a perfect viral storm

Once in a while a piece of brilliance comes along that deserves to be revered as a religious relic. Such a thing was Torfaen Council's YouTube clip of an Elvis impersonator singing a council gritting-related version of a classic. How did they do it? No, really. How did they do it?

by Neil Jones

Last week was not the first time I had sang a bad rendition of ‘in the depot’ across the office.  When colleagues in Neighbourhood Services need assistance it is often met with a warbled Elvis impersonation.

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hard and fast in local government

Whilst most of us now have £zero budget for most of our communications activity, we can still learn lessons from campaigns which do.

by Julie Waddicor

Hard and fast. I’m not talking about your job or your boss (although I’m sure they’re both).  I’m talking about taking the lessons of the British Heart Foundation’s ‘Hands Only CPR: Hard and Fast’ campaign and using them in our comms.

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delivering a viral flu campaign... wash your hands!

Okay, so how to deliver comms messages over a range of channels? By singing. As well as a press release. And other things in an imaginative innovative campaign.

by Emily Turner

NHS Kent and Medway was looking for a new way to get across its flu campaign messages this winter when it discovered ThingLink – a free service that allows you to create interactive images with links to web pages, music, video, text and images.

The communications team wanted to support a traditional campaign of press releases, emails to stakeholders, posters and leaflets by using its social media channels to reach more people.

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channel shift: a future for public sector comms in 2013?

One of the challenges facing public sector comms is how to work out what you've done has been effective. Maybe, it's a case of using channel shift. Especially in the public sector which is changing almost by the day. 

by Dan Slee

It's always been tricky working out the impact of good communications.

Back in the day, you'd get a big ruler, a sheaf of cuttings and work out column inches.

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why the NUJ is for pr people

Unions? Aren't they for factory workers? Well, actually no. Some say they've never been more revelant than today for people in public relations.

By Chris Morley

In my years in the regional media, one of the most common career paths is from mainstream newspapers or broadcasting to PR.

When this happens, those who were members of the NUJ often think the union will not be able to represent them in their new work or is not appropriate in some way as they no longer regard themselves as a journalist. This then leads them to resign from the union.

However, the real situation is quite a bit different. The NUJ does represent PR professionals (this is part of its constitution) and we welcome them into membership. In fact we have something like 2,000 members in this sector.

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a realtime campaign that blazed a trail

Campaigns when they work are focussed and effective. But they often struggle to tell the whole story. This one by a fire service successfully showed ongoing stories over a 96-hour period.

By Sarah Poole

A 96-HOUR-long live Bonfire stream which aimed to expose the real work of firefighters on their busiest night of the year also helped bolster crew who came under attack in their communities.

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you'll be a press officer, my son

Journalists it is said need rat-like cunning, a plausible manner and a little literary ability. Press officers just need to read this. 

by Nicola Davies

If you can keep your head when all around you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise. 

You’ll be a Press Officer my son.

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why ‘The West Wing’ is the perfect antidote to the ‘The Thick of it’

When it comes to great TV shows The West Wing takes some beating. And whilst it is of course fictional, it is littered with comms and PR case studies.

By Alex Ross

The polls are still open in the US Presidential Election as I write this, but it should be all over by the time you read it. 

Before the results come in and to recreate the tension and behind-the-scenes excitement, my wife and I did what we usually do…flicked between the finale of The West Wing and live election night coverage.

And do you know what?  It’s pretty hard to separate fiction from reality.

But unlike the depressingly accurate depiction of ‘how it is’ in The Thick of It, The West Wing still shows us ‘how it should be’ in government communications – driven by ambition, innovation, a desire to change the world for the better.

Okay, so it was made before social media and smartphones, but focusing on channels misses the point.

The West Wing depicts a world where great communications make a difference and where great communicators are trusted, influential advisers to the most powerful person in the world.

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10 good reasons to work in public sector comms and pr (and 10 reasons why not to... )

What better way to test the pros and cons of working in the public sector, ahead of a talk with PR students in Manchester, than Twitter crowdsourcing what a bunch of industry professionals thought.

by Darren Caveney

I always enjoy talking to PR and comms students about careers. In my own way I like to think (rightly or wrongly) that I am able to give a little bit back and still remember those who helped me when I was starting out in the industry. And it's always an opportunity to learn from the students too.

We all need a leg up and access to others from time to time. Now, probably more than ever, actually.

So when Sarah Williams, senior PR lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University asked me to talk to final year PR students about in-house careers in the public sector I was very happy to help.

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gloves off, gloves on

PR folk and journalists often scuffle. But that's just not going to help either side.

by Kelly Parkes-Harrison

The sound of a deep sigh and my head hitting the keyboard is all that could be heard yesterday as I read yet another tweet from a journalist having a dig at PRs.

“Why do PRs put everything three times in a release, I don’t need telling three times”. Now this was quite tame, there are some journalists, I name no names, who seem to embrace PR bashing on Twitter as a way of expelling their inner angst and frustration. Those tweets can get downright unpleasant.

Normally I will seethe quietly about these kind of tweets, too cautious to say anything back in case it sparks an unpleasant Twitter scene. This time, probably because I am a coward and I know this journalist is quite nice, I decided to reply. I tweeted back suggesting that the press release was just badly written. The journalist replied saying possibly, or just a misguided formula that PRs are taught in training. She added that is was very irritating.

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good music will fail with bad marketing and pr

Steve Jenkins is the most influential man in music that you've never heard of. He's helped shape the careers of stars such as Kylie Minogue, Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and others. What's the secret? Good marketing and pr.

by Steve Jenkins

I believe that good music will fail with bad marketing and pr.

In market research, if a hundred people were asked, I’m convinced they would all agree.

It's something I learned many years ago whilst visiting Island Records, the label owned and started by Chris Blackwell and most famous for bringing the world Bob Marley and U2 amongst many other successful artists.

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the internet: PR's savior or crucifier?

Jo Tarkowski is coming towards the end of her MSc International Public Relations course at Manchester Metropolitan University. And she needs our help, so read on...

by Jo Tarkowski

As the reading begins for my research, I can’t help but start to pre-empt what one of my key findings will be this: there is just way too much out there on the internet.  If I was a practitioner that had been in the industry for years without all of these digital platforms, and it was now a necessity to learn about them, where would I start? In fact, as a new PR professional, where do I start?

Arising from this, and perhaps more importantly, is the issue of online credibility. 

Due to the speed with which the internet allows ideas to be published, and how easily these ideas can be accessed, it becomes a prime source of information for people working across PR.  But is this a good or bad thing?

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capital gains

by Jarrod Williams

I am going to tell you something that may shock and appall you.

There is more to the world of communications than what's in the South East.

That's right, our industry is bigger than just 'That London'.

In fact there are other regions, such as the Midlands and the North of England, as well as Scotland and Wales, which contribute heavily to our great reputation as a profession. These regions also produce some top talent.

I know, I know, I'll give you two minutes to take that in.

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lessons for the lonely PR

by Lindsay Narey

Lindsay Nary is the sole PR and comms person in her organisation. Here, she shares honestly about her role and the pros and cons of this single existence.

Me, myself and I, All by myself.  Countless songs in every genre have attempted to describe the ups and downs of being on your lonesome. Whilst these generally describe the woe of failed relationships, I think there should be a song in honour of being alone in the workplace. 

I have no intention of penning a depressing ballad, but as I enter my seventh year in a singleton PR role I’ve learned a few things which I think are worth sharing. 

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let's play comms veteran i-spy

If you are a press officer, marketing person or work in communications the chances are you've had the same conversations if you work in Timperley or Timbuktoo. Now with this easy to follow checklist you can see how much of a comms veteran you are.

By Dan Slee

When I was a kid there were these books called I-Spy books.

They were designed to encourage people to turn into obsessives on a whole range of subjects. 

Smart parents would deploy them to their children to turn long distance journeys, trips to the zoo and country walks into learning opportunities.

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