pr

Have you ever wondered – what actually is PR?

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The interpretation of what public relations’ core purpose and process is often gets confused. Is it advertising, journalism, both? Events and product launches? Something else? You’re not alone if you don’t know, and the misconception comes from the fact that PR works so intrinsically alongside other arms of communication such as advertising and journalism. 

PR is a strategic communication discipline that aims to build mutually beneficial relationships with stakeholders through the use of multiple forms of media. 

The connection to those multiple forms of media is what makes PR special. To be a PR professional, you have to be an expert in social media, have great relationships with many journalists, and know how to communicate carefully and effectively.

What PR does for you 

The main goal of PR is to influence peoples’ opinion of an organisation. That can include proactively promoting the organisation through channels such as media releases, brand launches, social media campaigns, and collaborations with marketing efforts. 

It can also be reactive – managing issues, events, and crises that can negatively impact the organisation’s reputation.

Examples of PR 

Ever flick on the news and see an awesome new brand or product being reported on? Good chance that was the work of a hardworking PR professional, who has used their abilities to get coverage for their client.

The same goes for promotions in magazines, newspapers, and a plethora of other media channels. Last year, we got our clients in coverage in channels such as Sunrise, Women’s Weekly, SMH, ABC News, The Australian, and Kidspot.

Who needs PR?

PR can be beneficial for a wide range of entities including businesses, individuals, non-profits, and government agencies, tailored to align with their goals. Businesses can use PR for brand awareness and credibility. Governments and non-profit may use PR to communicate with and engage the public, build support for their initiatives and policies, and manage their reputation. Individuals such as politicians and celebrities might use PR to enhance their public image and communicate with the media.

Tip: Be proactive

One of the biggest issues with brand reputation highlighted by a 2007 HBR article is that most companies do an inadequate job of managing their reputations and the risks to their reputations. They tend to focus their energies on handling the threats to their reputations that have already surfaced.

POPCOM Founder and Director Amanda Lacey said that this is still the case today, where entities are only adopting risk management strategies when it is “too late”.

“When it comes to reactive PR, it is so important to have all the correct safeguards in place to be able to manage risks. Many individuals and organisations that I have acted for simply did not have the frameworks required to manage risks to their reputation, let alone full crises”, Lacey said.

“What organisations often don’t consider is that reputation risk often comes from within. I highly recommend utilising a PR practitioner in order to develop the foundations to mitigate risk. The earlier you can respond and take control of a situation, the better. If you don’t prepare and leave it too late, I guarantee you’ll regret it.”

Additionally, being proactive in PR means boldly creating opportunities to showcase what you can offer. Incorporating PR into your planning process is the best way to maximise your reputation and control your narrative.

PR is crucial in the modern day

In an age where information is transmitted faster than we could ever hope to control, PR is a key tactic to handle any good and bad circumstance that can (and will) arise. It gives you the capability to be the director of your story and image, and create and maintain important relationships with stakeholders. 

Want to know what we can do for you? Contact us on info@popcom.com.au

PR Tips: What to pitch in August

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August, the last month of winter where usually not a lot is happening – except if you want to get featured in the media over summer. Publications set their content calendar a year in advance, take advantage of this by doing some research or if you are really stuck, here are my suggestions on some reoccurring themes I see year in and out:

Short leads: all about now

  • Trending colours – usually pastels leading into spring.

  • Springtime trends – fashion, beauty, wellness – we all want to know the next hot item or exercise, diet that will give us a head start on feeling great for summer.

  • Fit body, sharp mind – wellness, fitness and workplace performance go hand in hand. 

  • Workplace engagement – how do you keep our employees motivated and engaged?

Long leads: thinking about summer

  • Summer listening – got a great podcast or smash hit single? Pitch it as essential summer listening.

  • Best local travel – flights are still grounded, if you live in a regional area, now is your time to shine. Get a story out there about what makes your town special.

  • Social media policy – always a favourite leading up to Christmas due to parties and employees making idiotic posts. How does it reflect on your brand, and what are your rights as an employer/employee? 

It’s all in the angle

If it isn’t obvious, these aren’t a silver bullet to getting published. You will still need to come up with a cool new and exciting angle, or some value adding information to get picked up. 

 

I also encourage to do some research around what has been published in the past to make sure that you are not being repetitive, it’s poor form to pitch to a journalist that has already covered the topic in an identical way.

 

If you have a product, you should have a sample product pack to send to a relevant journalist. Along with the goods that you are promoting, include all vital and important information. Make it presentable and appealing. If you have an entire line, don’t send them all, pick two or three of the most seasonally appealing products – and make sure you have them in stock. 

 

Lastly, when a journalist does contact you, respond within four hours and be ready to have any samples or photography ready to go. The media won’t wait. 

 

Measurable and actionable 

Just about any of these themes can be applied to any business, you need to be able to back your story with some quotes, stats, or information that is interesting. At POPCOM we continually mine social media, trade and mainstream media for trending topics and opportunities for our clients to be featured. It is a moving feast but very enjoyable. 

It is important to remember, PR is a long game, and pitching for media coverage is just one element in a successful plan. Before you start, I recommend that you consider what your goals are and how you will measure success. Make sure you are aligning your audience and are crystal clear on your messaging. 

Happy pitching!

Need some help developing a public relations and communications plan for your organisation? We would love to help. Reach out on amanda@popcom.com.au 

Keep calm and drink more Bhakti Blends tea

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Each month Amanda Lacey we will be interviewing some of the unique, talented clients and friends of POPCOM. To kick us off is the incredible Katie Rose, founder of Bhakti Blends tea.

About Katie

Katie Rose is a published author and advanced level yoga and Ayurveda teacher. She is also qualified as a doula (childbirth support person). As a teacher, she holds the highest possible accreditations with both Yoga Alliance and Yoga Australia and lectures regularly at the Australian Doula College. 

Katie has been teaching for over 20 years and has trained hundreds of yoga teachers. Her passion is in empowerment for women as well as yogic philosophy and bringing devotion and a sense of the Sacred to everyday life. She has a deep compassion for animals and reverence for nature. Her most recent book, ‘Mindful Living’, was published in 2019. She currently offers a range of online courses in Ayurveda and Yoga for Birth. 

She is the mother of four boys and lives with them in Sydney’s super-hip Inner West. 

Why tea?

Born and raised in England, I was weaned on tea! I love the ritual of tea-drinking; a warm cuppa never fails to give deep comfort. I have also seen first hand the incredible power of medicinal herbal teas for healing and wellbeing.

As an Australian woman, how important are rituals to your everyday life? 

We’re all so busy these days, and most of it is in service to our jobs, our kids and the zillions of daily responsibilities women take on! To fuel that busy-ness coffee is a common go-to and to relax at night a glass of wine. 

I’m not suggesting for you to give up your coffee or your wine (I like both!) but in my own life, I also replace some of these less healthy choices with a medicinal herbal tea. For example, in the mornings, I often drink our ‘uplift’ tea which contains rose and cacao (for an instant chocolatey energy hit). In the evenings, our ‘Calm and Clear’ or ‘Deep Sleep’ is wonderfully relaxing. My Ayurveda teacher taught me the art of the’ sacred pause’… when you’re overwhelmed with things to do slowing down can ironically make you more productive. A mindful cup of tea can be the difference between ‘calm and steady’ or ‘headless chicken’ for me – so I use the ritual of drinking loose brewed tea as a way of taking that sacred pause. 

If there was one thing you could do to change the world, what would it be?

My life’s work is about supporting women (including myself) to know the value of our intuition and our natural connection to Spirit. We live in a world where the values of productivity and material success have overshadowed our ability to trust ourselves.  I’m on a mission to reconnect to the wisdom that is already there inside us all. 

Check out Bhakti Blends on their website www.BhaktiBlends.com.au. We love drinking these teas in our office and are thrilled to be working with Katie.

Also, for more about Katie: www.BhaktiRose.com.au 

CRISIS MANAGEMENT – FACE THE STORM LIKE A PRO

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Here are my top five tips for putting in place a crisis management plan:

1. Nominate a crisis management team.

A crisis team can be a mixed list of trusted internal and external people. Think about the people you want on your side, and who promotes the image you want to portray. The nominated group need to be experienced and clear communicators. 

From this list decide on the spokesperson for a crisis situation. It is good to have one person to speak both internally and externally so people know where to go for essential information. The spokesperson must have the necessary skills and training. 

2. Know your messaging.

Key messaging is something that should be riddled through an organisation. Having the key messages written down and available to the crisis team makes them clear and accessible. 

Knowing what your organisation’s key messages are will keep you on track and will steer the conversation back to outcomes and the future. It will also buy you time while you develop strategic messaging for the specific situation at hand.

3. Brief the team regularly.

Your crisis team should meet at least twice a year, more often if there is a sense of risk or potential for risk like launching a new product, redundancies or withdrawing from a market. 

The meetings should run through the plan, should confirm the spokesperson and what the key messages are for the organisation. Having a team prepped will allow you to act fast if you need to. You will be able to respond quickly in a confident manner.

4. Be prepared for the media.

Knowing how to deal with the media and the media cycle is essential, especially for the nominated spokesperson and senior company holders. Consider media training during a yearly meeting. 

Remember that anyone with a smartphone can now be considered media, not just someone from a major news network. Know how to engage with social media, particularly if that is where your audience is. 

An example of using social media for crisis management is when Thermomix responded to the Federal Court of Australia ordering them to pay more than $4m for false and misleading representations. The day the ruling was handed down Thermomix released a video and Facebook post saying “how much we regret what happened, are very sorry about it, and apologise to those who were affected”. The social media post directed consumers to a dedicated website set-up called Thermomix facts to handle the complaints process. 

5. Focus on the future.

Learn from your mistakes and move forward. A crisis, while best avoided, is an excellent opportunity to see where the chinks in the armour are. Recognising early on that a crisis is also a learning opportunity will reassure the management team that trouble often will pass. 

After you have weathered the storm, implement any essential learning’s and establish measures to avoid similar future situations. Sometimes a crisis is the best thing for an organisation to grow or an indicator you are performing at a high level. 

It is also important to know your limitations when it comes to communication. I sit on many of my clients crisis management teams as I am able to offer an outsider and expert view – a little detachment can go a long way to sizing up the situation. It can be easy to get caught up in the moment and rush a statement that may not be necessary. A sense of calm is essential both internally and externally.