67 Posts Found

Forward-looking companies think carefully about communications—not just in terms of what resonates with investors, but with a range of stakeholders; and not just communications for the sake of announcing to others but in order to learn, become smarter, and improve as an organization. Employees are a key constituency and are invariably an important source of insight. Companies can also continuously improve by engaging through trade … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Authors: Dame Vivian Hunt, Donatela Bellone, Hamid Samandari, Lucy Pérez, Robin Nuttall | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subjects: Communication, Organizational Behavior, Public Relations

I think a lot about how we are telling our story and our narrative inside of the company, but also equally important, how are we telling that narrative outside of the company? It’s incredibly important that those two things match, because if they don’t, you’re going to run into issues on either side. If they don’t match, then internally people will get their information or … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Author: Colleen McCreary | Source: First Round Review | Subjects: Communication, Organizational Behavior, Public Relations

With stakeholders and shareholders vying for attention, CEOs need to develop a new kind of ethical leadership to build trust in society and deliver results.

Content: Article | Author: Liz Sweigart | Source: strategy+business | Subjects: Crisis Management, Ethics, Management, Public Relations

From marketing managers to sales teams to the C-suite, many stakeholders feel the benefits of successful PR campaigns—and use the metrics that measure success to adapt business strategies or make more data-driven decisions.

However, almost half of B2B marketing managers claim that determining real business contribution levels from PR agencies is a difficult task. Much more can be done to measure the success of media campaigns, … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Jamie Kightley | Source: MarketingProfs | Subjects: Marketing / Sales, Public Relations

It’s a common complaint. Companies keep trying to show the world that they are socially conscious and keep losing the battle. A major reason companies don’t get credit for their good works is they employ a one-size-fits-all strategy to communicating their efforts, while what’s needed are focused messages that matter to each of their four different audiences:

1. Corporate watchdogs such as social media activists, NGOs,

… [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Mark R. Kramer | Source: Harvard Business Review | Subjects: Public Relations, Social Responsibility (ESG)

Most founders set out to create something iconic but don’t know where to start. At First Round’s recent CEO Summit, Caryn Marooney, Head of Technology Communications for Facebook, boiled down this massive challenge into an execution plan and guidelines for startups to craft an image that will resonate with the public and the press, launch on a strong note, and build momentum as they grow … [ Read more ]

Content: Thought Leader | Author: Caryn Marooney | Source: First Round Review | Subject: Public Relations

If you can internalize one thing in [the PR] process, it’s that the journalist is your customer. They are busy, overworked, with deadlines, and lots of irrelevant dogshit pitches crufting up their inbox. And they have their own constituencies to please (their readers, their editors). This is why this is B2B sales: you’re selling them on something that is going to make them successful at … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Author: Pete Kazanjy | Subject: Public Relations

I get a lot of people asking me about PR, and how to achieve coverage, especially around a launch or announcement.

At the end of the day, it’s not a big mystery. It’s a B2B sales campaign, where you have a qualified, relevant list of targets (media list), a means by which to reach them (email addresses), a coherent argument for why what you’re doing is … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Pete Kazanjy | Subjects: Entrepreneurship, Public Relations

Nestlé spent three decades building a beloved noodle brand in India. Then the world’s biggest food and beverage company stumbled into a public relations debacle that cost it half a billion dollars. A cautionary tale of mangled crisis management on an epic scale.

Content: Case Study | Author: Erika Fry | Source: FORTUNE | Subjects: Marketing / Sales, Public Relations, Risk Management | Company: Nestlé

Most businesses rehearse their response to a calamity of some sort. Almost everyone, for example, conducts fire drills. Many test their business continuity contingency plans. The problem is that most organizations do not rehearse for the real threats that are most likely to have a significant impact on the business. How many companies run a drill for a product launch failure? Or an M&A bomb? … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Source: strategy+business | Subjects: Crisis Management, Success / Failure

Bad companies are destroyed by crisis. Good companies survive them. Great companies are improved by them.

Content: Quotation | Author: Andrew S. Grove | Source: ChangeThis | Subjects: Crisis Management, Management

Public relations has two roles: advocacy and counsel. Counsel usually takes a backseat to advocacy, which always seems more urgent at the moment. But effective counsel can make advocacy less critical. Many CEOs look for good writing from their PR counselors because that’s the stuff of advocacy. What they should be looking for is good thinking, which is the foundation of effective counsel.

Content: Quotation | Author: Dick Martin | Source: The Conference Board Review | Subject: Public Relations

PR is an applied social science focused on two things: behavior and communications. The big problem these days is that we spend too much time on communication and not enough on behavior, and that’s why the public distrusts our institutions so much.

Content: Quotation | Source: The Conference Board Review | Subject: Public Relations

Next time you find yourself in a crisis moment, ask this question: what is the best outcome from here? Firstly, those around you will likely go into shock. We are not used to hearing an intelligent, helpful question in a crisis situation. Once they get over their shock, it will work for three reasons: It assumes that there actually is an outcome; It focuses everybody … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Author: Peter Fuda | Source: ChangeThis | Subjects: Crisis Management, Decision Making, Leadership

BP’s horrible missteps after the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded were almost predictable, given the culture of deceit and arrogance that executive actions had encouraged. While the accident could have been prevented, BP might have avoided its intense and deserved public flogging if only it had respected the best practices for managing a crisis – and for managing. Readers of this article will learn what BP … [ Read more ]

Content: Case Study | Authors: Murray Bryant, Trevor Hunter | Source: Ivey Business Journal | Subjects: Public Relations, Social Responsibility (ESG) | Industry: Petro / Chemical | Company: BP

Leo Widrich, co-founder of Buffer, shares his experiences with getting media coverage for a startup, though much of the advice is useful for any stage of corporate life.

Content: Article | Author: Leo Widrich | Source: OnStartups | Subject: Public Relations

Think about the last great article you read. The piece may have mentioned a few products or companies—possibly prompting you to research them in more depth. Chances are, a public relations firm was behind that placement.

Editorial placements can turn into big business for companies of any size, giving organizations a credibility lacking in traditional advertisements.

If you’re looking for a PR firm, here are 10 questions … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Katie Morell | Source: OPEN Forum (American Express) | Subject: Public Relations

We had a big party, but got no buzz. Lessons from a PR failure.

Content: Article | Author: Nancy Lublin | Source: Fast Company | Subject: Public Relations

Use the principles in this article to tighten and fine-tune your company description, and test it with prospects. See what they conclude about which problems you solve and for whom. When they answer correctly, you’ll know you hit the nail on the head.

Content: Article | Author: Kathryn Roy | Source: MarketingProfs | Subjects: Marketing / Sales, Public Relations

Communications consultant Alan Kelly has spent the past several years analyzing the various PR moves employed by companies, politicians, and executives. He has created an interactive table of PR “plays”or moves.

Content: Article | Authors: Alan Kelly, Matthew Boyle | Source: BusinessWeek | Subject: Public Relations