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3 WAYS TO HOLD YOUR EXECUTIVES FEET TO THE FIRE DURING THE COVID-19 CRISIS Read More »

Sometimes it is only the Communications team that sees things clearly. Used to putting ourselves in the shoes of our audiences, rather than only the operational or financial detail of the business, here are three aspects of the current crisis where Comms people can make a difference: 1. Reminding executives that Covid 19 is first …

STEPPING UP OR TRIPPING OVER: CORPORATE PURPOSE AND THE REPUTATION CHALLENGE OF COVID-19 IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR

STEPPING UP OR TRIPPING OVER: CORPORATE PURPOSE AND THE REPUTATION CHALLENGE OF COVID-19 IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR Read More »

The response of businesses to COVID-19 has revealed both saints and sinners. What should business Communication teams be looking out for in their organisations to ensure that their company emerges with reputation intact? If there was ever a moment for the rhetoric of “corporate purpose” to be shown to be a reality, this is it. …

Media Training – Why 93% of communication is NOT non-verbal

media training videos, videos / By Andrew Caesar-Gordon

Why 93% of communication is NOT non-verbalRelated Videos How to survive announcing bad newsThis is what you get from Electric Airwaves’ story-based media training (John Lewis) John Lewis gets it right. Having a clear, concise, emotionally engaging corporate story will nurture and protect your corporate reputation in good times and bad. It is neither your …

Media Training – Why 93% of communication is NOT non-verbal Read More »

Execs who flex – how to speak to different types of journalist

media training videos, videos / By Andrew Caesar-Gordon

Execs who flex - how to speak to different types of journalist Media training – how to grip your audience from the first question Related Videos

Delivering Great Down-The-Line Media Interviews Over Skype During The Coronavirus Lockdown.

Delivering Great Down-The-Line Media Interviews Over Skype During The Coronavirus Lockdown. Read More »

With travel and social distancing restrictions, face-to-face media interviews are a thing of the past. Instead, broadcasters want you to undertake them over Skype and FaceTime. Most participants during our media training sessions find this form of interview the most difficult – it does not feel natural to stare at a camera lens and you …

QUESTIONS YOU MAY FACE FROM JOURNALISTS ABOUT YOUR ORGANISATIONS’S RESPONSE TO THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS

QUESTIONS YOU MAY FACE FROM JOURNALISTS ABOUT YOUR ORGANISATIONS’S RESPONSE TO THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS Read More »

To help you in your communication preparations, we hope you will find helpful the list of questions below that our team of journalists are typically putting to businesses and organisations they are interviewing at this time. Our journalist training team is available for Skype/ telephone training to help you and your spokesperson prepare and communicate …

PRO Priorities When Responding To The Pandemic

PRO Priorities When Responding To The Pandemic Read More »

Because we media train so many clients across the private, public and third sectors, we know that communications people are immersed in coronavirus planning and communication. We thought we would share what we hear they are prioritising: Being an internal advocate of the primary importance being the wellbeing of employees and their families. As …

Let’s talk about language

Let’s talk about language Read More »

Let’s talk about language - which we always do in our media training. Not just getting rid of jargon – the weed in the garden of language – but using meaningful analogies, examples and phrases that resonate with the audience and facilitate effective and persuasive communication. And avoiding words and approving of behaviours that may …

Read Here How 10th December Used To be “Public Relations Day”

Read Here How 10th December Used To be “Public Relations Day” Read More »

“December 10th is Public Relations Day” wrote Anthony Sampson is his famous 1962 book ‘Anatomy of Britain’ – an exploration of the workings of the British state and other major social institutions. “Every year, 300 or so delegates from the IPR come to the Festival Hall to celebrate their trade, and men with double-barrelled surnames …

Mike Ashley defends his strategy

Mike Ashley defends his strategy Read More »

If only billionaire entrepreneur, Mike Ashley, would agree to some media training from Electric Airwaves. Then maybe he would avoid making unnecessary gaffes, tell a better story about himself and see his reputation improve. He once told a Parliamentary Committee that he considered himself “untrainable”. But that’s a state of mind not of being - …

How to survive announcing bad news

media training videos, videos / By Andrew Caesar-Gordon

This is what you get from Electric Airwaves’ story-based media training (John Lewis) John Lewis gets it right. Having a clear, concise, emotionally engaging corporate story will nurture and protect your corporate reputation in good times and bad. It is neither your marketing slogan nor your key messages. It is about why your company exists. …

How to survive announcing bad news Read More »

Proof that B2B businesses can tell just as good a story as consumer brands (Hiscox)

media training videos / By Andrew Caesar-Gordon

B2B companies often struggle to engage audiences with a simple, emotionally compelling story. Here we see Hiscox getting it right.

Why Three Key Messages Don’t Cut It Anymore – & What To Do About It

Corporate Story, Media Training, Reputation Management / By Andrew Caesar-Gordon

Have you ever surveyed your audience to see whether people can recall your three key messages after your spokesperson has been in the media? Because you did have three key messages, didn’t you? It’s like ... a rule of PR. Three key messages. But when you’re down the pub, are people actually talking about organisations’ …

Why Three Key Messages Don’t Cut It Anymore – & What To Do About It Read More »

Nice Ad – Where’s the PR campaign

Nice Ad – Where’s the PR campaign Read More »

As one YouTube comment had it, Gillette's marketing team clearly sat around and decided that their next advertising campaign should be "Let's blame everything that's wrong with society on our target market - men!" Faced with a 5% decline in razor sales, Gillette's latest TV advertisement shifted from product marketing to advising men to end …

Should You Promote the Business of Business?

Should You Promote the Business of Business? Read More »

Is it your job as a private sector company press officer to promote business and capitalism to the world? Or is that the role of business organisations like the CBI and the IoD? Or maybe each company blowing its own trumpet leads to a better collective reputation? It’s Monday 18th November. The ‘companies’ page of …

How Offensive Is Your Organisation?

How Offensive Is Your Organisation? Read More »

Or how brave should you or your organisation be in the face of criticism that you are or have been offensive or ‘inappropriate’? Some related reputation management incidents will no doubt have caught your attention recently: Waitrose sought the resignation of its magazine editor, William Sitwell, after freelance journalist, Selene Nelson, revealed how ‘shocked’ she …

How To Stop Your CEO Walking Out Of A Media Interview

How To Stop Your CEO Walking Out Of A Media Interview Read More »

As Channel 4’s Krishnan Guru-Murthy put it: “I will defend anyone’s right to act like an arse, but if they do, they shouldn’t be surprised if anyone else decides to park their bike somewhere painful.” You may have seen the video of Persimmon plc CEO, Jeff Fairburn, walking off-camera during a recent BBC interview. He …

If Pret-a-Manger is now a big, bad business, what does this say about the company you do PR for?

If Pret-a-Manger is now a big, bad business, what does this say about the company you do PR for? Read More »

It has been easy to criticise Pret-a-Manger’s clunky response to the tragic death of one of its customers due to an unlabelled, sesame-seed infused baguette. It always is when you are not inside the organisation and party to the debates and decisions. Yet sorrows come not as single spies but in battalions. Now there is …

Growing Tension With Amazon and Its Corporate Reputation

Growing Tension With Amazon and Its Corporate Reputation Read More »

The tension between the successful marketing messages of online retailer, Amazon, and its worsening corporate reputation has been growing this year and a useful example to discuss in our media training. As a consumer, you probably quite like Amazon. Maybe you marvel at its mastery of technology; maybe you celebrate the speed and quality of …

How Do You Create An Emotional Corporate Story?

How Do You Create An Emotional Corporate Story? Read More »

Examine this description of how private equity firms work. It comes from a recent editorial in the Financial Times commenting on the abortive attempt by Tesla's Elon Musk to take his company off the New York stock market: "Heavy investment or restructuring can be easier to carry out in private. That is one reason why …

Should You Call Yourself a PR ‘Professional’?

Should You Call Yourself a PR ‘Professional’? Read More »

As I sat judging entries for the CorpComms Magazine awards last week, I was also thinking about the industry language that Public Relations is a ‘profession’. Is it really? Is our work not more like a ‘craft’ or a ‘trade’? One that is mainly learnt as one goes along (a bit like most journalism!)? I …

Andrew Highlights Richard Branson’s Powerful Human Response to the 2007 Virgin Train Cumbrian Crash

Video Commentary / By Andrew Caesar-Gordon

Media mischief-making last week saw Richard Branson criticised for tweeting about people turning up late for meetings when his train company has the worst punctuality record in the country. But let’s take a moment to remember how well he handled a real reputation crisis: the 2007 fatal Virgin Train crash in Cumbria. Watch his highly …

Andrew Highlights Richard Branson’s Powerful Human Response to the 2007 Virgin Train Cumbrian Crash Read More »

Don’t Use Your Own ‘Leaves On The Line’ Type Excuse In A Press Release