The below link is a very positive story from Business Week, quoting Nokia's policy of not only allowing staff to blog their 'issues' but also how the company thinks this is invaluable R&D.
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/09_25/b4136050146630.htm?campaign_id=rss_topStories
All too often we hear stories of companies stopping staff using blogs to get their voices heard but while we would acknowledge there are some potential problems, surely these can be far outweighed by the positives?
Thursday, 18 June 2009
Wednesday, 3 June 2009
Have they heard of media training?
Many of the Telegraph's revelations over the last few weeks have been shocking enough but here at Bluewood, we can't believe the total lack of skill most of the MPs seem to have used during their media interviews.
Admittedly it's been some of the backbenchers under the spotlight this time and they might not have the same experience as some but haven't they heard of media training? It was this gem on the standard's site which surprised us most:
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23696605-details/Public+are+just+jealous%2C+says+MP/article.do
Here's a tip for MPs; before any interview you may want to anticipate some of the negative questions!
Admittedly it's been some of the backbenchers under the spotlight this time and they might not have the same experience as some but haven't they heard of media training? It was this gem on the standard's site which surprised us most:
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23696605-details/Public+are+just+jealous%2C+says+MP/article.do
Here's a tip for MPs; before any interview you may want to anticipate some of the negative questions!
Thursday, 23 April 2009
£260m of new money for training!
In the budget Alistair Darling promised £260m for training and subsidies – is this great news or just spin? Only time will tell what impact this will have but with the skills problem and the number of unemployed growing in the UK the fear is that this is just a drop in the ocean.
Focussed training, can and will make a difference for job opportunities but the real question is whether the government are committed to seeing these policies through in the long-term?
Focussed training, can and will make a difference for job opportunities but the real question is whether the government are committed to seeing these policies through in the long-term?
Wednesday, 15 April 2009
Someone reign him in!
The faux pas(s) of Silvio Berlusconi never cease to amaze me.
First his compliments on Mr Obama's fine suntan, then a reproach from the Queen and his snub of Merkel... ill-mannered and ill-considered; but I can handle that.
This week however he's giving wholly inappropriate advice to L'Aquila earthquake victims to 'see it like a weekend of camping', and in this morning's paper we have news of his flirting with a L'Aquila doctor. And still the Italian press love him.
Please. PR advisor. Somebody. Reign him in.
First his compliments on Mr Obama's fine suntan, then a reproach from the Queen and his snub of Merkel... ill-mannered and ill-considered; but I can handle that.
This week however he's giving wholly inappropriate advice to L'Aquila earthquake victims to 'see it like a weekend of camping', and in this morning's paper we have news of his flirting with a L'Aquila doctor. And still the Italian press love him.
Please. PR advisor. Somebody. Reign him in.
Wednesday, 18 February 2009
Booze or medication?
Whether it was alcohol or medicine that did this, it didn't do much for his image or, as it turned out, his career:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWLeWqPOFpU&eurl=http://video.google.co.uk/videosearch?q=japanese%20finance%20minister&sourceid=navclient-ff&rlz=1B3RNFA_enGB27
Surely he had some advisers there to stop him from going in front of the World's media?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWLeWqPOFpU&eurl=http://video.google.co.uk/videosearch?q=japanese%20finance%20minister&sourceid=navclient-ff&rlz=1B3RNFA_enGB27
Surely he had some advisers there to stop him from going in front of the World's media?
Wednesday, 4 February 2009
Why no news is bad news for UK Companies
All too often businesses think that to get through a crisis the best option is to keep their head below the parapet. Recent times have shown us that even if companies could once get away with this, they certainly can’t anymore.
On January 26, Barclays wrote an open letter to investors to convince them that their business was in comparatively good health and in fact was about to announce positive results. This unusual step is not often seen in the City, where investors normally have to sit patiently until the company’s formal results announcement. When CEO John Varley and Chairman Marcus Agius wrote "In view of the events in the banking sector last week, we have decided to communicate now with employees, customers, clients and shareholders," what they were most mindful of was the devastating impact of rumour and market supposition. Rumours that Barclays were in serious trouble caused their share price to drop by almost 50%, so Varley and Agius had two choices: sit tight and wait for the rumours to die down and the market to recover or be pro-active and actually communicate with their investors. Such large organisations are often reluctant to behave in a different way than they are used to, so we can surmise that it took some persuasion inside the bank to convince them that this was the right course of action. They were right; rumours of a government bail-out were squashed, the shares rose 73% on the day and haven’t fallen below those levels since.
In a recent article about handling communications in the current crisis in Corp Comms magazine, one PR executive stated: “If nobody from the company talks and clarifies the situation then it allows rumours to take hold, and staff, customers and shareholders will find it hard to believe you when you finally make a statement. They will believe the rumours and speculation more than the facts.”
This seems like good common sense, perhaps even rather obvious, but in reality managers find it hard to apply that sense to themselves. Many companies think they can still batten down the hatches during a crisis, do little or no communication and still weather the storm. In these markets, all journalists assume the falling tide is lowering all the ships, but companies who can generate some positive newsflow – or even stanch the flow of supposition and rumour, like Barclays, are rewarded. It might even be painful – for example, BP announcing record profits but seeing their share price slide as they warned about Q4 and the carry-over of worsening conditions into the new financial year. But again, there is an upside – in BP’s case, making sure their position is known to fend off the spectre of windfall taxes or even consumer boycotts in the face of what might be seen as obscene profits.
So if communicating is the key to handling crises, how should companies go about it? In the same Corp Comms article PHA Media’s Phil Hall is quoted as saying: “The communications team must be allowed to sit at the top table…And where possible companies must agree a consistent strategy and spokesman.” Again this seems obvious, but many companies still struggle to include the comms function in the highest-level meetings and we still see the wrong people, or the right people who have the wrong information or message, speaking to the media during crisis situations.
The lessons we are learning at the moment, sadly mostly from organisations who handle their communications less well than Barclays, ought to lead to more transparency in the industry as companies communicate more and PRs are given the chance to do the job for which they were hired (to give stakeholders the right message, from the right people, at the right time).
On January 26, Barclays wrote an open letter to investors to convince them that their business was in comparatively good health and in fact was about to announce positive results. This unusual step is not often seen in the City, where investors normally have to sit patiently until the company’s formal results announcement. When CEO John Varley and Chairman Marcus Agius wrote "In view of the events in the banking sector last week, we have decided to communicate now with employees, customers, clients and shareholders," what they were most mindful of was the devastating impact of rumour and market supposition. Rumours that Barclays were in serious trouble caused their share price to drop by almost 50%, so Varley and Agius had two choices: sit tight and wait for the rumours to die down and the market to recover or be pro-active and actually communicate with their investors. Such large organisations are often reluctant to behave in a different way than they are used to, so we can surmise that it took some persuasion inside the bank to convince them that this was the right course of action. They were right; rumours of a government bail-out were squashed, the shares rose 73% on the day and haven’t fallen below those levels since.
In a recent article about handling communications in the current crisis in Corp Comms magazine, one PR executive stated: “If nobody from the company talks and clarifies the situation then it allows rumours to take hold, and staff, customers and shareholders will find it hard to believe you when you finally make a statement. They will believe the rumours and speculation more than the facts.”
This seems like good common sense, perhaps even rather obvious, but in reality managers find it hard to apply that sense to themselves. Many companies think they can still batten down the hatches during a crisis, do little or no communication and still weather the storm. In these markets, all journalists assume the falling tide is lowering all the ships, but companies who can generate some positive newsflow – or even stanch the flow of supposition and rumour, like Barclays, are rewarded. It might even be painful – for example, BP announcing record profits but seeing their share price slide as they warned about Q4 and the carry-over of worsening conditions into the new financial year. But again, there is an upside – in BP’s case, making sure their position is known to fend off the spectre of windfall taxes or even consumer boycotts in the face of what might be seen as obscene profits.
So if communicating is the key to handling crises, how should companies go about it? In the same Corp Comms article PHA Media’s Phil Hall is quoted as saying: “The communications team must be allowed to sit at the top table…And where possible companies must agree a consistent strategy and spokesman.” Again this seems obvious, but many companies still struggle to include the comms function in the highest-level meetings and we still see the wrong people, or the right people who have the wrong information or message, speaking to the media during crisis situations.
The lessons we are learning at the moment, sadly mostly from organisations who handle their communications less well than Barclays, ought to lead to more transparency in the industry as companies communicate more and PRs are given the chance to do the job for which they were hired (to give stakeholders the right message, from the right people, at the right time).
Monday, 2 February 2009
Counting the Cost of Credit
Can you really teach people to be better with their money? That’s what a new initiative (launching today) in Wales is going to try and find out. ‘Taking Everyone into Account’ is going to try and help people tackle debt and manage their money better.
Many commentators have partly blamed the huge personal debt we have run-up in this country for the current financial crisis and so it certainly seems wise for the government(s) to help us all get better at our personal finances. But do some people just not get this subject?
As a training company we would hope this is not the case (and the finance courses we run have never come across anyone who didn’t learn how to change the way they look at this area and improve their skills) but we have to wonder if some people don’t want to think about the potential time bomb of, for example, interest free credit. It’s easy to go and buy a flat screen TV for hundreds of pounds on credit and force yourself to try and forget the consequences but I for one very much believe that knowledge is power and this applies to personal finance as much as any other subject/topic.
So we at Bluewood say good luck for the new initiative and hopefully this one will finally do some good!
Many commentators have partly blamed the huge personal debt we have run-up in this country for the current financial crisis and so it certainly seems wise for the government(s) to help us all get better at our personal finances. But do some people just not get this subject?
As a training company we would hope this is not the case (and the finance courses we run have never come across anyone who didn’t learn how to change the way they look at this area and improve their skills) but we have to wonder if some people don’t want to think about the potential time bomb of, for example, interest free credit. It’s easy to go and buy a flat screen TV for hundreds of pounds on credit and force yourself to try and forget the consequences but I for one very much believe that knowledge is power and this applies to personal finance as much as any other subject/topic.
So we at Bluewood say good luck for the new initiative and hopefully this one will finally do some good!
Wednesday, 7 January 2009
Spooks and Hacks
Even the Spooks are now, openly, taking part in the media relations ‘game’. According to the BBC today… “Mr Evans, the current director general of MI5, is clearly more comfortable engaging with the outside world than some of his predecessors were, happy even to let some journalists into the inner sanctum of Thames House, MI5's headquarters.”
The reality is that even those traditionally closed doors are now seeing the value of the media to communicate messages. Not taking part is no longer an option!
Read the full story here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7815435.stm
The reality is that even those traditionally closed doors are now seeing the value of the media to communicate messages. Not taking part is no longer an option!
Read the full story here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7815435.stm
Thursday, 11 September 2008
Schoolboy error?
After taking a Bluewood Blog Break over August we thought it was time for another look for any gaffes and problems going on in the media. And sure enough, there is a historic one today from E.On. Whether the statement is actually true or not is neither here nor there – please REMEMBER all spokespeople; if you don’t want to see it the next day in print, don’t say it!
Read about it on Sky News here:
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Business/Campaigners-Fury-Over-Fuel-Crisis-Jibe-Made-By-EOn-Energy-Company-Executive/Article/200809215097206?lpos=Business_3&lid=ARTICLE_15097206_Campaigners%2BFury%2BOver%2BFuel%2BCrisis%2BJibe%2BMade%2BBy%2BE.On%2BEnergy%2BCompany%2BExecutive
Read about it on Sky News here:
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Business/Campaigners-Fury-Over-Fuel-Crisis-Jibe-Made-By-EOn-Energy-Company-Executive/Article/200809215097206?lpos=Business_3&lid=ARTICLE_15097206_Campaigners%2BFury%2BOver%2BFuel%2BCrisis%2BJibe%2BMade%2BBy%2BE.On%2BEnergy%2BCompany%2BExecutive
Monday, 14 July 2008
Heckles drowned in song
We are often asked in our courses how to handle people who keep asking difficult or unwanted questions during a presentation and although heckling tends to be more normal for stand-up comedy it seems even Bishops have to handle it too.
During a sermon by the first openly gay Bishop a heckler came in and started ‘making himself heard’, how did the congregation handle it? With a hymn!
Read about it on the Beeb’s site here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7504570.stm
Not sure it would work for an AGM though…
During a sermon by the first openly gay Bishop a heckler came in and started ‘making himself heard’, how did the congregation handle it? With a hymn!
Read about it on the Beeb’s site here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7504570.stm
Not sure it would work for an AGM though…
Wednesday, 2 July 2008
Primark. The killer questions. (from the comfort of the microsite..)
Interesting tack from Primark in their response to the recent 'revelation' of their use of child labour.
Rather than agree to any interviews with Panorama for their programme on the subject - through fear of bias - Primark instead set up a micro site to speak to comsumers 'directly'.
According to PRWeek "A journalist was brought in to put unscripted questions to Primark director Breege O'Donoghue and the footage was posted on its site at 9pm on Monday, the same time as the BBC documentary was screened."
http://www.prweek.com/uk/news/article/822908/Primark-uses-web-counter-BBC/?DCMP=EMC-DailyNews
So was this smart handling of such a delicate issue? Or just a cowardly move by an organisation that clearly knew they were in the wrong...?
Rather than agree to any interviews with Panorama for their programme on the subject - through fear of bias - Primark instead set up a micro site to speak to comsumers 'directly'.
According to PRWeek "A journalist was brought in to put unscripted questions to Primark director Breege O'Donoghue and the footage was posted on its site at 9pm on Monday, the same time as the BBC documentary was screened."
http://www.prweek.com/uk/news/article/822908/Primark-uses-web-counter-BBC/?DCMP=EMC-DailyNews
So was this smart handling of such a delicate issue? Or just a cowardly move by an organisation that clearly knew they were in the wrong...?
Monday, 23 June 2008
Good coverage for just £74!
Not quite the PR campaign you might expect to be pushing but this Chinese Hotel has been trying a few shortcuts:
“The Gehua New Century Hotel, which describes itself as "China's first five-star hotel with a media-cultural theme", has promised journalists up to 1,000 yuan (74 pounds) for articles about it.”
Admittedly it doesn’t say the articles have to be positive, so perhaps you can make your £74 and be ‘honest’. The Bluewood team has media trained delegates from certain foreign nations before who felt this was the way to get things done with the media, but we don't really recommend you try it in the UK!
Tuesday, 17 June 2008
Expensive illness!
You know your presentation wasn’t great when it leads to $19bn being wiped off your share price. Poor old Steve Jobs came down with flu in the last few weeks and when he didn’t look too good at the new iphone presentation a few bloggers thought he was on the way out (thinking his cancer had returned). Sure enough, the blog posts caused panic and the share price took a dive – the moral of this story? Not sure there, but it might be that you shouldn’t always listen to the gossip!
Read the story on the Times site here: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/chris_ayres/article4152295.ece
Thursday, 12 June 2008
Sore loser?
One of the headlines on PR Week today was that “Hillary Clinton's former international media co-ordinator has hit out at the press, alleging unprecedented bias towards presidential nominee Barack Obama”.
The question is not so much of whether this is true but more whether it’s really a good idea to ‘hit out at’ or blame the press after the event (the event during which you were part of the losing side).
Is this the moaning of a sore loser whose strategy didn’t work? Or is it a valid point about the power of a ‘friendly’ media?
Read PR Week’s article here: http://www.prweek.com/uk/home/article/816166/media-bias-strategy-error-clintons-fall-splits-lobbyists/
Tuesday, 29 April 2008
Going the extra mile (or 2,500)
How about this for a tale of extraordinary customer service.
New York taxi driver Douglas Guldeniz drove an elderly couple all the way from their home in Queens, NYC, to their retirement home in Arizona, 2500 miles away, in the city's longest ever taxi journey.
Guldeniz earned himself the New York Taxi and Limousine Comission's 'Going The Extra Mile' award (and the £1,500 fare!) for his efforts.
"If my passengers, they want to dance, then I want to dance for them," He said.
Not too sure about the dancing part... but what a great guy!
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,91059-1310975,00.html
New York taxi driver Douglas Guldeniz drove an elderly couple all the way from their home in Queens, NYC, to their retirement home in Arizona, 2500 miles away, in the city's longest ever taxi journey.
Guldeniz earned himself the New York Taxi and Limousine Comission's 'Going The Extra Mile' award (and the £1,500 fare!) for his efforts.
"If my passengers, they want to dance, then I want to dance for them," He said.
Not too sure about the dancing part... but what a great guy!
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,91059-1310975,00.html
Friday, 18 April 2008
Brown Porridge.
Gordon's not had a good week:
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,91211-1313197,00.html
He's down in the polls, been voted Briatain's most boring man and now is being accused of having communication skills equivalent to haggis!?
Lord Desai even said "with Mr Brown as leader it would be very difficult for Labour to win the next election."
What next for Gordon?
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,91211-1313197,00.html
He's down in the polls, been voted Briatain's most boring man and now is being accused of having communication skills equivalent to haggis!?
Lord Desai even said "with Mr Brown as leader it would be very difficult for Labour to win the next election."
What next for Gordon?
Thursday, 27 March 2008
A Bit More Flash Gordon.
According to PR Week today; Gordon Brown’s top advisors are concerned that his speeches aren’t hitting the right chords with the public:
‘It has been acknowledged that the Government's messages are too cluttered and that Gordon needs to show a bit more personality, rather than stilted language that he tends to use when he makes these speeches.'
It’s true that Brown doesn’t come across as the most charismatic when he speaks (his speech today at the Emirates stadium was an example of this and he looks down at his notes too much!), but we at Bluewood are sure that he could do better if he had the right coaching to build his confidence and inject some life into his presentations.
We are here if you need us Gordon!
‘It has been acknowledged that the Government's messages are too cluttered and that Gordon needs to show a bit more personality, rather than stilted language that he tends to use when he makes these speeches.'
It’s true that Brown doesn’t come across as the most charismatic when he speaks (his speech today at the Emirates stadium was an example of this and he looks down at his notes too much!), but we at Bluewood are sure that he could do better if he had the right coaching to build his confidence and inject some life into his presentations.
We are here if you need us Gordon!
Thursday, 20 March 2008
This one might upset a few trainers...
An incredibly interesting debate has been started over the US versus UK stance on the use of 'off the record' comments made by interviewees.
It was prompted by the Scotsman's Gerri Peeve running a front page emblazoned with the headline 'Clinton is a Monster' - an 'off the record' comment made in an interviewee with a member of Barack Obama's staff - Samantha Powers. The discussion was firmly 'on the record' but when Powers suggested that Hillary was a monster, she quickly realised her gaffe and demanded that Peev treated it as off the record.
We always advise delegates that nothing can ever be guaranteed as off the record - so if you'd rather not see something in print then just DON'T say it.
Follow the link below to see the showdown between MSNCB's Tucker Carlson and the Scotsman's Gerri Peeve...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-GKsguIRV4
It was prompted by the Scotsman's Gerri Peeve running a front page emblazoned with the headline 'Clinton is a Monster' - an 'off the record' comment made in an interviewee with a member of Barack Obama's staff - Samantha Powers. The discussion was firmly 'on the record' but when Powers suggested that Hillary was a monster, she quickly realised her gaffe and demanded that Peev treated it as off the record.
We always advise delegates that nothing can ever be guaranteed as off the record - so if you'd rather not see something in print then just DON'T say it.
Follow the link below to see the showdown between MSNCB's Tucker Carlson and the Scotsman's Gerri Peeve...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-GKsguIRV4
Tuesday, 19 February 2008
Marketing with imagination:
Cadbury's latest results go to show that they weren't just monkeying around last year (sorry!), and they attribute some of their confectionery sales-success to the monkey/Phil Collins ad. If in doubt...get creative!
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30400-1305940,00.html
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30400-1305940,00.html
Wednesday, 23 January 2008
Is Putin scared of the media?
The latest news from Russia is that Putin has hired his old Judo buddy to head-up the Government's press unit:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/russia/article/0,,2245228,00.html
Not quite sure what to make of this - although I still doubt he'd stand much of a chance against some of the UK hacks when they smell 'blood'!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/russia/article/0,,2245228,00.html
Not quite sure what to make of this - although I still doubt he'd stand much of a chance against some of the UK hacks when they smell 'blood'!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
