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

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

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'!

Practise, practise, practise!

On Prime Minister's questions yesterday Gordon Brown was again fighting a losing battle against Cameron, who always comes across as sharper (if a little too sarcastic) than the PM. Gordon eventually hit back with his often-used accusation of Cameron's lines being over rehearsed, saying "all the lines rehearsed infront of the mirror".

He may be right about how Cameron prepares but to be honest with the way he is being shown up every week maybe Brown should try it too!

Hack(er)s account

Happy New Year from Bluewood.
We thought that the first post of 2008 should be a funny one, luckily Jeremy Clarkson has given us a (vaguely) media-relevant one:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7174760.stm
Moral behind this story? It's probably that you should be careful what you say (or write) in the media!

Better late than never?

A slightly festive post this week, that reminds us how rubbish the mail can be:

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30200-1297175,00.html

Here’s hoping all the Amazon presents arrive in time this year!

Judging the Judges?

Here's a controversial one for you.

A number of UK judges are to undergo media training so that they can speak to the media following controversial sentencing decisions:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7130616.stm

An interesting one this; I'm sure it'll help to educate the public about how and why these decisions are made, but are we at risk of putting the judges themselves on trial?

It's sure to ruffle a few feathers with judges having to explain themselves to the press...

What do you think?

Job-hunting

There are plenty of PR blunders to get your teeth into this week.

Guy Hands supposedly accused bankers of being a pack of dogs and Gordon Brown’s mob seem to mess up daily but the award for outstanding PR blunder (possibly for the whole of 2007) has to go to Matthew Marr, a chief press aide himself, who was overheard saying some less than polite things at an awards ceremony last week. Needless to say he is “not expected to carry on working in political PR”. Well done that man. Read the article here:

http://www.prweek.com/uk/news/article/768552/No-back-shamed-PRO-Marr/

Is Ratner back?

Just about every media and presentation training company out there has used poor old Gerald Ratner as an example of how NOT to do it. But it seems Gerald is turning things around and even using his catastrophic downfall as a way of promoting his new jewellery business:

http://www.growthbusiness.co.uk/expansion/risk-takers/262303/gerald-ratner-is-back.thtml

It’s always good to see someone fight their way up from the bottom but do we really think he will get back to the top?

Spraying with Confidence?

According to an article in the Daily Telegraph you can now use a nasal spray to help build your confidence before making a presentation!
Sounded a bit far-fetched to me, or at best a form of Dutch courage:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/10/21/wspray121.xml
Unsurprisingly everyone at Bluewood really thinks you ought to have some proper training (e.g. one of these! http://www.bluewoodtraining.co.uk/presentation_training_intro.html) to learn how to overcome and manage your nerves before a public speech but if you are willing to try the spray; get in touch and let us know if it works!

Rod Stewart - Media Trainer?

I read that Rod Stewart had offered advice to Sir Paul McCartney about how to handle the media and couldn't resist hearing what he said. His words of wisdom were a little disappointing; "don't read the papers". Luckily Rod isn't one of Bluewood’s trainers. Our experts will show you that there are a few better ways to deal with the press and make the most of your media relationships!
Listen to Rod's advice: http://news.sky.com/skynews/video/videoplayer/0,,31100-stewart_261006_0800,00.html

Public speaking put down from Arnie

Arnold Schwarzenegger is not known for his clear and eloquent public speaking so it must be disappointing to get some flak from him on this front...even if you are Boris Johnson. Adam Boulton on his Sky News blog caught some cheeky comments over the last week:

http://adamboulton.typepad.com/my_weblog/2007/10/the-bother-with.html

Top presentation training tip - always assume the cameras are on!

Careless comments, catastrophic losses.

For anyone unsure of the price to be paid for ill-considered words spoken to a journalist; try £3.5 BILLION.

BP CEO Tony Hayward sent his organisation's share price crashing down this week with comments that will also no doubt have a knock-on effect on the entire oil sector.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/bfcd47a6-6b9a-11dc-863b-0000779fd2ac.html

The CEO of a £108 billion outfit REALLY ought to know better.

Belated Birthday Wishes

So it's birthday time for Bluewood Training, and I think we've just about had all the wine and cake we can handle. But what made me smile yesterday was finding out that we share our birthday with the WORLD'S OLDEST MAN.

Admitedly, 112 year old Tomoji Tanabe of Japan is probably going a tad mad, declaring that he wants to live 'indefinately'(!) but nonetheless he's is in pretty fantastic shape for someone so ancient.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7000487.stm

Happy Birthday Bluewood Training. And of course, Happy Birthday Tomoji.

Chocolate Monkey.

Viral marketing is a term that is being heard everywhere now. It is said by some marketing 'experts' to be the only way to reach your customers effectively these days.
But; what is it? Does it work? Is it just a funny clip someone uploads on youtube?
Well this is latest of them:

http://www.glassandahalffull.com/

Does it make you want to eat chocolate? Or just go and buy Phil Collins' Greatest Hits?

Mercury Microphone Shambles

Hats off to the Klaxons winning the Mecury Music Award last night, was great to see an outsider win over the more established acts.

However their acceptance speech handling left a bit to be desired?! Holding the mics so close that no-one could understand a word they were saying before then falling over the stand...

Musicians or not, I think those guys need some presentation training before their next award ceremony!

Mind where you step:

I couldn't resist posting this one:
http://test.channel4.com/lifestyle/green/dumped/
4's newest reality show is set on a rubbish dump!
You really wonder what insane creature is coming up with these ideas...mind you, I might be too curious to miss this.

A day off for £6bn?

As August comes to a close there isn’t even a day off to look forward to for nearly four months because we’ve just had the last bank holiday till Christmas. But there is hope at hand; a leading think tank is strongly recommending that we get a day for Heroes in November:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6965053.stm

What do you think? Surely we should commemorate those who deserve to be remembered? And we want more bank holidays don’t we (especially as the Europeans seem to have hundreds)? Also, the story suggests the obligatory holiday for employees is going from 20 days to 28…some good news at last!

Online Whispas

If you were in any doubt about the power of bloggers and online campaigners then look no further than this story:
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30100-1280368,00.html
Due to online pressure the Whispa bar is making a comeback. People have been signing online petitions and starting groups on Facebook (Bluewood is still wondering if it should have a page – suggestions welcome!) to demand that the classic Whispa bar comes back to our shelves. I think this is great, not only did I quite like Whispa bars but if the online community can bring back chocolate bars what can’t we do?
Cadbury’s is probably pretty sensible about keeping an eye on the online forums, partly because of their target audience but also because of their recent crises but this shows that some corporates really do take the online community seriously.
So what next? What else should we bring back? Or perhaps more importantly get rid of?

Live on a yacht or not?

The winner of last Friday’s EuroMillions has now come forward to claim their £35m prize. Once I got over the intense feelings of jealousy I started to wonder how much I would have liked to win the cash and what I would do with it if I had.
This day-dreaming is hardly surprising and I bet I wasn’t the only person thinking how this money would change their life. But it did make me wonder whether most people would give up their job if they won.
There’s no shortage of people who say they hate their job and wish they didn’t have to work, but I don’t think it’s laziness, I think because of the actual work or more likely because of a ‘human’ element within the company. So what about those people who jump out of bed in the morning and can’t wait to get to the office? What motivates them? What makes them so happy in their work?
I think the difference is doing something you believe in and hopefully working with others who do as well. Maybe it’s not that simple but surely even winning £35m won’t stop you believing in something you think is right?