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May 20th, 2013 by

That’s the way to do it

A few weeks ago I wrote about the failed approach businesses were taking when facing criticism about their corporation tax affairs. The advice was simple:

First of all, if you haven’t done anything wrong, don’t act like you have.

Secondly, in such situations where you are facing a direct and clear criticism about a single issue about which you are in the right, keep your response focussed on that issue alone and don’t dilute it.

When I read the Observer article yesterday (Sunday May, 19th) by Eric Schmidt, it was good to see Google taking a similar approach. Have a read, and you will see good, clear messaging that is impactful and positive for the company. If they can stick to their guns on these messages moving forward, and if other businesses take a similar approach, then companies will start to take control of the issue again and mitigate the damage it is having upon their collective reputations.

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May 20th, 2013 by

Journalist Q&A: 15 minutes with @sparky000 from Management Today

Last week I spoke to Rebecca Burn-Callander (@sparky000), Management Today‘s Web Editor, to find out more about what makes a good PR into a great one, get her thoughts on Apple‘s future and Margaret Thatcher’s management style, and find out just where that Twitter handle comes from…here’s what she said.

1)    Who’s the most inspiring CEO out there right now? What do you like about them?

Ian Hogarth, founder of SongKick, caught my attention recently. Not only is SongKick a really cool start-up – it lets you know when your favourite artists are playing live, the whole company culture is incredibly interesting. Each new hire is presented with a DVD of The West Wing. The team on the show are fiercely driven and extremely bright, and always manage to find answers to complex problems – something that Songkick wants its staff to emulate.

2)    Your colleague Michael recently wrote a piece about Maggie Thatcher’s management style, what do you think of it?

She was definitely called the Iron Lady for good reason. Love her or hate her, for good or for ill, she definitely believed in her policies. I wish today’s politicians had a little more conviction and little less puff and bluster. But I must confess, I’m glad I’ve never had to work for a woman like her. Rumour has it that if she couldn’t get her way in cabinet meetings, she’d burst into tears. Just imagine Maggie Thatcher crying on you…  

3)    Do you think that Tim Cook will succeed in stopping the mighty Apple from rotting?  

If Apple does rot, it will take decades to do so. The company has $137bn in the bank. That’s a lot of cash to play with. That said, I think that Cook definitely needs to start innovating again. He can’t just bring out endless iterations of the iPhone and iPad and expect to keep consumers interested. That’s what Sony though back in the day – after the Walkman it spent decades resting on its laurels to its detriment. I don’t expect that Apple’s greatest innovations will come from the product side, however. I think that the launch of Google’s music streaming service will make Cook sit up and pay attention. Maybe Apple can go one further? A service that streams movies, TV shows, music and games, all for one monthly fee? The first tech giant to get that service sewn up will be sitting pretty. 

4)    What is the most annoying thing about PR people, other than the usual “hi, did you get my press release”!

Without a doubt, it’s when PRs call me to tell me that they are going to send a press release. Just send the release. If it’s interesting, I’ll follow up. I also hate it when I am promised an interview with a CEO or entrepreneur and the PR hasn’t actually checked if the person is available.  

5)    What’s the best thing about the good ones?

The best PRs research the publication they are pitching to and make sure that their release/pitch is tailored to it. Journalists are often busy/lazy/both. If you can tell them exactly why they should be writing about your client, how it’s relevant to their audience, and what a possible topline/topical spin will be, you’re ten times more likely to get their attention.  

6)    MT’s tagline is ‘not just business as usual’ if you had to rebrand, what would you change it to?

If I could rebrand, I’d change the magazine name, if I’m honest. ‘Management Today’ sounds pretty dry and doesn’t reflect the breadth of content we create. I’d go for something like ‘It’s The Business’. It’s cheesy but in a way I like. 

7)    Where did the name @Sparky000 come from?

Ah, Sparky was a nickname when I was a teenager and back in the early days of AIM and ICQ, that was my handle. Even now I’m a grown up business journalist, I can’t quite let it go. I’m a hoarder, even of monikers. 

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May 1st, 2013 by

Speed’s Chairman and ex Virgin Galactic President, Will Whitehorn, on rockets, brands and Branson

This week, Virgin Galactic took to the skies in a test flight over the Mojave desert. Speed’s Chairman, Will Whitehorn  joined the Virgin Group in 1987 and was made President of Virgin Galactic in 2004,  so he will know more about what that test flight would have meant for the Galactic team than many, as well as what it’s like to work with one of the world’s most well known entrepreneurs, Richard Branson. 

So I caught up with Will earlier today to get his views on the flight, the ‘Branson’ effect and what a strong brand reputation can do for businesses.

1. What do you think of the first Virgin Galactic test flight?

It was incredible. It was like witnessing seven years work take flight and I am hugely excited about what this will mean for the project.

2. What did Sir Richard Branson teach you?

Once all the questions you raise have been thoroughly thought out, don’t take no for an answer in business or in life. Don’t be afraid of trying new things in the face of possible failure but know when to stop if things don’t materialise. Think about the consequences of your actions and never say anything you wouldn’t say in a court of law. Finally, reputation is everything and worth protecting.

3. What is your perception of Virgin’s brand evolution?

Virgin now has the power to cross to a variety of corporate structures and operates on the basis of branded private equity. It has evolved into a globally recognised brand associated with entrepreneurialism, competition, value, quality, innovation and a sense of fun.

4. How can branding give an organisation competitive leverage?

When launching a new product, a recognised brand can spend around 10% less than other brands on marketing IF the brand lives up to its reputation. So based on this, reputation can be the key component between success and failure, and in order to craft such a strong reputation, you must engage consistently and honestly with your customers, especially through the bad times, to instil faith and remove uncertainty.

5. Virgin is a very innovative and ambitious brand, how do you think that has influenced other brands?

As long as innovation and ambition is at the heart of business growth and survival, teamed with a defined view of ownership and management to support the business clearly, the opportunities are limitless. Red Bull’s bravery does have some similar cross-over in the Virgin brand style and I admire their brand building and record-breaking stunts. We can admire other brands in dealing with their own market conditions. For example, Apple has remained at the forefront of a tempestuous IT industry, leveraging itself by being resilient and determined.

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April 23rd, 2013 by

It’s all so taxing

My wife works in the corporate tax department of a FTSE100 company. I work in PR. So you can imagine that we have a particular interest at home in the ongoing failure of firms to put forward a well-received message around how much corporation tax a company should pay.

The first set of companies to find themselves in the firing line – Amazon and Starbucks – got it utterly wrong. At first they got defensive and then they got apologetic. And who on earth advised Starbucks to make a voluntary tax donation? Since when has paying tax been akin to a charitable donation, and from a messaging standpoint you might as well just say you are guilty as charged. Although guilty of what would be the right question to ask here.

This is where the dinner table chat at the McLean household becomes relevant. You see, my wife is employed to reduce her company’s corporation tax burden. She does this by applying the letter of the law to her company’s transactions and activities. The fact that the ‘letter of the law’ takes up volumes and volumes of rules and regulations means that she is gainfully employed and also explains why ultimately the politicians should stop blaming the companies and start blaming themselves. But I digress because at the end of the day, while her profession may make interpretations of tax law to mitigate their tax risk, this is not illegal activity. So why do company’s act like they are guilty?

So step forward this week Eric Schmidt from Google. Again we hear the line I had expected businesses to stick with from the very beginning – i.e. that companies are paying what they are required to pay. If the Government changes the law so that they should pay more, then they will pay more. Of course, then he clouds the message by talking about all the other wonderful things Google contributes to the UK economy. We heard this from the likes of Starbucks last autumn. The result is that a simple, straightforward undiluted message gets lost and gives the many critics lining up to attack big business the opening they need to get stuck in once again.

Two clear messages are evident from the debacle to date.

First of all, if you haven’t done anything wrong, don’t act like you have.

Secondly, in such situations where you are facing a direct and clear criticism about a single issue about which you are in the right, keep your response focussed on that issue alone and don’t dilute it.

Now some reading this might then feel I have missed a point about public brand perceptions. After all, Starbucks found itself the victim of a social media led boycotting campaign. However, the point here is that the lines taken by businesses so far have not been working. The media is on its hobby horse, the MP’s are fuelling the fire and there are enough “outraged”, vocal campaigners to keep the headlines rolling.

So perhaps it’s time for businesses that find themselves under attack to put the shoe on the other foot. Rather than letting the critics such as Margaret Hodge have a free-for-all attacking your brand, tell them that you agree. The law that enables businesses to mitigate their tax bill to such an extent and is not having the reciprocal benefits of attracting/supporting business that was original intended (assuming that is the case, of course) is clearly a law that needs looking at. So basically it’s a message of “the law is an ass.” It might just need to be phrased slightly differently…!

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April 22nd, 2013 by

Is this all a game?

Gamification: the process of using game design and theory to make ‘something’ more engaging and fun. It’s been heralded as one of the biggest trends to watch out for in a number of industries, from tech to communications, healthcare and education.

I’ve seen and read some fantastic theories of where gamification, could be pretty powerful. One that’s stuck in my mind is the gamification of aftercare for patients who are undergoing some sort of rehabilitation.

Clinicians develop an app that rewards a patient each time they log the completion of their prescribed exercises. While that’s partly motivating, what’s really powerful is the feedback the patient then receives which shows the benefit the exercises are having on the healing process (imagine a life bar in a game, then imagine that life bar relates to the condition of a hip replacement). There are similar models where challenges and feedback have been developed and rolled out in education and workplace motivation schemes.

But how about the use of gamification by brands looking for better audience engagement? Tonight I’m taking part in #commschat, a weekly Twitter chat that looks at all aspects of communications, and the focus this evening is on gamification.

Slapping a game-like environment on top of generally dull content isn’t going to work, but other brands have benefitted from gamification, just think of the McDonalds Monopoly activity. So what ingredients do brands need in order to use gamification to their benefit? Or is all this an example of how comms pros have spotted a trend elsewhere and tried to make it fit for their profession with little reward

Join in tonight, 8-9pm GMT via #commschat

Some light reading below!

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April 9th, 2013 by

Tweeting with Caution

I have to say that I was excited when the UK’s first youth police and crime commissioner was appointed. And therefore, I was also disappointed when it was revealed that she has now resigned, following the recent furore around her Tweeting history.

Although I believe that everyone deserves a second chance and that she shouldn’t be crucified for her past actions, I also think that this should serve as a lesson to all of us.

Twitter, which recently celebrated its 7th birthday, now has over 10 million users in the UK, a stat which I find quite extraordinary. The majority of feeds are open to the public, which leaves a wealth of information there for anyone to dig up.

But, do we think about this when we Tweet regularly? Most people have something to say on a daily basis, myself included, but do we ever consider who is reading our thoughts?

It is safe to say that it is unlikely to be just our committed followers; after all we don’t have to actively follow someone to see their Tweets if their profile is open.

I look at certain celebrity’s feeds every day, but you don’t think I would openly admit this by following them do you? Nobody needs to know about my girl crush on Kelly Brook. Or the fact that I am still fascinated by Lee Brennan from 911 (yes really).

But, returning to my initial subject; just when did we become so judgmental? The Tweets from Paris Brown were not recent, and we all make mistakes. The fact that she was appointed to the post says a lot about her, and why should that be taken away because of some silly and reckless teenage Tweets?

I am by no means justifying her past behaviour or saying what she said is acceptable, because it isn’t. But we all make mistakes and we should all be given the opportunity to prove ourselves.

The key point to all of this though is that we should never forget the fact that, by creating a Twitter profile for ourselves, we are also creating a public brand. From a corporate perspective, we advise clients on how to protect their brand on a daily basis, so why would we not do the same for ourselves?

It doesn’t make any sense really. So next time you go to Tweet, think about what it is you are saying and what effect it might have on you either now or in the future. And if you follow me on Twitter, you will be pleased to know that I will do the same. No more bad jokes, fascinating facts, or incredibly bad pop music insight*.

* Please note that this last sentence is an active lie.

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April 9th, 2013 by

Costcutter appoints Speed as its retained PR agency

Speed Communications today announced that it has been appointed by Costcutter Supermarkets Group as its retained corporate PR agency. The appointment began in February ahead of the major strategic partnership alliance with Palmer & Harvey that Costcutter Supermarkets Group announced to its members on March 13th. Speed’s corporate team handled all external communications around the announcement.

That deal has been recognised by press and analysts as the most significant shake-up of the UK convenience retail sector in years. It sees Costcutter Supermarkets Group and Palmer & Harvey set up a joint venture Buying Company with unrivalled £5bn negotiating power; the transfer of Palmer & Harvey’s 800 Mace, Your Store and Supershop convenience stores to Costcutter Supermarket Group making it the second largest symbol group retailer with over 2,500 stores; and the signing of an eight year distribution contract with Palmer & Harvey.

Moving forward, Speed’s corporate team, reporting into Simon Brown, Costcutter Supermarkets Group’s PR and Communications Manager, will be playing a key role in communicating the benefits of the deal to members and supporting the group’s strategic growth initiatives. This will include a brand engagement programme which will involve Speed’s consumer team.

Simon Brown said: “As a symbol group retailer in a growth sector that is facing significant competitive pressures, we needed an agency that understood the challenges of communicating with multiple stakeholders. Communicating the value we bring to our independent retailer members and their customers, not just now but as the benefits of our strategic partnership with Palmer & Harvey begin to be felt, is something we trust Speed to deliver. They have already aptly demonstrated this and we look forward to continuing to work closely with the team at Speed.”

Scott McLean, joint managing director of Speed and head of the agency’s corporate team, said: “This is the most significant move within the £34bn convenience retail sector in quite some time and it has been received well by Costcutter Supermarkets Group’s 1,700 existing independent retailer members, as well as the 800 Mace, Your Store and Supershop independent retailers who will be joining Costcutter Supermarkets Group. Supporting this strategic shake-up of the convenience sector is a fascinating challenge which Speed is well suited to deliver through our corporate and consumer teams.”

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March 22nd, 2013 by

The Corporate Team: An Intern (al) Perspective

It has been all go in the corporate team at Speed recently, so we have loved having an intern with us. We were interested to see how she is finding it, so meet Purdey…

1.       You used to work in recruitment, why are you looking to get into PR?

I’ve always been fascinated with the media and I also love writing, researching and speaking with people, so it seems an ideal route.

2.       What do you think of Speed?

Speed seems like an ambitious and dynamic company with fantastic people.

3.       You’re interning with the corporate team, what are your thoughts on corporate PR?

I think it’s exciting as there is always an abundance of opportunities.

4.       Are you enjoying working with the team?

Definitely- that’s one of my favourite parts- such a great team.

5.       Who is your favourite member of the corporate team?

I couldn’t say, everyone’s equally as charming or funny as each other.

6.       What has been your best moment so far?

Securing broadcast coverage on Wave105 for a client.

7.       What have you learnt in your first few weeks?

That PR is even more exciting that I had imagined it to be.

8.       Do you enjoy sitting next to Stephen Murray?  

It’s difficult at times, but I manage. He hasn’t been around recently so it has been quite good.

9.       If you could work for any brand who would it be and why?

Red Bull, as it has such a large global presence and pulls out some fascinating stunts.

10.   Where do you see yourself in five years?

Climbing the PR ladder!

 

 

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March 21st, 2013 by

Video: the future of PR?

Today YouTube reached a billion unique monthly users, an incredible landmark. This is a sign of just how important video content has become. It’s helping people and organisations to easily get in front of an audience. Gangnam Style became famous because of YouTube, and one version of the video has over 1.5 billion views alone.

You’d think this would be a drop in the ocean compared to other social media sites, but you’d be wrong. Facebook only reached a billion users in January, and it started a year before YouTube. And because you can put anything up on YouTube, people will do just that. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve watched the sneezing panda video. If you haven’t yet, do (make sure you’ve got the sound on).

YouTube’s not just for the general consumer anymore though. A number of our clients have YouTube channels, as does Speed. It’s got great potential as a way to promote a company. But in PR it’s not always a major source of content. Last year we ran a campaign for a client based around a vision of life in 2025. The response was brilliant, with coverage in the Guardian, the BBC and a wealth of trade publications. It’s crazy that some in the PR industry haven’t embraced video content when it leads to results like this.

So is this landmark a sign of things to come? Video is the future of engagement, it can be embedded almost anywhere. It’s easy to digest and often simpler to understand than a written piece. Readers often want to see video on a website. PRs need to recognise this and lead the charge to get more video online. If we want to promote our clients effectively to an interconnected world that’s short on time, we need to catch people’s attention. We’ve embraced Twitter, monitoring and even pitching over it. Why not do the same with video content? In the future we could call up a journalist, say “hey, here’s my client they’re amazing (obviously). We’ve got a story you’ll be interested in and here’s a video to tell you why. We could even pitch over videoconferencing, which could give the story more of a personal touch.

Video’s here, it’s effective, get used to it!

P.S.

Happy birthday Twitter! (Guess what they did for it?)

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March 21st, 2013 by

What’s going on in retail?

It is unusual at the moment for a day to pass without the UK high street hitting the headlines. Unfortunately, the dominant stories are usually on brands going into administration, or falling sales and profits. Greggs is the latest, announcing today that its profits fell 2.2% to £52m in the year to 29 December, while underlying sales slid 2.7%.

These figures were attributed to the bad weather, and Greggs is the latest in a series of high street businesses to blame their troubles on the climate – Homebase and Debenhams have also done the same. But, let’s be honest, it is not just the weather.

From the Budget announcement yesterday, to continuing news of pay freezes and job losses, it is clear to see that everyone has to cut back and spend less at the moment. But that does not mean we are not spending at all. I, for one, will never stop eating the Greggs’ sausage and bean melt (when no one can see me obviously), it’s what my brother and I do together…!

There is no denying that, with every store that goes into administration, the UK High Street dies a little more. You can’t walk very far without seeing another closing down sale, or another ‘to let’ sign. Which is why I was pleased to read this morning that UK retail sales rose more than economists forecast in February. Sales increased by 2.1% in the month compared with January when, (here it is again), bad weather was blamed for keeping sales low.

The work we do with retail clients in the corporate team means we follow the sector closely. Although one month of rising sales is not enough to indicate anything significant, it does indicate that if the concept is compelling enough (and the weather is good!) people will still shop.

The high street used to be at the heart of the British community, and deep down I don’t think anyone wants to see it surrender completely. So, maybe this is a good time for everyone to start thinking a bit differently, both retailers and consumers.

Retailers need to put their customers at the heart of everything they do, and consider what they want, what they need, and how they like to shop. In return, consumers need to put the High Street back at the heart of their shopping.

So, if anyone fancies a sausage and bean melt over the weekend, and a browse around the shops, I am your woman!

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