Strategic and International PR Issues

Re: Publicity Stunts

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 06:19:11 -0400

Kristie writes:Witchery Jacket

I think this was a really clever campaign, it was extremely successful in creating awareness and Witchery received a dramatic increase in men viewing their clothing line. However i do think that Witchery should have leaked their stunt earlier, by spreading the idea that the stunt was in fact real on national news deceived the public, i think this is morally wrong.

Strategic & International Public Relations: Fighting Fire with Fire: Social Media Crisis Management

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 05:23:31 -0400

Strategic & International Public Relations: Fighting Fire with Fire: Social Media Crisis Management:

melsauer:

Meet Jack the Cat.

Rescued from the New York CACCH, by proud owner and American citizen Karen Pascoe, Jack is currently five years old, has a brother – Barry, and was last sighted at the inbound baggage processing area at Terminal 8. On a side note, Jack is currently being followed by 13…

What an amusing story! Even so, i do hope they find Jack the Cat! I completely agree with you: mass media and prominent public figures are no longer the sole regulators of information in the public sphere. These days i think PR professionals have to be constantly aware of what is going on and being said online as it is completely out of their control. American Airlines could have dealt with the situation better by making a conscious effort to acknowledge the issue and empathise with those concerned. I think Dell were right on track by creating a blog which allowed customers to communicate their concerns. More organisations should follow!

International Public Relations Issues: And the Gillard Government Fails Again

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 05:00:00 -0400

International Public Relations Issues: And the Gillard Government Fails Again:

teganbrown:

Following the recent news that the governments asylum seeker deal with Malaysia has been scrapped, it is evident the Labor Governments reputation ahs been further tarnished. The High Court has rightly found the Malaysian Solution to the both illegal and unethical. This has seen the already…

Here here Tegan! i don’t even think a PR god could save the government as it is now; i read recently that the Gillard Government satisfaction rating is only at 25%! In regards to the Malaysian solution - I am in support for the High Courts decision. How can we guarantee their treatment and living conditions in Malaysia? there have to be laws put into place to ensure their protection.

When Crisis Management goes wrong

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 03:20:00 -0400

Crisis management is an issue a lot of public relations professionals will come across. Today I want to focus on what not to do when it comes to crisis management.

Although the BP oil spill was over a year ago, it is still a great example of how everything can go wrong if the situation is not dealt with correctly. The BP oil spill and the issue of crisis management recently came to my attention when I stumbled upon a humorous YouTube video making fun of the terrible way the crisis was dealt with (click here: ‘BP spills coffee’).

Although the video was made in parody, it does highlight their slow and careless response to the situation, their lack of communication with the public and poor attitude towards the crisis.

BP CEO at the time was quoted saying: “the Gulf of Mexico is a very big ocean. The amount of volume of oil and dispersant we are putting into it is tiny in relation to the total water volume” – denial? “I don’t feel my job is on the line” – arrogance?

I believe this crisis could have been managed with a few simple steps:

1. Acknowledge the problem

2. Do not let the CEO address the problem first; especially without the right attitude. This should be left to the PR rep.

3. Take some responsibility for what has happened

4. Move into action ASAP! Do not blame others for the situation at hand

5. Communicate with your public and stakeholders. This also means communication through online media. Listen to concerns and respond to the best of your ability.

6. Be hands on. Hayward did not visit the spill site at all

If BP had addressed these steps initially, the crisis would have been dealt with in a faster, efficient and more pleasant manner.

Always have a crisis management plan to put into action and you will surely be able to handle any crisis smoothly!

References:

Dan, (2010, May). BP Oil Spill – Another PR Crisis Management Fail. Retrieved September 2011, from Tellem Worldwide: http://tellemworldwide.wordpress.com/2010/05/17/bp-oil-spill-another-pr-crisis-management-fail/

PR Publicity Stunts- are they a good idea?

Sun, 11 Sep 2011 23:59:00 -0400

A publicity stunt is a planned event designed to attract the public’s attention and ultimately, to the organisation itself. Publicity stunts are a common and quite often very successful practice used in the PR industry. However, many consumers often feel cheated and lied to by organisations.

I’m sure you have seen, heard and can even recall a publicity stunt. Let’s take a look at one by Witchery Man titled ‘are you my man in the jacket?’ (please click link to view).

How did you feel after watching this video? Did you think it was real? Would you have helped the girl?

This video looks simple enough but was carefully performed, styled and carried out by the actress in the video. The video received over 160,000 views in a week and ‘Heidi’ was featured on national television.

For those that were suspicious about the video, it was easy to figure out it was a publicity stunt as the actress was featured on the Witchery homepage. Many people were upset that they had been lied to, but ultimately the publicity stunt was highly successful for Witchery giving them national attention.

Witchery and the actress in the video addressed the truth in a following video ‘Man in the Jacket’ (please click link to view).

Whilst it is obvious that publicity stunts can be very successful for recognition of an organisation, can they damage the support, loyalty and brand confidence in a consumer?

References:

Morgan, J. (2009, January). are you the man in my jacket? Retrieved September 2011, from Jacob Morgan Social Business Advisor: http://www.jmorganmarketing.com/are-you-the-man-in-my-jacket/

YouTube: the new PR forum

Sun, 11 Sep 2011 09:26:14 -0400

With the rise in popularity of YouTube, many Public Relations organisations are using viral videos to reach audiences much faster and more efficiently than other media outlets.

Recently, shopping giant Westfield has posted a PR video on YouTube in celebration of ‘100 years of style in 100 seconds’ (please click link). This short video has done exactly what was intended reaching over two million views in less than two weeks, not to mention the great publicity for Westfield.

Another notable viral video includes Dove Evolution where time lapse photography and Photoshop are used to transform a normal woman into a glamorous model. Dove uses this to promote their real women campaign stating ‘no wonder our perception of real beauty is distorted’. (This can be viewed here).

So why are Public Relations professionals using YouTube to reach their audiences? Jamie Carracher explores six excellent reasons in ‘The PR Pro’s Guide to YouTube’

1. Kicking off a Campaign: Many organisations have had success after launching campaigns on YouTube. Notably, this is because of the wide national and international audiences it reaches, and the ability for people to share videos through other social media outlets.

2. Responding to a Crisis: Crisis management is an important part of Public Relations to inform and calm people with concerns. Whilst television and radio responses are effective, YouTube is a form of two way communication, allowing people to voice their concerns and the organisation to address these.

3. Uncover Communities: Accessing online communities grants great success for Public Relations professionals. Communities can be created through followers, interests, even comments. PR organisations can build relationships with communities through responding to comments or video vlogs.

4. Extend Your Brand: This involves creating your YouTube profile to represent your brand and image. By implementing logos and banners to your profile and videos, people can recognise your brand.

5. Connect With Media and Bloggers: As stated, YouTube allows your PR videos to be shared with people around the world. The ability to embed videos into other outlets is another effective form of this.

6. Measurement: YouTube allows you to see a variety of statistics from your video. As Carracher outlines, by using the public “video statistics” feature, you can see how many people have viewed the video and commented, and also where in the world viewers are coming from. You are even able to see the first time someone viewed the video from a mobile. These statistics are readily available and in already in graph form. Imagine the money and time you’ll save!

I believe that YouTube is one of the most effective ways of extending PR to an enormous global audience. What do you think? Do you have a favourite viral PR campaign?

References:

Carracher, J. (2011, April). The PR Pro’s Guide to YouTube. Retrieved September 2011, from Mashable: http://mashable.com/2011/04/21/pr-pro-youtube-guide/

Staying out of the headlines - ethics in PR

Sun, 11 Sep 2011 06:32:11 -0400

Public Relations have been associated with terms such as spin, manipulation and even espionage. I believe this perception has been based on those few organisations guilty of such terms that make headlines for all the wrong reasons. Let’s look at the situation that surrounded newspaper giant News of the World. For those that don’t know, I will give you a quick recap of the phone hacking scandal that led to the newspapers closure:

On 17 January 2011, The Guardian reported that Glenn Mulcaire, a private investigator, had been asked by the newspaper to hack voicemail accounts on its behalf. In April 2011, attorneys for the victims alleged that as many as 7,000 people had their phones hacked by the News of the World. On 4 July 2011, it was disclosed that potential evidence had been deleted in spring 2002 from the hacked voicemail account of Milly Dowler, then missing, but later found to have been murdered.

There was no way Rupert Murdoch could save the image of his newspaper and evidently, News of the World was closed down forever.

Other unethical organisations that have made headlines for the wrong reasons include the BP oil spill, Monsanto genetically modified foods and De Beers diamonds.

Whilst these are extreme examples of neglect towards ethical principles, there are many organisations that display many ethical principles giving PR the name it deserves.

But, how does one maintain and ensure ethics in an organisation? The Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA) lists 15 codes of ethics:

Members shall deal fairly and honestly with their employers, clients and prospective clients, with their fellow workers including superiors and subordinates, with public officials, the communication media, the general public and with fellow members of PRIA.
Members shall avoid conduct or practices likely to bring discredit upon themselves, the Institute, their employers or clients.
Members shall not knowingly disseminate false or misleading information and shall take care to avoid doing so inadvertently
With the exception of the requirements of Clause 9 members shall safeguard the confidences of both present and former employers and clients, including confidential information about employers’ or clients’ business affairs, technical methods or processes, except upon the order of a court of competent jurisdiction.
No member shall represent conflicting interests nor, without the consent of the parties concerned, represent competing interests.
Members shall refrain from proposing or agreeing that their consultancy fees or other remuneration be contingent entirely on the achievement of specified results.
Members shall inform their employers or clients if circumstances arise in which their judgment or the disinterested character of their services may be questioned by reason of personal relationships or business or financial interests.
Members practising as consultants shall seek payment only for services specifically commissioned.
Members shall be prepared to identify the source of funding of any public communication they initiate or for which they act as a conduit.
Members shall, in advertising and marketing their skills and services and in soliciting professional assignments, avoid false, misleading or exaggerated claims and shall refrain from comment or action that may injure the professional reputation, practice or services of a fellow member.
Members shall inform the Board of the Institute and/or the relevant State/Territory Council(s) of the Institute of evidence purporting to show that a member has been guilty of, or could be charged with, conduct constituting a breach of this Code.
No member shall intentionally injure the professional reputation or practice of another member.
Members shall help to improve the general body of knowledge of the profession by exchanging information and experience with fellow members.
Members shall act in accord with the aims of the Institute, its regulations and policies.
Members shall not misrepresent their status through misuse of title, grading, or the designation FPRIA, MPRIA or APRIA.

By ensuring these codes are consistently abided by all people within an organisation, it is easy to be an ethical organisation and stay out of the headlines for the wrong reasons!

References:

PRIA’s code of ethics. (2009, July). Retrieved September 2011, from Public Relations Institute of Australia: http://www.pria.com.au/membercentre/members-code-of-ethics

Phone Hacking: Timeline of the Scandal. (2011, 6 September). Retrieved September 2011, from The Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/8634176/Phone-hacking-timeline-of-a-scandal.html