Brand Awareness, what it is and how to get it right!

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We may already be halfway through the year, but it’s not too late to create brand awareness. In order to stand out from the crowd, you need a strong brand. If you want to make sales and drive equity, customers need to be aware of what your brand is and what you’re offering.

When it comes to brand awareness, the thing you should ask yourself is to what degree do your customers associate your brand with a specific product? Here at Vuelio, we have become synonymous with our work with influencers as we have over 11,000 bloggers on our media database, we run weekly top ten blog rankings and a yearly award show.

With ever increasing competition and oversaturation in the marketplace, you cannot assume that your customers will automatically find you, and this is why it’s important that you develop strategies to actively reach out to potential and existing customers.

For many PRs, social media is now the most powerful tool when it comes to brand management. The popularity of social media has gradually shifted the focus from the product, onto the customer. Through direct engagement with potential customers, you can enhance your brand awareness.

With unprecedented access to your audience, you can create a tailored brand experience. Through strong communications, you can become participants in your ‘brand narrative’, which will help you to create a level of trust and authenticity that traditional marketing often misses. By choosing content carefully and what channels you use to disseminate it, you can reach your audience more effectively.

Content is king! You need to think beyond marketing and PR. Invest time in creating original content as it will help to drive SEO and encourage social media engagement. If people are engaged with your content, if you are creating conversations relevant to your audience, and people are having positive conversations about you, you can establish your brand as a leader in your industry.

Here at Vuelio, we recently have started doing guest blog posts with reputable thought leaders like John Brown from Hotwire PR and prominent PR bloggers like Michael White, which is another great form of brand awareness. If you partner with industry recognised figures who have large followings and are respected within the industry this can give you exposure, authority and potentially attract new customers.

When it comes to bloggers, influencer marketing is big business. When it comes to marketing, influencers are now one of the most powerful tools of PR. Statistics now show that bloggers now have the power to influence people’s buying decisions more than traditional forms of media. Collaborating with the right influencer can substantially boost your trustworthiness and can lead to potential sales leads.

And lastly why not try sponsorship? Securing the right sponsorships can give you access to your key demographic, helping you to extend your reach and improve your brand reputation.

How to manage your online reputation

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When it comes to brand reputation, you are only as good as your customers perceive you to be. Gone are the days of one-way marketing to prospective customers, now brand reputation is completely dependent on interactions with consumers. And while its hard enough to find your edge and distinguish yourself from your competitors, establishing a strong brand reputation is key to your success.

With research showing that 85% of potential customers use the internet to research your company before they decide to make a purchase, cultivating effective online management reputation is essential.

What kind of social media presence do you have? What kind of reviews are people giving you? What are people saying about you online? What news headlines come up when people type your business’s name into Google? These are important questions you constantly need to be asking.

This may come as a surprise to you, but your website might be the last place a person goes to find out more about you. And if they are not happy with your services, they’re unlikely to send you a letter. Most likely they are going to vent their anger on social media, and before you know it you’ll have a full-blown PR disaster on your hands.

But before it gets to this state there are preventative measures you can take and simple things you can do in the moment to minimise the chance of a PR disaster outbreak.

The best way to manage your brand’s online reputation is to monitor your social footprint. Serious damage can be done to your business by an inappropriate tweet or a video that goes viral. The things that cause damage to a brand are by no means new, but the rapid advancements made in technology amplify their negative impact, which in turn makes you more vulnerable. This is why it’s important to monitor social platforms like Facebook and Twitter. You can of course manually perform regular searches for your brand name or product on different platforms, but the best way to see what people are saying about you on social is through using tools like Vuelio’s social media monitoring as it lifts the burden of having to do it yourself.

It’s been estimated that the average online users spend 50% of their online time on social media alone. Therefore if you are neglecting your online reputation, you are sleepwalking into a marketing disaster.

If you have an unhappy customer make sure you respond promptly. By monitoring your social media mentions, you can be across all conversations online.
When your customers reach out to you online, they will expect you to respond quickly. Social media operates on a 24-hour basis, so not responding, even for a couple of hours could do irreparable damage. If you need time to reflect on what you want to say, particularly if what the customer is raising is of a serious nature, you can respond by first acknowledging them and then letting them know that you will give them a full response once you have collected all the information you need to give them an informed reply. Most customers want to feel heard and valued, so by acknowledging them you will decrease the chances of having a full-scale crisis.

There is nothing that beats being transparent. If your customers find that something is wrong with your product or the services you are offering, don’t try to cover it up or be dismissive. Admit your mistakes and shortcomings. Trust is built by being honest and transparent. If someone complains about you, as tempting as it might be, don’t delete it, address it. In fact, it’s the perfect opportunity to show your customers how much you value their feedback and how quickly you can take something negative and turn it into something positive.

The dos and don’ts of blogger outreach

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Are struggling with your blogger outreach? Can’t engage with the right contacts or unsure how to pitch? Or maybe you just don’t know where to start? Here’s your chance to learn how to get it right. 

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Why not join our best practice webinar for PRs –The Dos and Don’ts of Blogger Outreach: How to do it right and get the results you want. 

During our webinar we will talk you through the process from start to finish – how to start building authentic relationships with influencers, how to pitch them in a way they are most likely to respond and how using a blogger database can help you get results fast. 

Filled with top tips straight from the horse’s mouth – the bloggers themselves – this webinar is your step by step guide on brushing up your blogger outreach strategy.

The Dos and Don’ts of Blogger Outreach webinar will take place on Tuesday 23 May 2017 at 14:00pm BST. 

Improve and maintain corporate reputation

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Businesses and organisations are acutely aware more than ever of the importance of protecting their reputation. Some have learned the hard way when crisis situations have hit and they haven’t been prepared or have handled it badly.

There are three sides to reputation management – the first is maintaining reputation when it’s at its highest, the second is developing a good reputation from a new-start perspective and the third is managing reputation and then changing perceptions in a crisis situation.

When conducting studies, the Reputation Institute, the global reputation-based research and advisory firm, uses its RepTrak® measurement framework and measures the perceptions and opinions on:

  • products or services
  • innovation
  • workplace
  • corporate governance
  • public and social impact
  • leadership
  • performance

Reputation can make or break businesses. You can use the above to help with your strategy and management.

Companies or organisations with reputation issues are more likely to feel the wrath of the law and importantly, the public. Nowadays, it may also provoke a cyber attack.

So, how can corporate reputation be improved or maintained when there are so many different elements to consider?

Firstly, it all comes back to the organisational values and objectives. If the values of the organisation are real, ethical and trustworthy, then they should be embedded in every element of organisational work.

Business and organisation have a duty to their shareholders, stakeholders, employees, suppliers and the public, not to mention regulators. You will be held to account.

Public trust is paramount. In the 2008 crash, public trust was at an all-time low in the financial industry, with the public being wary and confused, financially worse off and the impact on the global economy at its worst.

Today’s challenge in reputation management is not only speed but also given the change in landscape, there is media, social media, influencers in their many forms and we must ensure our risk assessments, scenario planning and crisis comms plans are fit for purpose today.

I’m not talking about lying. I’m not talking about coming up with cover-up stories, I’m talking about genuine, ethical business practice. Understanding the business, the scenarios, the likelihood and the potential impacts, will help you understand what you’d need to do, over the short, medium and long-term, to protect reputation.

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Actions speak louder than words

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You can say whatever you like, but if your actions don’t back this up, then your words are worth nothing and will no doubt be even more detrimental to your reputation.

In addition, the under-rated skill of listening is key. Listening to the people who impact on your business. Listening will help greater understanding and greater understanding leads to better-informed decisions and strategies.

Listening will also help build better relationships as people recognise you are taking their opinions, views and also experiences into consideration. This, in turn will also add greater value to the business and the influence gained will be beneficial.

Listening tools also exist and can be used online, monitoring and listening to different communities. This is essential to keep on top of any issues which may be arising and also in case there are any other groups or communities who you may not even have been aware of. It always an opportunity to respond to issues before they may turn to a crisis.

Top down, bottom up

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As we know, communication works both ways, as does respect and understanding. CEOs and boards have a duty to act as leaders. Leaders should want insights, understand and listen. It shouldn’t just be something for management. Leaders should set an example.

CEOs have the opportunity to really put their money where their mouth is and strengthen corporate reputation by distinguishing themselves and setting a moral, ethical and world-leading standard – no matter how big or small the business or organisation may be.

Charged up CEOs can really set an example and inspire others, too.

Cyber threats

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Interestingly, people find it curious that PR people should be involved or be keen to know systems and protocols in IT departments.

At #PRFest in June, I’ve worked with Craig McGill at PwC to bring their Game of Threats cyber attack simulator to the festival. One of the biggest organisational risks is unhappy employees or those who don’t understand the potential impacts of bad practice.

Take someone using an unknown USB in company IT equipment which could contain malware or unhappy employees spreading negative stories about the company. You are more likely to be targeted if you’re deemed an unethical business or an organisation with an already poor reputation.

It’s so important PR and comms people are on top of recognising issues and impacts and including this within their plans, including simulating scenarios.

Act before a crisis hits

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With tools, systems and people to recognise issues as they start, the key is to address them before a crisis hits. This involves insights and data, planning, scenario tests, and regular monitoring to ensure the plan is always fit for business purposes.

Every member of staff at every level has a part to play. Managers are more likely to spot issues further down the chain than say, a CEO would. But do they know how to report or deal with it to ensure it’s handled effectively? This leads to thorough internal communications functions, policies and management.

Systems and processes

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An early warning system using the risk assessments and listening/monitoring tools will play a vital role in any issues or crisis situation. It’s the reporting of a potential issue that is vital – quickly. Without denial.

  1. Insights and data –internal and external – listening and monitoring
  2. Understand what this information is telling you. Also understand what matters to your stakeholders. What do the actions look like that support what you’d be saying?
  3. Wider and transparent conversations. Think of collaborations and partnerships as an opportunity to involved a bigger set of stakeholders and by collaborating or partnering, there is a two-way approach.

Six areas for corporate reputation to monitor and manage

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  1. Operating and business performance
  2. Legal or ethical
  3. Personnel – particularly misconduct
  4. Political
  5. Environmental
  6. Safety and security

Confidence in you and your business

The importance of confidence in crisis preparation must be underlined. Knowing that you and your business are prepared to face ‘the unknown’ instils confidence. Feeling, being and acting confident are essential groundings for facing unforeseen and emotionally difficult crisis events at a time when you must reassure others that the situation is under control and being handled properly.

The ability to anticipate trouble before it happens is the best source of confidence. Your reputation is your biggest asset. It must be protected.

 

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Are we having the right conversations about diversity?

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Diversity is a hot topic. Hashtags like #OscarsSoWhite and #BritsSoWhite have forced conversations about the lack of diversity into the mainstream. From the echo chambers of social media all the way to the Houses of Parliament, everyone is talking about the absence of proper representation across different sectors. But does it mean anything? Or is it all just lip service?

Despite the PRCA highlighting the lack of diversity in PR, the industry is still struggling to diversify its workforce. In a candid interview, Karan Chadda, director of Evolving Influence shares his thoughts about why it’s important that the CIPR board represents the full spectrum of the UK’s public relations workforce; why we don’t need more conversations about diversity but substantive change, and why he believes that having more diversity at the top of the PR industry will help to not only attract more diverse junior-level applicants, but broaden the national conversation driven by PRs – making stories more accessible. 

Karan Chadda_Diversity-Vuelio

Why do you think the lack of diversity is such a big issue in PR? I think it’s a big issue for every industry. In the UK, where so many sectors talk about talent shortages, it seems daft that we need to make the case for greater diversity at all. If you only recruit from a small segment of society, you inevitably miss talented people. There is undoubtedly a shortage of talent but we should also be asking how much talent is hiding, overlooked or unseen?

You’ve also spoken out against the CIPR board for not having much diversity, why do you think that it is important for the CIPR board to represent the full spectrum of the UK’s public relations workforce? I noted it as unfortunate. Part of attracting a more diverse workforce is showing them what’s possible from a career in PR. You can tell people that it’s a great industry full of amazing opportunities, but if all they see is a monoculture at the top, your words will count for little.

What kind of conversations do we need to be having in 2017 about diversity in order to make progress? 

I’m not sure that we need more conversation, rather we need more substantive change. I think many would agree that the industry is more fond of talking about things than changing them.

And to some extent that’s human nature. Change is hard and commercial priorities are never-ending, but at some point, you need to invest in change and that change should strengthen your business. The PRCA’s recent move on gender pay gap reporting as part of the Consultancy Management Standard (CMS) process is an excellent example of getting on with doing things.

Karan Chadda_Vuelio-Diversity

Diversity has become quite a popular term, but do you think that most people have a real understanding of what it is and how it applies to the workforce? It’s popular to the point of cliché and that’s a problem. Banging on about it has little affect these days, so it’s important to focus efforts where substantive change can be made.

On the plus side, I don’t think there are many people in PR who think more diversity isn’t a good thing. Where there is a disconnect is where we have people talking about the benefits of diversity but few practical examples of how to change and achieve those benefits.

What does diversity mean to you? For me, it means finding the best people. That means recruiting from the biggest pool of talent and, equally importantly, recognising that talent isn’t about shared cultural experiences or how well spoken you are or what colour shoes you wear with a suit. In practical terms, that means changing assessment criteria and reaching out beyond existing networks.

Some PR agencies might say that it’s the job of Taylor Bennett Foundation and Creative Access to help young ethnic minority people to start their careers in the industry. What would be your response to this? Bluntly, it’s not the job of charities to subsidise agencies’ recruitment problems. However, they do an excellent job and I’d urge agencies to help fund them to ensure their vital work can continue and grow. We should also note that the PRCA run the industry’s apprenticeship scheme, which is an excellent initiative. Alongside that a number of agencies have, via the RPCA, committed to paying interns the living wage. These are actions of substance and they’re good for diversity in the industry.

What are some of the barriers that people of colour face once they enter the industry and how can this be addressed? There’s a lot of research that says the primary issue at a junior level is that the industry is not seen as a place for people like them. That comes in two parts, one of which is that PR isn’t seen as particularly diverse and the other part is that it isn’t seen as a prestigious career option.

You’ve been quoted as saying that there is a big difference between access and progression. Can you speak more on this? For me, you’ll only really see the diversity issue resolved once the top of the industry is less uniform. Most industries have little difficulty in recruiting a diverse group of people at the junior level, those advances will be short-lived if some of that cohort doesn’t grow into the top jobs. Diversity at the top signals that PR is a career to aspire to and that it is possible to get to the top.

Another entirely separate point, and this might sound a bit grand, is that PR helps create the national conversation. More diversity at the top will likely broaden that conversation and that can only be a good thing.

What needs to be done to attract more young people from ethnic minority backgrounds into the PR industry? I’m not sure about this one. I recommend speaking to Sarah Stimpson at Taylor Bennett who has excellent experience in this area.

What future trends do you think we will see in regards to diversity in PR in 2017? I’m not sure we’ll see any notable new trends. There are more and more new initiatives and many of them, like the living wage commitments, apprenticeships and reporting changes, will over time make a difference. Change never happens overnight but there is definite change afoot.

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Have you got a dysfunctional relationship with your client?

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I love conflict. For me, healthy conflict is an important part of any working relationship. It appears, however, that I’m not alone in this thinking. In fact, a very clever chap, Patrick Lencioni, defined the five characteristics of a highly effective team. The second characteristic is, healthy conflict.

Having just been part of a team that went through the formal training associated with Lencioni’s theory, I started thinking about whether this theory could and should be applied to client relationships.

No matter how much we strengthen our internal team’s relationships, we’ll ultimately not move forward with enough pace if our client relationships don’t improve as well. If I’m soiling myself every time conflict arises between a client and I then know something is not quite right.

dysfunctional relationship_JohnBrown-Hotwire

So, how do we go about building a healthy relationship with our clients?

According to Lencioni, highly functional teams have the following characteristics:

  1. Trust – they start from the foundation of trust. A degree of vulnerability about strengths and weaknesses builds trust and for a team to function well, everyone must believe that best interests lie at the heart of each individual.
  1. Healthy conflict – my favourite. Not being afraid to challenge, question, debate and air opinions on ideas and actions. A strong team should mean everyone within it feels empowered to speak up and have their voice heard.
  1. Commitment – this is about buy-in. You’re never going to get everyone agreeing from the off. Most teams will still have disagreement about a direction taken. However, importantly the team will have complete buy in that the decision has been made and we’re moving forward.
  1. Accountability – my least favourite. Everyone holds each other accountable for their actions. A healthy team doesn’t need a cruel ruler dishing out punishment and keeping everyone on track. They should each be ensuring the other is doing what they say they’ll do
  1. Results – winning for the team. While individuals will and should always be called out for exceptional work, a strong team will always have the bigger picture in mind and share collectively in the successes of the team

DysfunctionalRelationship_JohnBrown-Hotwire_PR

I think as an industry, we get this right internally a lot more than we give ourselves credit. We tend to be more comfortable with trust and feedback than other professions and everyone knows how much we love to slap each other’s backs – just look at how many awards there are out there. But when looking at these characteristics through the lens of a client relationship, things become a little more troublesome.

I’m going to flip these five pillars of a strong team and turn them into their dysfunctional cousins. What’s more, I’ll try and describe the dysfunctions from the perspective of a client relationship.

  1. It’s all about the money – the client sees the agency as always sniffing out the extra dollar or pound without any regard for what’s in the client’s best interest. Equally, the agency believes the client is trying to squeeze them at every turn and is constantly on the watch for scope creep and creative payment plans.
  1. Put up and shut up – the agency only sees its role as functional delivery. It’s not there to challenge the client or offer a different perspective. The client sees the agency as lazy but also doesn’t want their views (or their boss) questioned.
  1. Go ahead, it’s your budget – the client refuses to sign off on a campaign or an idea officially but instead just says ‘if you think it’s how you want to spend the budget then go ahead’ – total lack of commitment. Equally, the agency reluctantly executes a set of tasks and offhandedly informs the client ‘well it’s your budget, if you want to spend it like this then go ahead’.
  1. It’s their fault – the agency is the client’s perfect scapegoat. When shit hits the fan, it will be the agency’s head that the axe falls upon. Equally, when the agency is brought in front of the judging panel, the first place they’ll point to is their non-committed ‘daft’ client who didn’t give them the necessary support.
  1. I win – here, it’s all about one-upmanship. A constant murmur of, ‘we won that battle’ rather than a commitment to building results for the team. The client tends to feel that they deserve the credit for dragging the agency with them and surprise surprise the agency feels the same about the client.

DysfunctionalRelationships-HotwirePR-JohnBrown

Can you spot a dysfunctional characteristic within these five? If so, it might be worth going back to the characteristic before the one you seem to be having a problem with. If you’re suffering from a lack of healthy conflict with a client, it might be because neither of you trust each other enough.

I can’t tell you how to improve your client relationships, only you will know the necessary detail to make specific changes. However, this piece should serve as a guide for potentially spotting opportunities for improvement and identifying which areas may need some work.

Do invest some time reading Patrick’s book and in your next team building session, have a think about whether what you learnt could be applied to your clients as well as each other.

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How to Stop Wasting Time at Work

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Do you feel as if you’re wasting vital time at your job? How much time do you spend on tasks without knowing just how, exactly, they contribute to your work?

Stop Wasting Time at Work_VuelioTipsheet

Everybody wastes some time at work. A study by Sharp Europe revealed that 34% of respondents had fallen asleep in meetings, which says a lot about the value of those meetings. Meanwhile, chief financial officers told a survey by recruiter Robert Half that 17% of their time spent on work email is wasted.

Our new tipsheet: “How PRs Can Stop Wasting Time at Work” looks at some of the clever ways in which PRs can eliminate time-wasting tasks from their day-to-day activities and focus on their what matters most in their job – connecting with their audience.

Download our tipsheet now and discover how you can get rid of the biggest time-wasters at work and become more efficient through the use of technology and automation.

United, Spicer and Pepsi – cannot put bad news genie back in the bottle

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What an amazing couple of weeks in crisis management. If you ever want a masterclass in how not to manage a PR crisis in this socially-enabled age, take a look at the lessons our American cousins are learning.

First, there was Pepsi with their in-house designed, Kendal Jenner-fronted, “protest” campaign which social media pretty much pulled to pieces.

Then there was the footage of a United Airways passenger being pulled from his seat and dragged bleeding from the aircraft so a member of the airline’s staff could get a free ride.

And do we even need to mention the Whitehouse Press Spokesman Sean Spicer for suggesting that Hitler didn’t use chemical weapons in the Second World War and referring to Concentration Camps as Holocaust Centres?

To give Pepsi their due, at least they pulled their ill-thought-out campaign pretty damn quickly and apologised for any offense.

But United and Spicer made the cardinal mistake of trying to justify their actions/words and dig an even bigger hole for themselves.

In a letter issued to airline staff on Tuesday, United boss Oscar Munoz said: “I deeply apologise to the customer forcibly removed and to all the customers aboard. No one should ever be mistreated this way. I want you to know that we take full responsibility and we will work to make it right.”

This is quite the departure from a man (who was once voted by readers of PR Week in America as Communicator or the Year) who in an earlier statement described the passenger as “disruptive and belligerent.”

Munoz would do well to remember, the Internet doesn’t forget things so easily.

In an age where everyone has the ability to create and share news content via the mobile devices in their pockets, big brands and governmental organisations have to understand that once released, it’s impossible to put the bad news genie back in the bottle.

Trying to talk your way out of a situation that everyone has already made a judgement call is stupid and will result in pouring more fuel on the PR fires that threaten your organisation.

So what’s a big brand (or government spokesperson) meant to do when then drop the preverbal ball?

Well in an age where social media makes us all more accountable, it also has to make us more honest. So admit your mistakes, put measures in place to ensure they don’t happen again and learn from the experience.

Don’t be afraid to challenge media relations briefs

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In the old days, all you needed to work in the PR industry was a laptop and a mobile. Two pieces of technology that feel surgically glued to you as a 24/7 news cycle means plenty to respond too. The steady integration of social media into PR programmes has shortened this cycle – we’re dealing in seconds now.

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Today man cannot live by email and phone alone. Behind the flurry of emails, already being displaced by internal collaboration tools, are a series of 3rd party tools helping practitioners deliver 21st Century work. These pieces of software help keep PR services relevant for 2017.

For publicity and media relations you may choose the support of Vuelio, for social media a social listening tool such as Pulsar is essential, community management may rely on Hootsuite. It’s a saturated and overwhelmed market; cross-industry collaboration project PRstack began categorising the market in 2015.

The range of tools, their subscription by in-house and agency professionals, are testament that PR services no longer work in a vacuum. Understanding the PR ‘workflow’ has become an integral task by managers who wish to offer a broader range of services, efficiencies, and best practice. We’re all trying to offer services across the PESO (Paid, Earned, Shared, Owned) pie.

Whilst the digital applications in PR programmes are no longer considered innovations, unless you’re dabbling with emerging technologies such as augmented or virtual reality, the industry is broadly still coming to terms with the fact PR is more than media relations. To be impressed by agencies that have approached PR representative of the entire marketing mix, look at any of the big industry awards.

As a side project, I’m grateful to occasionally be involved with judging industry awards. It’s shown me that the most creative campaigns that deliver outcomes is when an agency challenges a client brief and is willing to offer appropriate measurement. As a consultant, this is an essential but often challenging role, and usually leads to better results.

The next time you receive a client brief focused on pure media relations; have a think about how it could include other service areas such as digital. Despite the gloom of Brexit, it’s a fortuitous time to be working in PR thanks to the opportunities provided by our friends in the 3rd party tool and servicing market. In fact, the future of our industry depends on them.

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Blogger Spotlight: Rebecca Henderson, Bright Lights Big City

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Rebecca Henderson created her PR and lifestyle blog Bright Lights Big City after falling in love with public relations in 2008. Although there is a heavy focus on PR and social media, the blog also discusses film, beauty, and places to eat, making Bright Lights Big City an insightful blog which has a very personal tone. In this spotlight, Rebecca who featured on our top 10 UK PR blogs by women, chats to us about how she uses her blog to introduce her readers to PR, the growing importance that metrics in measuring campaigns, why she is determined to break down the gender pay gap in the industry and the impact Brexit is having on PR.

Can you introduce yourself and speak a little about your professional background? My name is Rebecca Henderson and I run the PR and lifestyle blog, Bright Lights Big City.

I first knew I wanted to be in PR when I started doing promotions and talent handling for a successful nightclub in 2008. When I organised my first event, a fashion show which attracted the attention of the UK heads of Levi’s, Karen Millen and Barbour, I knew public relations was for me.

Since 2009 I have worked in PR gaining experience in a wide range of industries, from working on an international sailing race to Clinique’s press office in the heart of London. I’m now working for a boutique PR agency, called Lee Peck Media, based on the south coast of England that deals with a range of clients regionally, nationally and internationally.

This hands on experience is also supported by a PR Masters with Merit from Southampton Solent, one of the UK’s top creative universities and PR studies at the London College of Fashion.

How did you get into blogging? In 2011 I started my blog, Bright Lights Big City, as I wanted to use it as a platform to establish myself in the PR industry. But, I lacked direction, purpose and I was fearful of putting myself out there. Things started to change during my Masters in PR where I was encouraged to blog as part of the course but, a lack of time restricted my efforts and writing felt forced.

Finally, in August 2016 I decided to have a proper attempt at blogging, and if I wasn’t enjoying it after three months I would move on knowing I’d given it my best shot. It was then that I evolved Bright Lights Big City into a PR and lifestyle blog so I could write about a larger range of topics and began posting consistently. Since I made this commitment, the blog has gone from strength to strength.

What do you most like about working in PR? What are the challenges? It’s different every day, PR is really stimulating and constantly evolving. My favourite part is the creative side, brainstorming new ideas and coming up with campaign strategies.

PR faces a few challenges, some of the big ones are metrics and evolution of the industry. Metrics have historically been fluffy and inaccurate, but we’re starting to see content analysis and other ways to measure campaigns develop. Technology has rapidly changed PR and the industry is now a continually evolving landscape. I think the changes in PR make it an exciting industry to work in.

Why should people read your blog? What makes your blog different from other PR blogs? My PR and blogging journey hasn’t been straight forward, initially it was very lonely, I was insecure and it made me feel quite isolated. I share my experiences on my blog in an effort to prevent other people from feeling like this. As a result my approach is fairly personal and all the content is original. My aim is to introduce a much larger audience to PR, comment on topical news and offer tips and advice to those starting out. I try and break aspects of PR down so it’s accessible and adds value, I want the reader to have gained something from reading my post.

Most other PR blogs only focus on PR, mine is a mix of topics. Life isn’t one sided, it’s made up of lots of amazing things. That’s why I write on various topics in PR and lifestyle to make it diverse and interesting for everyone. PR is in a lot of aspects of life and I like the scope to write about it all!

Even statistics show that women make up the majority of the PR industry, there are still inequalities that face women such as the gender pay gap. What are your thoughts on this? This disparity makes me angry. Women have fought so hard to align themselves with men, to be equal. This barrier is yet another to break down. A headache from a previous generation that is disheartening for those starting and progressing their careers.

If more people bring attention and more awareness to this subject, hopefully pay will even out between genders. Legislation might help stop the gap. But, that then runs very quickly into grey territory where the ‘pay depending on experience’ argument can be used. I have no doubt any rule would be extremely difficult to monitor and enforce.

I’m hoping the recent press attention will bring the topic enough attention to make decision makers think and make an effort to stop gender pay gaps from occurring. Education and awareness is key. Be bold for change. I wrote a blog on this in January.

Aside from the gender pay gap and diversity in PR, what other challenges are currently facing the industry in 2017? I think the rise of fake news is interesting, and the obvious hot topic of Brexit. Leaving the EU will change lots things for companies and PR teams will be facing new communication challenges. We’ve just got no idea in what way yet!

What big trends do you think we will see this year in relation to PR? Video and the social media transition to pay to play. It’s going to change the dynamic again!

What is the best way for PRs to demonstrate ROI in 2017? There are lots of ways to demonstrate ROI in 2017, I’m a huge fan of metrics in the form of content analysis but it really depends on what your client values. Are they focused on finances? Or do they value brand reputation or their brand value rankings? A tailored approach around what your client values with KPI’s is important.

What do you think about PR software companies like Vuelio? Vuelio is a fantastic PR tool and it helps make the bread and butter of PR life a lot easier. Having a resource to instantly identify and reach top influencers, access to media lists and help with media monitoring and analysis is a huge time-saving benefit.

What’s next for you? Are you working on any exciting new projects? Bright Lights Big City is growing quickly, so I’m going to spend some time working on new features to add different content. I’m keen to introduce some interview posts and encourage more people to ask more questions about PR. There are lots of changes with Facebook, Instagram and Google at the moment so I’ll be focusing on those too. There are a few projects in the pipeline, I’ve got a couple of collaborations coming up, but I’d love to do more.

How live video can help you grow your brand

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Do you want to improve your social media engagement? Get our brand new guide to discover how some of the world’s biggest brands are using live video.

Live Video Vuelio Whitepaper

Brands such as BMW, Nestle and Starbucks have all used live video to connect with their audiences, as part of brand-building, recruitment and breaking down barriers to better interact with customers and potential customers.

In our new guide, How Live Video Can Help You Grow Your Brand, you will learn the key elements you need to consider when planning live video and how to make it as part of your comms strategy – from the technology required, to content planning, to measuring success.

Download our guide now and discover how to use live video to engage with your audience and why some of the world’s biggest brands are already doing it.

PR Spotlight: Laura Sutherland, chief of Aura & founder of #PRFest

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Laura Sutherland is the chief and founder of Aura, a Glasgow PR and digital marketing consultancy. With over fifteen years of experience in public relations, Laura is now a Chartered PR practitioner and a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR). Laura is also the founder of #PRFest, the UK’s first festival for public relations and has co-written a best practice guide for the CIPR, which discusses ethical paid and earned media. In this spotlight, Laura, who appears on our top ten UK PR blogs by women, chats to us about how the industry has changed, why writing a press release and placing media stories does not guarantee success, the growing importance of analytics, demonstrating ROI, and how social media is opening up new opportunities for PRs.  

PRFest 1 SA : Pictures from PR Festival June 16th 2016 at Whitespace, Edinburgh. All images © Stewart Attwood Photography 2016.. All other rights are reserved. Use in any other context is expressly prohibited without prior permission.

What do you most like about being the chief at Aura? And what are some of the challenges? Well, I work for myself. I can be flexible with everything! My time, where I work, how I work, what I charge and I am fortunate enough to be able to pick and choose the best clients to work with; brands which I can relate to and where I can make a real difference.

What I have found is a challenge is managing my time with Aura business and client work. I’ve found that segmenting my week and dedicating time to everything at the most appropriate time is essential. The accounts get done once a month so I’m always on top of them. I do my own invoicing and chasing for late payments. I have a new business funnel which I try to keep on top of and often involves a lot of chasing, for briefs to be completed, for dates to be set etc. Some people may say working on your own is hard to keep motivated, but because I work with such great clients, I don’t find that an issue. In fact, I could work from home, but if I did, I’d work longer hours!! I’ve fallen into that trap before!

I’m also involved with independent practitioners communities and lead one in Scotland and I have built a great network of practitioners far and wide, so there’s always someone to talk to.

As someone with over 15 years’ of experience in public relations, events and communications, how in your opinion has the industry changed? The industry has changed massively. It’s very exciting!

When I first started in PR I didn’t have a PC. I had a desk and paper. We used faxes to send out press releases (and resent them many times due to the amount of faxes news desks received), we used the post and couriers to send out images in 35mm format and design work.

I suppose I was lucky in my first PR job. It was an integrated agency so I got to work across media relations, design, advertising, events and all the client relations side. I worked with big brands such as L.K. Bennett, Patek Phillipe, Bvlgari and also did what we’d now call influencer relations, back then. It was a baptism of fire with little guidance and no training.

In terms of the industry now, there are different elements I can break things down to:

  • People – some practitioners are riding the wave and really enjoying developing themselves to be more relevant. To up-skill and learn new things all the time. I see this as essential. However, there are other practitioners who think they can just keep on doing the same thing as 10 years ago, writing press releases and placing media stories. The latter will soon find they don’t fit within the industry as they can’t offer the right skills or knowledge.
  • Business – businesses are slowly grasping the value which public relations has to offer, crudely speaking, the bottom line. We’re a long way off yet, but we’re making improvements. Partly because modern practitioners are leading clients and are offering the best advice. Partly because they recognise that public relations goes way beyond churning out stories and in fact, if it’s properly integrated into the business strategy, there are many more opportunities to help business growth. Everything from using analytics to understand more to using public relations to understand the impact their business is having.
  • Industry bodies and organisations – as the industry modernises, so must the industry bodies and organisations which interact and represent with practitioners. The bodies need to lead the way on behalf of the industry and crack the engagement with business for there to be better understanding of the value of public relations. The bodies have started to offer more modern courses and training which is essential to practitioner development. I see an opportunity for better collaboration as an industry and I think there is also an opportunity for practitioners to speak out and tell the bodies what they think they need. It’s a two-way conversation.
  • Business development – despite that fact we went through a recession, arguably we’re back in a bad place due to Brexit, clever practitioners and agencies placed themselves accordingly, continuing to bring in new business and retain clients. Yes, I did see an effect in Scotland but Aura was launched in a recession (November 2008) and is still going strong, eight years later. That’s partly to do with the changes I made in 2012 and 2014, recognising the need to modernise, for a better approach to developing business and defining exactly what it was I offered.
  • Media – yes, media of course still plays a part in what we do. Traditional print is not a major focus anymore. For me, it never really worked having a blanket approach to media relations. I’ve always worked in a more strategic and targeted way. However, media is slow to modernise too, which means public relations is slow to use some forms of media as there are more effective ways. Social media has developed in a big way with the introduction of live and stories. This has presented public relations with a huge opportunity.
  • Technology – with AR and VR making headlines at all the big shows and conferences, AR is more accessible to smaller brands. VR can be costly and I’m not sure yet that everyone is ready for the tech. I know the music industry is doing a lot of testing with VR for gigs and not getting such a great response. We need to look to tech to create experiences for brands which underline the brand in an authentic way but we also need to remember that evolving tech can only be used in PR as long as the end-user it using it!
  • Industry issues – there will always be issues in every industry, but we’re starting to make headway with gender equality, professional standards and more. What we need is for the industry itself to understand the issues and help each other do something about it.

What trends do you think we will see this year in regards to the PR industry?

  • Consumer loyalty, post-Brexit, is a major thing and brands need to start reinforcing their true values, to ensure the consumer is still loyal.
  • AI – Chatbots and automation are already here but I think we’ll see artificial intelligence. Driverless cars are already making huge advancements and I see one brand has already started developing a flying car! PR has an opportunity to use AI to make user experiences better across the board. Humans can deal with everything emotionally, bots can’t. Practitioners will need to upskill, understand and start developing new ways of using AI.
  • PR will call out fake news and make an example of it. It’s our duty as ethical public relations practitioners to ensure the businesses and organisations were work in and represent conduct any communication in an ethical way.
  • Forums were big in the early 2000’s and I suppose some examples like Facebook Groups are a forum. People like to have conversations as a group in a safe place. Slack has become an everyday tool for me. Perhaps we’ll see more and better use of private spaces for conversation, brainstorming and discussion.
  • I’ve been working with a retailer and I’ve started to get to know a lot more about retail tech which engages and interacts with consumers, but everything is personalised to the specific person. Using data and tech we can really drive home personal messages, offers and experiences to the consumer
  • Content will be considered a much more strategic element to a PR strategy with longer term benefits and across different elements of the business. It’s not as simple as writing a blog post and creating a pretty image! Machine learning will have an impact too, so the content PR has to provide needs to be clever, create, engaging and personal.
  • I’m a member of a Facebook group for PR practitioners which occasionally I love and occasionally I can’t believe some of the people on there even practice public relations! However, in the last six months I’ve seen a shift of conversation, from everyone talking about AVEs and bad reporting to people now asking for tools and advice. This group has helped some practitioners come out of the dark ages and use modern and more effective approaches to improve their work. For examples, AVEs is a common one. Now the group is discussing Barcelona Principles and AMEC’s new integrated framework. Now it may be down to a few of us being involved in best practice and actually leading in these types of areas of public relations, but it does show there is a want from practitioners to come away from fluffy metrics to sound measurement and evaluation proving ROI and impact.
  • In the world of social media – who knows! It was reported recently that Snapchat is seeing people moving to Insta stories. Instagram has now introduced live, which Facebook and Twitter (via Periscope) already do. Instagram has also announced a beta of sharing image folders, for more than one image. It’s coming away from the USP that platform built itself on. I’m not sure that’s what users want? There’s also Facebook’s Workplace which could transform businesses and how they work.
  • Influencer relations will only get bigger and influencers and practitioners will have to have better ways measuring and evaluating the success of campaigns.

Why is an informed strategy, linked to business objectives the best way for public relations to grow businesses? There are two elements. Being informed, means you’ve done your research and you’ve used all the data available to you, to help inform a strategy. It’s not finger in the wind. Everything relates back to a rationale. For example, if I find data that says 100,000 people visit a website in a day, but there is 85% bounce rate on the homepage, I know the website needs to be changed. If the website is changed accordingly, people will stay on the site longer and possibly buy more products which, improves the business.

Why does PR need to be linked to business objectives? It’s a necessity. If a business wants to grow in a new market and to have £1million turnover from that market in year 1, then the PR strategy has to focus on the new market, the new audience and devise a strategy, with relevant activity/tactics, which will see that £1million turnover reached.

Public relations is not a ‘nice to have’. It needs to demonstrate ROI and it needs to show how the PR strategy and activity has contributed to the £1million turnover.

What is your definition of strategic public relations? I use the phrase ‘strategic public relations’ so that from the outset, businesses will know that I am strategic and will devise a strategy. I am not in the business of developing a tactical plan to execute, without having a strategy and relating it back to business objectives.

PRFest 1 SA : Pictures from PR Festival June 16th 2016 at Whitespace, Edinburgh. All images © Stewart Attwood Photography 2016.. All other rights are reserved. Use in any other context is expressly prohibited without prior permission.

All images © Stewart Attwood Photography 2016.. All other rights are reserved. Use in any other context is expressly prohibited without prior permission.

You are also the founder of #PRFest, the world’s first festival for public relations. Why was it important to you to set this up and why do you think it is important for the industry? I was frustrated with the lack of quality top-level events in Scotland for public relations – specifically ones that everyone would want to go to, not just members of an industry body. I like the diversity different disciplines and areas of expertise can bring.

There are many of these ‘big’ events for digital and marketing, but none specifically for public relations. I saw this as an opportunity to a) use my event skills to organise a great event and b) help practitioners modernise by giving them real actionable advice and learning.

I brought back the CIPR Scotland conference in 2012 and 2013, the first one since the 80’s I’ve been told, and there was a real appetite for a quality, learning event.

#PRFest was launched with an international line-up and I expected it to be well received, because I had worked with a group of practitioners to develop the topics. I didn’t think it would be a sell-out, which it was and I didn’t think people would travel from across the UK to attend, but they did.

It’s refreshing to have the festival in Scotland, not in London as per the normal big PR events, and it’s curated and run by me, not an organisation with a political or sales agenda. It also allows me to be a bit more controversial in my approach, with the aim of getting practitioners to react and think.

I think people like the fact it’s a festival and there is a bit of personality behind it. It’s also on my home turf, so it was easier for me to put together and engage the Scottish PR community initially. Start small and build from there.

There is a strong focus on learning, so every speaker has something worthwhile to teach and practitioners can literally go away and start implementing. It’s not about preaching and listening to ‘nice to know’ things.

It was great to have CIPR and PRCA on the same platform last year, demonstrating their support to a worthwhile event, which by the way, also counts for up to 20 CPD points! The PRCA is supporting the festival again this year.

You are the co-writer of best practice skills guide for the CIPR, which discusses ethical paid and earned media? Why was it important to you to write about this topic? Relating back to the Facebook group I am involved in, a few conversations had come up in recent times about having to pay for advertising to get editorial. At the same, the Competitions and Market Authority was coming down on ad agencies for not disclosing paid activity and influencers weren’t disclosing they were being paid to promote a product.

So, a skills guide was suggested by co-author Gavin Harris and he asked me to do it with him. It was done and dusted in no time but we waited to launch it at CIPR Ethics month.

It’s so important for practitioners to know the difference between paid and earned. If you don’t, here’s the skills guide, worth 5 CPD points.

PRFest 1 SA : Pictures from PR Festival June 16th 2016 at Whitespace, Edinburgh. All images © Stewart Attwood Photography 2016.. All other rights are reserved. Use in any other context is expressly prohibited without prior permission.

PRFest 1 SA : Pictures from PR Festival June 16th 2016 at Whitespace, Edinburgh.
All images © Stewart Attwood Photography 2016.. All other rights are reserved. Use in any other context is expressly prohibited without prior permission.

Aura is a PR & digital comms consultancy based in Glasgow? How would you describe the PR industry in Scotland?

The industry in Scotland is doing well. There was a period in 2015/16 of mergers and acquisitions but it seems to have settled…for the time being.

There are more independent practitioners in Scotland than ever, some of whom have turned to it when they have had a baby, some who have taken redundancy from public sector work and some who are doing it in early retirement years.

There’s a big opportunity for greater collaboration and connectivity.

I recently came across a large public sector organisation asking for AVEs as part of their funding grant reporting – I think this needs addressed pronto! For a large organisation like that to still be asking for irrelevant information is beyond me. Who’s to say more aren’t like that?

What has been the best campaign you worked on and why?

It has to be the launch of “Hello, My Name is Paul Smith” at The Lighthouse in Glasgow. The exhibition is owned by the Design Museum, London and it’s a travelling exhibition. It came to Glasgow before it went to Japan.

Paul Smith and his team were fabulous to work with and there was so much scope to drive a really creative campaign. There was massive awareness across Scotland and we covered every print, online and social channel you can think of, with the support of Paul Smith and Design Museum. That was a whole year ago!

What’s next for you? Are you working on any exciting new projects?

I’ve developed and am leading on an exciting project for the CIPR, which will see its 400+ volunteer community armed and better connected.

I’ve still to complete my 30 day challenge and when I do, I expect there will be further tweaks to Aura’s own strategy and development from there.

Of course, I’ve got #PRFest to continue with for the next six months, too!

At Aura, I’ve got some really great clients in retail, community engagement, health and wellbeing and the last week or two has been really busy for new business briefs coming in.

Everything I do, I do with passion, so I’m excited about everything I’m working on!

Influencers react to the #HousingWhitePaper

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Sajid Javid has promised that today’s white paper will ”set out serious, lasting, long-term reforms that will boost housing supply immediately and for many years to come”. Strong words from the Secretary of State, but will these reforms go far enough, and will they be any different than what has come before?

There are a few issues which have certainly stood out on social media. In a move which many are viewing as appeasement towards the Conservative core electorate, the white paper reaffirms current constraints on building on the Green Belt, unless local authorities find themselves in ‘’exceptional circumstances’.  The Government is also proposing ‘family friendly’ tenancies of three years or more, and is promising to move forward with plans to ban letting agents’ fees – although there is no confirmation as to when that will be.

Take a look at the Vuelio Canvas for a roundup of the latest reaction to the white paper, from influencers across the political and media spectrum.

housing white paper canvas

 

PR in the Post-Truth Era

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From fake news to alternative facts – the truth has always been somewhat of a moveable goalpost. Regardless of whether it has been sensationalised and twisted by a journalist or deflected and spun-out by a PR professional, there have always been multiple versions of the truth.

FakeNews_PostTruthWhitePaper

In an era dominated by news of Brexit, the Trump presidency, a re-emerging Russian superpower and the rise of the far right and (equally) far left, post-truth news is very much (and rather ironically) fact rather than fiction. In our brand new White Paper, we ask how will the post-truth era impact the PR industry?

Entitled ‘PR in the Post-Truth Era’, our White Paper explores how PRs should engage with the media in this new age, the opportunities and the threats in the post-truth landscape; and how to survive the pitfalls of post-truth.

Download our guide for everything you need to know about fake news.

7 Top Stories of 2016

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2016 was a big year for us at Vuelio! We launched a new website with a clean design and intuitive navigation, allowing visitors to find the information they’re looking for much faster, and it was also a big year in relation to the traffic we generated from the blog.

In celebration of this content, we have compiled a list of the top performing articles from 2016:

1. Stuart Campbell Speaks Out on Twitter Ban

stuartcampbellinterview

Back in September, pro-independence blogger Stuart Campbell found himself embroiled in controversy. Daily Express journalist Siobhan McFadyen said that Stuart had instigated a “hate mob” against her in response to an wrote she wrote claiming that Scotland’s First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, was risking “outbreaks of violence” by proposing another referendum on Scottish independence. Twitter swiftly responded to Campbell’s claim and suspended his account. By the time we interviewed Stuart his account had been reinstated, but Stuart spoke to us about the complexities of freedom of speech, his thoughts on Twitter’s suspension procedures, and his feelings toward First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon.

 

 sunday-cover-logo-test

2. Sunday Cover

Compiled by our research team, our weekly ‘Sunday Cover’ is our second most clicked blog post. For PRs wanting to know the journalist and desk contact details of who work for newspapers such as The Daily Telegraph, The Times, the Guardian, and The Daily Star, the Sunday Cover is a vital resource.

 

Ella Dvornik Spotlight Vuelio

3. Blogger Spotlight: Ella Dvornik

Following her appearance on our annual travel ranking, blogger Ella Dvornik opened up to us in a spotlight interview about what it feels like to have over a hundred thousand readers of her highly successful blog I Am Ella, why she decided to create a twenty-three-page media kit for PRs, and why she owes her success to her devoted following. Known for her eccentric style and her glamorous getaways, we are not too surprised that her spotlight generated a lot of attention.

 

 

SarahHallSarahPinch

4. The Missing Women of PR: PR Bloggers react

Back in May we decided to take on the issue of female PR practitioners being sidelined into non-career roles after having children. The article came after research that showed one of the main reasons why women leave PR after a certain point in their career is that they feel pushed into leaving public relations after having children. Not holding back, Sarah Hall, managing director of Sarah Hall Consulting and editor of #FuturePRoof, and Sarah Pinch managing director of Pinch Point Communications, shared their thoughts with us about the inequalities faced by women in PR and how the industry needs to change to become more accommodating to women with children.

 

 

22/03/2016 Paul Clarkson, editor of the Irish Sun Photo Garrett White

5. Spotlight: Paul Clarkson, The Sun

Back in April, we managed to bag an exclusive interview with the then newly appointed managing editor at the Sun, Paul Clarkson. With an average circulation of  1,755,331 and as the second largest Saturday newspaper in the UK, The Sun is still in high demand. Despite the appalling performance of the Trinity Mirror title ‘The New Day’, Paul Clarkson spoke to Vuelio about why the newspaper industry is still the pulse of the nation, the challenges of growing revenue across digital platforms, why Facebook and Snapchat want the Sun’s content, and why the press still has a massive influence on voters. Following this interview, Paul’s sentiments were later confirmed when national newspapers saw a boost in both print and online readership before and after the 23 June EU referendum.

6. Media Updates

MediaUpdates Logo

Providing updates on all of the moves and changes at media outlets covering news, fashion, entertainment, business, science and technology, our weekly ‘Media Updates’ give our readers a comprehensive overview of the changes happening in the industry, making it one of the most clicked posts on our site.

 

 

Jack&BenVuelioSpotlight

7. Vlogger Spotlight: Jack & Ben, Our Swirl Life

Back in August, we featured our first ever vlogger spotlight with influencers Jack and Ben, aka Our Swirl Life. Since launching their YouTube channel last year, the pair has racked up just under two million video views and have over 41,000 subscribers. In our spotlight, Jack and Ben spoke to us about why being a British interracial couple has been an asset to their brand, how they respond to homophobic and racist comments on YouTube, and why they want to use their channel to make a difference.   

The PR Software that will guarantee you success in 2017

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Want to kick-start 2017 with a product that will make all the difference to your PR? Join us on January 31st at 11am to learn about the software most successful PRs use to get their story heard by key influencers and track and measure the effectiveness of their campaigns. 

vuelio-media-monitoring

In our first webinar of the year, we will show you why our software is the only tool you’ll need, taking you through every step of your PR activities, from campaign planning to analysing results.

During the webinar you will learn how to reach the right media contacts, how to get your news read and shared, monitor your coverage across print, online, broadcast and social, and how to measure your PR impact.

So make sure you sign up today for our up and coming webinar if you want to smash targets this year with our PR software.

Barcelona principles to AVE – measuring PR ROI

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As the lines between PR, marketing, customer services and sales continue to blur, it’s never been more important for PR professionals to accurately monitor and measure the success of their campaigns and activities. 

measuringroi_whitepaper

Today we have released our brand new white paper, ‘Measuring PR Return on Investment‘ which reveals how the PR industry currently measures success, the challenges it faces in order to remain relevant and earn cross-departmental respect and the various steps they now need to adopt to provide greater transparency and accountability.

From Barcelona principles to AVE, our new white paper essential guide lays down the law on measuring the success of PR campaigns to help you demonstrate the value of you work.

To find out more download our whitepaper now.

How can the PR industry save Black Friday for the high street?

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Black Friday is dead – at least as the high street is concerned. It’s now almost exclusively an online phenomenon owned by the likes of Amazon and…, well is there anywhere else people do the bulk of their online shopping?

The sad thing is, the high street retailers have nobody but themselves to blame for the demise of “the sales event of the year” and, I’m afraid to say, the buck stops with the retail sector’s PR and communications bosses. They really should be hanging their heads in shame.

In an attempt to highlight just how exciting their previous Black Friday events were, retailers staged and released footage of baying crowds, literally fighting to get their hands on amazing (but limited) bargains.

While a sizable number of people might be willing to trade punches to save a few pounds on a large screen television – it did more to turn people off the high street (with all its associated problems – parking, public transport, queues and the weather) and send them online in their droves. It’s almost as if the major online retailers had planted a double agent in ranks of their high street competitors.

And so Black Friday 2016 was a damp squib. The bargains were there, the promotion signs in place and sales assistances and security primed for the rush that didn’t happen.

The problem is, once let out – you cannot put the genie back in the box. Directors and shareholders expect to see an uptick in revenues in line with previous years’ events. Anything less is a failure.

What would your strategy be to bring the hoards back to the high street on Black Friday 2017? Fist fights and unobtainable bargains are so last year – so better get your thinking hats on.

As a PR pro – the ball is in your court. I’m not sure if the high street could survive another winter if you drop it again.

 

Is football facing a Saville-sized crisis?

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The news regarding professional football isn’t always played out on the back pages of the daily press. As a sport, it’s had its fair share of scandal. From racism and homophobia through to corruption and any number of “kiss and tell” tabloid exposes – the so-called beautiful game has kept PR professionals busy trying to keep the public’s attention on the pitch.

No matter how terrible previous indiscretions (and let’s be honest – actual crimes), the cascade of allegations of child abuse by former football scout and convicted paedophile Barry Bennell could see the sport face its biggest crisis yet.

As stars of the game like Wayne Rooney urge victims of abuse to step forward and stop “suffering in silence” and further allegations of abuse are made against, as yet, unknown individuals in the game – this isn’t going to be something that is going to be sorted out behind closed doors.

While the acts of abuse might only involve a few people (although one is too many) connected to the sport, many others may find themselves under the spotlight and facing accusations of ignoring and even covering up the abuse.

It’s highly likely, as with the BBC during the Saville-era and the various scandals involving the church and other organisations, many people in the game will have heard rumours and dismissed allegations as nonsense. Others would have been too scared to come forward, fearing their position in the game.

Football still suffers from an overtly macho environment. This might explain why (unlike the far tougher sport of rugby) there are no openly gay men in the top flight of the sport. It’s this macho environment where boys don’t cry, nobody likes a grass and “gay” is an insult, that enables abuse to be passed off as banter and innuendo. Thankfully, this macho environment may be about to be brought down.

While the game is undoubtedly going to torn apart by these ongoing and terrible allegations, perhaps there may be light at the end of the tunnel.

Once all the evidence has come to light, there will be an opportunity for the sport to re-invent itself and join the rest of the world in the 21st century and as open, caring and safe environment for everyone to enjoy. As football fans and decent people, isn’t this what we all want for the future of the game?

Has the local press given up on the game?

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What does it mean to be local? Well, there are certain things that bring a community together. You probably drink in the local pub, shop on the local high street, read your local newspaper and follow your local football team.

It’s hard to image a community where these four local assets don’t actively support each other to the benefit of their connected audience of patrons.

So the news that a non-league “local” football team has abandoned working with its local newspaper, dismissing it as “yesterday’s news” should be of concern to anyone who values their local community.

It’s had to blame Boreham Wood Football Club for their recent outburst targeting the Newsquest-owned Borehamwood and Elsetree Times.

A spokesperson for the club told journalists: “We’ve spoken to the paper’s Sports Editor, and he’s explained their financial state is chronic and they do not have the resources or staff to cover the club.

“We feel, as the highest placed non league club throughout Hertfordshire that the paper could do more but we have to now move on and for us they are now yesterday’s news.

“For many years, we have tried to help them by providing our own reporters and quite often even a photographer.

“It’s fair to say though, it’s not our job to do their sports reporting and we are happy for them to continue to take our reports, regurgitate them as their own, while never attending a game, as that’s how they now choose to work.”

The club spokesperson concluded their statement by saying: “Finally, we genuinely wish the local newspaper and the very few loyal staff that it has left good luck in the future and for those of us old enough to remember, we fondly recall the time that the Borehamwood Post and then Times served its local community and its sporting clubs very well. Unfortunately that time has now long since passed.”

Newsquest’s north London group editor Tim Jones jumped to the defence of the paper stating on Twitter: “Times are tough for local papers. But our team does its very best. Very ill-considered to kick your own supporters

Jones later posted: “Sorry back page coverage not good enough. And 50,000 uu /month is not enough. Will try harder.”

Clearly, community-spirit is in short supply in the Borehamwood area. However, when the local newspaper and the local football team (two much maligned organisations) don’t have each others’ backs, there is a problem.

If the local press doesn’t have the resources to cover its local football team – it’s clearly in trouble. It’s just a case of how long it can continue to call itself a local newspaper and remain fit for purpose.

Has your local newspaper given up on the game? Share your comments below: