The PR Warrior

Facebook Helps Public Maintain the Rage Against UK Xmas Pop Excesses!

This is a great story highlighting just how social media can rally the public into action (it also demonstrates the power of a single big idea)!

Each year the UK makes a big deal out of the number one song on its pop charts in Christmas week. 

Normally the winning song is a lightweight pop number. The Spice Girls, for example, have scored in the past although in recent years, the top tune has been by the winner of Simon Cowell's X Factor TV show. 

This year was no different, with young singer Joe McElderry tipped to top the charts this Christmas. That was until rock fan and part-time DJ Jon Morter organised a Facebook campaign to knock X Factor from its traditional top spot and instead propel hardcore Californian rock band Rage Against The Machine's 17-year-old song 'Killing in the Name' to number one.

The campaign was started as a bit of a joke but gained momentum until the point where 'Killing in the Name' (video below) sold 500,000 copies, 50,000 more than McElderry's ballad 'The Climb'.

Up to five million people reportedly tuned in to hear RATM take the number one spot.

The other big number is the Facebook Group, which at time of writing had nearly one million members (check it out here).

In a move that will undoubtedly endear them to fans, RATM have stated they would perform a free concert in London to celebrate the achievement as well as donate the proceeds from the chart-topping single to charity (source).

N.B. this post also appears on www.trevoryoung.posterous.com

Government 'Spin' Story Leaves PR Warrior With a Heavy Heart

I read with interest a feature article in The Sunday Age this week titled 'Calling The Tune' in which the author Tom Hyland examines how "governments and their PR machines are so intertwined it's hard for journalists to tell where the spins stars and ends".

When I say I read the article with interest, I should also add I did so with a heavy heart.

Why so morose PR Warrior?

Firstly, there is this obsession by the media that PR is all about them. In many journalists' minds, PR's sole existence as a profession is to pitch stories to the media. Yuh.

Secondly, there is this firmly held belief by some sections of the media (not all) that PR is some sort of 'black art'...spin, as they love to say. Yuh x2.

(Hyland writes as much in his article: "The PR state incorporates public relations - spin - as an essential part of government..."). For more of my thoughts on the issue of spin, please check out this post on MarketingMag.com.au - 'Shock, Horror! Public Relations is...Anti-Spin!'.

Unfortunately, this view reinforces within business and the community generally the stereotypical image of a devious PR suit whose main purpose is to deceive the media in some sort of cat-and-mouse game.

The reality, of course, is nothing like that. Not in 'true' PR practice anyway.

The thing is, those involved in controlling political agendas and manipulating the image of government ministers et al aren't really public relations practitioners. They're media advisers, and generally ex-journalists (nothing wrong with ex-journos by the way, I'm one!). There's a massive difference to what they do on a day-to-day basis and what a PR practitioner does (I'm speaking generally here, as no doubt there is some cross-over of sorts). The nature of the political gig is quite combative, essentially it's one big game where the two parties - politicians and their advisers, and the media - square off on a daily basis (read 'Calling The Tune' and you'll see what I mean).

Unfortunately, some senior executives within major companies and organisations see this behaviour and and think it's de rigueur. To them it's a game too. All macho huff and puff, us against them sort of stuff. These are seemingly intelligent people who for some reason don't seem to grasp the underlying basics of smart strategic PR. Maybe this is because they follow the media so closely and therefore think PR is all about column inches and putting a 'spin' on things. It's old school thinking, and has been for years. If senior executives took the time to understand the discipline of strategic public relations, they would become a far more useful and potent resource for their organisation. Ditto the politicians. 

'True' PR is about open and honest, proactive, two-way communication. It's about engendering relationships with the people who matter most to your business, organisation, cause or issue. The media might be among your constituents, or they may not. But you can be certain, they won't be the only one.

As I've said a million times, yes, media relations is part of the PR mix. Often it is a critical part of the equation. Other times, it's not. And by 'media relations', I'm not saying it's spin or deception. True media relations is exactly that - helping companies and organisations to build a mutually respectful relationships with the media. You can't do that by being combative or deceitful!

If there's one thing the advent of social media has taught us, it's that old school thinking and outdated media-focused PR is becoming less and less relevant as power shifts into the hands of the people, and smart companies and organisations (and politicians and community leaders) start taking advantage of new media tools to communicate directly with their constituents.

The sands are shifting people. Smart PR practitioners get this. I'd be identifying them in your organisation and giving them a bigger say in your business.

Silly Season Socialising Makes the Picture Clearer

‘Tis the silly season of course and in recent weeks I’ve had the opportunity to catch up with plenty of people across media and marketing, public relations, social media and business generally.

Of the many (sometimes ‘lubricated’) chats I’ve had, one thing keeps coming up in conversation: what next for marketing, PR and social media? (Let’s face it, it’s a pretty broad subject but the over-arching theme is the same in that people are trying to make sense of a dynamically ever-changing communications environment).

Now, obviously the topic is always going to skew that way given the types of people I’ve been hanging out with, but even with business entrepreneurs and corporate types, there is still a lot of interest in marketing, communications and the evolving media landscape.

FOR THE FULL STORY, CLICK HERE:

Content exclusive to Marketing Magazine.

 

PR to Face the Best and Worst of Times in 2010 and Beyond

I WROTE THE FOLLOWING ARTICLE FOR MARKETING MAGAZINE'S JUST-RELEASED '2010 MEDIA SURVIVAL GUIDE'.

The annual guide is a bumper read, and provides a range of insights and commentary from experts across public relations, events and experiential, print media, TV/radio, mobile, web and social media.

Featured writers in the section on social media include Laurel Papworth, Gavin Heaton and Stephen Collins.

Okay, on with the article...

In his classic novel The Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens wrote: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” - he could have been referring to the public relations industry in Australia from 2010 onwards.

A seismic shift is occurring in the way people communicate, connect and collaborate with each other.

Seeing as though PR is all about communication, connection and collaboration, it would be safe to assume the emergence of social media is going to have a significant bearing on public relations and allied fields, if it isn’t already.

Is this the best of times?

Absolutely! The art and science of strategic brand communication continues to become a lot more direct, in your face and interactive - while at the same time, thanks to technology, it’s becoming even more complex and counter-intuitive to what many people in the industry are used to.

All this, of course, spells opportunity for PR practitioners able to fully understand the new media landscape and what it means for companies and brands.

To be fully conversant with social as well as broadcast and print media will be a valuable skill. Companies and organisations will be depending heavily on communication experts who can ‘join the dots’ across the various channels, as well as understand the nuances of each.

Creating hooks, stories, content and ideas that resonate with the public has always been a key strength of PR. In the past much of that work was directed towards the media in the hope they’d pick up a story and help spread the word, and this continues to be an important part of PR.

Today and in the future, however, the opportunity is for companies to take their brand story and converse directly with consumers and other stakeholders.

The worst of times?

If you practise PR but you don’t understand the social media space, you run the risk of being marginalized as companies, brands and organisations seek integration of their brand story across the internet, traditional print and broadcast media, and face-to-face via roadshows, events, sponsored-properties and experiential promotions.

Do blogs, podcasts, Twitter, Facebook et al spell the death of media publicity, the ‘bread and butter’ of PR practice? No, but experience from overseas tells us clearly that they’ve certainly shaken up things.

So what will the public relations industry look like in years to come?

The continued fragmentation of communications will mean one thing for the PR industry: increased specialisation.

On the strategy front, the new masters of the PR universe will be those who not only ‘get’ social media and all it stands for but also understand how it fits with the other ‘pieces of the communication pie’ i.e. traditional media and ‘live’ media (i.e. events, experiential marketing, sponsorship etc).

These experts will be adept at seeing the bigger picture. They will understand intuitively the messaging, the brand story (hooks, angles and ideas), potential issues – and devise programs that resonate with consumers (and other stakeholders).

In terms of tactical specialists, there are three core areas of PR that will be crying out for seasoned experts (N.B. for the purposes of this overview, I’m not talking vertical industry specialties or covering ‘high end’ functions such as investor or government relations):

• Media relations professionals – as budget cuts to newsrooms continue, content for stories is going to have to come from somewhere and those best positioned are savvy media relations experts (potential exists for more journalists to ‘cross the line’ into PR as the traditional media jobs dry up).

• Social media professionals/online content creators and marketers – as companies try to come to terms with the ever-changing media landscape, PR professionals who immerse themselves in the social media space with a view of better understanding it will be the winners overall. Just because you’re a good publicist doesn’t necessarily mean your skills will cross over into social media, as dealing with bloggers, for example, is not the same as dealing with journalists.

• Experiential promotion and events experts – the need will be for operatives who understand both traditional and social media and are able to incorporate an integrated message across event-based activities as well as create brand-sponsored properties that can be leveraged across a variety of mediums.

Brands that truly ‘get’ PR will be able to use it to lay a foundation for their entire marketing communication effort over time.