Here are a few snippets:

On 9 January, Netflix, the popular US TV and film streaming service launched in the UK, giving our client ANT Software, a digital TV specialist, the opportunity to air its opinion on the connected TV market.  Result: Five pieces of national newspaper coverage in January: Telegraph: Netflix launches in Britain, How Netflix and Lovefilm are reshaping movie rentals, Connected TVs will be the norm in 2015 and Blockbuster exclusive rentals target Lovefilm and Netflix.

On 18 January, we pitched a story about the opening of Associated Press’ new news bureau in North Korea – the first international news bureau of any agency in North Korea. The story was centred on the recent death of Kim Jong II, explaining how Associated Press writers and photojournalists can work in North Korea on a regular basis, documenting the people, places and politics Korea across all media platforms at a critical time in the country’s history. Executive editor, Kathleen Carroll appeared live on BBC Radio 4’s The Media Show, while other coverage was spread across the news hour slot on BBC World Service, Daily Mail, The Independent The Guardian and the BBC.

On 22 January, Phil Packer, founder of the British Inspiration Trust appeared on Sky News Sunrise. Phil talked about his 2012-mile walk this year and his vision to build a ‘centre of excellence’ for young people facing adversity. Sky News is broadcast to an average 1.5 million people.

On 23 January, Tesco Beauty’s Skin Wisdom Day was featured in a fashion and beauty article in the Daily Express designed to help Brits beat the January blues.

On 25 January, The European Commission outlined planned changes to EU data protection rules that included a ‘right to be forgotten’ clause. Jonathan Gale, CEO of NewVoiceMedia, talked about why Facebook and cloud computing companies are better positioned to adopt the legislation – BBC World News

On 27 January, John Micklethwait, editor-in-chief of The Economist, was interviewed on CNN’s World Business Today programme. John spoke live on the issues discussed at Davos, and where the world’s economy now stands compared to at the previous World Economic Forum. CNN airs to 200 million-plus homes in 200 countries.

I’ve never run a session yet that hasn’t celebrated both the art and science of newsjacking, and the insight behind strong creation of a client’s own headlines. Well done to the team.

Our task highlighted just what you can do with video content and how you can make your message more memorable.  If a picture is worth a thousand words then video has the potential to pack an impressive punch.

According to recent research by Google’s DoubleClick, rich media generates somewhere between a 400% and 700% increase in viewer engagement and response rates compared to static content. It’s no surprise when you can condense pages of text into a short snappy video of a minute or so.

Not only this, but it can also help cultivate your online community. The number of online video users is expected to double to more than 1 billion people by 2015. So, there’s certainly a captive audience, looking to consume and engage with video content. And with video is becoming increasingly favourable in the search engine rankings, it’s well worth investing in some eye-catching videos for your website or blog.

TMIM has featured a video series looking at using video beyond conventional public relations so that it generates leads as well.  In terms of PR, video can really bring company to life and set your company apart from the crowd. Overall it gives you license to deliver your content in a much more creative way.

But the smart thing to do is create videos that both enhance your reputation and generate leads. Existing and new audiences can be reached through a medium that has engagement at its heart, so why not make the most of it and deliver compelling content that features real life case studies that demonstrate the benefits your business brings, with personable spokespeople that can deliver the key messages?

Engaging video content presents a more credible view of your company and customer endorsements will boost your reputation and result the all-important sales.

This week it’s all about video. Do PR agencies know enough about video? Do they know how to do it right? And do they know how to make sure the content works on video? We are inclined to say that PRs do not know enough about video but we all know (or should know…) how to put compelling, written, pieces of content together. What’s stopping us from going a step further and being creative with these words?

Speed’s MD, Steve Earl, highlighted what video can be used for and examples of where it’s worked well and other where it hasn’t gone quite to plan. We also learnt the importance of lighting, framing and sound – a video without these in high-quality should really not be seen. Our resident video production company, Blueprint, talked us through some top tips, such as no fidgeting, no chequered shirts and filming next to a window – natural sometimes is the way forward! And then we were split up in teams; our team had to create a video on the value of video… oh the irony!

If you want to find out more about the challenges of video, the ample benefits and some top tips – please watch our Video PR: How To.

Thanks!

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If you were to ask anyone at Speed towers for a single sentence that described me I’m 99 per-cent sure that they would respond with ‘style icon’.  Today, as I sit at my desk in a well-worn pair of flip-flops, three-quarter length shorts and a seven-year-old tee-shirt, it’s obvious why my colleagues would reach this conclusion.

I’m so far ahead of the fashion curve that people sometimes confuse forward-thinking dress with poor taste and a lack of self-respect – the fools. However this has got me thinking, is PR an industry where looks count for so much more than in other professions?

Take, for example, the simple suit. A staple in the wardrobes of those that walk the streets of the financial districts across the world, as well as the halls of power at the Whitehouse and the Houses of Parliament. And what’s more, my older colleagues tell me it was, up until recently, obligatory to wear a suit within the PR industry as well.  Yet suits are largely ignored in our profession today. Why is that?

Well my thoughts are that we’re expected to emanate creativity and personality – and we bloody love playing up to that. Not only that, the industries we work with are also becoming more relaxed and casual, and we want to say to them ‘look, we’re just like you too! Only a touch more creative’

I have a hat fetish for example, and proudly wear a variety of headgear to client meetings, launches and day-to-day activities. I think it adds character and shouts, ‘this man is confident, smart and probably superb in the sack’ – others think I just look like a tosser.

I once worked with a learned gentleman who was immaculately dressed every day, donning the latest trend superbly. He was also famed for his blindingly bright-coloured, natural fibre, socks (can you guess who it is yet?).

While this sort of ‘extrovert’ dress sense would be instantly berated at the Bank of England or Downing Street, clients have become largely oblivious and almost expectant of wardrobe sensations from their PR consultants.

Of course there are exceptions to this and still the suit gets a dusting off as and when required, but largely those working in the PR industry will each be striving to show just how creative and on-trend they are from tip-to-toe.

Still it’s not all bad.  We could be web developers. They take this whole debate to an entirely new dimension.

We left off with the formidable Bill Jones giving us a glimpse insight into the world of PR in the 80s. Like any industry PR has gone through its hey-days.  Was the 90’s a hey-day decade? From my perspective it thrived on personal relationships – and as someone who generally loves meeting people and the entertaining side of the profession it suited me fine.  Whilst every decade brings a new and exciting challenge to us PRs, as a mid-90s child in the business I remember, whilst the budgets were more generous, PR was still very much seen as the poor relation to other marketing disciplines, namely advertising, with clients not really understanding its true value.  Until the brand got into a crisis and then it was worth its weight in gold.

So whilst we knew how to party well, which of course brought its commercial and financial rewards for the PROs with spark, we were constantly having to prove ourselves as strategic partners to marketing directors whose boards needed to see direct correlations between spend and sales.  They seemed to forget the job of reputation management, but of course we seemed obsessed by AVE and ROI against that…which frankly nowadays is completely redundant.  The rise of the digital age has brought the reputation of brands and businesses to the fore and hence PR is now coming back into its own – especially for those who truly understand PR’s ability to influence.

Accountability is key, and much more today than yesteryear.  The tools are much more sophisticated, the level of knowledge from the outset has to be much more relevant, but the determination and lust to succeed is just the same.  It’s just understanding what’s required at this moment and how your skills can add value to a modern and fast-moving communications sector.

I loved the 90s and wouldn’t change the discipline of processes, accountability, socialising and defending the cause.  It’s stood me in good stead to take on the greater responsibilities that are required today.  The landscape has changed but the fundamentals of a good PR haven’t strayed far, darling!

I mean we have all had those days when you receive an email at least once every 5 minutes asking you to ‘action’ something – whether it be finding an image for a journalist, drafting an award entry that’s deadline is only in a month, or pulling together a press release that’s already been scheduled to go out in just two weeks’ time. These tasks are often only broken up by the extraordinarily pressurising act of pitching for new business…where you are so desperate to come up with a creative idea that you hold brainstorm after brainstorm (which is essentially just people screaming random and hilarious ideas at you for an hour). Then these heart-pulsating days are finished off with the hyper stressful client and journalist after-work drinks…where God forbid you have to actually act like a normal human-being for the course of an evening. It is days like these that I think…why didn’t I just become a doctor, what’s at stake then? People’s lives…pfff…how’s that ever gonna be stressful.

Now as much as I may have just mocked the stress involved in PR, the fact is there are some pretty tight deadlines and quite heavy workloads. And considering the fact that most people that work in PR (myself included) haven’t actually done a day of hard-labour in their life – I can see why they would answer a survey and say their job is very stressful. However, I do have to question those healthcare professionals who said they don’t have pressure at work…it is one of the few industries where decisions can actually be life and death. I would think that would bring with it a certain amount of pressure. Pilots can clearly see that having people’s lives in their hands comes with a fair bit of pressure…why can’t the doctors and nurses of this world take the responsibility as seriously.

To be honest, I think I have come up with the reason the reports results has come out like this. We all know how terrible the Healthcare sector is at basic administration work, there is every possibility that they just filled out the survey incorrectly. Also, Dieticians came in as second least stressful job…I have to ask, did anyone take into account the stress the weighing scales in their offices under-go every day?

I also, enjoyed the fact that the reason given by Tony lee, publisher of the report, for PR being such a stressful job was: “As traditional forms of communication transition to digital, those who want to remain employed need to embrace new technologies or find a new career.” I have to admit; learning how to use Twitter has sent my heart racing with angst on almost a daily basis. Lee followed that amazing justification with a superb clarification on what a non-stressful job, unlike PR, entails – “Professions that involve low stress usually have very little danger and minimal physical demands.” – I must say that when I was younger I never fancied myself as a daredevil, but now I have seen first-hand the high amount of danger involved in my day-to-day routine as a PR; it is clear I was born to be one. And, well as for minimal physical demands; clearly all the miners up North have it easy compared to us PR’s – mining for coal…pff…try inserting a whole wad of paper into the photocopier at work – that’s physical exertion.

Finally, I’d just like to say that advertising account executive’s came sixth – four places below PR – I knew we were more important!

Yesterday the CIPR Social Media Conference went some way to address this very modern PR dilemma.  The speakers were all top of their game and fascinating in their approach to social media.

Digital Media Manager, Thomas Knorpp from Sainsbury’s revealed a refreshingly laid back approach, choosing quality over quantity in terms of who they responded to, aiming to start solving people’s problems and creating interesting content instead of the usual message monologue big brands adopt as their ‘strategy’.

ASDA’s Head of Corporate Comms, Dominic Burch revealed they had chosen a ‘suck it and see’ approach where as a company they encouraged all staff to get involved and monitor the result – a bold move for a company of its size. As Dominic put it, “It’s only a mistake if you make it twice” – a phrase I shall certainly be repeating again.

The million dollar question of the day was; “What’s the best way to analyse and present the results of social media to your Client…?” The answer, disappointingly, was that there are no quick fixes!

You get what you pay for and while free tools such as Google Analytics, Twilert and Nutshell Mail offer a rudimentary overview, you really need to invest in a good bespoke tool for an accurate analysis if you are going to start taking social media seriously. Luckily, here at Speed, we’ve invested in SM2. This is arguably the best in the monitoring tool in the business and yes, while you do need to invest a little time setting up your searches the effort to gain ratio is more than satisfactory.

Myself and my attending colleagues all left with our heads buzzing with a renewed vigour and respect for the power of social media. Interesting, yes; insightful, absolutely; but without the reassurance of a definitive value attached – whether that be in line with comforting AVE figures or even a way to monitor ‘intent’ to purchase – the struggle to justify additional budget, time and resource with Clients of a certain nature continues…

For university students, managing your online presence offers invaluable experience, showing that you fully understand the importance of reputation management and can navigate online networks with ease. It also presents you with a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate your skills, share your thoughts, and build links with influential people in the industry.

Managing your online presence isn’t just about appealing to new employers though; it can also be a key part of winning new business. If you wanted to hire a PR agency, would you not be tempted to google the names of the consultants that you would potentially be working with? And if you were impressed with a particular company’s communications, would you not want to try and find out who was behind it? Of course you would!

It’ll be very interesting to see how this trend evolves. Already PR agencies are offering firms help with developing social media guidelines for spokespeople and other staff. But as more businesses start caring about how staff carry themselves online, perhaps we’ll see more PR agencies and SEO firms working with time-poor individuals to ‘clean up’ any social media mistakes that could affect their employability or put off prospective customers.

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Most of the time pitching a story in can be a real joy, there’s a real buzz to be had from a good pitch. Sometimes, however, it can be a real battle to get the coverage you’re after – we’ve all experienced it surely – where you come up against an especially combative journalist (naming no names). Sometimes it can be a real fight and making the call can be like stepping into the ‘squared circle’ of a boxing ring.

(Warning – brace yourself for a series of tenuous boxing references)

Outfighter – These guys are tricky customers, they are going to try and keep you at arms length – perhaps “now isn’t the best time” or maybe “you should call tomorrow”. These aren’t aggressive journalists but they aren’t going to make it easy for you. You need to step inside their guard and slow them down with some killer lines.

Infighter – You will have come across one of these guys, they are up for a fight and don’t mind trading some blows. These are the journalists who ask the awkward questions or are just plain mean tempered. You need to have your guard up (read: know your story) or you will get savaged.

Jab – The jab sets you up for the rest of the pitch, the tantalising tid-bit to whet their appetite. Why the hell should they listen to you? This is your opener so make it a good one.

Straight – This is the main thrust of your assault, the power punch. A good solid explanation of what the story is and this is where you can secure the coverage. The one-two combination of the jab and straight will do the job.

Counter-punching – A journalist feeling antagonistic or in a bad mood is quite likely to come back at you. They could outright disagree with what you are saying or cross-examine your story, a good PR needs to be able to respond to this – i.e. know what you are talking about first.

Bob and weave – Some journalists (you know who they are) will come out swinging. By thinking quickly on your feet you can pre-empt or avoid the worst of it, this isn’t about bullshitting them – it’s about knowing the journalist’s style and requirements. Prepare yourself beforehand, no doubt someone else in the office has dealt with them before and will have some handy advice.

Haymaker – This killer blow will almost guarantee coverage, if it lands. Combative journalists are going to make it hard for you to deliver this. If you have a very strong story you can even lead with the haymaker and finish the fight before it even starts.

TKO – The Technical Knockout, this is when you have taken a horrible beating and the referee stops the fight to prevent injury. You have been savaged so thoroughly that you are forced to beat a hasty retreat with a flea in your ear. Avoid this.

Even if your story isn’t the strongest on the news agenda everybody loves an underdog story. If you know what you’re about and you’ve prepared fully you will be in a position to go the distance and hopefully get a points victory – the journalist might not taste the canvas, but you will have done your job and got the coverage. Think about it, Rocky was the underdog and he beat Communism – so what’s stopping you?

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