Why I love marketing

I don't know whether much of what Rory Sutherland says here is scary or inspiring, but it's why I love marketing.

PESTer for better PR ideas

Great example of how keeping an eye on the what's going on in the wider world can spark creative PR ideas: Ogilvy, on behalf of Scrabble, spot that smartphones reduce literacy (yes, I'm looking at you people who send me emails without punctuation) - and offer free WiFi to those who can make 7-letter passwords on a Scrabble board on their phones. In 2 weeks, more than 6,000 words played, 110,000 minutes of WiFi given away and lots of coverage across blogs and tech sites.

Job Opportunity: Marketing Assistant in Bristol

This is a job opportunity for a good graduate in Bristol with Dycem, who manufacture non-slip materials and anti-contamination equipment across a variety of sectors. Please contact them direct for more information and to apply - I have no more info as this came through a contact.

Details:

Responsible to

Non-Slip Business Unit Manager & New Business Development Manager.

Purpose of Job

To use all forms of media and communication to build, maintain and manage Dycem’s reputation. To communicate key messages to defined target audiences in order to establish and maintain goodwill and understanding between Dycem and its customers.

Responsibilities

·       PR

o   Plan, develop and implement PR strategies.

o   Research and prepare press releases and articles.

o   Prepare content for newsletters and other external and internal communications.

o   Ensure news shared with targeted media, distributors and end users via direct mail, e-newsletters and the website.

o   Analyse and evaluate success of all communications.

o   Proof-read all communications.

o   Layout newsletters, bulletins & corporate documents using existing templates and guidelines.

o   Organise and attend exhibitions and events worldwide.

o   Arrange photo shoots as necessary.

o   Ensure distributors have the latest images for catalogues etc and provide them with PR support.

o   Assist with the content and set-up of brochures and adverts, instructing and liaising with external agencies such as graphic designers as required.

o   Develop media and end user leads through web sources such as LinkedIn.

o   Record PR activity, capture press cuts and leads gained. Circulate leads as appropriate.

·       Website & Social Media

o   Up-load articles and brochures to the Content Management section of the website.

o   Review copy and content of the Non-Slip section of the website.

o   Ensure that all communications via Social Media adhere to Dycem’s policy and are relevant, appropriate and timely.

·       Other

o   Attend weekly meetings and produce the minutes.

o   Promotional goods

o   Handle routine enquiries from media or refer to appropriate colleague.

o   Ad hoc tasks required for preparation of events/exhibitions.

o   Work with other departments and external suppliers as required to support departmental and organisational objectives.

o   Travel to exhibitions within Europe and possibly internationally.

o   Data base input and record management.

Assessment Criteria	Essential	Desirable
Qualifications/Training	Educated to degree level	Full UK driving licence
Experience	Work experience in a team environment. Databases, manipulating data. Working to deadlines.	Database mailings. Working in small teams. Work experience within a marketing/PR environment
Knowledge	Social media, web Word, Powerpoint, Excel	Design & desktop publishing software eg Quark, Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator.
Skills	Excellent written communication skills, ability to write for specific “audiences”. Excellent communicator who immediately starts relationship building process with all stakeholders. Creative, eye for design Good organisational and planning skills. The persistence to see a project through to completion. Commitment, drive, enthusiasm, self starter. Willing to learn.	Language(s)

                                                      

Has the Easter bunny been to your street?

Nice PR idea from Tesco here - using Google maps to create an Easter Egg Hunt around your local area. Good example of using digital media advances to create interactive and two way comms - you can leave eggs for your friends too...

Thanks to @PRexamples on twitter - good ones to follow for, well, PR examples. Read their review of the Tesco Egg Hunt here.

The building blocks of a great campaign

Steve Grout was outraged that the famous Lego brand, that he grew up with and bought for his children, was being promoted just 'millimetres' away from the infamous page 3 images of topless women in The Sun newspaper as part of a Sun-Lego promotional partnership.

So, he created a great photo opp with a topless lego figure (pictured), used media relations, created an online petition directed at Lego, collected 12,000 signatures through social media - and Lego have just announced they are ending the partnership (apparently a 'natural' end but the timing seems interesting).

This is part of a campaign that is gathering momentum and which is likely to end in removal of this so called 'British Institution' from page 3 of the newspaper.

Steve Grout is just a dad - an ordinary citizen outraged at the continued use of topless models in the Sun, and he found a way to leverage change through public lobbying of Lego, one of the Sun's key partners.

Meanwhile Lego perhaps realised the impact of their partner's brand on their own in a relationship similar to the sponsorship relationship and Image Transfer Potential: as page 3 of The Sun goes down Lego would hardly want to bask in the dying rays.

Shake your tutu

English National Ballet have hijacked the harlem shake to make their own video that is going viral - great example of using opposites (shake versus pirouettes) to promote your brand and riding a viral wave.

The write way into a PR career

So what do PR employers want from PR graduates? Their skills in dealing with social media? Their digital native outlook on digital media? No, the old fashioned skills are still the most important.

When asked which skills were most important for a graduating PR student, an overwhelming 86% of the 113 respondents chose "good writing skills", with "good communication skills" following at 33% and "social media" coming in at no.3 with only 21%. This is all from a paper from Paskin soon to be published in Public Relations Review (accessible via UWE library if a student).

When ranking 23 possible options, traditional skills such as knowing how to plan/evaluate campaigns, and think strategically and write well, occupied 12 of the top 13 spaces. So, if you're considering a career in PR it's worth building up your writing skills - read more, write more, start a blog, go on writing courses.