Grant Common's PR Acumen — Insights and commentary about public relations — Page 2

PR Measurement & Evaluation: US survey raises questions about Australian practice

by Grant24 March 2010

If Australian PR Directors and Managers are a reflection of their US PR professional counterparts then the odds are that there is still a glaring lack of measurement or evaluation techniques being used by the PR Departments of Australian organisations.
That’s because a survey published yesterday in PR News based on questions put to nearly 800 [...]

Australian online newsroom survey – food for thought for PR Directors

by Grant19 March 2010

A survey about the adoption of online newsrooms by some of Australia’s leading brand companies, released in the last few days by PR agency Burson-Marsteller, should provide food for thought for Australian PR Directors and Managers.
The basic conclusion of the survey is that online newsrooms are poor because they are either not providing a comprehensive enough range [...]

Addressing dysfunctional PR agency relationships

by Grant12 March 2010

Dysfunctional relationships with PR agencies are about as common as marriage relationship issues. This week I felt like the PR Doctor (or relationship counselor) as a long-standing corporate acquaintance had a cry on my shoulder about the troubles she was having with the organisation’s PR agency.
The concerns/complaints were nothing I hadn’t heard before – and [...]

PR and CSR: Latest US Awards show they remain uneasy bedfellows

by Grant2 March 2010

In my experience across Australia and New Zealand no discipline that normally comes under the responsibility of public relations, communications or public affairs is more contentious, or subject to so much misunderstanding, as CSR – corporate social responsibility.
Many organisations in this part of the world talk about CSR. But most – in my experience – [...]

PR agency selection: how getting the first part of the process right is critical

by Grant25 February 2010

With the clouds of recession in Australia now fading more PR Director’s and PR Manager’s seem to be deciding that its time to ramp up the public relations and communication effort. As a consequence PR agency relationships are being put under the microscope resulting in an upsurge in PR agency reviews and selection processes.
Evidence comes [...]

PR and communciations – can it be the driver of unification in your organisation?

by Grant19 February 2010

An article that suggests that PR and communications might be the glue that helps stick an organisation together to help it move forward in the post GFC environment put a new angle for me on the potential role of Australian PR Departments.
Written by Kevin O’Neill, president and COO of dna 13, a US maker of [...]

Toyota. Oh what a shambles!

by Grant12 February 2010

For anyone working in corporate PR in Australia the Toyota recall issue deserves study as an example of one of the best “how-not-to-do-it’ in crisis management.
For those newer to the game it will provide some valuable insights into processes and pitfalls in a genuine crisis.
For PR ‘veterans’ like myself, who have been around the block [...]

AFR survey to critique PR agencies ill-judged

by Grant2 February 2010

Australian organisations face challenges when undertaking a PR agency review or selecting a PR agency, but they certainly don’t need any help from the Australian Financial Review.
Amanda Meade who writes ‘The Diary’ in The Australian was right on the mark when she threw cold water on competitor The Australian Financial Review for allegedly conducting a [...]

4 words to bring a focus to your PR/Communication in 2010

by Grant22 January 2010

Reputation. Conversation. Influencers. Psychographics. These are my four picks as the areas for someone running an Internal PR Department to focus on during 2010. Do so and I think it may help you bring a sense of purpose to your Australian PR/communications efforts.
Reputation (v image)
Say what you like but after what we’ve been through in [...]

Time to review the PR performance for the year to date?

by Grant15 December 2009

For Australian Public Relations and Communication Managers the Christmas/New Year ‘quiet’ period provides a great opportunity to take stock on departmental progress.
If I were running a PR or Communications Department I would be assessing my performance under these three broad headings:
1) PR Department Management.
Overall I would be asking myself how my management of PR or Communication [...]

More evidence of the multinational PR approach in Australia

by Grant7 December 2009

News that LG Electronics Australia has shifted from one multi-national PR agency to another as part of an international re-alignment, apparently without a pitch from either of the agencies involved, or indeed any other local Australian PR agency, is a further signal as to how much PR in Australia is becoming driven by international factors.
Moves [...]

What a PR Manager needs to do to succeed

by Grant4 December 2009

If you’re a PR or Communciations Manager you can only be successful in your job if you win the respect and confidence of your CEO.
Therefore you might want to take a look at what a survey of US CEO’s said they wanted/expected/valued from those running their PR and communications. Its a good indication of what [...]

US CEO’s provide insights into expectations from corporate PR

by Grant24 November 2009

If you are at the ’serious’ end of corporate PR in Australia (ie working for a major corporation with responsibility for managing relationships with stakeholders and corporate reputation as opposed to simply handling media relations) the Arthur Page Society in New York should be on your radar.
The organisation, which is a kind of ‘think tank’ [...]

More clarity needed in internal communications roles, functions and titles

by Grant16 November 2009

How does one distinguish between the role played by persons with the title Public Relations, Corporate Affairs and Corporate Relations in Australia’s largest companies?
These questions are sparked by an article ‘‘Corporate Affairs Calls in Big Guns’ in The Australian on Friday the 13th of November by Geoff Allen, the eminent and well-respected Founder of the Centre [...]

An independent ‘PR voice of experience’ now available for hire!

by Grant12 November 2009

Today I’m going public with my ‘second pr career’. My ‘announcement’ in the News section explains what I’m on about. Also take a peek at the e-brochure to the right.
A variety of friends and colleagues have known exactly what I’ve been on about since before I closed the Sydney office of Network PR at the end of [...]

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