2019 has been a tough year for many in the communications industry. Uncertainty around the economic outlook has placed additional stresses on business leaders, and there are worrying signs for 2020 that mirror what was seen before the 2008 financial crisis.

This episode of the Digital Download Podcast is part two of the conversation recorded with Spin Sucks author and head of PR agency Arment Dietrich, Gini Dietrich. Part one was published as S5 E10 on 4th December 2019. In one of the most candid, honest and down-to-earth shows I’ve recorded, Gini and I talk about our personal experiences of burnout, and we look ahead to a ‘back-to-basics’ approach to marketing in 2020. Here’s what is discussed in this episode:

Subscribe to the podcast to receive new episodes automatically to your mobile or email. And if you enjoyed today’s show, please email it to a friend and/or share it on your favourite social media channels. I’d love to hear from you with any comments or thoughts. I read and reply to every single email, tweet or message. And finally, it would also be very awesome and hugely appreciated if you’d be able to take a moment to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, as this helps others discover Digital Download.

2019 has been a tough year for many in the communications industry. Uncertainty around the economic outlook has placed additional stresses on business leaders, and there are worrying signs for 2020 that mirror what was seen before the 2008 financial crisis.

This episode of the Digital Download Podcast is one of the most candid, honest and down-to-earth shows I’ve recorded since the podcast started two years ago. Gini Dietrich, Spin Sucks author and head of PR agency Arment Dietrich, returns to take a look back over the last 12 months and a look forward to 2020 in a special two-part episode. In Part One, we swap stories about how the pressures of the last year have taken a toll on us for different reasons, why focus is now critical in marketing communications and whether over-optimism by industry leaders is harmful.

Here’s what is discussed in this episode:

Subscribe to the podcast to receive new episodes automatically to your mobile or email. And if you enjoyed today’s show, please email it to a friend and/or share it on your favourite social media channels. I’d love to hear from you with any comments or thoughts. I read and reply to every single email, tweet or message. And finally, it would also be very awesome and hugely appreciated if you’d be able to take a moment to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, as this helps others discover Digital Download.

Digital transformation is a phrase that is misunderstood by many, and yet the thinking behind it is critical to the success of organisations large and small. With the pace of change getting ever faster and a new decade nearly upon us, planning for change is something that everyone should be thinking about.

In this episode of the Digital Download Podcast I talk to Andrew Grill, a futurist and keynote speaker who specialises in the impact of technological change on business. We discuss how digital continues to disrupt all areas of an organisation, how important it is to take personal responsibility for your own understanding, how digital transformation has changed over the last few years, and what to expect to see in 2020.

Here’s what is discussed in this episode:

Subscribe to the podcast to receive new episodes automatically to your mobile or email. And if you enjoyed today’s show, please email it to a friend and/or share it on your favourite social media channels. I’d love to hear from you with any comments or thoughts. I read and reply to every single email, tweet or message. And finally, it would also be very awesome and hugely appreciated if you’d be able to take a moment to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, as this helps others discover Digital Download.

Conventional marketing tactics no longer work like they used to. Consumers don’t want to be controlled or sold to. Social media engagement is down across the board. And two thirds of your marketing is happening without you.

In this episode of the Digital Download Podcast I talk to Mark Schaefer, author of Marketing Rebellion. In a wide-ranging conversation that covers many threads of current digital communications thinking, we talk about topics as diverse as fake news, the future of Facebook, the law, mental health and marketers’ abuse of technology.

Here’s what is discussed in this episode:

Subscribe to the podcast to receive new episodes automatically to your mobile or email. And if you enjoyed today’s show, please email it to a friend and/or share it on your favourite social media channels. I’d love to hear from you with any comments or thoughts. I read and reply to every single email, tweet or message. And finally, it would also be very awesome and hugely appreciated if you’d be able to take a moment to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, as this helps others discover Digital Download.

Facebook states its mission as connecting people the world over. But while social networks are capable of overcoming the technological barriers to achieving this, there are still mountains to climb when it comes to cultural and societal challenges.

In this episode of the Digital Download Podcast I talk to Michael Marquardt, a global business advisor who has spent 25 years living and working throughout Europe, Asia and America. Michael serves on several boards for organisations around the world, advising not just on business practice but also on the cultural differences between different countries. We discuss the world from a digital standpoint, looking at how different cultures view the internet and social media, and what the future of social networks around the world might be.

Here’s what is discussed in this episode:

Subscribe to the podcast to receive new episodes automatically to your mobile or email. And if you enjoyed today’s show, please email it to a friend and/or share it on your favourite social media channels. I’d love to hear from you with any comments or thoughts. I read and reply to every single email, tweet or message. And finally, it would also be very awesome and hugely appreciated if you’d be able to take a moment to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, as this helps others discover Digital Download.

There are now 100 million homeless and displaced people in the world, and the issue is becoming a major problems for most countries and cities around the world. The World’s Big Sleep Out is a charitable initiative that aims to change that by encouraging 50,000 people to sleep outside in 50 cities around the world to raise $50 million for homeless charities.

In this episode of the Digital Download Podcast I talk to Josh Littlejohn MBE, the founder of The World’s Big Sleep Out. Josh contacted me during the summer to help devise a social media strategy for the campaign, and in this show we discuss just how prevalent the issue of homelessness has become, what the campaign involves and aims to achieve, and what role social media plays in tackling such a huge global issue.

Here’s what is discussed in this episode:

Subscribe to the podcast to receive new episodes automatically to your mobile or email. And if you enjoyed today’s show, please email it to a friend and/or share it on your favourite social media channels. I’d love to hear from you with any comments or thoughts. I read and reply to every single email, tweet or message. And finally, it would also be very awesome and hugely appreciated if you’d be able to take a moment to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, as this helps others discover Digital Download.

Over the last ten years it’s become increasingly clear that data is the new gold. While the likes of Google and Facebook make money from selling data, new technologies like blockchain and cryptocurrency have sprung up built upon the foundations of data. Getting to grips with it all is a challenging task.

In this episode of the Digital Download Podcast I talk to Ste Davies, a digital strategist with a huge interest in all things data. Ste has recently looked deeply into data privacy, digital minimalism and cryptocurrency, and we discuss how all of these elements are coming together to have a huge impact on the way the world operates.

Here’s what is discussed in this episode:

Subscribe to the podcast to receive new episodes automatically to your mobile or email. And if you enjoyed today’s show, please email it to a friend and/or share it on your favourite social media channels. I’d love to hear from you with any comments or thoughts. I read and reply to every single email, tweet or message. And finally, it would also be very awesome and hugely appreciated if you’d be able to take a moment to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, as this helps others discover Digital Download.

The public relations industry has a love/hate relationship with the public relations industry. Its own biggest supporter and yet its own biggest critic, the cyclical nature of many of the debates drives some of those who’ve worked within it for many years to distraction.

One of those people is Rax Lakhani, a communications consultant with nearly two decades’ experience working with big name brands. In this episode of the Digital Download Podcast, Rax voices some of his growing frustrations with the industry he loves, from meaningless awards schemes to outdated agency models to poor training and development opportunities for those entering the industry.

Here’s what is discussed in this episode:

Subscribe to the podcast to receive new episodes automatically to your mobile or email. And if you enjoyed today’s show, please email it to a friend and/or share it on your favourite social media channels. I’d love to hear from you with any comments or thoughts. I read and reply to every single email, tweet or message. And finally, it would also be very awesome and hugely appreciated if you’d be able to take a moment to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, as this helps others discover Digital Download.

Content marketing has become associated with inbound marketing and sales funnels, with communicators in danger of being swamped by advertisers when it comes to the use of creative content. But there is an alternative school of thought which says that public relations is the ideal home for content marketing.

In this episode of the Digital Download Podcast, I talk to communications strategist Trevor Young about the strategic use of content marketing for PR and communications purposes, and how it can deepen the connection your brand has with customers and grown your influence.

Here’s what is discussed in this episode:

Subscribe to the podcast to receive new episodes automatically to your mobile or email. And if you enjoyed today’s show, please email it to a friend and/or share it on your favourite social media channels. I’d love to hear from you with any comments or thoughts. I read and reply to every single email, tweet or message. And finally, it would also be very awesome and hugely appreciated if you’d be able to take a moment to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, as this helps others discover Digital Download.

Fake news and propaganda have existed for decades, if not centuries. But with social media algorithms reinforcing confirmation bias and with the advent of deep fake technology, misinformation has reached unprecedented levels. As a result, trust has plummeted and corporate crises are becoming ever-more common.

In this episode of the Digital Download Podcast, I talk to Kate Hartley from crisis simulation platform Polpeo. Kate has recently written a book called Communicate in a Crisis that takes a detailed look at why people behave the way they do on social media, how misinformation spreads as a result and how companies can best handle this.

Here’s what is discussed in this episode:

Subscribe to the podcast to receive new episodes automatically to your mobile or email. And if you enjoyed today’s show, please email it to a friend and/or share it on your favourite social media channels. I’d love to hear from you with any comments or thoughts. I read and reply to every single email, tweet or message. And finally, it would also be very awesome and hugely appreciated if you’d be able to take a moment to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, as this helps others discover Digital Download.