comms and social: have we won the war?

We all get social media don't we? Not, really. Not if you come with both hands filled with tape measures and you are only interested in selling and sign-ups. 

by Dan Slee

A few things have crossed my timeline of late that reminds me that comms and social for all their outward signs are struggling to fit.

Sure, there are still dinosaurs. But they're dying out and have lost the battle so let's not bother with them.

Ignorance is being replaced with the realisation that social media can't be ignored by comms  and PR people. Great.

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10 tips for local authorities & the online newsroom approach

With the media landscape changing the idea that the public sector comms teams should be press release factories is changing. But how to make the shift? Think more like a media company.

by Laura McLean 

To keep up with developing trends in communications and the changing media landscape, many organisations are beginning to think and act like media companies, a strategy which we at Mynewsdesk refer to as the online newsroom approach.

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scratching the seven year itch

If you have worked in comms over the past seven years you'll enjoy this reflection on some of the changes we have all seen and experienced...

by Will Mapplebeck

Back in 2007 we had five press officers. That’s five people who just did media enquiries and press releases.

I know this, because I was one of them. I joined Newcastle City Council as a press officer in September 2007 I'm about to leave it for Core Cities in Manchester with the far fancier title of Strategic Communications Manager.

Now is a good time to reflect on changes to a discipline that's been transformed in less than a decade. Here are the seven biggest things, one for every year I've been at Newcastle.

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new twitter tools to try: flounder, good audience and sumall

One of the great things abut Twitter are the tools that are created to help you carry out a specific task. Here are three.

by GUEST EDITOR Ben Matthews 

I've got a strong feeling that I'm like the rest of the comms2point0 community and like to try out new tools on a regular basis.

PR and Comms is a fast-moving industry, so there’s always a new product or service to play with that may improve your comms campaigns and change the way you communicate with your audiences.

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pinterest: more than cath kidston and cupcakes

How do you share new ideas? There's a team in Wales who are finding the answers and finding ways to make them available. 

by GUEST EDITORS Ena Lloyd and Dyfrig Williams

The Good Practice Team have come together over the last 18 months with a purpose of sharing new and emerging ideas to help improve Welsh public services.

We have a very tight budget, so we need to be very creative with how we make the most of our resources.

We have learnt over the last 18 months that different people take information on board in different ways.

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why we’re staging the #commsforchange14 event

Announcing an exciting event with our partners Public Sector Customer Services Forum that will help you deliver real change.

by Dan Slee

We’re pleased to say that comms2point0 is joining forces with Public Sector Customer Services Forum to stage an event which we think will deliver a stack of value.

We think this will work for comms and PR people but we think this will also be valuable for people who are working in your organisation on projects big and small that need communicating.

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delivering digital transformation through IT and comms

'Comms at the top table...' It's shorthand for having comms involved with the big strategic discussions early on. If you reach this place you can help to shape and deliver with people. This example which will be presented at #commsforchange14 about changes to tax discs really shows how working together can be really powerful.

by Victoria Ford  

‘This just shows how important comms is! Technically the code changes are in and ready to go........without comms it's useless.'

This was a text I received from our Chief Technology Officer, Iain Patterson, earlier this week.

He was referring to media coverage of a major change for DVLA - the abolition of the Tax Disc.

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16 gems to help you start to understand internal comms

Internal comms can often be the Cinderella part of PR and communications. It's often undervalued. But big schemes that need to be communicated well need to start with engaged and informed staff. There's a report that has stood the test of time is a good place to help start your understanding. 

by Dan Slee

Here’s a confession. It wasn’t until long into my career in communications that I realised the value of internal comms.

I used to stupidly think internal comms person was when you failed at being a press officer. There I’ve said it.

I couldn’t have been more wrong.

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the search for practical examples of ‘co-production’

Increasingly, we talk about designing and delivering services through ‘co-production’. But what does this mean in practical terms? One organisation has been working with a range of partners to develop an event to provide clear examples of good practice in ‘co-production’.

by Ena Lloyd and Dyfrig Williams

Co-production is about changing the relationship between those who deliver and those who use services. It is about re-shaping how you design, plan and deliver services, but doing this alongside members of the public.

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seven reasons comms getting involved early is a good idea

As we put together commsforchange14 there's a regular complaint... comms is always asked to come along too late. In this post we put forward seven things you'll find if you start early or late.

by Dan Slee

We've all been there when the email comes in with news of a major launch or announcement the next day at 6pm the night before.

You are already batting with one hand behind your back before you even start to look at what the project is about.

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excellent... a survey and whitepaper for #commsforchange14

In September, some of the brightest minds in public sector comms will come to Birmingham for our rather fine #commsforchange14 event. Know what's even better? We're also publishing a whitepaper at the event and we're launching a survey to help shape it. Can you help?

by Dan Slee

The single biggest problem with communications, George Bernard Shaw once said, is the illusion that it has taken place.

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being an informal whistleblower should be part of the job description

Occasionally, we'll write guest posts and when approached by PR Week we wrote about the lessons for public sector communicators from the Rotherham scandal.

by Dan Slee

So now ‘Rotherham’ is doomed to enter the lexican of towns long shadowed by failure.

It is a town where 1,400 girls were abused between 1997 and 2013 and where a report pointed the finger of blame for failing to do enough to stop the attacks at Rotherham Borough Council and South Yorkshire Police.

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social media for work: just add common sense

There's scores, aren't there? Scores of people getting saying stupid things on social media, isn't there? Actually, no. And yes, there is a common sense approach to take so you don't end up in trouble.

by Gemma Melling

I was interested to read the story about the number of police officers who have been disciplined in relation to the misuse of social media.

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beware of comms zombies

We all have them. The scars from projects that don't quite go to plan... the zombies you need to avoid.

by Jon Matthias

The life-cycle of a comms project is fairly routine.

It either stems from a good idea to try out, or a problem that needs solving.

Ideas fly around.

A plan is made.

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vote for your champion comms facepalm moment (and win a fab prize)

So, all those daft comments that people have posted about the moments of daftness.. can you help us pick a winner?

by Dan Slee

Truly there has been an avalanche of comments to the original comms facepalm post that set out some of the stupid things comms people get asked.

The daft requests, the clip art and the breathtaking stupidity of some senior managers. They're all there.

But is this outpouring of the arrrrrgh in pr a good thing?

For me, this is what eminent Irvin D. Yalom would say that this is an example of group therapy at work. By sharing, Yalom says, people can realise they are not alone, that there are people on the same journey and they can share knowledge and coping strategies.

But we got to thinking. It's not enough just to share. Doesn't this need some crowning recognition too?

So, we've chosen six of our particular favourites to choose the Champion Facepalm Moment for Comms in 2014.

There's no trophy. Most of the posts are anonymous but if you submitted them you will have the healing knowledge that your brothers and sisters really share your pain.

But... we need your help. 

We need you to vote for which one really takes the biscuit.

You can vote here on the six facepalm moments that stand out and we urge that you do.

• 'Our website is rubbish. Change it by tomorrow at the latest,' orders chief exec whose son was a 'bit of a web designer' in his spare time. Submitted by Ginny.
• Can you put the internet on a memory stick? I'm going to a meeting. Submitted by @kate_bob on Twitter.
• Let's do some engagement but if we don't like the answers let's change them halfway. Submitted by Jon.
• It's a great campaign but can you make sure its not too effective? Submitted by Kate.
• I can't make the photocall. Can you just photoshop me in it? Submitted by Kirstie.
• Let's make it two-way comms but only share the replies if we like them. Submitted by Ahhhhhhhhhh.

By the way, thank you for submitting a comment on the thread if you did and I'm sorry if yours was not in this list. Rest assured they have been read, re-read and laughed at by comms people right across the land.

Click this link here to WIN! WIN! Vote and win!

As an added incentive, we'll choose one voter at random to win a ticket worth £125 to commsforchange14 the excellent event in Birmingham on September 24. We'll also send you a £10 Amazon voucher.

You can vote for your favourite one here and don't forget to tell us your email address so we can make sure you get your prize.

Dan Slee is co-founder of comms2point0.

Picture credit.