Lights, camera, action: Why video should now be central to your PR strategy

11th September 2024 by Philippa Probert

We know how important it is to always include a choice of high-resolution photos with a press release to illustrate a story but what about a video?

With the ability to captivate audiences and convey messages in seconds video is a valuable PR tool that I think we will see being used a lot more over the next few years.

We’ve started to see journalists and news desks ask for and accept videos alongside releases and, with some publications even having specialist social news desks,  it’s clear to see why video is taking over.

Video hosting platform, TikTok, is expected to hit over 2.2 billion users by 2027* and 9 out of 10** brands are already using video, with 87% of marketers reporting a direct increase in sales through video. So how and why should video be part of your PR strategy?

Videos can be used to share multiple messages; to launch a new product or collaboration, promote a businesses service, share positive testimonials or details about an upcoming event.

Viewers are likely to be more engaged watching a short video over reading a wordy news piece, especially when consuming news on their devices, hence why some brands now choose to go down this route more than the traditional methods.

And making engaging videos doesn’t have to break the bank or need specialist equipment. Mobile phones have great cameras and editing apps such as CapCut can allow us to create specialist videos that are budget friendly, adding titles, music, captions and subtitles, as well as tailoring transitions and tempo.  

To make the most of video material, brands can use stories to build anticipation such as a sneak peek of something, they can go live to give viewers a countdown to the video being shared or use to go ‘behind the scenes’. Once the video is shared, brands can do a follow up Q&A or bloopers (great for increasing engagement as it shows personality behind a brand).

Video, and especially short-form video, are here to stay and will continue to help brands get their messaging out there.  Companies who focus on creating content that stands out, as well as trying different content to see what resonates with the audience, will reap the rewards.

Some of our predictions for the future of video include:

• Soon video content will accompany written press releases just as much as still images, maybe even instead of
• Experts who provide commentary or a statement may do so via video format as well as a written comment making it perfect for news websites and social media platforms
• Short-form videos will continue to be in demand giving brands just a few seconds to capture their audience with concise messaging
• Live streaming will be used more often by brands seeking genuine, in-the-moment interaction with their customers

If you want us to help with your video strategy, drop us an email beinspired@activepr.co.uk

AI and PR

31st July 2024 by Rachael Bruce

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the landscape of Public Relations (PR), reshaping how organizations communicate and engage with their audiences. By leveraging advanced technologies such as machine learning, natural language processing, and data analytics, AI empowers PR professionals to craft more targeted, personalized, and effective communication strategies. From automating routine tasks like media monitoring and social media management to providing deep insights into audience behavior and sentiment analysis, AI enhances the efficiency and impact of PR campaigns. This integration not only helps in delivering timely and relevant content but also in predicting trends and crises, allowing for proactive reputation management. As AI continues to evolve, it promises to unlock new possibilities for innovation, creativity, and strategic thinking in the realm of Public Relations.

That first section was written using ChatGPT, perhaps one of the best-known AI brands. At Active PR we pride ourselves in our writing ability and so ordinarily don’t use AI in our copywriting. The above was an experiment as part of writing this blog.

But using AI does have its benefits as it can streamline the process for some tasks such as analysing data to find patterns. AI and automation are used by many media monitoring services to track and collate coverage including analysing sentiment in coverage and with machine learning help ensure consistent reporting.

However, there’s room for error and a need for human oversight as AI doesn’t always recognise some of the nuances in language. For example, a sarcastic negative comment on social media could be flagged as positive feedback.

In content creation, there’s a place for AI but there’s also a need for human input to ensure accuracy, authenticity and the tone are all on brand and appropriate for both the medium and audience.

It’s important to remember that AI is only as good as the people using it. Just as a new member of staff will need to be instructed to carry out tasks, AI needs to be briefed too and their work reviewed and signed off.

ChatGPT is perhaps one of the best-known AI brands, but there are so many others available with different functionalities.

In one of its simplest forms, AI can be used to autocomplete sentences, which can help save time, particularly if you’re often writing about the same subject as AI will learn key phrases. (Microsoft Word wanted to use automate in this instance 😉)

Speech to text technology such as Otter AI can mean you don’t need to take notes during meetings or interviews. But it also means when you’re reading back through the notes, you’ll have a record of those informal conversations that take place while you’re waiting for everyone to join the call.  Some of which you perhaps won’t want a permanent record of!

The search function is a great tool as it means you can easily look for and find a key topic or action point.

It’s always good to have the backup of your own notes – in a good old-fashioned notebook or on a laptop or tablet so you can cross reference and potentially correct any inaccuracies on either side.

AI is a tool that can make tasks easier. Some of our team remember the days when press packs had to be mailed or couriered to journalists. Today we can easily reach out to our media contacts, sending them a WhatsApp, DM or email with client news and photos.

It’s about embracing change and new technology and learning to work smarter not harder.

If you want to know more about how we can help your business, email beinspired@activepr.co.uk.

Welcome to Wrexham is #PRgoals

23rd April 2024 by Kate Logan

It’s the football story that continues to enthral us.

The first two series of ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ have been fascinating to watch. And series three is in no doubt now as Wrexham has just secured promotion to League One – its second promotion in as many seasons.

It’s also scored priceless positive PR for a football club that’s been rescued by its bootstraps more than once.

If you’re not familiar with the Disney+ documentary, it’s a behind the scenes look at the Hollywood takeover of Welsh non-league club Wrexham AFC.

Led by American actor Robert McElhenney, who somehow managed to persuade Deadpool himself, Ryan Reynolds, a Canadian, to become his business partner, the programme, so far, follows their first two seasons as owners.

While still learning the offside rule and, perhaps most importantly, what football means to the fans in this passionate north east corner of Wales, the pair slowly begin to appreciate the realities of running a football club.

It’s a story like no other. While American takeovers and documentaries on streaming channels are nothing new to the Premier League, at this level (Wrexham were initially playing in the fifth tier), they are both highly unusual. 

The documentary delves into the new owners’ motivation, day to day tribulations, fan dedication, and local fascination around what has been a bizarre but thrilling event in football history.

It also covers their investment across the club, including in the women’s team, who have also deservedly received promotion to the Adran Premier, the top tier of Welsh women’s football.

Satisfying our need to see the headlining new owners, the film crew also takes us on a journey with the fans, like The Turf landlord Wayne Jones and likeable yet outspoken painter and decorator Shaun. For fans like Wayne and Shaun the football club really is life. Shaun hates his job and, when we first meet him, has recently split with his partner, yet football gives him hope, every weekend. And while too often in the past that hope led to disappointment, it occasionally leads to unbridled, intoxicating joy. It’s a familiar rush that keeps sports fans coming back for more every week, and it’s captured eloquently in the series by Wrexham’s loyal supporters.

This takeover had been about the best PR it’s possible to get for a football club. But there’s a bigger and even more heart-warming story that Welcome to Wrexham brought into focus. It’s put real people in the spotlight, and we’ve all fallen a bit in love with this story, and their stories. This town and its community are rightly central to the tale and the global interest has given the local economy a huge boost.

And it seems the only way is up for Wrexham. So far, we’ve watched the new owners navigate their first two seasons, triumphantly culminating in the team’s epic promotion to League Two. No mean feat after languishing in the National League for 15 seasons.

Wrexham is back on the football map and, having started my journalism career in the town (which received city status in 2022 too), I couldn’t be happier. I once witnessed a crucial victory in the club’s history, having covered the Court of Appeal case in London that was featured in the “Hamilton” episode of the documentary as a young reporter at the Wrexham Leader. While that made headline news at the time, it still felt the club was battling for all its worth. This feels so different. Wrexham AFC is on the up and we’re all invited along for the ride.

I’ve found myself checking Wrexham’s scores and the League One table every week this past season and I’d wager I’m not the only one. Wouldn’t it be the story of the century if a future series of Welcome to Wrexham featured their promotion to the Premier League? Now that really would be priceless.

Photo by Paul Schnürle on Unsplash

Why planning a marketing campaign is like planning a holiday

4th April 2024 by Rachael Bruce

It seems holiday season is already upon us. News websites and social media accounts are full of travel stories and reminders about when to renew your passport. You’re lucky if one in four emails doesn’t generate an out of office autoreply advising that the person you’re trying to contact is on holiday.

When it comes to planning a marketing campaign, there are in fact parallels with planning a holiday.  Read on to find out why.

1. Budget: Knowing how much you have to spend is important and can help focus ideas. If you’re budget is more weekend in Blackpool than a five-star all-inclusive trip to the Bahamas, you’ll need to plan accordingly. Low-fi social media content filmed and edited on a phone could provide a cost-effective alternative to enlisting a production crew to script, film and edit your owned content. With the right message and content, you may even be able to secure earned media coverage from your customers, journalists or influencers.
2. Research: Checking what the weather is like where and when you want to travel, along with reviews of hotels and other facilities in that area are important when thinking of booking a holiday. Similarly, knowing your audience and how best to reach them is crucial to a successful marketing campaign.
3. Packing:  Packing your suitcase for holiday is like preparing your assets for a successful marketing campaign. It doesn’t matter if your suitcase is ready weeks or minutes before it’s time to leave, what matters is what’s inside. For a well-executed marketing campaign, you’ll need a mix of assets for different media channels. This may be as simple as reformatting for different platforms or it could be changing the tone and creative completely to target different demographics.It’s important that your assets are on brand and that every detail is correct before you go live with your campaign, just as you’d check you have your passport and it’s in date before heading to the airport.
4. Timing:  There are two types of traveller – those who arrive at the airport hours ahead of their flight time to allow for delays at security, duty free shopping and people watching and those who race through the terminal and arrive at the gate just as it closes.  Some brands are still working on their summer 2024 campaigns, while others are already planning for Christmas and beyond. There is no right or wrong time. The advantage of the digital age is that while deadlines still exist and can help focus efforts, we’re not as tied to timing as we were when print was the primary medium. Social media channels will even recommend the best time to post based on when your audience is active.

If you need some help planning your next marketing campaign, think of us like a travel agent. Yes you could plan your next trip yourself, booking everything from travel and accommodation to excursions direct, but why not leave it to the experts. Our services include press release and copywriting, social media management, event planning and more. Contact us to find out how we can help.

Cause celeb – adding star quality to campaigning

24th August 2023 by Rachael Bruce

THE power of celebrity is much more than drawing crowds to theatres and cinemas or helping to market a product.

Big names in film, TV, music and sport are using their star status for good.

From free school meals to animal rights and gender equality, with a celebrity championing your cause you can reach the masses.

Often, the famous faces are simply lending their name to a grassroots campaign that resonates with their personal values and sharing content to help inspire others.

This free publicity is worth much more than the price of a sponsored or boosted post to those causes as it helps them reach those they wouldn’t otherwise and at little or no cost to either party.

Last year, Marcus Rashford’s campaign for free school meals was named the campaign of the decade.

The UN has long embraced the power of celebrity to support its campaigns. Former Harry Potter star Emma Watson advocates gender equality and fronted the UN’s HeForShe campaign.

In December, after more than 20 years in the role, actress Angelina Jolie stepped down from working with the UN Refugee Agency to work with organisations led by people most directly affected by conflict.

Joanna Lumley has lent her name to various causes including helping Gurkhas who retired before 1997 win the right to settle in the UK and calling for a stop to the clearance of unexploded ordnance damaging marine life.

Camp Beagle is the longest running animal rights protest camp in history and has embraced the power of celebrity at various levels. Last year, singer Will Young joined their campaign when he chained himself to the gates of a breeding facility, while more recently protestors were joined by Babe Station stars wearing bikinis.

But it’s the recent backing of actor Tom Hardy that’s made a significant difference to their fight for animal rights.

Within 24 hours of him sharing a link on Instagram to a petition to end animals being used or toxicity testing around 20,000 signatures were added. The star continued to push the message out to his nine million Instagram followers, thanking them for their supporting and encouraging more people to sign, even after the 100,000 target was reached.

This week saw the launch of Equity’s “Green Rider” campaign to cut the environmental impact of celebrity riders. Dubbed the ‘no jet’ set by the Guardian, it’s received the backing of more than 100 actors, including Gemma Arterton, David Harewood and Bill Nighy. The idea is that instead of asking for single colour sweets or a private jet, contracts should focus on “positive influence” and “not climate-damaging perks”.

For brands, unless a star uses their product, receiving a celebrity endorsement free of charge is unlikely. As with personal appearance fees, the cost of a sponsored post is likely to increase with the star’s status.

Influencers or micro-influencers are a great lower cost alternative to the traditional icons when it comes to promoting your business. Better still, your genuine customers who have real life experience of your product or service, are perfectly placed to spread the word.

If your marketing campaign is in need of some star treatment, contact us .

Why it’s time to take your comms back to basics

29th June 2023 by Rachael Bruce

When it comes to developing a communications strategy, there are no hard rules and it’s not a case of one-size-fits-all. The sheer volume of different channels now available to communicate with your business, your peers, existing and potential customers, plus the media can seem overwhelming. With society increasingly time poor, good communication is key to delivering your brand’s message.

Read our guide to improving your communication.

1. Keep it real and explain in simple terms. The quote ‘if you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough’ is often attributed to Albert Einstein. Ensuring your message is easy to understand is important. Complicated sentences should be avoided. Break it down so it’s easy to digest. A listicle is a great way to organise the points you want to convey.

• Go back to basics. Explain why something is a good idea rather than the intricacies of your industry. Avoid jargon as it may confuse the lay reader. Instead use phrases that are more widely understood.

• Cause and effect. Be transparent and explain why you’re doing something. People want to know how something will affect them – how will they benefit, what will it cost them or how they will save.

• Be solutions focused. Highlight how you’re overcoming an issue or addressing a need. Make technical challenges and, details of any solutions, easy for consumers to understand.

• Tell a story that resonates. When I was a journalism student at the University of Central Lancashire, a lecturer instructed us to think about how we’d tell our mates at the pub about something when we were writing a news story. The same principle can be applied to writing media releases or social media posts.

• Back up your claims. Use statistics to support your case. This could include a consumer survey you’ve commissioned or the results of your product being tested.

• Know your audience. Adapt your tone and choice of language depending on who you’re communicating with, the medium you’re using and the message you’re sharing.

• Photography and videography. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video is worth a million. Still and moving images, either real or virtual reality, help illustrate what you’re trying to explain and are a great visual aid. Adding captions to photography or videography can reinforce your messaging, particularly on social media.

• Speak up. Have people who are prepared to stand up and speak out on behalf of your business. While the written word can be carefully considered and proofread, sometimes it’s good to talk. Having briefing notes before picking up the phone or dialling into a video call will help keep you on brand and on message.

If you need support in developing a communications strategy, including social media along with traditional media, contact us to find out how we can help.