Who’s going to the Flackenhacks?
Posted Saturday, September 29, 2007 at 9:06pm in PR General | 9 Comments
Are you going to the Flackenhack Awards? We are. You should too. Here are the details:
When: October 23rd, 2007.
Why: “The idea cropped up when Peter Kirwan - the man behind Fullrun - and the mysterious blogger known as …The World’s Leading… (or TWL to save on the typing) had a night on the beers and decided that what the UK technology PR and media industry needed more than anything else in the world was an awards ceremony.”
Where: The Audio Forum - opposite the Ritz on Piccadilly.
Award Categories: (criteria here)
1. Best result in the face of adversity
2. Most valuable piece of coverage
3. Loveliest client
4. “Fair cop guv’” biggest f@*k up
5. Hack nominated tech PR agency of the year
6. Hack nominated PR person of the year
7. PR freeloader of the year
8. Flack nominated tech hack of the year (staff)
9. Tech hack of the year (freelance)
10. Least communicative hack
11. Consumer tech publication of the year
12. Business tech publication of the year
They’re still looking for some additional sponsorship so if you want to get involved contact both Peter and TWL at theflackenhacks@gmail.com. Ten percent of the money generate from ticket sales is going to Byte Night.
See you there.
Engage or die (trying)
Posted Thursday, September 27, 2007 at 7:42pm in Media, PR General | 1 Comment
GUEST POST:The following blog post was written by my mate, Ben Ayers, senior factual and new media publicist for ITV. I implore you to read it. It’s very good! You can subscribe to his blog while you’re at it too.
If 2007 is the year of social networking and short form video (think Facebook and Cadbury’s respectively), then 2008 has to be the year of truly creative PR and marketing. Social nets and video, the two cornerstones of the online world have reached a tipping point this year and it’s playtime.
The rise and rise of video on the web has undoubtedly supported the advertising model which has emerged as the victor over subscription, but it’s the social networks that are grabbing all the attention.
Don’t get me wrong. Traditional online advertising has come a long way – it’s evolved and advertisers have listened to users about what they like and more significantly, what they don’t (pop ups with a hidden ‘close’ tab spring to mind). But there is heaps of inventory available for sale on a myriad of sites and although there are good deals to be had for buyers, there is still a feeling that apart from search, it’s a bit like pissing in the wind.
Online advertising isn’t a massive revenue driver for some of the big newspaper and magazine institutions online. They are still in the main supported by the print revenue from their older brothers and sisters, especially in the magazine world. Sadly for them, that continues to be eaten away as audiences migrate online. Those willing to look into the crystal ball and invest in their online offerings will survive. The same applies for television.
Social nets ‘jewel in the crown’ for advertisers and publishers
The good news for marketers and print outlets alike is that social networking offers the real jewel in the crown: the chance to target and understand their potential customers so well that the Sainsbury’s store card suddenly looks like child’s play. Social nets should be a marketing person’s wet dream. When we finally all work out how to work with them.
I believe that survival for many off and online publications will depend on blending the social element with their content. This will be the key to building their revenues. For instance, a women’s magazine with a strong ‘foodie’ leaning will at some point have to decide whether to create a network based around sharing recipes and ‘how to make’ videos and ditch other, less marketable elements of their offering. A successful social network for people into horse riding will quickly overshadow the biggest print horse riding magazine. The potential for targeted advertising is obvious and the money will follow.
It’s these rich relationships that marketers and PR people should be looking to tap into. Great content combined with social networks could see the long tail really start to pay off for everyone.
Outdoor opportunities
Apart from online, the only advertising sector to show significant growth is outdoor which has risen by 33.8% in the six years to 2006. It seems that this medium could work genuinely well with online to create dynamic campaigns. Outdoor is getting exciting, from vibrating posters to runway ads and combined with digital, offers really exciting possibilities. Imagine, for example, if outdoor sites teased up online campaigns with ‘clues’.
The internet has turned marketers into conversationalists and in the extreme, entertainers. We have to come up with better and cleverer ways to get attention and more importantly, hold interest.
Buzzing with the fans
While traditional marketing campaigns still have a place in TV and film, attention is increasingly turning to the bloggers and fanbases to spread the word when it comes to getting ‘down with the kids’.
A great recent example of this new kind of engagement has been Warner Brothers’ elaborate buzz campaign for the new Batman movie Dark Knight.
To drive speculation about who would be playing the joker agency 42Entertainment put a series of election posters for the character Harvey Dent in selected US cities. A teaser site featuring the election poster was launched online and before long there were reports of the posters being defaced with the words ‘I believe in Harvey Dent too!’ and comic stores being littered with playing cards daubed with the same phrase. Fans who typed in ‘ibelieveinharveydenttoo’ were sent to a new site, encouraging them to send off their email address to receive a code which would allow them to gradually reveal a picture of the joker.
Within hours the campaign had created a frenzy of discussion among comic book and superhero fans in forums across the web.
This is the kind of good old fashioned PR stuntery which would have Mark Borkowski tipping his hat.
Regardless of who we are trying to target the online space is easily the most dynamic. It’s up to us, as marketing and PR professionals, to creatively engage. So get out there and play while you still can. In years to come it could be a whole lot different.
New social network for marketing professionals
Posted Tuesday, September 25, 2007 at 9:57pm in PR General | 8 Comments
Here’s the release:
Social Network Launches Specifically for Marketing Communications Professionals
‘MarCom Professional’ members now posting about consumer trust, advertising on mobile platforms, new media developments and branding issues for the marcom sector…
Core news facts:
• MarCom Professional, launches at 9am (GMT) on Tuesday 25 September, 2007
• Preview in advance of launch can be viewed at http://vip.marcomprofessional.com
• First ’social professional’ network dedicated to the marketing communications sector
• All marketing communications disciplines covered by specialised content, plus vertical categories such as FMCG, youth, education & learning
• Membership is free and all members are verified as working in marketing communications, thereby ensuring high quality, targeted content and informed discussion
• Members can easily import existing blogs, post, share, collaborate using bliki functionality, edit with full version control and comment in a secure, professionally hosted environment
• Development and functionality will be driven by member requirements and community demand.
Launching on Tuesday 25 September, ‘MarCom Professional’ is the first dedicated social professional network designed specifically for the marketing communications industry. As the impact of the ‘Social Web‘ continues to be felt across each distinct discipline within marketing communications, from PR to design, advertising to digital marketing, MarCom Professional’s niche networking platform enables professionals and academics working in the sector to collaborate, network, inform and communicate, in a secure, moderated environment.
Different from pure ’social’ networking sites which feature generic content and are used mainly for virtual socialising, MarCom Professional utilises bliki-based social networking for the first time. Combining the reverse chronological ordering of blogs, with the collaborative editing capabilities of a wiki, members are able to view full version and version comparisons, making it the ideal platform for collaboration with peers. A second innovation enables members to have an alter ego, particularly useful for adding polemic or commentary that may be at odds with the position of a member’s employer, but worthy of discussion and debate.
Agencies could choose to use MarCom Professional as the agency intranet, a cost effective way to communicate and collaborate with colleagues in a closed, securely hosted community. Others may choose to subscribe to the RSS feeds to stay abreast with industry developments, or to recommend venues and restaurants most suited to media events. An open community could be established to focus on Web 2.0 and its increasing impact on all areas of marketing communications. The possibilities for MarCom Professional are numerous, with future development and innovation driven by the members and communities who use and benefit from the first social professional networking platform.
Andrew Betts, Director of Social Professional Limited, the company behind MarCom Professional, says: “People are familiar with social networks, but until now they have not focused on a specific profession. MarCom Professional is designed entirely for the marketing communications profession from the ground up, and presents the opportunity to make marketing communicators the pioneers in adopting such a network to inform, learn and entertain.” He continues: “It’s particularly relevant to marcom consultancies and agencies as we believe prospective customers will come to the site to learn and source appropriate skills and knowledge.”
Social Professional Limited is a privately owned company established to develop the world’s best social professional networking platform. The technical team prides itself on delivering powerful Web applications that are simple to use and have won numerous accolades, including the Editor & Publisher’s award for ‘Best Media-Affiliated Business Blog, 2007′, the Guardian newspaper’s list of ‘Top 10 Dotcoms’ and the ‘Top 25, Web 2.0′ on The Register.
PR books to read
Posted Sunday, September 23, 2007 at 8:07am in PR General | 4 Comments
Like Luke Armour, I’ve received an email from Rachel Kneebone of Kogan Page about their most successful or forthcoming PR books the publisher has, er, um, published or is publishing. The Kogan Page books were a Godsend to me when I was at uni. Loads of copying and pasting going on. Just kidding. The links to the books on Amazon are mine btw.
New strategies for Reputation Management – Andrew Griffin (Published January 2008)
Only 31% of people trust business leaders to tell the truth according to a survey conducted by the Institute of Business Ethics. A damaged reputation can have severe knock-on effects on the bottom line, and most corporates value their reputations accordingly.
Written by the managing director of Regester Larkin, the leading international reputation management firm, New Strategies For Reputation Management will demonstrate how you can deal effectively with unexpected crises, and what strategies you should be implementing to build your company’s good reputation at other times.
Winning New Business – Richard Denny (Published October 2007)
Today everyone in business is expected to be a sales person, whether they work in the sales team or not. With the growth in concepts like “total marketing”, “living the brand”, and “customer relationship management”, the need for everyone in business to maximise sales and profitability is paramount.
Written by Richard Denny – one of the world’s most renowned sales gurus – Winning New Business takes the fear out of selling, showing you just what to do and how to do it.
Public Relations Strategy – Sandra Oliver (Just published. Published in association with the CIPR)
This challenging book reflects the intense discussion that is taking place on the nature of public relations and how it develops and supports management strategy. It links models and theories of strategic management to the PR function and discusses how globalization and the Internet are changing organizational PR strategy.
Creativity in Public Relations – Andy Green (Published 2007. Published in association with the CIPR)
Creative input is inevitably required of the PR practitioner and yet there is a lack of real understanding of the mechanics of the processes involved.
By clearly establishing a definition of ‘creativity’, Creativity in Public Relations will help PR practitioners and general readers to get ‘under the skin’ of the creative process and use it to greater effect in their work.
Public Affairs in Practice – Stewart Thomson, Steve John (Published 2007. Published in association with the CIPR)
Public Affairs in Practice explains how public affairs (PA) is now much more than just political lobbying. It examines the methods PA professionals use to make an impact and taking each area of the industry in turn looks at the tools involved in delivering a PA programme. It also highlights the potential benefits of public affairs, such as protecting an organization from perceived threats of new regulation; identifying new market opportunities; and raising the profile of an organization.
Big Picture PR*
Posted Friday, September 14, 2007 at 10:11pm in Blogging, Business, Media, PR General, Technology | 6 Comments
“Monitor the conversations”, “engage with your publics”, “determine who your advocates and vigilantes are” etc. Sooo 2005. 
You’re on the internet now which means every year online is the equivalent to seven years offline. Or is that dog years? Anyway, while the above quotes are true, there’s so much more to online PR; meaning there are so many (dare I say it) ‘tactics’ to consider. I think Antony Mayfield feels this way in his most recent blog post where he says:
“Just a thought: Is the problem that PR faces that it is taking a (much abused) model from the channel world: media relations, and trying to graft it on to the world of open networks? It seems to me that “blogger relations” is going to do a lot more damage than it does good for the reputation of PR. Why not ditch it as an approach altogether?”
He adds:
“Here’s a golden rule for comms in the age of networks: if in doubt: pull don’t push… Make your content better, more attractive, findable and shareable.”
And I agree partly with what he says. Not everything though. This is how I see it.
Blogger relations/blogger outreach/WhatEverTheNewNameIs
This, to me, is a viable part of online PR. HOWEVER, as long as it’s done in a non media relations way. I.e. DON’T SPAM press releases and respect 100% those that don’t want to have any contact with you at all. No, make that 110%.
Respect 100% those that don’t want to have any contact with you
I realise by writing this I could set myself up for a fall but this is the standard I’ve set for myself. If that standard drops and I make a mistake, then I take full responsibility. But I honestly believe no PR blogger would ever get so careless and am willing to hedge my bets that the ones have taken a scatter gun approach don’t have a grasp of the nature of the social media space.
What about Web1.0?
You know what? There are many thousands of (shock, horror) websites with (wait for it) real journalists that provide excellent editorial to a large global audience of readers. The ‘traditional’ online media is a thriving medium but one that’s often overlooked by us PR bloggers because we all (myself probably more than most) like to be seen as embracing the new. But, whatever you do, don’t forget about the tried and tested model that’s still working. They even accept press releases too.
The ‘traditional’ online media is a thriving medium
Content creators
Keeping an eye on what’s been said about your brand, company etc is still very important. At the same time though, it’s not the be all and end all. This time last year (in the UK at least) organisations wanted to know “what’s been said online” about their brand. It was a toe in the water stuff, if you will. But time’s moving fast and there are new blog monitoring companies appearing all the time.
With abundance and scale comes significantly lower barriers to entry
What was once a fairly exclusive area has now blossomed into a mini industry itself. And with abundance and scale comes significantly lower barriers to entry. And anyway, it’s not the role of the PR person to find the data, their role is to make sense of the data.
Organisations have at their disposal the means to be content creators themselves. Making a video or producing a podcast, for example, isn’t expensive and this is why I believe PR has to become more multimedia/digital-thinking.
Why is WPP buying up digital agencies? Or why did Vocus buy PRWeb? What’s the rational behind PR Week’s research findings that discovered three out of four journalists (subs reqd) prefer multimedia alongside a standard release? Everyone’s becoming digitally minded.
So while the written word has always and will always (probably) be the most useful tool to people in the industry, some Big Picture PR is increasingly needed.
*
I knew it! As soon as I wrote Big Picture PR in the headline, I knew there would be an ageny out there with that name. Disclosure: This has nothing to do with that agency.