FIR Podcast Network

David Murray, executive director of the Professional Speechwriters Association, joins host Shel Holtz to talk about mending the relationship between executive communicators and internal communicators. Also in this week’s episode:

* As many as 2,100 people have lost media jobs in the last two weeks. How much is content marketing to blame?

* It’s time to start using data journalism in content marketing

* One survey reinforces the need for CEOs to take positions on social and political issues. Another looks at what CEOs want to talk about in 2019. Are they aligned?

* Spotify wants to spend $200 million on a podcast production company

* The Economist is the latest entry in the crowded daily news podcast field

* Google is adding a microphone the query field on Android phones — and you’ll get the answer in audio, too

* Starbucks is telling employees how to respond when Howard Schultz’s presidential ambitions come up

* It may be getting close to bidding farewell to the URL

* Leaving Facebook may make you happier, but there’s a negative consequence, too

* Sharing Instagram Stories privately is just one new product feature Facebook plans for 2019

* Dan York’s Tech Report covers Apple’s decision to drop apps from Facebook and Google in its App Store, and more

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog.

About David Murray

For 20 years David Murray has written and spoken frequently on corporate, political and personal communication issues—particularly employee communication, and speechwriting. He also done extensive feature writing on wide-ranging subjects: politics, golf, murder, hairpiece making, boxing, ballet, homelessness, motorcycling, the state supreme court, sailing, dinosaurs, professional poker and other related subjects, for publications and media outlets as disparate as the The New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, Sailing Magazine, Golf Magazine, Car Collector Magazine, Chicago Magazine, Advertising Age, Vibe.com and the Huffington Post. He is the executive director for the Professional Speechwriters Association, publisher of Vital Speeches of the Day, author of two books, and a prolific blogger at Writing Boots.

Links from this week’s episode

* The New Branding Strategy: Churn Out ‘Content’

* As Many As 2,100 People Have Lost Media Jobs in the Past Two Weeks

* 2009: The internet is killing (print) journalism. 2019: The internet is killing (internet) journalism.

* How to use data journalism in your content marketing

* New York City, St. Petersburg, Fla., Ramp Up Data Storytelling

* Doing Journalism with Data (a MOOC)

* Brand purpose is the future for the majority of marketing leaders

* New Survey Finds CEOs Want to Talk Sales, Not Social Issues, in 2019

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If you’re a PR or marketing agency leader, you have likely had someone ask to “pick your brain” recently.

These requests can seem like a burden. After all, someone wants to get a bit of your time for free. And agencies are used to selling their time.

This topic recently came up in the Spin Sucks Community, and it inspired Chip to write an article encouraging agency leaders to say “yes” to “pick your brain” requests.

Since this topic struck a nerve with many agency owners and executives, it seemed like a good subject for Chip and Gini to take up on the podcast. So they did.

[read the transcript]

Writing on Brandwatch, CMO Will McInnes says there are three gaps CMOs need to bridge: metrics, moral marketing, and innovation gaps. Understanding each one is essential to being a better marketer. We examine more closely the second one, where the author cites an Edelman study that found that two-thirds of consumers will choose, switch, avoid or boycott a brand based upon its stand on societal issues. Given the amount of polarization in American society right now, marketers should thing twice about wading into political debates. 

Another survey by Annenberg PR Center at USC found that 44% of CEOs said their most important communication goal for 2019 is to sell their products and services while 39% say their primary goal is to differentiate their company’s brand from the competition. We disagree on whether this is a positive trend or not; CEOs have the power to significantly influence public opinion, but is is fair to their shareholders to exercise that power? 

Finally, we look at a joint study by researchers at Boston University and the University of Georgia that found that only one in ten people can distinguish between sponsored editorial content.  People who mistook the advertisements for legitimate news articles were generally older, less educated and more likely to consume news media for entertainment purposes. We agree that any short-term boost a brand might get by deceiving an audience is negated by the reputation damage of being outed for that deed. However, Paul points out that one factor in the confusion is that branded content is getting better, and marketers should take credit for that fact. 

 

Shel Holtz knows internal communications, and he knows where it’s headed.

A 40-year industry veteran, communications director for Allergan and Mattel, consultant, speaker, blogger, author, fellow of three of the world’s most prominent communications industry associations and, if that weren’t enough, co-founder of the FIR Podcast Network, Shel is something of an expert on the topic.

Who better to kick off our first podcast of 2019? If anyone can predict the future of internal communications, it’s Shel. His crystal ball is one of the most accurate we know.

In this very special episode of EE Voice, we chat with Shel about the seven key forces shaping our profession this year and beyond. Listen in and learn about the growing:

* Role of internal comms as organizational business partner

* Focus on the operational end of internal communications

* Importance of corporate culture and the employee journey

* Rise of mobile – and the fall of the corporate intranet

* Implications of going global for internal comms

* Impact of the emerging “agents of change” concept

* Effects of artificial intelligence on how we communicate

The New Year promises to be a pivotal one for internal communicators. Be one of the first to hear all about it.

This week on Inside PR, we talk about:

* Facebook’s commitment to supporting local journalism. (0:55)

* Using Alexa Flash Briefings for your communications program(5:51)

* our take on Gillette’s The Best Men Can Bevideo ad theme (15:44)

Linkworthy

* Doing More to Support Local News, Facebook blog

* Facebook is funding more programs catering to local news publishers, Max Willens

* The Alexa Flash Briefing Guide for Communicators, Gini Dietrich

* Podnews.netand the Podnews podcast — a template for Alexa Flash Briefings?

* FeedlyNews Reader, an indispensable tool for communicators

* The Best Men Can Be, Gillette

* “No going back:” Viral Gillette ad sparks fierce reaction,

Kami Huyse, CEO of Zoetica Media and co-host of the Communities that Convert podcast joins FIR host Shel Holtz to discuss ways companies can benefit from a study that finds people are asking their questions on independent forums instead of big social networks. Also in this week’s episode:

* A dive into the 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer

* A look at the 2019 State of Social Media report from Buffer

* Less than 10% of people can tell a native ad from original content

* Roo is a new chatbot that answers teens’ questions about sexual health

* Executive communicators really dislike internal communicators

* Facebook will integrate its three messaging apps

* Rosetta Stone adds AI to its iPhone app to help you describe objects

* Twitter is testing an “original tweeter” label for threads

* Girl Scouts can now earn a cybersecurity badge

* Google lobbied U.S. government so it could ban employees from organizing via email

* Dan York’s Tech Report includes a LiveJournal retrospective, a model online community, algorithms and bias, and the State of the Net 2019 conference.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog.

About Kami Huyse

Kami Watson Huyse is a national leader on the topic of public relations and social media strategy. A 20-year-veteran of public relations, she speaks at social media events and conferences all over the country and her work in social media has earned her two Society for New Communications Research Social Media awards and IABC’s Gold Quill of Excellence Award. She is the strategic architect for many successful social media campaigns and oversees account management for Zoetica Media. Her ideas and work in social media have been featured in several books. She serves on the Board of Directors of Civilination, a nonprofit dedicated to taking a stand against online harassment, character assassination, and violence. She was named PR Professional of the Year in San Antonio, was recognized for a Social Media award by the Austin-American Statesman, has been named one of the 100 most powerful Women on Twitter by Twitter Grader, was listed as one of the 30 top people to follow in PR on Twitter by e-Releases, one of AG Beat’s Top 50 Influencers, a Top 100 Power Influencer in Houston, and one of 50 Follow-Worthy Marketing Measurement and Digital Analytics Experts. She is also a founder and administrator of the Social Media Breakfast of Houston. Kami and Madlyn Sklar co-host the Communities That Convert podcast.

Links from this episode

* 7 Podcasts for CCOs

* Kraft Takes Out Newspaper Ad Seeking Support of Furloughed Workers Amid Shutdown

* 10-Year Challenge: How the world has changed in a decade

* 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer

* Employees now deeply trust their employers — and 5 other takeaways from the 2019 Trust Barometer

* State of Social

* State of S...

In this week’s Agency Leadership Podcast, Chip Griffin and Gini Dietrich discuss the importance of creating and managing budgets for agency client projects, including both retainer and one-time work.

The discussion was prompted by a tweet by Karl Sakas that urged agency leaders to include project management costs in their budgets.

This topic is something that Chip as written about previously on the Agency Leadership Hub, including why project budgets are important and how to create an accurate client project budget.

Chip and Gini discuss how projects serve as building blocks for overall agency profitability, the challenges in properly tracking project costs, and items that can be easily overlooked when building those budgets. They also have a robust discussion about how to bill for some of the less glamorous aspects of agency work to better maintain the relationship.

[read the transcript]

In the latest episode of Chats with Chip, James Papiano discusses the role of leadership and culture in the agency environment.

Topics discussed include:

* Whether “culture” is a real thing or just a consulting buzzword designed to generate more fees.

* The relationship between leadership and culture — and whether one can be good even if the other is weak.

* The impact of accidental agency ownership on the culture of the business.

* How to improve culture at an agency as a newly-hired leader.

* The role of transparency in the business and how that can improve or impair culture.

[read the transcript]

FIR guest host Brad Whitworth moderated a panel discussion with four IABC Fellows: Alice Brink, John Deveney, Jim Lukaszewski, and Brenda Siler. who explored the role of a free press in supporting a free economy:  How communicators can support their business’s efforts to support a free press and the value a free press brings to organizations (such as providing transparency and delivering information on which companies can reliably base decisions). Other topics related to media relations are also on the agenda, including why companies should respond when news organizations come calling, the important role of earned media, and whether press releases still matter.

About the panel

Alice Brink is an internationally recognized communications consultant. Her firm, A Brink & Co., works with businesses and non-profits to clarify their messages and communicate them in ways that change people’s minds. Her clients have included Shell Oil Company, Sysco Foods, and Noble Energy. Prior to launching A Brink & Co. in Houston in 2004, Alice honed her craft both in corporate settings (including The Coca-Cola Company, Conoco, and First Interstate Bank) and in one of Texas’ largest public relations firms, where she led the agency’s energy and financial practices.  Alice has been active in IABC for more than 30 years, including serving as chapter president, district director, and Gold Quill chair. She is the vice chair of the IABC Academy.

In 1996, while on the fast track to a partnership in a growing PR agency, John Deveney opted to strike out on his own and form Deveney, a process and a practice that embraces the soundest principles, the newest media, and the most innovative technologies. Based in New Orleans, Deveney is particularly strong in the areas of crisis, healthcare, tourism, and hospitality. (After hurricanes Katrina and Rita, John led the only on-site communication operation and media center for both the City of New Orleans and the Louisiana Office of Tourism.)

James E. Lukaszewski, America’s Crisis Guru ®, is a bestselling author, national speaker, and trusted strategic advisor to FPO and NPO business operators and leaders during crises, disasters, reputation attacks, contentiousness and when the boss’s future is at stake. Corporate Legal Times listed him as “one of 22 crisis counselors to have in your speed dial when all hell breaks loose.” For more than 30 years, he has confidentially guided hundreds of company leaders thru tough, touchy, sensitive situations. Lukaszewski’s strategies inspire constructive, ethical problem resolving management behavior. A powerful and inspirational speaker, he teaches executives and managers the lessons he has learned. A prolific author, he is quoted and interviewed often as one of the most recognizable leaders in his profession. Lukaszewski is on the web at www.e911.com.

Brenda C. Siler, a public relations, marketing, and branding professional. She currently manages a consultancy offering short-term public relations, communications, and writing solutions for a variety of clients. Siler has lead communications teams at national associations and nonprofits including AARP, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, and UNCF, the United Negro College Fund. At UNCF, she managed the rebranding of this scholarship fund retaining its iconic tagline “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” At the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, she managed a national public awareness campaign featuring actor James Earl Jones. From 1998-99, Siler was Executive Board Chairwoman for the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), She is on the Board of Advisors for PRNews. Siler is a graduate of Spelman College.

Neville Hobson joins host Shel Holtz for the January installment of “The Hobson & Holtz Report” to talk about these stories:

* Lost trust in Facebook led to wariness about a user-generated meme.

* Adobe is bringing part of “Minority Report” to life.

* The Internet of Things was everywhere at CES.

* A picture of an egg is the most viewed Instagram post ever. What does that bode for influencer marketing?

* Picture what Google will look like if the EU implements Article 11 of the Copyright Directive.

* Brands are weighing in on the U.S. government shutdown.

* Dan York reports on the web’s growing complexity, Jeff Jarvis’s Facebook screed, stats from the global social network composed of nodes that talk to each other, and how content management systems will shape the future of media.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog.

About Neville Hobson

Neville Hobson was co-host of The Hobson & Holtz Report for over 10 years. For over 15 years, Neville has been a voice of experience and influence when it comes to speaking about digital technologies, disruptive change in workplaces and marketplaces, relevant trends to pay close attention to, and what it all means for your business. His experiences embrace deep understanding and subject-matter expertise in contemporary business issues that include social, digital and cognitive technologies, connecting that with a career in traditional public relations, marketing communication, employee compensation and benefits communication, and investor relations. Based in the Thames Valley some 30 miles west of London, Neville works either from his home office or from a client’s location; or from wherever he has a good network connection.

Links from this week’s episode:

* Fourth Annual Global Communications Survey from the USC Annenberg Center for Public Relations

* Think the #10YearChallenge is fun? It’s a surveillance nightmare

* Facebook’s ’10 Year Challenge is Just a Harmless Meme — Right?

* Adobe To Make DOOH Perform — Is There A Place For Search?

* Procter & Gamble shows off surprisingly cool tech in ordinary products

* Intelligence Brief: Voice and IoT dominate CES

* An Egg, Just a Regular Egg, Is Instagram’s Most-Liked Post Ever

* Opinion: The murky practice of influencer marketing

* This is what Google says search will look like under EU copyright laws

* The Internet is Facing a Catastrophe For Free Expression and Competition: You Could Tip The Balance

* Bran...