is not just about illness, it is also about wellness. So we still need to be prompting these discussions and campaigning for better education (and services).

Are businesses/employers doing enough to support the mental health of their staff?
It depends where you work. Great examples I have seen include:
• Having a Mental Health First Aider
• Having signposting material to a local service – local Mind, Samaritans, wellbeing group(s)
• Including MH as part of staff inductions and training
• Providing opportunities for staff to suggest/feedback on staff wellbeing
• Having a WAP (Wellness Action Plan)
• Making sure staff actually take their lunch break
• Encouraging all staff to listen, support, signpost – you do not need to be an expert

What’s the best mental health initiative you’ve seen?
I am slightly biased as I now work at a mental health charity and have been part of the team developing our Ambassadors project, so I think that’s pretty awesome (easthantsmind.org).

Some of the other initiatives I think are great include #DumpTheScales, #AskTwice, #ItAffectsMe and #StopSuicide.

Each of the initiatives has a focus and clear message. They have also worked hard to make their campaigns relevant to everyone.

How do you work with PRs and brands? What advice do you have for PRs looking to get in touch?
Working with brands is something that often affects mental health bloggers less as many just want to share their story/experience. For me, I enjoy bringing mental health/wellbeing to new settings/environments. Some of the brands I have collaborated with were very much with that wellbeing approach in mind. Some examples would be: Go Ape, The Body Shop, Boston Tea Party and local Pride events.

Not every opportunity is relevant to me or to my audience. So it is important to remember and keep in mind the purpose of your blog and what you and/or a brand are bringing to a post. For example, The Body Shop collaboration was a great way for me to talk about relaxation and self-care. I didn’t cover other aspects of their stock because that is not an area I have particular knowledge or interest in. It’s identifying what works for your/your blog/the brand.

I have a brief media kit available on the website where you can find out a bit more about me. You can also drop me an email at [email protected].

What other blogs do you read?
In the last month I’ve been reading posts from vickyflipfloptravels.com, irunoffroad.wordpress.com, and lifeoflily.co.uk.

Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database

TwitterForBrands

Getting ready for launch – #TwitterForBrands

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Gone are the days of launching your business, redesign, or new products purely in paper or in a TV spot. Brands have to launch on Twitter to take off, according to the platform’s director of business marketing Carlos Cantu, speaking on #TwitterForBrands at #MarTechFest 2019.  

Cantu came with the statistics to back up the importance of Twitter – citing that three in four people say that their Twitter community are the first people they look to for advice when wanting to learn more about a topic. And the immediacy of the response this social media channel can give isn’t the only advantage. Audience research has also shown that a 31% increase in memory encoding occurs when content is discovered in Twitter versus other online platforms, making it particularly sticky. Launch leaders (brands who are particularly good at this kind of thing) know the importance of using the platform to make things stick – another stat shared during the session was that launch leaders are 2.4 times more likely to use social listening (like Pulsar, which recently joined the Access Intelligence Group) as a guide for their strategies.

So how can the rest of us tap into Twitter as a tool when working on a launch? Research, timing, relevance, and reinforcement is key, advised Cantu. Start with finding the right audience for your product and message, and make sure to connect with what’s already happening. Coming into a conversation halfway is as weird online as in life, so tap into what’s going on in the space you’re entering. Pick the right time (the window for a successful launch has shortened, along with our attention spans) and be ready to adjust your strategy and collateral with all the real-time data at your disposal. And for better brand awareness? Cultural relevance. When Thea Lauryn Chippendale was mocked for her ASOS outfit on Tinder and went viral on Twitter, ASOS smartly invited her to model for the website.

Not every effort on Twitter is going to go viral, but reinforcement will keep the momentum going for your launch. Cantu’s advice was to go big on the reveal (another number to remember – 40% of launch budget was spent by the launch leaders on launch day and the days leading up to it), and then keep the conversation going with good creative that will resonate. Concise and clear copy, good visuals, and clear branding works when you don’t have a Tinder match nightmare to help tell your story.

In summary, it’s tweeting strategic and creative content that can get brands better results for their launches. With only 15% of brands interviewed in a recent Bain & Company study meeting their KPIs for social, there’s ample opportunity to make more use of Twitter as a launching pad. Did we mention we launched our new look this week, by the way?

ICCO logo

ICCO reveals 2019 Global Awards shortlist

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The International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO) has unveiled a shortlist of world-leading agencies, in-house teams, and professionals for its 2019 Global Awards.

The Global Awards celebrate outstanding of PR practice from across the world. This year, entries for the 27 awards came from more than 30 countries and were judged by an international panel of experts spanning four continents.

Hosted by broadcaster and journalist, Ayesha Hazarika MBE, the prestigious awards ceremony will be held on Tuesday, 3 December, at The Savoy, London, uniting PR professionals from a diverse range of cultures and countries for a night of networking and celebration.

Chair of Judges, Loretta Ahmed, CEO, Grayling Middle East: “Once again we’ve had a stellar set of entries into this year’s ICCO awards. Work from so many countries around the world showed the judges time and again the power of storytelling done well in many different contexts. Winning agencies are to be commended on the dedication to stand-out creativity and flawless execution, with campaign measurement in particular improving year on year.  In many categories the winners secured their award by a fraction of a point, proving the quality of all agencies shortlisted. So, to every agency that was shortlisted and made it to the screens of judges around the world we commend you!”

Best of luck so everyone shortlisted and we look forward to hearing who the winners are in December.

Find the full 2019 shortlist here.

We’re all influencers now

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The #FuturePRoof guide to influencer marketing addresses the need for influencer marketing governance in public relations. We’re all influencers now aims to educate practitioners about influencer relations campaigns, highlighting best practice for brands, agencies and influencers.

According to Markets & Markets the global influencer market is currently estimated at £4.5 billion and it’s a challenging area of practice that sits between marketing and PR, and earned and paid media. 

We are delighted that the founder and editor of #FuturePRoof and MD of Astute.Work, Sarah Waddington will be joining our exclusive webinar with the co-author of the publication and MD of Metia, Stephen Waddington. They will be joined by media and IP law specialist and Partner at Evershed Sutherland, Andrew Terry to discuss why PR is in best position to take ownership of influencer marketing, how to stay compliant and why everyone involved in a campaign has a responsibility to adhere to relevant advertising and media law.

Webinar: We’re all influencers now, 7 November 2019 at 11:00 

Join our live webinar to learn:

  • Best practice for working with influencers on paid and earned campaigns 
  • The importance of transparency over any commercial agreements with third parties
  • How to stay compliant when working on campaigns where no money is exchanged

 

Can’t make it? Register and we will send you a recording after the event. 

The Design Sheppard

Interiors Blogger Spotlight: Stacey Sheppard, The Design Sheppard

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Stacey Sheppard is the blogger behind The Design Sheppard – originally created in 2009 as a place to store the content Stacey gathered while researching for articles, and now a space for interior design inspiration and one of the top ten blogs in the sector.

We spoke to Stacey about blogging as a job, the importance of keeping things honest in the blogging industry, and being a self-appointed cork ambassador (it’s totally a thing – you’ll see).

How do you describe what you do to other people?
I always say I’m a freelance writer and blogger. I started my career as a staff journalist on a print publication and worked as a magazine editor for a number of years before I started my blog. I find that the response I get is less confused if I say freelance writer first. There are still a lot of people out there who don’t actually understand blogging and how it can be a job.

How much of a community is there around interiors bloggers?
For me, the community is the best part of being an interiors blogger. I don’t know what it is like in other niches but in interiors it is so open, welcoming and supportive. I’ve made lifelong friends through blogging, some of whom I’ve only actually met once or twice in real life but who I speak to every single day. I find the interiors blogging community to be really uplifting, inspiring and positive and that makes me proud to be part of it.

What’s the best thing about being a freelance writer and blogger?
The best thing about it is getting to do something that I love every single day. I wake up each morning excited for the day ahead, eager to get to work and see what opportunities will open up for me.

It’s also the freedom of being able to write about anything I’m interested in and sharing those things with my audience. I’ve come across so many talented people since I started blogging and I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing so many great designers. I love being able to give these people a platform to show off their skills.

What does the future of blogging look like?
This is a tough question and I think we’ve all been asking ourselves this recently. The rising popularity of Instagram has obviously sent waves through the blogosphere and left many of us wondering how our blogs can compete. However, we have to remember that we are in complete control of our blogs and no algorithm changes can destroy what we have built or reduce our visibility – that can’t be said for Instagram accounts. In fact, we’ve started to see lots of larger Instagram accounts now creating blogs alongside just to safeguard their future.

Another thing that is changing the industry is the tightening rules and regulations around advertising and brand partnerships. The ASA is continually bringing out new guidelines and regulations in an attempt to create transparency for our audiences and to ensure that they know when they are being advertised to. There was a lot of confusion at first but what is expected of us with regards to disclosure is becoming clearer. There are a lot of bloggers out there who aren’t playing by the rules though. I think it’s a dangerous game to play and in the long run it will be damaging. We gained our followings because people trusted us, they liked our authenticity and they believed that we had their best interests at heart. Those who don’t properly disclose their relationships with brands are disrespecting their readers and in the long run, this can only have a negative outcome.

How do you describe your style?
I hate being asked this question as I really don’t know the answer. Some bloggers have a really distinctive, recognisable style that is instantly identifiable. I don’t have this. I like industrial interiors, I like Scandinavian style, I like mid-century modern. My style also changes from room to room and from week to week. I tend to just go with whatever I’m into at the time. At the moment, that is biophilic design and incorporating lots of natural materials and greenery into my home.

What’s your favourite room in the house?
I’d probably say my bedroom. Now that my kids are mostly sleeping through the night, they aren’t invading that space so much. It’s starting to feel more and more like our own private sanctuary again. It still needs work before I’m totally happy with it, but plans are underway.

How long do you leave a redesign before wanting to do it again?
I’m actually not that big a fan of change. I like consistency at home and a feeling of stability and I couldn’t get that if I was constantly redesigning and redecorating. I tend to spend a really long time working out how I want a room to make me feel and how I want to use the space before making any changes. Then once I do it, I’m in it for the long haul because I’ve put the hours in working out a scheme that I will love. Of course, I make small changes every now again, like changing cushions, adding shelves and expanding my plant gang. But big changes are few and far between.

What’s the best collaboration you’ve worked on with an agency or brand?
I recently worked with The Colour Flooring Company who took me on a trip to Portugal to see the cork harvest and then to the production plant to see it being processed. I’ve loved cork as a material for many years and I’d always wanted to see the harvest. It was such a fun trip and I came back so full of enthusiasm for this remarkable material. I’ve pretty much appointed myself as a cork ambassador.

What advice do you have for PRs looking to get in touch?
Drop me an email and let’s talk.

What other blogs do you read?
Swoon Worthy, Apartment Number 4, Archie & The Rug, fabric of my life, Dear Designer’s Blog, Seasons in Colour, Hello Peagreen, Well I Guess This Is Growing Up, Boreal Abode, In Two Homes, The Interior Editor, Nordic Notes, grillo DESIGNS and new favourite Raspberry Flavoured Windows.

Reach-the-right-influencers-with-the-Vuelio-media-database

Influencer Marketing

Ethics, pivot tables and avoiding the Terminator: 6 lessons from the Influencer Marketing Show

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The panelists at this year’s Influencer Marketing Show had a lot to say about the current state of the influencer industry and how it can be evolved going forward. Most of the advice revolved around brand values, making sure the influencers you’re working with aren’t ‘jokers’ (one speaker’s take on Paul brothers, Aaron and Jake) and keeping things creative.

We attended as many sessions as possible to bring you the best tips from the world of influencer marketing.

1. ‘Avoid the hype cycle’ of AI and ‘get your pivot tables out’
Christian Gladwell from M&C Saatchi Performance
When it comes to the ubiquitous yet amorphous promises of AI for the marketing and influencer industry, the advice during Christian Gladwell’s The Power of People & AI: How Human Supervision Can Drive True Performance was to work towards useful and meaningful automation in what he called the ‘grey industry’ of AI. Unregulated algorithms without human oversight could lead to a dark future (for example, a 2029 Los Angeles with The Terminator walking around kind of future, according to Christian). Christian’s advice for avoiding this – pivot tables galore, and making use of human analysts to find data anomalies as they happen, to keep AI going in the right direction. A direction that isn’t cyborg-Arnold-Schwarzenegger-shaped, ideally.

2. ‘Ignoring ethics is a ticking timebomb in terms of safety’
Scott Guthrie, strategic influencer marketing consultant
Self-regulation of the industry was a big theme with many of the speakers at this year’s event, and something mentioned by Scott Guthrie a few times during his quick rundown of recent influencer controversies in A Question of Ethics: Why Producing Ethical Content is the Right Thing To Do. Future fallout akin to vegan blogger Yovana Mendoza Ayres eating fish or all the things the Paul brothers (yup) have been doing over the last few years can be avoided if brands and agencies focus on ethics alongside exposure.

3. ‘The key to authentic influence is aligning with those key to your brand. Ask yourself the question – why do people follow them?’ 
Adanna David, creator
Authenticity is still what pays off for influencers, despite all the new technologies, virtual avatars and metrics being mooted at this year’s show. Adanna, speaking on the panel for Re-defining Influencer, highlighted an authentic connection as the true tool for producing the best work with brands and agencies. Pick the right influencer, whether macro or micro, for your campaign to make sure you’ll be hitting the right audience.

4. ‘Instagram is not going anywhere soon’
Rob Eades, creator
Also discussing how influence is taking so many different forms, Rob assured the audience that Instagram will continue to be important. Relevance metrics, rather than ad metrics, is his bag to measure the impact and quality of his own work. And it’s not just connecting with a following that makes Instagram important for influencers – artist and visual activist Alice Skinner said that every big job she’s had has been through her DMs (bigger brands she’s worked with include Benefit and Skinnydip), so get in touch.

5. ‘Remember you’re working with real people. It’s not a standardised media buy’
Lisa Targett, UK general manager at TRIBE
During the Creator and Branded Content: The Big Debate panel, Lisa Targett advocated for careful consideration of influencer follower counts and full transparency from both sides when choosing who to work with. Despite some widely-publicised missteps from a few influencers in recent years – bought followers, unethical content, misrepresentation of beliefs – the message from the panel was that influencers, real people, are worth working with and are invaluable when you find the right fit.

6. ‘Sometimes in social you just have to go to your boss and say, “we need to do this”. You have to be brave’
Rachel Kneen, social media lead at Just Eat
Not all successes can be measured or benchmarked – for Rachel, sometimes a good idea at the right time, from the right person, is good enough.

Find the right influencers and make your story matter with the Vuelio Influencer Database.

Welcome to a new look Vuelio!

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Over the last few months, we’ve been busy speaking to our customers to find out what they think about our products and how we better answer what people need. One of the biggest challenges was around how to navigate what we do to find information needed quickly and so we’ve worked on a new (improved) design. The concept is a portal that provides a window into the world of information that our clients need.

We hope with our rebrand to make it easier to understand how we can help your organisation – whether with finding the right journalist, tracking your reputation or gaining the political insight you need. It will be followed by ongoing improvements to our products that we look forward to announcing over the coming months.

As well as updating our brand, we also moved home having outgrown our office space in Moorgate. From Monday 28 October, you can find us in The Johnson Building on Hatton Garden, a brand-new purpose-built space designed so we can better meet the needs of our clients – and our dev team! These changes are all part of our growth within the Access Intelligence portfolio which includes ResponseSource, the network that connects media and influencers to the resources they need fast; and Pulsar, the audience insights and social listening platform.

We’d love to hear what you think of the design and look forward to welcoming you to the new office.

The Vuelio Team

Ronan IMS

Vulnerability is a natural part of being a creative

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With 89% of PR and communications experiencing issues with mental wellbeing, how can we implement change within our own organisations to find a healthier way of working through, and with, our vulnerabilities? Ronan Harrington of Alter Ego and Extinction Rebellion shared some of his ideas for change during ‘New Work Needs Inner Work’ at the Performance In Live, sister show to Influencer Marketing Live.

‘Overwhelmed is the default’, is how Ronan Harrington summed up work in the PR and marketing industry during his keynote speech. Looking out into an audience of communications professionals, Ronan proposed a new way of working based on emotional honesty and growing comfortable with uncertainty.

Marketers and PRs use stories and each of us brings aspects of our own story to our work, whether or not we mean to. Ronan told of childhood experiences being what drives him in his career and the importance of saying ‘Yes, and’ to each challenge that arises.

For him, vulnerability is a natural part of being a creative and shouldn’t be shied away from or hidden. Rerouting this scary aspect of work into honest and healthy office interactions is what will change experiences on this career path for the better.

Pretending traditional office hierarchies are normal ‘isn’t normal’
Hierarchy was pinpointed by Ronan as a ‘way of hiding’ for many workers in the world of PR and marketing – a way to avoid making decisions and staying in a space of self-doubt. A move to circular structures rather than a top-down approach was proposed – a formula Extinction Rebellion has adopted for its own organisation.

Whether the commuters in the audience agreed with the format some of the group’s recent protests took (Ronan himself acknowledged a few of the examples that may have impacted those in the room ‘build a culture where you can acknowledge mistakes and grow through them’), this structure is one that aims to encourage a less-toxic environment and accountability without blame.

Moving towards a ‘culture of wholeness and self-management’
The advocation of self-organisation and regular emotional check-ins with colleagues was met with an anonymous audience question about the importance of funding for these efforts – how can every company afford to bring in consultants for making a happier and mentally healthier environment for their employees, or therapists for regular check-ins during stressful projects?

Surveys and co-counselling within teams was recommended in response – small things that acknowledge the stresses and vulnerabilities of working in this creative sector and enable people to work through and perhaps be inspired by them.

Read practical advice on improving mental wellbeing in PR.

New Environment Bill to ensure we are the first generation to leave the natural environment in a better state than we found it

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Vicky Ford MPThis is a guest post from Vicky Ford, Conservative MP for Chelmsford and a member of the Science and Technology Committee.

As an MP, I have taken particular interest in the damaging impact of plastic waste, particularly on developing countries and the marine environment. I am delighted that the Environment Bill contains a range of ambitious measures that should help to drastically reduce our plastic waste.

In the UK we have already set a world-leading net zero target and supported record levels of investment in renewables, especially offshore wind where we are a world leader. We have decarbonised faster than any other major economy and have already reduced climate emissions by 25% since 2010. The UK is also leading the way in the phase out of coal fired power stations and reducing maritime emissions.

The UK has doubled international climate funding to £11.6 billion, and successfully bid to host the UN Climate summit next year in Glasgow. This Climate Summit provides us with a huge opportunity to accelerate global action on climate change. However, there is always more to do.

The Government has published a 25-year Environment Plan, which is being enshrined in the Environment Bill. This landmark Bill was published as part of the Queen’s Speech. It is a central part in the Government delivering a step-change in environmental protection and recovery. It will also support the legislation to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 by minimising our waste, cleaning our air and water, and restoring habitats to allow plants and wildlife to thrive. The Bill has been warmly welcomed by Environmental campaigners.

The Bill will establish a new system of green governance and accountability, creating a world-leading environmental watchdog in the Office of Environmental Protection (OEP), and enshrining Environmental Principles in law, which will embed environmental values at the heart of Government policy making. To ensure the UK continues to drive forward ambitious action to tackle climate change, legislation will be brought within the enforcement remit of the OEP. The Bill will also implement a new statutory cycle of target setting, monitoring, planning and reporting to help deliver significant, long-term environmental improvement. This will include Environmental Improvement Plans (EIPs), the first being the 25-year Environment Plan.

The Bill will drive a major shift in minimising waste and moving towards a more circular economic model. It will introduce measures based on the ‘polluter pays’ principle, create a simplified approach to recycling, and tackle waste crime. Producers will be responsible for the full net costs of managing their products at end of life, encouraging them to design their products with re-use and recycling in mind. This will result in more durable, repairable and recyclable products. To tackle plastic pollution, the Environment Bill will enable the creation of new charges for other single-use plastic items, similar to the carrier bag charge, which will incentivise a shift towards the use of more reusable items. The Government is also taking powers to establish deposit return schemes that will further incentivise consumers to reduce litter and recycle more.

The Bill will enable greater local action on air pollution, better enabling us to tackle emissions from burning coal and wood; and bring forward powers for Government to mandate recalls of vehicles and machinery when they do not meet relevant legal emission standards. The Environment Bill makes a clear commitment to set a legally binding target for the pollutant with the most significant impact on human health, fine particulate matter.

The Bill will introduce additional requirements for water company planning for future water supply and wastewater and drainage networks, enabling more resilient solutions to drought and flooding. In a changing climate, these measures will ensure the water regulator has the powers it needs to respond to changing priorities. The Bill enhances flood and coastal erosion risk management, allowing for the expansion of existing internal drainage boards or the creation of new ones where there is local appetite to do so. The Government is also reforming elements of abstraction licensing to link it more tightly to our goal of restoring water bodies to as close to natural state as possible and reducing substances which are potentially harmful to surface waters and groundwater. The Environment Bill will also make it possible to keep the legislation up to date on chemicals.

The Environment Bill supports and enables action to create or restore wildlife rich habitats to enable wildlife to recover and thrive. It will ensure that new developments enhance biodiversity and help deliver thriving natural spaces for communities. This will also support certainty in the planning system and therefore the delivery of new housing, while retaining and providing habitats that can enhance biodiversity.

Alongside the Bill, the Government response will publish the consultation on protecting and enhancing England’s trees and woodland, covering measures to increase the transparency and accountability in the process of felling street trees.

The Environment Bill will enable our country to make big steps towards delivering the goal that this will be the first generation to leave the natural environment in a better state than we found it. It is a tremendous opportunity and I hope that you will agree that we should grasp it with both hands.

We're all influencers now

#FuturePRoof guide tackles influencer marketing governance for public relations

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#FuturePRoof has published a guide that addresses the need for influencer marketing governance in public relations, with clear guidance for practitioners and influencers. 

According to Markets & Markets the global influencer market is currently estimated to £4.5 billion in 2019.

The #FuturePRoof guide aims to give public relations a voice around the critical area of governance for influencer marketing. It’s a challenging area of practice that sits between marketing and public relations, and earned and paid media.

Click here to read the guide: We’re all influencers now. 

Sarah Waddington, founder and editor of #FuturePRoof said: ‘The #FuturePRoof guide highlights best practice for brands, agencies and influencers. Everyone involved in a campaign has a responsibility to adhere to relevant advertising and media law’.

In the UK influencer campaigns are governed by existing Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) laws. Chartered Institute or Public Relations (CIPR) and Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA) members are also covered by their own codes of conduct.

Francis Ingham, Director General of the PRCA said: ‘Influencer marketing is a burgeoning area of our practice, but the number of cases brought by the ASA and CMA proves that too many influencers and practitioners are falling foul of the standards we expect. All PR professionals working with influencers have an ethical duty to ensure they – and those they work with – comply with the law. The PRCA Code of Conduct compels professionals to deal honestly with the public – that includes being transparent over any commercial agreements with third parties. Failure to uphold these standards damages trust in our industry.’

The #FuturePRoof guide characterises the market, includes applicable media law and guidance from advertising, marketing and public relations. It covers guidance for campaigns where no money is exchanged, gifts in kind such as accommodation or travel, and financial payment.

The tension between earned and paid campaigns isn’t only a challenge for marketing and public relations practitioners, it has also led to influencers breaching advertising and trading standards law.

#FuturePRoof says that there is a growing need and opportunity for formal representation for influencers. What’s clear from the guide is that PR is in the best position to take ownership of influencer marketing, giving it both structure and clear standards for the benefit of business, influencers and the public.

Scott Guthrie, independent influencer marketing consultant and co-author of the guide, said: ‘The public relations industry has been slow to offer leadership on influencer marketing to practitioners and influencers. We’ve been here before with search engine optimisation (SEO), social media, and content marketing. It’s important that PR doesn’t miss out again’.

The guide has been written by Scott Guthrie, and independent influencer marketing consultant, and Stephen Waddington, managing director, Metia, and Visiting Professor, Newcastle University.

It includes contributions from Rupa Shah, Founder and Director of Hashtag Ad Consulting; Andrew Terry, Partner and Head of Intellectual Property & Media, Eversheds Sutherland; and Vuelio’s Jake O’Neill.

Vuelio is delighted to support the publication and will be hosting an exclusive webinar with Sarah Waddington, Stephen Waddington and Andrew Terry on 7 November. It is free to sign up, and if you can’t join us live a recording will be sent to all registrants after. Register here. 

Frequent-Flyer

Is it time to ban frequent flyer schemes to tackle the climate emergency?

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This is a guest post from Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Jenny Jones) a Green Party member of the House of Lords, who has written about her parliamentary question in the House of Lords on ‘Plans to ban or restrict frequent flyer “airmiles” schemes’.

Reducing aviation emissions is one of the big political headaches. People will recycle; catch the train rather than drive; eat less meat and turn the thermostat down a notch, but ask them to stop flying and they don’t want to do it. I haven’t flown for years and have taken a pledge not to fly for the coming year. This meant I had to shelve my plans for a big US road trip. It has not been an easy decision, but given the climate emergency, it seems like the right one.

Given the melting ice caps and record-breaking temperatures around the globe, it is shocking that companies like Virgin are still offering a frequent flyer loyalty scheme that encourages more flights. This has caused the Government’s Committee on Climate Change to recommend that the practice is banned. I will be asking the Minister in the Lords whether they will act on this mildest of reforms.

Instead of giving incentives to fly more often, we should be reducing demand by introducing a frequent flyer tax where we target the rich 15% of the population who take 70% of the flights. Every year people would get an allowance of a single flight and the tax on subsequent flights would increase rapidly the more trips people took. As frequent flyers tend to be the wealthier members of our society, this seems the most egalitarian way of reducing emissions while allowing people to attend those special family events and get togethers that can be so precious.

This would inevitably mean that the Heathrow expansion is cancelled, along with a lot of other airport schemes designed to generate an increased demand for flights. If we are aiming for zero emissions by 2035, then we have to act urgently to curb aviation demand. I know that the Government target is 2050 and that many are still hopeful that the technological solutions of bio-fuels and electric planes can be developed, but we can’t plan on that basis. If the aviation industry is confident it can reduce emissions then get on with it. We can discuss any plans for expansion once they have got the technology working.

Nor can we continue with the illusion that the emissions from planes taking off, or landing, at Heathrow, are not our (UK) emissions. The lack of an international agreement means that greenhouse gases from aviation are not fully counted as part of the Government’s zero emission target. This sleight of hand has got to stop. Climate change could end our entire way of life. We either change rapidly now, or have change forced upon us.

PR difficult conversations with journalists

How to manage difficult conversations with journalists

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A guest post written by Jodie Brazier, Comms Consultant at Topline Comms

Promised you’d get something over to a journalist before their deadline but can’t? Need to ask a contact to pull an article about a client? Conversations like these are best avoided, but sometimes you don’t have a choice. Jodie Brazier from Topline Comms shares some tips to help prevent awkward moments before they happen, and how to approach these conversations when you can’t.

Conversations with journalists are a daily occurrence in my work at Topline Comms – I work on the STEM team and I’m lucky enough to deal with loads of amazing science and engineering journalists. One of my favourite parts of the job is sharing exciting new stories from clients with them, but not every conversation with a journalist is a smooth one.

Here are some tips on how to avoid difficult journalist conversations.

What to do if you can’t meet a journalist’s deadline:

To prevent this from happening:

  • Always check with your client that they are happy to commit to a deadline before you confirm it with a journalist
  • Be realistic. It’s much better to be upfront and say you won’t be able to meet the deadline and negotiate an extension than to commit to something which you know you’ll be unlikely to fulfil and leave the journalist hanging

What to do if it still happens:

  • Let the journalist know as soon as possible. The sooner you tell them (especially if it’s for a print publication) the more time they have to find something to fill the vacant space
  • Be honest and apologetic. Don’t try to make up an elaborate excuse; if the content is stuck in approvals, let them know that and make it clear that you know it’s an issue
  • Have an idea of when it will be ready. It’s likely the first thing a journalist will want to know once you’ve told them it won’t be ready in time for their deadline

If you need to pull an article at the last minute:

To prevent this happening:

  • Pulling content is a big no-no and a PR nightmare, so prevention is vital!
  • Make sure that all content is signed off by your client (and by all the key client stakeholders that need to see it) before it goes to the journalist. Or, if it’s an interview, be very clear with your spokesperson that they shouldn’t say anything that they wouldn’t want to see published

What to do if it still happens:

  • Unfortunately, sometimes there are circumstances that are beyond your control. It’s best to let the journalist know asap so they can arrange something to fill the space
  • You could also offer the journalist another story they could use instead
  • Be honest and tell them why the article is being withdrawn. Understanding the reasoning will make getting the bad news a bit more bearable

All in all, when it comes to breaking bad news to journalists, clear and frequent communication is key. Keep them informed of content status and if there are any issues, notify them as soon as possible. Think about if someone was to break this news to you, how best would you want to be told?

Build relationships with journalists in your sector – find them with the Vuelio Media Database and find out what they need with the Journalist Enquiry Service.

Vuelio Product Update – October

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We are constantly improving Vuelio for our clients, this month we’ve used machine learning to enhance journalist profiles.

Top topics displayed on journalist profiles

Knowing what a journalist has recently written about can help you to decide who is most likely to cover your story.

To enable you to better select media contacts for your campaigns, we’ve added the top 10 topics, names and places journalists have covered so far this year (2019) on their profiles in the Vuelio Media Database.

As an online monitoring provider, we already scan millions of articles from across the web to deliver your media coverage. We’ve used this data to build a machine learning algorithm that can identify if a word/phrase – also known as an ‘entity’ – falls into one of three categories: a name of a person or organisation, a place or a topic. This process is called ‘Named Entity Extraction’. It then collates this information and counts the number of mentions for each word, which is displayed on a contact profile.

 

We will continue to use this technology to improve how you search for information in Vuelio and it will contribute to other innovations. Watch this space.

Brexit

Boris Johnson: ‘A very good deal both for the EU and the UK’

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A new Brexit deal has been agreed with the European Union only hours before the start of the EU Council meeting in Brussels.

EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker tweeted:

President Juncker added: ‘We now have a newly agreed Protocol that protects peace and stability on the island of Ireland and fully protects our Single Market. I hope that we can now bring this over the line and provide the certainty our citizens and businesses so deserve.’

The new Withdrawal Agreement says in specific relation to Northern Ireland that both sides are:
‘Determined that the application of this Protocol should impact as little as possible on the everyday life of communities in both Ireland and Northern Ireland’

It also underlined ‘the firm commitment to no customs and regulatory checks or controls and related physical infrastructure at the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland’.

There is a clear view from the EU that while many key figures in Brussels might regret the UK’s referendum decision in 2016, the time has now come to pass a Withdrawal Agreement and to move forward to the second stage of negotiating the UK’s future partnership with the EU.

In a joint press conference with President Juncker, Boris Johnson said: ‘I do think that this deal represents a very good deal both for the EU and the UK. It represents a reasonable, fair outcome and reflects the large amount of work that’s been undertaken by both sides.’

The PM was also keen to stress that today’s agreement does protect the peace process in Northern Ireland.

Johnson called on his fellow MPs in Westminster to: ‘come together to get Brexit done, to get this excellent deal over the line and to deliver Brexit without any more delay so that we can focus on the priorities of the British people.’

He added that the UK was keen to leave the EU on good terms: ‘We are a quintessential European country. Solid European friends, neighbours and supporters.’

For many, the risk of the EU lowering environmental standards and workers’ rights has been a concern addressed by the ‘Level playing field for open and fair competition’. This is crucial to securing the votes of as many Labour MPs as possible, who will presumably have to vote against their party whip in order to support the deal.

This aspect has been moved from the legally binding withdrawal agreement to the non-legally binding political declaration. This might be a major stumbling block to securing the votes of Labour MPs in leave-voting seats, who have expressed a desire to leave the EU with a deal swiftly. Labour’s Seb Dance MEP said moving the level playing field measures is ‘as sure a sign as any, Johnson has no intention of honouring them’.

After days of intense talks, the Conservative Party’s confidence and supply partners, the Democratic Unionist Party, have not actually signed up to this latest deal. Some wonder if they will change their view before Saturday’s crucial votes or if the PM feels he has sufficient MPs on side, not to need the ten DUP votes. Equally will they abstain or vote against the deal? This will have a significant impact on the final result. On 30 March 2019 in Theresa May’s final attempt to get her Brexit deal passed by MPs, only four MPs abstained, as well as the MPs who never take part in votes like the Speaker, his deputies and the seven Sinn Fein MPs.

It is also worth reflecting on where the UK is heading if MPs reject a deal for the fourth time on Saturday. It seems the EU is minded not to offer the UK a further extension so in reality the votes on Saturday will be all the more crucial if voting against the deal will mean MPs are bring a no-deal exit a step closer. Equally MPs have voted for the motion on Saturday to be amendable, so it is expected that there will be another opportunity for MPs to vote on whether or not to have a second EU referendum.

Jeremy Corbyn said: ‘As it stands we cannot support this deal and we will oppose it in parliament on Saturday’, and there are reports that Labour will whip its MPs to back a second referendum option on Saturday.

Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson has said that the PM is in a ‘desperate situation’ and that this new deal is similar to Theresa May’s Brexit deal but that it is ‘going to be worse for the economy’.

Nigel Farage is not supporting this new deal, he said: ‘It’s just not Brexit. We will never be able to properly break free of the EU if we sign up to this’.

Equally with a Queen’s Speech vote looming next week, which without a majority the Government is likely to lose, it is unclear how close the country could be to a general election campaign starting and whether this deal is actually an attempt to bring about a general election, according to the Guardian’s Brexit correspondent Lisa O’Carroll.