How quickly we forget a name, a contact, a business, when they are not visible to us.

Marketing and PR is about visibility and there is no more important time than now to be visible. If you are not visible there is always the thought in some that you might not be trading.

I worked with a very successful digital marketing agency called CTI in Manchester – it is very much growing in staff, clients and reputation today. But the first piece of PR I worked with it on was the Dale Street Fire story (April 2007).

The fire affected two buildings, which housed many marketing and web agencies; some businesses I am sure did not survive.

The PR aimed to make sure that CTI’s clients and the market in general knew that not only had the agency survived, it was still doing well and able to offer its services to the level required. Indeed, the message was that it did not lose a single client even though such calamities usually lead to a curtailment of trading – a testament to CTI and one that I am sure enhanced its reputation.

Well, in these hard economic days a lack of visibility can be seen much the same way as a disaster affecting an enterprise.

Rumours abound in these days of cuts. So not having a clear message that is conveyed to the market effectively could be incredibly harmful to a business, if there is any doubt about the strength of your company.

Two North West organisations that are affected by the government cuts have done just that recently, setting out their positions and how they aim to go forward in key local business press – it is a wise move and one that I am sure will be helpful.

PR is not all about leads. Crisis PR is not all about natural and man-made tribulations such as fires. It can be as much about quashing doubt and fear and hearsay.

If you leave a void in communications, it can be filled with uncontrolled word of mouth messages very quickly. There is something you can do about it though.

I think this recession is getting tedious, very tedious indeed.

We have had two years of battening down the hatches and the “sunlit uplands” should be beckoning us forward.

The news of cuts – the media battle over this issue is a subject “entire of itself” and can be covered later – keeps our breadths held.

So what do you do?

Do you not spend anything other than on the business basics? Do you spend marketing budget and compete for the business that is out there?

I know that some companies are networking and marketing like crazy to get through and indeed prosper, others are withdrawing.

There are undoubtedly businesses that are succeeding. I know an independent traditional printer that is very busy and that is a sector where you might expect a company to fail in pressured times – not a bit of it.

It is succeeding through having a clear, targeted marketing strategy and through offering good service – nothing fancy you might say.

(I am making no value judgement on these that feel economic pain and those that don’t at all).

So back to my question and answer.

I think there is no choice as to whether you do marketing; there is a choice to how you do it.

This is a time for added awareness of your business, services or products, of building reputation. And more so about building trust than ever before – if companies are going to spend precious budgets, they will want to know that it is going to pay off and that means they will want to know you as well as what you offer.

“You would say that anyway” in terms of marketing and PR. Well yes, but if getting new business is as important as those other business essentials it would be hard to disagree.

The sharper amongst you will notice the quotes from Winston Churchill, John Donne and Mandy Rice-Davies (although the oft and misquoted version on this last one).

I will be giving a talk about PR and social media for artists and creatives at Waterside Arts Centre, Sale, Manchester.

The event, on Wednesday, afternoon of May 19th, will focus on how to raise profiles in a highly effective way without needing a big budget.

I will cover how to approach traditional  media (including press releases) as well exploring blogs, Twitter, Facebook and others ways to build awareness.

Fellow speakers will include Lee Taylor editor of Flux Magazine and Chris Fogg of creative agency Fogg Associates.

The cost is a steal at £15 (£12 concessionary).  If you also book for the Planning your Portfolio event before May 14th there is an early bird discount.

Tickets can be booked on 0161 912 5616 or at Waterside box office.

Artisan has registered a couple of notable landmarks recently: 4th birthday on March 1st and 500 posts on this very blog on February 19th.

And this month is the 4th anniversary of this blog delivering views, news and interviews.  I said on the 500 posts entry about what I had learnt and how I think I have improved as a writer and communicator (barring my desperate need of a sub-editor at times – no more job inquiries I was joking ( well half-joking!) (I do not need a sub-editor for my client work!)).

Well a few of the really early attempts to create material of interest that reflected my outlook and were possibly of interest to readers are not bad on reflection.

I thought this piece (from way back in April 2006) was worth a look: 10 PR Crimes.  This was based on a piece I got in Entrepreneur NW on 10 Networking Crimes for Mark Greenwood of Simply Networking.

Mark actually called me a month ago or so about another article I had written for him that he said read really well and was still fresh even though it has been written a few years ago.  Such praise is welcome.

Anyway here it is:

Rob Baker of Artisan follows on Mark Greenwood’s Networking Criminals article (that appears in the current issue of Entrepreneur North West) with 10 PR crimes that should be outlawed.

Writing poor English.

Anything that hampers the reader: long sentences; long paragraphs; over use of capital letters; jargon etc.

Disguising a press release as an advert – PR is about news, it is not free advertising. If it reads like an advert then you will not get in the paper, but you might get a call from the sales department inviting you to advertise.

Sending stories to papers that are of importance to you but are of no interest to anyone else.

Not recognising a great story when you have one to tell.

Not recognising all the titles and media channels that would be interested in your story or a contribution from you. It is alright getting in the Obscure Suburban Times
or the Unheard Of Village Enquirer but it is a rather limited outlook that will not yield the best results.

Telling the reader how delighted the managing director is that the company has won a one million pound account –would never have guessed that he or she would be pleased, but you can never tell. Quotes should be interesting and give a further insight into the story.

Dull photos. Use images to really enhance your story –it makes all the difference.

Not engaging with journalists. You should build up your relationship with journalists. Anonymous blankets e-mail shots with your story can have their place if you do not have much time. However, working with journalists, learning about their publications, their foibles and needs will really help you.

Writing poor English –it has to be said again.

This is one of the PR Tips article links on the front page of my blog, so it couldn’t have been so poor.  Check out Getting more out of your agency, Tips to improving your PR and Choosing your PR agency.

It is a hard thing to convey in words.

But I saw this fantastic image in The Guardian on Tuesday by photographer Michael Wolf.  Of course I don’t have this type of backdrop for my press images, but it is an arresting image that jumps off the page, grabs the eye.

Images are key, as one of my business journalist friends once said: “Images sell copy more than copy sells images.”

The aim of this post is to say images are not peripheral, but key.  Yes, this is not a business press release image, but it is arresting.

Have a look at Michael’s incredible images from China on the above link.

Have you heard of the charity DebRA?

DebRA is a charity devoted to finding a cure for a terrible skin afflication called Epidermolysis Bullosa.  More about the condition.

Have a look at this film about sufferer Jonny Kennedy – a real inspiration.

This is a very rare inherited condition that results in blisters, internally and externally, at the slightest knock.  Many sufferer develop skin cancer early.  The pain and restrictions on normal living are tremendous: changing dressing can take many painful hours.

I am giving some of my time to helping promote a dinner that deBRA is having in a month’s time.

The dinner has Michale Portillo speaking.  The event is now half full, but the organisers want to be sure of filling the remaining seats.  (I believe it is £450 per table of 10). The charity has some notable household names in addition to Michael.

The brief

The event should fill, but Tony one of the organisers is extra keen to put this to rest.  If the night is a success it will act as a platform for more – it will give the charity a real impetus.  So he is looking for ideas.

But more than that, the work of DebRA is not well-known.  The brief is flexible if it can get DebRA a higher profile.

All creative ideas welcome – something more than a charity run or jumping out of a plane – let your imagination run wild.

And you don’t have to be a PR to help – I also want to show how online interaction can work

Please leave ideas in the comment box!!!!

I had to do this, if only to use the image.

(Unfortunately I do not have the skills to airbrush myself – never mind).

The election will be almost upon us and as sure as summer used to herald the thwack of willow on hippy or crusty, the election will have that most weary of images: senior politicians pointing up at unconvincing posters, surrounded by photographers clicking away as though the public could not wait to read about it next day in the papers.

There are exceptions.  Saatchi and Saatchi’s Labour Isn’t Working had a touch of genius and was devastatingly effective.

But even I hoped this specimen might have dampened enthusiasm for the thrusting billboard campaign, I am disappointed:

I prefer:

Back to the serious point after these cheap jibes.  The conversations online are affecting the effectiveness of the traditional billboard.  This can be seen no more clearly than with my www.davidcameron.com

Within the time it takes to make a spoof, a campaign in “the real world” can be derided and scuppered, indeed work against the party in question.

Suddenly communications are more integrated and multi-channel than some imagined.

I expect when a political commentator asks will the election be fought online the answer from the “expert” should be it will be fought everywhere, and especially online.

George Dearsley, of Avante, has a 20 year track record providing media training for businesses such as Shell, Kodak, KPMG, Bupa and HBoS.

So he has been fascinated, when once again, brilliant marketers and business people continue to cause incalculable damage to their organisations when a crisis hits.  George compares how BAE Systems got it right and Toyota are still getting it wrong, and it need not be that way:

BAE Systems called me about a year ago and asked me to present to its main board on how the company was perceived by the media.

I was both flattered and intrigued. Why me?  I am not a defence specialist, but looking back maybe that’s exactly why I was invited.

I talked to a dozen national media friends beforehand: the first words spoken were “bribes, corruption, brown envelopes.”   There was little or nothing about full order books, cutting edge technology or good employee relations.

In a recent BBC commissioned poll of viewers voting on “What Makes Lancashire Great?” BAE Systems had come 140^th.

Slide two told them that in the same poll black pudding was 1st and the late Fred Dibnah was….26^th.  After the wry smiles we moved inevitably to bribery.  It clearly hurt.

But I told them (as I’m sure a PR person would) that the issue would not go away until there was a significant resolution to the whole affair.

I was reminded of that meeting when I saw a wonderful television performance last week by BAE Chairman Dick Olver.  The company, he announced, had agreed to pay fines of £286m in a deal with US and UK authorities to settle criminal investigations into its actions in Saudi Arabia and Tanzania.  He said in the interview the move would allow the company to “put a really hard line separating the past from the future.”

His key messages were all in place and delivered with great gravity and credibility.  It was a majestic performance.

Compare Mr. Olver’s effort with the shambolic PR exercised by Toyota in handling what began as a minor software glitch involving the braking system in one model.

The opening shot was a Japanese executive who faced television cameras wearing a surgical mask, quite commonly worn during Japan’s cold season.  This soon became a metaphor for a company that wasn’t being totally open with its customers.  The brand loyalty, which took years and millions of yen to build, was beginning to melt away.

The safety defects were initially portrayed as an American problem.  But this was not true and the dithering led to new questions about Toyota’s famous quality control.

In Europe and the US there were crucial delays between Toyota’s confirming a planned recall millions of cars and communicating this to the public.

Journalists, keen to keep the tale hot, were delighted when customers called in with complaints about other Toyota models. The dreaded “bandwagon effect” was about to take effect.

Throughout, Akio Toyoda, the company’s president, was invisible.  After weeks of silence he finally faced the media and was thoroughly unconvincing.

He forgot the golden rules:

• Act quickly and decisively
• Apologise
• Thank customers for their patience
• Explain what’s being done to put the problems right
• Carry out the remediation as soon as possible, whatever the cost

Toyota is now one of the stories of the day – day after day.  The cars have become the butt of pub jokes and programmes such as Mock The Week are getting great mileage out of the situation.  Toyota is now the Skoda of 2010.

The initial $2 billion recall and the loss of 17% of share value is likely to prove small change when the final bill is totted up.

In Japan there is a proverb: “If it stinks, put a lid on it.”

Sadly, it is the very opposite of good crisis news management strategy.

PR agencies sometimes don’t deliver – that is not big news, is it?

There are professionals and organisations that do not measure up in all sectors, perhaps over-selling to ensure the contract is theirs and then disappointing then when tested.

There are real issues concerning the reputation of PR agencies and when I saw this thread on LinkedIn I felt I had to answer.

Here are three comments I think show real misunderstanding – such views need to be challenged.

“The average agency client relationship lasts just 18 months because 99% of agency pitches are dishonest….sounds like PR firms need a lesson in PR!”

Kathy Towner, owner Win Communications

Well if I am honest that means statistically every other PR agency in Manchester and the North West is not – that doesn’t seem quite right.

But let me argue the real point and not the vitriolic bit, which might come from a bad experience and requires a venting of anger.

“Client relationships last 18 months.”

I am not sure where this is sourced and whether it is correct but let’s say it is.

Client relationships can end because a client suffers from a critical cash flow because of tax issues, loss of one of their key clients or the economic conditions.

Client relationships can also end because of the following reasons (I have listed 10 possibles):

• New marketing director wants his or her own agency brought in.
• The client feels a new agency will be extra keen, this is a perception that does not always ring true.
• The PR resource is brought in-house.
• Some clients only want a project with specified aims and time period.
• Sometimes after a couple of years the original aims of the client have been achieved or the account has been exhausted; some clients have a restricted range of subjects and news.
• The client is very busy and feels they do not need a PR agency anymore.
• The client has become very busy and does not have the time to devote to handling the agency and so has decided to put things on hold
• The client has grown or has changed and believes a new agency with specific experience or skills is needed.
• The client has unrealistic expectations and are disappointed when they are not filled.
• The agency has had enough of the lack of co-operation of the client; sometimes clients might not pay on time or at all.  (I worked for an agency where the client refused to pay and said the work was all done for free to curry favour despite contracts and e-mail clearly stating the work had been commissioned.  Apparently they had done this to a number of suppliers).

I have one client that I have worked with for two years and they put things on hold  in April for reasons that were no-one’s fault.  I met them today and they want me to take up the communication reigns again; I am starting work with them tomorrow.

“I’ve always found retainers to be self defeating in that they repeatedly prompt the same question: “what am I getting for this?” My response always has been to offer retainer, hourly rate and “per project” arrangements and let clients decide which they prefer.”

Bill Brody Professor Emeritus at the University of Memphis

Retainers make sense for an agency and client:

• Retainers allow an agency to invest time in researching opportunities.  It allows an agency to act on an opportunity; if you had to wait for an affirmative every time something came up it would be an impractical relationship.
• Retainers enable agencies to plan financially – retainers enable clients to plan financially.
• Retainers give agencies a robust model to work around.
• Retainers show the agency that the clients are committed to the relationship – this is reciprocated by any agency worth hiring.

If you want to offer a range of arrangements then do so.  But if you try and bend to all demands and requirements it is going to be more complicated than it need to be.

“We had two disappointing experiences with PR firms. How can you justify the expense of hours worked if at the end of it you can’t correlate any tangible improvement in business, customers, profits, image, or anything?”

Todd Lempicke

OptimalResume.com

It is not always easy to measure PR.  I tell that to all prospects.  I try to give a realistic opinion about possible results and let clients make a call based on sensible estimations.

• Clients – Let me say that some clients do not ask where new business has come from, so how can you measure it?  What if a client’s website loses a prospect or the way they are handled on the phone? mmmmmmm
• Profits – Doesn’t this mainly depend on variables that aren’t anything to do with PR such as costs of suppliers, wages, the economy, competition etc?
• Image – not easy to measure.
• Anything – PR works on many levels and it has a positive affect on many elements of a company.  If you agency does not deliver at all, either you have a really awful agency and you really need to be more careful in your hiring process or perhaps handle your agency better.

I was speaking to a client I worked for for over two years and whose contract finished in the summer.  He told me last Friday that his agency had got many inquiries, as much as a quarter, from a source he wasn’t sure of.  He supposed, as all his inquiries came from referrals, that this must be PR.  As his agency was small then, he told me PR was an important ingredient in its growth.  But there was no system in place to measure the effect.

I don’t mean this to be a them against us piece: it is not.  All I am saying is that it can be more complicated that is stated by the above statements.

When PR agencies peform and work well with clients the results can make companies.

What a great piece of PR.

I like it anyway.

A pub, probably with few stories to tell, suddenly has a “discarded” tank in its car park and some handy coverage in the local paper.  No-one knows whose tank it is, why it was left there; it is a good talking point: get a pint, have your photo on the tank – some useful revenue.

Actually there is only one “enthusiast” that has tanks in the area.  It is not a big mystery Poirot.  And you hardly forget where you park your tank; I have a silver Honda and in a big car park it can be hard to see, not so with camouflaged military hardware.

I just think this is quite a good example of how to create a story from nothing – a little bit of creativity, perhaps nothing special, but it tickled me.