Tag: honesty

Has social media made brands more honest?

Posted on October 22, 2013 by

This was one of the questions that was asked this morning at the Yorkshire Business Insider, Digital Economy Breakfast, which was hosted at Leeds Metropolitan University.

Using the hashtag #insideryorksdigital a collective of communication, brand, marketing and digital practitioners came together in a panel led discussion, which asked for questions from the audience that were then answered by four respective experts.

This question in particular really caught my attention as I don’t believe that it has made brands more honest, and in contrast to the feedback given by both panel and the audience, I feel that social media has forced business to be more responsive – not necessarily honest.

What we have to consider is whether factual means honest. I don’t believe that this is always the case and as such businesses are managing their communications better and being more considerate of what they say and where. Again, we need to note that considerate does not mean overtly sensitive, a better description may be controlled.

In a world that is full of people with opinions and comments that they are only too ready to share with the masses, particularly when something goes wrong, it is absolutely essential that brands are ready and willing to converse with their audience, providing feedback and assistance if the matter calls for it.

This sounds far simpler than it is. The nature of the beast means that the larger, and presumably more successful, a company becomes the more resource and budget it has to give to communicating with its ever growing audience.

In a world that has typically cut marketing and PR budgets during difficult times, as opposed to recognising the skills and asset that a communications team brings to a business, we can quickly identify where and why some brands have come a cropper over recent years.

With the good always comes the bad but in order to nurture brand ambassadors, while also assisting those with complaints, the landscape has changed and thankfully larger businesses have had to recognise the true value of PR and marketing communications.

Many of the errors that have been made when it comes to social media and the #epic #fails we all share are down to poor delegation. A junior member of the team is tasked with managing social media because no one else really understands it or has the time; after all they are too busy with the serious stuff.

The problem here is that the serious stuff is presumably the reputation of the company, which is directly driven by the way in which an organisation interacts, engages and communicates with its audiences.

Is it just me or are we stating to see a direct correlation here? Put simply, social = serious.

So, interestingly from this one question we can determine that perhaps social media hasn’t made brands more honest – after all, as organisations become more socially aware, they are also becoming more strategic with the way they engage – they are however more responsive and many of them now realise that you can’t ignore a medium that rightly or wrongly is used by an ever increasing number of consumers and businesses both as a platform for communication and search.

Finally, PR takes it seat at the boardroom table

Posted on January 4, 2013 by

I’ve just finished reading an excellent article in Management Today magazine. The piece focuses on the changing face of PR – and I don’t mean one shade of designer lipstick to another – no, finally it would appear that the industry is getting the recognition that it deserves and is taking a seat around the boardroom table.

Having worked in the PR industry for more than a decade and with a BA (Hons) degree in the specialism, I have long been an advocate of the merits of PR when it is practiced correctly and professionally.

As I see it there are problems with the PR industry in the same way that there are problems with any other; you have the good and you have the bad and it can be difficult to decide which is which. One will wine and dine you in fancy restaurants, while the other tells you the harsh truth and what to do about it – far less appealing than a good lunch but undoubtedly more beneficial in the long run.

The truth of the matter is that PR has always been about reputation – that has never changed and be it online or in print, what is said in the street or down the pub, it all goes back to the same thing; if you don’t know what people are saying about you, there is nothing you can do about it.

Businesses are thankfully coming around to the understanding that during any situation, good or bad, the first point of call is to make sure that you are communicating effectively with your audiences. In order to do this an organisation requires an advisor, a specialist, someone to rely on with their plans, aspirations and concerns.

The piece in Management Today very much focuses on the changes to PR based on the use of social media but I think there is more to it than that.

Tim Bell comments: “If you want to live in a transparent world then someone has to give the information about you. If you don’t want someone else to, you have to do it yourself. That’s what PR people do.”

Sure, social media and a desire by the consumer to share their thoughts and opinions with the world – plus having the ability to do so quickly and easily across a multitude of platforms – has meant that PR professionals have more to do but that is simply good practice and the evolution of an industry which spans hundreds of years.

The real change I think has come in a shift of mind set. People working in PR have thankfully taken a long, hard look at the industry and realised that as a discipline we were losing out. We weren’t taken seriously in our tottering high heels and we needed to toughen up and take our seat around the boardroom table.

Those who were serious about a career started to showcase their skills in the situations that deliver harsh recognition; a crisis without a communications professional who is experienced, able and capable of dealing with it can bring a business literally crashing to its knees.

In Management Today Jeremy Hazlehurst comments:

“PR the profession has changed beyond recognition in the past decade. Although media relations activities have burgeoned, involving the paper press, online publications, television and bloggers, it is only a small part of the job now. Press offices have been swallowed up by communications departments that deal with investor relations, analysts, shareholders, regulators and government. All are the guardians of the most precious and difficult to measure of assets – corporate reputation.”

I’ve never been ‘typically PR’ and have always felt that the discipline should be considered a necessity as opposed as a nice to have, not just because I work in the industry but because I see every day the benefits that it delivers, which are often measured less by coverage and more by ‘real life’ results and the situations which are in some cases avoided.

It’s no secret that I almost left the PR industry altogether before launching Open Communications with my business partner Emma because of the way in which some agencies work. I didn’t want to go to lunch or out to parties, I didn’t want to charge by the hour working on campaigns I knew were over-priced and wouldn’t deliver and I didn’t want to feel like I was doing the clients I was working with a disservice by not going that extra mile.

What I did want was to work with journalists so that my clients would hit the headlines, I wanted to use communication to generate business, really get to the heart of the companies I was working for and be a part of their success. I wanted to advise them in the best way possible and explain in no uncertain terms that as a direct result of my actions their business was stronger and that was down to reputation, which was driven by PR and communications.

Thankfully I can now do all of these things. I have always been a champion of ‘real PR’ but I am pleased that others are now recognising the merits to working with agencies and practitioners.

Cynical or otherwise when you look at the organisations that have failed over recent years in many instances arguably the banks have been at fault but it is also interesting to note that many of them were lacking in direction, their customers and prospects weren’t aware of exactly what they offered and this was down to poor communication. As a result they weren’t selling and in turn ceased to exist.

I hope that this new attitude to PR continues and that businesses recognise the value of the services that practitioners and agencies offer.  The truth of the matter is that PR should be at the heart of any business model and in order to get it right you need to rely on a professional.

 

Yorkshire born and bred

Posted on August 2, 2012 by

For those of you who don’t know it was Yorkshire Day yesterday. There were a few stories in the news to celebrate the occasion with a sprinkling of brands investing in PR stunts, allowing them to briefly claim a few column inches here and there.

It’s fair to say more is usually made of this momentous day in the Yorkshire calendar but with the ‘O’ word going on (we have to be careful what we write at the moment for fear of the powers that be knocking on the door!) the headlines are mostly dominated with jumping, swimming and cycling.

That aside, I have to admit that I did take a moment yesterday to think about what makes me so proud to be from Yorkshire and to be passionate about the county that I was born, raised, educated and finally, despite other offers, chose to reside in.

Although I have to hold my hands up and admit to skipping the border, going from North to West Yorkshire (mainly for education and work commitments), both areas have similarly impressive things to offer; wonderful scenery, fantastic food, great ales, a warm welcome and I think most importantly a brutal honesty.

This is one of the things I most admire about Yorkshire and the people that I know who live in the area. As I have mentioned on the blog before, my parents run a fish and chip van in the Yorkshire Dales and have done for the last 32 years. During that time the most common reason for people coming back time and time again was for the banter and sometimes brutal honesty that they receive – along with a good meal.

As my parents are a little like a comedy duo – a mix between something from Open All Hours and Keeping Up Appearances! – they never fail to amuse their customers while also providing them with a service that they will never forget. I don’t know anywhere else in the country where you find people who would behave in the same way and in some instances get away with it!

My admiration does not stop at my parents, there are many, many business people in Yorkshire that I could name who have for one reason or another caught my attention and made me sit up and listen – better still there are even more that I have learnt a great deal from and for that I am eternally grateful.

Coming from Yorkshire originally means that of course I am biased but I still think that this is the only place in the world I would want to be. It has everything I need, family, friends, fun and a deep honesty that will always be a big part of me. I once remember someone I worked with saying to me:

“Lindsey you don’t so much call a spade a spade as a spade a shovel”, I think it was meant as an insult at the time but I took it as a great compliment – so much so that I remember it today.

I interpret that to mean that I can be too honest but perhaps that is because I find it difficult to put a spin on things or to ‘manipulate’ the truth both at home and work. If that’s the cross I have to bear then so be it. I’m happy with that.

So, here’s to Yorkshire and all the honesty that it brings – I will be raising a pint (or half at least) to that this weekend.

Cheers!