The PR Report April 2012

the monthly newsletter for the Australian PR industry April 2012

1.

Lara Shannon (pic, right), launches ecochick media, and presents eco TV, online environmental news

2.

Kristy McSweeney leaves CPR Sydney for media relations role with Premier of Victoria (pic, below, right)

3.

Meat industry associations launch PR campaign to combat animal rights lobbying

4.

Hannah Furness (pic, below left) joins ZING PR

5.

Sophie Meere (pic, below, centre) new GM at Beyond The Square

7000+ subscribers: 50% are in‐house : 50% from PR agencies

evoTV hires senior producer as Head of Content Development

evoTV continues to build its team of content specialists with the appointment of accomplished television content creator, Raelene Metlitzky, who brings 20+ years experience across genres including news and finance, factual, light entertainment and documentaries.

As Head of Content Development at evoTV, Metlitzky will focus on broadening evoTV’s slate of branded content programs, developing and implementing creative strategies across emerging and current platforms. With considerable experience both in front of and behind the cameras, she will collaborate with evolution media’s PR division across branded content public relations clients, and in media training and executive coaching.

Her past roles have encompassed editorial, broadcast media, production, directing and script‐writing in Australia, the UK and the US. With a raft of many top‐rating shows to her name, such as So You Think You Can Dance, Biggest Loser, MasterChef, My Kitchen Rules, The Farmer Wants a Wife and Big Brother, Metlitzky has also worked on the development of network pilots and one‐off specials, as well as pursuing her interest in documentary making through her own production company.

Metlitzky is committed to the growth of branded content as a powerful marketing technique for business. She said: “Providing top quality, entertaining and informative branded content is where it’s at. Narrow casting, as opposed to broadcasting, and targeted niche content is such an exciting space to be in. In many cases, it is proving to be far more valuable than traditional advertising models.

“The days of armchair viewing are becoming a thing of the past. Viewers have become far more selective due to the choices available on multiplatform levels and they want a ‘lean forward’, interactive and engaging experience. The challenge we face as content makers is to remain relevant and connected by providing cohesive creative strategies,” she said.

evoTV has now successfully launched two shows for CPA Australia – The Bottom Line and The Naked CEO, as well as its own show ‐ No More Practice – which airs online and on Channel Seven’s digital channel, 4Me. Several other shows are currently in the pipeline and expected for release later in 2012.

News Corp paywall; AFL to launch online media/PR unit

ABC TV’s Media Watch on 9/4/2012 reported two items of interest for PR practitioners:

Firstly, News Corp’s Melbourne paper The Herald Sun will soon charge for online content. According to Simon Pristel, Editor of The Herald Sun, the focus of the online content will be on sport, crime and news.

Secondly, Melbourne based sports association, the AFL, has recruited The Herald Sun’s former online editor to ramp up a massive digital content team, reported to be 100+ former journalists, editors, sub‐editors and digital production staff.

The move by the AFL has the potential to attract (and poach) viewers and readers from free‐to‐air TV stations and Melbourne’s newspapers. Sport is a huge driver for traditional media, and AFL in Melbourne is the de‐facto religion; the move by the AFL poses a potential loss of ad revenue to News and the TV stations; will their editorial coverage change?

What is the definition of a journalist? The ABC Media Watch presenter questioned why the AFL is calling their production team a “media unit” as opposed to a PR unit; the AFL staff are called “journalists” but one of the distinctions between journalists and PRs is that journalists don’t work for organizations they report on. Will the MEAA and the PRIA adjudicate?

See the ABC TV Media Watch episode here: http://www.abc.net.au/iview/#/view/921559

Shannon launches eco website, hosts eco TV

Ecochick.com is a new environmental blog and lifestyle website, providing a resource and inspiration for people to reduce their environmental footprint through simple, sustainable lifestyle changes. Founded by Environmental PR & marketing consultant, Lara Shannon, Ecochick.com features blogs, eco product reviews and offers, environmental news and more, helping individuals to reduce their impact on the environment.

In her blog, Shannon tackles key environmental issues in an easy to understand manner. Discussing issues from natural fertility to home energy and sustainability tips, eating organic to natural skincare and celebrity interviews, Shannon’s discussions help show people that it is easy to be green.

An Eco Directory Listing section also helps readers find suppliers and businesses offering green products and services across a wide range of categories including cosmetics, skincare, homewares, house & garden, petcare, toys, arts & crafts and more.

A passionate environmental campaigner, Shannon has worked with a number of environmental organisations in Australia and the UK for over 15 years, including Keep Australia Beautiful, Planet Ark, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and many others.

Shannon also started hosting the online TV show Eco TV, which airs on the Eyeworld TV Network or at http://ecotv.com.au

Snippets

Lachlan Crutchfield joins Red PR Group as Senior Account Manager

Spies suspected of setting up fake Facebook account for top US military man: http://tinyurl.com/7dwdzpe

Facebook buys Instagram for US$1 billion (cash & stock deal); Facebook to IPO in the next few weeks

Kony 2012 racked up 110 million hits on Vimeo/YouTube. What about the organisation behind Kony 2012? Charlie Brooker, UK media commentator, gives his opinion: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpuB11d0Gog

NSW Premier’s Director of Communications, Peter Grimshaw, resigns in disgrace over email leaks: Grimshaw became the story. Data security is a key issue for PRs; see our Top 20 Trends report from 2011 and 2012 (obviously Grimshaw didn’t think it a worthwhile read…)

Mark Textor explains value of new media for PRs http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/one‐tweet‐and‐a‐little‐bird‐can‐drop‐a‐bombshell‐20120316‐1vail.html

AAP Newscentre to Offer Social Media Monitoring: Newscentre, an Australian Associated Press company, has signed an agreement with international social media monitoring provider Sentiment Metrics. The Sentiment Metrics platform covers posts across Twitter, Facebook, You Tube, 150+ million blogs and 42,000 global news sites 24/7.

Pew Centre’s State of the Media 2012 report highlights rise of mobile: http://stateofthemedia.org/2012/overview‐4

The law to end all Laws? New ACMA laws from May 1 ensure broadcasters openly disclose sponsors. ACMA rules follow scandal 12 years ago when radio entertainers such as John Laws were embroiled in cash‐for‐comment sponsorships.

From Crikey (16/3/2012): “Qantas spinners fly the coop. Chief Qantas spinner Olivia Wirth will be scouring the resumes in coming weeks, after two of her direct reports suddenly quit the airline. The Australian Financial Review reports that Jim Carden, head of government and public affairs, and Justin Kelly, head of corporate communications, have both resigned "to pursue other interests"

Patrick Baume leaves Media Monitors (now Sentia Media) to take up a comms role with Lifeline – and replaced by John Chalmers, previously Group Communications Advisor at Media Monitors

Flourish PR wins 2 new clients: ONEsenior and Red Bull Beat Suit

Food PR: Ghost writers for chefs and their food cookbooks http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/14/dining/i‐was‐a‐cookbook‐ghostwriter.html

Kristy McSweeney leaves PR agency, CPR Sydney, to take up a media advisor and comms role with Premier of Victoria

Queensland: LNP win in QLD state election. The following Barton Deakin Brief provides a summary of the Queensland State Election. To access a four‐page document, click on the link below. http://bartondeakin.com.au/briefs/Queensland_State_Election

NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell bans success fees for lobbyists: NSW Premier has banned lobbyist success fees and political donations from corporations and special interest groups. (The decision may hit Labor hardest as it also curtails union spending on election advertising and makes it illegal for unions to pay affiliation fees to political parties.)

ANZAC Day media guide, from Monash Uni http://arts.monash.edu.au/anzac‐remembered/anzac‐day‐for‐journalists.php

Sydney PR agency Sweaty Betty had Channel 7 with them for 8 months filming a “life in a PR agency” doco – Seven have decided not to broadcast the show, but Sweaty Betty founder, Roxy Jacenko, says she in discussions with another broadcaster; we’ll keep you posted...

UK: Head of PR/comms for Met Police resigns over fallout from phone hacking enquiry http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/mar/29/dick‐fedorcio‐resigns‐metropolitan‐ police?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Fmedia%2Frss+%28Media% 29

The need for speed: Twitter hoaxer fools traditional media http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/mar/30/twitter‐hoaxer‐tommaso‐de‐ benedetti?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Fmedia%2Frss+%28Med ia%29

Ogilvy Sydney has won the account to launch branded retail stores for British shirtmaker, TM Lewin, into the Australian market. The retail market in the UK is fiercely competitive with a number of shirt suppliers (PINK, TM Lewin, Charles Tyrwitt) competing with the high street chains (Marks & Spencer, BHS, Next etc)

BENCH PR wins Check Point Software Technologies

BENCH PR has won the PR account for Check Point Software Technologies. Check Point is an IT company that specializes in network‐security software and services, including firewalls, virtual private networks (VPNs) and security management.

BENCH PR will drive Check Point’s public relations campaign across Australia and New Zealand, working with customers, partners, media and other influencers to raise the profile of the company with large enterprises, service providers, small and medium sized businesses and consumers.

AGENT99 runs campaign for charity Child Wise

Agent99 Public Relations will promote the new ‘Listen Up’ campaign for Child Wise to help prevent child abuse. Agent99 has worked with Child Wise to roll out their past campaigns including Wise Up and Speak Up.

Child Wise (www.childwise.net) a child protection charity, says the biggest threat to children’s futures is abuse. Child Wise is dedicated to protecting children from abuse and exploitation in Australia, Asia and the Pacific.

Their programs seek to prevent child abuse by providing greater awareness and understanding; as well as providing the tools and strategies for individuals, organisations and communities to address these issues.

Agent99 is assisting in promoting their newest ‘LISTEN UP’ initiative. LISTEN UP aims to educate Australians, especially parents and carers about the importance of having a 24/7 Helpline available to provide advice, help and support for people to prevent or stop child abuse. The helpline currently operates from 9am until 5pm.

UK’s Guardian suggests ABC’s Mark Scott in running for top job at the BBC: ism it a set‐up?

ABC Managing Director Mark Scott has been featured in UK newspaper The Guardian as a potential candidate for the top job at the BBC over the past few months. Would the BBC hire a “foreigner” to run the broadcaster? Or, is Scott is on the shortlist as a clever ploy to lower salary expectations of other applicants?

Scott’s salary at the ABC (at A$750k) is below what the current BBC MD gets (the MD role is called the Director General at the BBC). The current BBC DG is on the equivalent of A$1.5m (depending on exchange rates); a salary that is causing considerable negative publicity to the BBC and the UK Government, who have promised to reign in “fat cat” salaries and cut the BBC’s budget. Lowering salary expectations for the next BBC DG is a key driver for whoever is recruiting, so having Scott on the short list might allow the recruiter to let other contenders know that one contender would settle for much less than the current incumbent. Scott’s also given a few presentations at prominent UK/EU media conferences over the past few years, where he may have met a few BBC types; speaking at conferences overseas is often great cover for Aussie executives to engage in a bit of networking (not to be confused with interviews).

However, the top job at the BBC may be a poisoned chalice these days. The BBC may well be more independent than the ABC (the UK public pay an annual license fee direct to the BBC, as opposed to Scott getting a cheque from the Minister each year), however, following a number of scandals, the BBC’s reputation in the UK is not what it is around the world. The current UK Government’s desire for huge cuts at the BBC means the top job will be to cut, cut, and cut again. There’s no doubt Scott would be labeled by the tabloids as “the Aussie Axe man” or, more likely, “Scott of the Antarctic budget”.

The key challenge at the BBC is how to cut the entrenched high cost senior management and the even higher cost talent/celebrity system; Scott would need to, in the words of Australian TV commentator Eddie McGuire, “bone” a lot of senior staff, with many “stars” being asked to eat a “sh*t sandwich” on salary negotiations. Scott has made a big point of “de‐politicising the ABC” – which is impossible in the UK, partly because BBC staff are well connected with other journalists, especially at Private Eye, where the Beeb has it’s own column and dedicated cartoon.

Scott would face the uphill battle of being an immigrant at one of Britain’s most class conscious establishment organizations.

Then again, immigrants always get the crappy jobs the locals don’t want…

Burbury and Stafford launch Talking Head Media

Former Access PR founder Rochelle Burbury and former Seven Network reporter Shauna Stafford have launched Talking Head Media (www.talkingheadmedia.com.au), a media and communications training firm focused on both mainstream and social media skills for executives.

Burbury and Stafford say they have created Talking Head Media to: “provide executives with the tools and skills required to become more effective communicators.”

Talking Head Media offers one‐on‐one and group on‐camera media training, understanding the media, key message development and delivery, presentation and pitch skills and social media essentials.

Burbury is also Consulting Editor at AdNews. Prior to AdNews Burbury was media and marketing editor at The Australian Financial Review, and wrote for AFR BOSS and AFR Magazine. Prior to the AFR she was media and marketing editor with the Business sections of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian. Burbury began her career at B&T Magazine.

Shauna Stafford has worked as a reporter and producer for the Seven Network, the BBC, Reuters and ABC Radio. After an extended stint working as a journalist in London, she was based in Los Angeles for 11 years, working as both a journalist and media trainer. Her expertise in message development led to regular guest speaking appearances at business conferences and universities in the US.

Beyond The Square wins 3 new accounts, promotes Meere to GM

PR agency Beyond The Square Communication (BTS) has won three new clients:

1. Autism Spectrum Australia (Aspect), secured after a competitive pitch which will see BTS drive the association’s public relations and social media activity for the next 18 months.

2. Hong Kong based Global sourcing conglomerate Alibaba has committed to a 12 month strategy to cement their worldwide brand in Australia.

3. Skin care brand Papulex, part of pharmaceutical multinational Invida, has also joined the agency’s client roster.

BTS has also promoted Sophie Meere (pic, right) to General Manager with the mandate to drive the business’ current growth both from a PR and digital perspective.

New CBD home for BWD

After calling the city’s North Shore home for more than 20 years, corporate publishing and strategic and creative services agency Businesswriters & Design (BWD) recently relocated to new premises in the heart of the Sydney CBD.

Now in a newly refurbished space on the corner of George and Bridge streets, the agency is closer to its many Sydney‐based clients which include eBay, Lion (formerly Lion Nathan), Caltex Australia, the Australian Energy Market Commission, Mission Australia, and mining and resources company Astron Limited.

BWD’s relocation follows strong business performance over the past twelve months. In the last quarter of 2011 the agency was appointed to write and design Lion’s sustainability report and supporting communications; write Santos’s sustainability report, and was appointed to a panel to supply creative and design services to 32 participating government departments and agencies. Since then it has also produced a suite of communications collateral for ASX‐listed mining company Astron Limited.

Photograph (from left to right): Evan Petrelis (General Manager); Chin Yee Lam (Designer); Derryn Heilbuth (Managing Director); Bruce Heilbuth (Editorial Director); Sue White (Finance Manager); Chris Chatfield (Senior Designer); Katrina Pitkin (Design Director)

Change.org shows how web is changing PR

In the wake of Kyle Sandilands’ “fat slag” comments, Melbourne law graduate Emily Hehir started a Change.org petition which called on advertisers to boycott his program.

More than 34,000 Australians signed the petition, leading to the withdrawal of more than 60 advertisers at an estimated cost of $10 million.

Change.org Communications Director Tony Robertson said that individuals will increasingly turn to online activism if regulators continue to fail to live up to community expectations.

“The internet gives individuals the power to collectively effect change in ways they never could just by acting alone,” said Robertson.

“More than 34,000 Australians signed the Change.org petition because they were disgusted by Kyle Sandilands’ comments.

Those who signed the petition witnessed the tangible power of their collective action as dozens of advertisers quickly withdrew their support and distanced themselves from Sandilands’ behaviour.

“Contrast this with the experience of someone who may have tried to seek redress through ACMA. They waited nearly two months to hear if the regulator was going to investigate ‐ and then another two months before today’s decision. ACMA calls this ‘a relatively quick time’.

“Regulators ‐ and particularly regulators seen to be ineffective ‐ will increasingly become irrelevant as individuals turn to platforms like Change.org to take action.

“The message for the corporate world is simple: if regulators don’t hold you to account for your actions, then ordinary people using social media will.”

For more information on Change.org: http://www.change.org

Choice’s message to PR; watch your “fat‐free” words

CHOICE has welcomed a proposal to crack down on ‘fat free’ and ‘percentage fat free’ claims on unhealthy products but the people’s watchdog says the proposed rules must extend to all fat content claims on food labels to avoid creating a big fat loophole.

The rules proposed in a Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) consultation on health and nutrition claims would mean that manufacturers prevented from making a ‘percentage fat free’ claim could re‐word the claim to ‘percentage fat’ to avoid regulatory oversight.

To see examples of products that the proposed regulation will or won't capture, go to www.choice.com.au/bigfatloophole

Click PR wins Rackspace account

Click PR has won the Rackspace account for Australia and New Zealand after a competitive pitch.

The agency was also recently chosen as the launch partner for consumer affairs website uVent, and tech PR veteran Povel Torudd will be joining as Senior Account Manager from April 10.

Click PR will begin managing Rackspace's PR immediately.

Award for Tourism NT’s campaign

Tourism NT has won a fourth award for its KISS FM “Big Outback Adventure” radio campaign in the United Kingdom.

The campaign scooped first prize in the Best Radio Advertisement category at the UK’s travel industry’s premier event, the Travel Marketing Awards, which took place at the Intercontinental Hotel in London’s Park Lane on 22nd March.

The campaign has already won two awards at the British Youth Travel Awards, and won a silver at last year’s Travel Marketing awards. The three month campaign was aimed at the UK youth market and was centred around a competition ‐ the Big Outback Adventure ‐ that saw the winner travel around the Northern Territory sharing their experiences on a variety of social media platforms. The promotion ran on KISS FM’s Drive time show and blogging, webisodes and social media were used in parallel with the radio campaign.

The campaign peaked with a week‐long “Hunt the Croc” promotion, where listeners received daily clues to find one of five hidden inflatable crocodiles to win a holiday to the Northern Territory.

The radio station saw a 33% increase in awareness of the NT amongst its 1.8million audiences with the listeners subsequently ranking Australia as their number one long haul destination.

Fleur Burrows from Robert Hardless Associates (RHA), who collected the award on behalf of Tourism NT, co‐ordinated the campaign with support from Keene, its UK PR agency.

“The recognition we’ve gained from the industry is tremendous. The Big Outback Adventure continues to be an excellent platform for us, showcasing the vibrant, youthful and adventurous Northern Territory. Tourism NT globally is working hard to raise the profile of the beautiful Northern Territory and in the UK market particularly – youth is absolutely key for us,” Burrows said.

A third phase is currently being rolled out in market and RHA and Keene are hoping they’ll be back at the Travel Marketing Awards for a third time.

Photo: Dennis Smith from KISS, Fleur from RHA (Tourism NT) and a representative from the Awards

CP Communications wins three new accounts

Public relations & social media agency, CP Communications, has won three new accounts: digital marketing agency Next Digital; marketing and advertising agency Pulse Marketing and leadership assessment company The Leadership Circle.

CP Communications will be responsible for managing strategic and creative public relations for Next Digital, Pulse Marketing and The Leadership Circle.

These three new companies will join CP Communications’ diverse range of clients, which include Hilton Worldwide and Macquarie University’s Faculty of Business and Economics.

Photo: Irina Belsky, Rebecca Parry, Lauren Milne, Leiah (the dog), Catriona Pollard (Our Director), Alison Buckland

Delib appoints Thomler to head Delib Australia

Delib – the ‘digital democracy’ company that helped the Obama Government run their first crowd‐sourcing project and supported the UK Government’s first e‐voting pilots – is expanding its operations to Australia. Delib Australia has appointed Craig Thomler – a leading open government advocate and marketing professional – to the role of Managing Director.

Delib Australia will initially be based in Canberra and cloud‐host its services within Australia to provide governments and corporations with higher speed, reliability and security.

Delib provides ‘out‐of‐the‐box’ and custom online consultation and public participation tools, and has already assisted Australian governments from its UK base; having an Australian office will ensure local clients benefit from local expertise.

‘Increasingly, governments and organisations are seeking innovative yet cost‐effective ways of engaging with the public, and this is where Delib Australia can help,” said Chris Quigley, co‐founder and CEO of Delib.

‘We offer Australian governments and companies the ability to enhance their public engagement practices while using our management and analytics capabilities to reduce the cost and time to design, manage and respond to consultation processes.’

In 2010 the company developed the Citizen Space platform in partnership with the UK government, a cloud‐based online consultation system for governments. Citizen Space meets high standards of accessibility, security, and ease‐of‐use at a cost‐ effective price.

Recognition PR wins Energy Action account

Energy Action, ASX: AEX, provider of innovative, integrated energy management services to the Australian market and has engaged Recognition PR to implement ongoing public relations activities. Recognition PR was selected following a competitive pitch.

Recognition PR will be working to profile the Australian Energy Exchange, which lets energy suppliers competitively bid to supply an organisation’s energy – with a best fit contract secured in around 15 minutes. Recognition will also be highlighting Energy Action’s comprehensive suite of products and services which complement the Australian Energy Exchange and help businesses better understand, monitor and manage energy usage and carbon emissions.

A word with you

The importance of polish

When PRs write for clients, they sometimes forget the importance of editing and proofreading the copy thoroughly before sending it out.

Skimping on quality, unfortunately, can be damaging to the image of your firm in the eyes of your client, and to the image of your client if it goes to the wider world in its raw state.

Subconsciously, people who read copy that has not been properly edited can get the impression that the firm might be slipshod in the rest of what it does. And this can hurt your brand and that of your client.

A piece of writing that is crystal clear and powerfully structured was virtually never as perfect after the first draft. The writer will have taken that draft through the three vital layers of editing to produce something that is brilliantly clear and effective.

First you read the piece for the big picture (substantive editing); then you knock each sentence into shape (copyediting); and finally you remove the stubborn errors that remain (proofreading).

It pays to polish!

This monthly writing guide is provided by Tony Spencer‐Smith of the corporate editorial consultancy Express Editors (www.expresseditors.com). Contact him on tony.spencersmith@gmail.com if you want to comment or find out more about his writing, editing and training services.

Learning the writing secrets of the great You are a good writer, but can you write winning words? Words that are winners in terms of quality but which also have the power to win people over?

A full‐day business writing course in Sydney on 30 April called Winning words: writing to engage and influence could help you to do just that.

PR consultants who write thought leadership pieces, speeches and other content for clients need to do so in as engaging and persuasive a way as possible. The secret is a two‐pronged approach to persuasion: crisp logical argument combined with an emotive appeal. And that means using rhetoric, storytelling and even poetic devices to intensify our arguments.

Great writers and leaders have long used a range of ways to make their words more powerful. Be inspired by them at Winning words: writing to engage and influence, presented by one of Sydney’s most experienced corporate writing trainers, Tony Spencer‐Smith, managing partner of the editorial consultancy Express Editors.

The fee for the course is $396 including GST. Visit http://www.expresseditors.com/winning‐words‐course.html to learn more about the course, and to enrol online.

Tony Spencer‐Smith has trained hundreds of people to write better. As well as being a corporate writer and editor, he is an award‐winning novelist and has been a newspaper journalist and Editor‐in‐Chief of Reader’s Digest magazine. You can contact him on 02 8901‐0646 and tony.spencersmith@gmail.com.

The PR Report launches Podcast & Webinar service

The PR Report is expanding with the introduction of podcast and webinar services.

Podcasts are like digital radio, or a digital audio file that you can access at any time. Our first podcast is on the topic of “Podcasting for PR practitioners” and is available via our website or via iTunes:

Topic for 1st episode:

Can you make #1 on iTunes?

The Top 5 Podcasting Tips

Glen Frost, Editor, The PR Report speaks with Kylie Johnson, Founder, KJ Media (hyperlink to www.kyliejohnson.com.au)

Delivering your corporate message via a podcast offers PR practitioners the opportunity to reach a global audience. Now, thanks to the phenomenal rise of smart phones, podcasts have a new lease on life with the potential to reach an even bigger audience, delivering that magical ROI for PRs. In this episode, Glen Frost interviews Kylie Johnson of KJ Media (www.kyliejohnson.com.au) and covers the following:

1.

Understanding the basics of podcasting 2.

What equipment and skills you need 3.

How to find and develop talent in your organisation 4.

How Kylie’s podcast at the CSIRO out‐ranked the ABC on iTunes (that’s ROI) 5.

Kylie’s Top 5 Tips for Podcasting

Time: 12 minutes

http://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/the-pr-report/id516489821

If you don’t have access to iTunes, the podcast is on The PR Report’s website here: http://www.theprreport.com/2012/04/can‐you‐make‐1‐on‐itunes‐the‐top‐5‐podcasting‐tips

Webinars are live events that offer you the chance to listen to a live interview, then ask questions via the webinar program (or via Twitter).

Sponsorship opportunities:

Given the costs associated with researching and producing the podcast and webinar services, The PR Report is seeking sponsors for a number of episodes; if you are interested in sponsoring future episodes, please contact glen@theprreport.com for more details.

Case study: Virgin Money’s social treasure hunt

by Dan Young, Encoder PR

To raise awareness of Virgin Money’s new Low Rate Credit Card, while also growing their Facebook community base, the team at Encoder Public Relations developed and executed a social media campaign that saw people all over Australia competing in an online treasure hunt to locate Sir Richard Branson’s missing cards.

“Virgin Low Rate LOWcate was born from our desire to do something fun and ‘Virgin’ that people would be genuinely interested in,” said Virgin Money Australia’s Marketing Director, Danielle Williams. “The campaign utilised social media and word‐of‐mouth to reach and engage a huge audience. It was massively successful – our Facebook community more than doubled, our customer acquisition targets were exceeded, and most importantly of all, the consumer involvement and feedback was overwhelmingly positive.”

A video featuring Richard Branson acted as the launch pad for the campaign. The video showed Richard Branson explaining how he left behind five cards which were intended for a staff incentive during a recent trip to Australia. Viewers were then prompted to take part in the Australia‐wide online hunt for five cards over five days. Each lucky ‘LOWcater’ took home $1,299; which communicated the interest rate of the new credit card (12.99%).

Awareness and excitement was built via targeted blogs (Pedestrian TV, PopSugar and I Do Believe I Came With A Hat) and Virgin branded social channels. A small Facebook ad investment also helped drive traffic to the application.

The social media campaign ran for five consecutive days with cards virtually hidden in five locations across Australia. Each day clues were released via an application on the company’s Australian Facebook page, which was developed by Encoder PR in collaboration with its developer partner. Users could sign up for SMS reminders to ensure they were among the first to see the new clues. The first competitor to correctly guess the LOWcation of each card won.

Consumer engagement and interaction grew steadily throughout each day of the social media campaign, and the buzz that came from participants far exceeded Virgin Money’s expectations.

Encoder PR developed the Virgin Low Rate LOWcate concept and managed pre‐promotion, content and app developments, and campaign execution. The Sydney based consumer agency applied its measurement framework to the campaign, which tracks actions in social media and converts them into financial metrics and brand benchmarks for future campaigns.

AON report analyses risk from social media

By James Griffin, Director, SR7

Aon annually produce one the most comprehensive ‘Risk Surveys’ in the Asia Pacific region.

This year, for the fifth year in a row – damage to brand and image has retained the number one spot. In large part due to social media. The implication of social media and its ability to ‘damage to brand and image’ has been noted in the survey.

Social media now plays a critical role in the ability to ‘make or break’ a brand.

Aon, headquartered in Chicago, is the leading global provider of risk management services, insurance and reinsurance brokerage, and human resources solutions and outsourcing.

This year celebrates the 10th anniversary of the survey. The findings from Aon's 2011/12 Australasian Risk Survey are based on information from 318 Australian and 32 New Zealand organisations collected in October and November 2011.

Interestingly, despite a tightening up of the credit markets during and post GFC, brand and image remains number one. This tells and interesting story about how much value companies place in their brands.

One example of social media activism was recently seen with the huge amount of pressure placed on brands via social media to dump sponsorship of The Circle (Yumi Stynes) and 2Day FM. The modern consumer wields significant power that they previously never had.

Maverick wins Maybelline cosmetics PR account

Independent agency Maverick has won the PR account for cosmetics brand Maybelline NY for their sponsorship of Mercedes‐Benz Fashion Week Australia (MBFWA). The campaign will launch in April 2012 and is designed to bring Maybelline’s inaugural sponsorship of Australian Fashion Week and Sydney Fashion Festival to life.

Maybelline NY has long been the premium make‐up partner for fashion weeks globally, including New York Fashion Week for the past 5 seasons. The deal signed with IMG Australia signals a move to more closely align the brands expertise in beauty and colour trends with the creative and trend driven world of fashion.

The L’Oreal owned cosmetics brand required a campaign that could excite and engage delegates at Australia Fashion Week and the broader consumer audience, whilst also generating significant media coverage. Maverick and Maverick PR presented a number of creative concepts to win the account.

Red Agency wins Queensland Rail Travel account

PR consultancy Red Agency has been appointed by Queensland Rail Travel to roll out communications activities in 2012, with the aim of increasing awareness of the organisation’s unique tourist routes.

Queensland Rail Travel offers several rail holiday packages on its iconic trains, including; The Sunlander; the Tilt Train; and the Kuranda Scenic Railway. It is well known in its home state but has appointed Red Agency to build its profile and increase patronage from NSW and Victoria as well as internationally.

Is your Facebook content is too boring?

The following are the key points from the Newspoll Survey on Facebook:

How do you use Facebook nowadays?

• 73% of Australians use Facebook – highest among the 18‐34 age group (85%), followed by 74% of 35‐49 year olds, and lowest in older demographic (50‐64) at just 55% • 67% access Facebook on a laptop or desktop computer, 31% use a smartphone, 12% use a computer tablet • 27% of Australians do not use Facebook at all – 45% of those aged 50‐64 do not use Facebook.

• 53% of 18‐34 year olds use a smart phone to use Facebook – 22% higher than the average • Facebook usage is highest among city folk (74%) – 6 points higher than those that live outside of major Australian cities.

Facebook interaction in the last three months

• Around three in four Australians say they interact with Facebook by clicking ‘like’ on a friend’s link, photo, and status update. 18‐34 year olds over index in all of these interactions.

• Compared to men, women are more likely to click ‘like’ on a friend’s link, photo, status update, and on a company/brand page.

• Only 55% of Australians said they clicked ‘like’ on a company/brand page – significantly lower among older demographic at 45% • Interestingly, males were (slightly) more likely to click both ‘like’ and ‘unlike’ on a celebrity page versus women.

• Those that live in major capital cities are more likely to click ‘unlike’ on a friend’s link, photo, status update, a company/brand page, and/or celebrity page, compared to those that live outside of the city.

Why did you click ‘Like’ on a company/brand page on Facebook?

• 69% of Australians said they clicked ‘like’ on a company/brand page to be in the running to win something, followed by 58% saying they did it to receive a discount on a product of get free product samples, and 55% clicked ‘like’ to learn about products and services.

• Compared to the total benchmark, 18‐34 year olds were significantly more likely to click ‘like’ on a company page to follow its news on their own news feed (63% vs 53% total), and to gain access to exclusive content (62% vs 53% total).’

• 25% of males said they clicked ‘like’ on a company/brand page to project an image about themselves – compared to 15% of women. 25% of 18‐34 year olds said the same thing.

• Just over half of all Australians said they clicked ‘like’ on a company/brand page to learn about products or services (55%), and share the content with their friends (51%).

• 40% of blue collar workers and low income households said they clicked ‘like’ on a company page to communicate with the page owner (vs 36% total benchmark). These groups were also much more likely to share the content with their friends.

Why did you click ‘Unlike’ on a company/brand page on Facebook?

• The biggest reason for Aussies clicking ‘unlike’ on a company/brand page was that the content wasn’t as relevant as they would have thought (69%), followed by their Facebook news feed was becoming too cluttered (67%), the page posted updates too frequently (63%), and the content was becoming too boring (62%).

Horizon wins Ali Baba account

Horizon Communication Group has been appointed food outlet Ali Baba’s communications and PR consultancy.

Horizon will support the company’s ambitious growth plans for the next five years – this involves changing current perceptions, broadening the target market and highlighting the brands nutritional credentials. The brand aims to open a number of new stores across NSW, QLD, VIC and ACT.

ZING appoints Furness to AD role

Independent PR agency Zing has appointed Hannah Furness as Account Director, to work on key clients including Allen’s, Nikon and Paramount Home Media Distribution.

Furness brings six years of experience from agencies – Red Agency, Access PR and Momentum Worldwide, where she worked on clients such as Woolworths, Global Shop Direct, Big W, Fairfax Media and Events, Parrot, Lion, MCM Media, Earth Hour, Lebara Mobile, Top Gear Live, Pizza Hut, American Express and more.

Hale leaves BlueOrb for GM role at Change The Conversation

Stephen Hale is leaving BlueOrb Communications to take on broader role at Change The Conversation, a full service agency, starting on the 17th of April. Hale will also be a shareholder in the agency. http://www.changetheconversation.com.au

IMPACT secures food clients IMPACT Communications Australia has won Horticulture Australia’s Chestnuts Australia account to promote chestnuts and signed Custard Apples Australia for the fourth consecutive year, strengthening the company’s fresh produce portfolio.

IMPACT’s campaign will address research by Chestnuts Australia, that revealed sales of chestnuts were adversely affected because consumers do not know what to do with them. IMPACT has signed Stefano Manfredi, restaurateur and owner of Balla and Manfredi at Bells of Killcare to educate consumers with an exciting ‘three ways with chestnuts’ campaign.

The Custard Apples Industry re‐appointed IMPACT to educate consumers on the availability of the fruit in 2012, after the previous year’s crop was negatively affected by bad weather. IMPACT has signed Adam Liaw, 2010 MasterChef winner, as custard apple ambassador to translate the Asian community’s love affair with custard apples. He will also position the sweet, underused fruit as a dessert.

These fresh produce accounts see IMPACT increase its FMCG portfolio, which includes; CHUX, Lady Jayne, SAXA and Fountain Sauces. IMPACT also represents; avocados, lychees, papaya, passionfruit, pears and turf on behalf of Horticulture Australia Limited.

IMPACT’s directors, Allison Lee and Nicole Webb understand aligning fresh produce with celebrity chefs assists to leverage but does not guarantee campaign success.

“Celebrity ambassadors gain consumers attention in the noisy FMCG space, but campaigns must go beyond the celebrity element to tell a new story, evoke emotions and create talkability,” says Lee. According to IMPACT, key to success in the food sphere is digital outreach, to bloggers and online media.

“Bloggers create new trends and evolve how we perceive food by instantaneously disseminating information and provoking actions. Their raw honesty and emotive writing increasingly makes bloggers exciting and diverse thought‐leaders,” Lee says.

IMPACT has developed a ‘Blogger Code of Conduct’ to ensure interaction with bloggers is carried out with integrity and honesty. IMPACT also sponsored the 2011 food blogger conference, Eat.Drink.Blog and is continuing to develop mutual relationships with bloggers.

Floktu offers online event management system for PRs

Australian company Floktu has launched an online one‐stop‐shop software solution, which includes a mobile app, for event organisers and PR managers.

in a few clicks Floktu generates an event website and mobile app for the event, brands the event, enables real time updates to maps and locations, venues and speakers, enables on‐line ticket sales and registrations, promotes the event via social media such as Facebook and LinkedIn, manages emails and reports on the financial outcomes of the event. Last minute changes like speaker drop‐outs are managed in real time with the Floktu Wizard.

“This is a huge win for event organizers; especially in reducing the costs and angst of running an event. Our goal at Floktu is for technology to be fun for an event organizer ... no matter what type or complexity of event: VIP event, charity fundraiser, trade show, golf day or trade exhibition right through to a large corporate conference,” says Floktu CEO, Jeremy de Constantin.

Floktu’s clients include Conexus Financial Services, the Royal Adelaide Show, Motorola, the Screen Producers’ Association of Australia, Starlight Cinema, Auto One and Everyone Can Dance, a charity for disabled children and adults.

Check out the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F‐DfUxTLkhA; or website www.floktu.com

The software is free for free events. If the event has a paid‐for‐ticket, Floktu takes a % fee.

Floktu contact: Briana Graydon: 0417 652 853 or briana@floktu.com

HILL+KNOWLTON hires Brown

PR agency Hill+Knowlton has hired Kate Brown as Public Relations and Trade Manager representing Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (ADTCA) and other clients within the Passport Marketing portfolio.

Brown has nine years of experience within the tourism industry, having previous experience representing destinations such as Canadian Tourism Commission, Vanuatu Tourism Office and PromPeru.

In her previous roles, Brown coordinated and implemented various joint marketing programs, ran numerous travel trade road shows, coordinated and escorted travel agent familiarisations and developed training programs. During her time with the Canadian Tourism Commission Brown assisted with the development of the online Canada Specialist Program successfully implementing it in the Australian market increasing the member database by over 100 per cent.

New agency Sydney Marketing Services launches

Sydney Marketing Services launched in February with a website (www.sydneymarketingservices.com.au) that brings together a number of specialised businesses under one umbrella. This is a consortium with each of the businesses still maintaining their own identities. The group includes CommTogether (a communications and marketing consultancy), Sherry (graphic design), Safari Yellow (online solutions) and Eye Spy Promotion (merchandise).

The consortium was the idea of CommTogether Director Anthony Perl, he says this venture seemed like a natural growth.

“We were already working together on some projects so we know how we each work and how we complement one another. This is a way of solidifying the relationship for the benefit of clients.”

MAGNUM PR wins 4 accounts

Magnum PR has won 4 accounts in the past month.

Perisher has re‐signed with Magnum PR for the 2012 season, with the agency managing all mainstream media relations for the ski resort, including working with one of their sponsors and resort ambassador, winter Olympic athlete, Torah Bright.

MasterChef contestant Marion Grasby has appointed Magnum PR to manage the PR for her highly successful food range, Marion’s Kitchen. Magnum PR will manage all profile raising media activity for Marion including her upcoming appearance on Channel 9’s show, Celebrity Apprentice.

Magnum PR has been appointed to launch Flave Water, an industry beverage containing zero sugar, preservatives or artificial sweeteners.

The agency continues to work with Colgate‐Palmolive on a retained basis and will kick‐off four additional projects for them over the coming months.

Worth reading:

1. “THE FOX EFFECT”

From the cover: “Based on the meticulous research of the news watchdog organization Media Matters for America, David Brock and Ari Rabin‐Havt show how Fox News, under its president Roger Ailes, changed from a right‐leaning news network into a partisan advocate for the Republican Party.

The Fox Effect follows the career of Ailes from his early work as a television producer and media consultant for Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush. Consequently, when he was hired in 1996 as the president of Rupert Murdoch’s flagship conservative cable news network, Ailes had little journalism experience, but brought to the job the mindset of a political operative... Ailes used his extraordinary power and influence to spread a partisan political agenda that is at odds with long‐established, widely held standards of fairness and objectivity in news reporting.

Featuring transcripts of leaked audio and memos from Fox News reporters and executives, The Fox Effect is a damning indictment of how the network’s news coverage and commentators have biased reporting, drummed up marginal stories, and even consciously manipulated established facts in their efforts to attack the Obama administration.”

2. “Think Write Grow”

Grant Butler, MD of Editor Group has published a book on thought leadership and writing. It’s called Think Write Grow.

Writing and promoting thought leadership material such as articles, blogs, books, reports, speeches and videos offers a powerful way for experts to communicate their expertise, shape agendas, build profile, win trust and ultimately grow sales and success, but how do they do it?

Thought leadership centres on helping others to solve problems or uncover opportunities. It’s about delivering valuable advice that people can use, and it is becoming more and more important with the growth of the internet. This has made it

critical for experts and organisations to generate compelling content and has made thought leadership one of the hottest topics in marketing.

Using thought leadership as a marketing and sales tool is essential in fields such as accounting, law and consulting where professionals have to show their expertise to win business. It is also well established in high‐technology industries such as computing, telecommunication and pharmaceuticals where white papers and reports are essential to winning sales.

However, as Think Write Grow highlights, thought leadership only works as a marketing tool when experts offer substantial, well‐founded advice that delivers real value to audiences. The best thought leadership is a genuine gift to those who receive it. This is the delicate balance and an area in which many thought leaders and marketing teams fail.

In Think Write Grow, Butler explains how thought leadership works. He also provides detailed advice on how experts can write exceptional material, and outlines how everyone from small business owners to bloggers and CEOs can promote their work for maximum impact. The book also explores the characteristics of successful thought leaders, how they identify the best topics to focus on, and issues such as how much time to invest and how much risk to take.

You can read more at www.thinkwritegrow.net

LEWIS PR wins Good Technology account

LEWIS PR, a global digital communications agency, has been appointed as PR agency in Australia and New Zealand for Good Technology, a mobile security company.

Good Technology allows customers to securely connect, communicate, and collaborate on iPads™, iPhones®, Android™, Windows Phone and other leading smartphone and tablet platforms.

Website offers prizes for cartoons

A $150 prize is up for grabs, every three months, for the contributor of the most witty cartoon about journalists or journalistic behaviour www.JournalistComplaints.com

The winner's name or nickname and website will be posted on the website and copyright will remain with the artists. The website was recently featured in Crikey's "New Kid on the Block" series and is the first such website in Australia

Meat industry launches PR campaign

Possibly worried by the increase in campaigns from animal right lobbyists such as Voiceless, Australian cattle and sheep farmers associations have launched their own campaign, www.target100.com.au to engage consumers to engage the industry, and give the public an opportunity to learn the industry’s view about how beef and lamb is produced.

The Target 100 website offers the public a way to join open discussions with meat industry opinion leaders, environmentalists and leading chefs and participate in monthly live forums.

Who is behind Target 100? Australian cattle and sheep farmers from across Australia are behind Target 100, through the following industry bodies; Cattle Council of Australia, Sheepmeat Council of Australia, Australian Meat Industry Council, Australian Lot Feeders Association, Australian Meat Processing Corporation and service provider Meat & Livestock Australia.

The website is owned by MLA and was created by Community Engine. The PR is run by Pulse, part of the Ogilvy/STW Group.

Splendid Communications picks up Moshcam PR account

Moshcam, creators of the world’s largest online catalogue of originally recorded full length live music videos, has appointed Splendid Communications to manage public relations surrounding the launch of their new music app. The Moshcam app will provide users with access to hundreds of complete music concerts from the world’s most critically acclaimed artists.

Founded in 2007, Moshcam films major international and local artists at key venues in Sydney, in London, New York and Los Angeles. Moshcam has a unique library of more than 1,000 originally recorded, broadcast‐quality gigs including full concerts.

The app is free; users pay for the content. Splendid secured the account via a referral from a current client.

Perisher offers best ski job in the world

Australian ski resort, Perisher, has launched a nation‐wide search to find Australia’s ‘Ultimate Skibum’. The competition offers a skier the opportunity to spend six weeks on the snow during the 2012 season.

Developed by the marketing team at Perisher and Out Of The Square Media (OOTS) under the resort’s 2012 strap line of ‘Nothing Compares to..’, the competition will see the winner receive a Perisher Season Pass plus a full winter package including on‐snow accommodation, snow clothing, skis or a snowboard, a PlayStation Vita and a new Subaru XV on loan to drive to and from Perisher.

The winner will live like a local and will be required to spread the word about their experiences, blogging and posting daily via Perisher’s various social media channels. Applicants are required to visit the Perisher Facebook page, fill in an online application form and upload a 30 second video – showcasing why they should win. The top five entry profiles will then be selected and uploaded onto a Perisher micro‐site, with the winner being decided by public vote via Facebook.

Perisher’s Facebook page, www.facebook.com/PerisherResort

Naked Communications wins InMobi

Naked Communications Sydney (team photo, right) has won the InMobi communications strategy, PR and experiential account in Australia after a three‐way pitch.

Naked Communications will work with InMobi, starting this month, to build a platform that positions them as thought leaders in the mobile advertising and marketing industry.

InMobi is the world's largest independent mobile advertising network and a global leader in the mobile technology space. With offices on five continents, InMobi provides advertisers, publishers and developers with a uniquely global solution for advertising. It launched in the Asia‐Pacific region in 2007 and after launching in the U.S and Europe in early 2010, its global network has grown considerably.

UK PR agency association rejects complaint against member

UK PR agency Bell Pottinger cleared of wrongdoing by PR association, the PRCA http://www.prweek.com/uk/bulletin/prweekukdaily/article/1125750/prca‐rejects‐complaint‐against‐bell‐pottinger‐ following‐independent‐sting

Porter Novelli cover SXSW

Porter Novelli is the official agency partner of SXSW Interactive and had an extensive team on the ground including Porter Novelli Melbourne’s Social Media Strategist, Mandy Griffiths who was blogging daily about all the happenings at SXSW

http://www.porternovelli.com.au/newsroom/blog/

Video: WrapRap Day 1 http://bit.ly/w8qXwa

Porter Novelli win Festival project

Porter Novelli Melbourne has been awarded Australian Government funding to deliver FESTofALL, a series of free events for Australia’s young carers. The account was awarded after a competitive pitch.

The FESTofALL concept will be headlined at Sydney’s Luna Park Big Top and rolled out in every state and territory, with the intent to bring together more than 5000 young carers across the country on Sunday, 24 June.

The FESTofALL concept is funded by the Australian Government and run in partnership with Carers Australia, Foundation for Young Australians, Australian Multicultural Foundation and the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils Australia Porter Novelli Managing Director, Peter Kent, said FESTofALL was an opportunity to recognise the roles of more than 380,000 young carers in Australia, and for carers aged up to 25 to build networks and connect with peers.

Porter Novelli has a background in Health and Wellness and Youth organisations. Similar current and past clients include Carers Australia, Foundation for Young Australians, Alzheimer’s Australia, St Vincent De Pauls and Mercy Health.

Porter Novelli also has run Dental Health Week and for the Australian Dental Association for more than ten years recently National Cyber Security Awareness Week for the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy for the last two years.

L‐R Jakob Hesketh, Zoe Brown, Emily Yarwood, Arg Ganeshalingam and Lauren Coleman.

Shine Australia picks McLauchlan for head of comms

Charlotte McLauchlan is the new Head of Communications for Shine Australia.

Prior to Shine, McLauchlan held a number of roles including; consulting at SBPR, Head of Comms for Channel 4 Documentaries, Arts and More4, News and Current Affairs publicity campaigns at the BBC and agency side looking after brands such as Disney, Bafta, Universal Pictures and Grazia (all in the UK)

McLauchlan’s new role is to lead the communications and publicity for Shine Australia corporately and also to oversee PR/publicity for productions such as MasterChef, The Voice and The Biggest Loser

Sphere Public Relations wins VOLT Media

Sphere Public Relations ‐ a boutique PR consultancy specialising in the technology, digital and marketing sectors – has won the PR account for VOLT Media, one of the largest independent video advertising companies in Australia.

Stellar* Concepts wins PR for Mercedes‐Benz Fashion Week and Australian Wool Innovation’s Campaign for Wool

PR and marketing communications agency, Stellar* Concepts has won two prestigious PR contracts for leading brands Mercedes‐Benz Australia/Pacific and Australian Wool Innovation.

The agency has been appointed to work alongside Antonia Leigh Image and Public Relations on ‘Wool Modern’, an inspiring global travelling exhibition to open on 24th April at Pier 2/3 Walsh Bay. One component of a broader global initiative ‘Campaign Wool’ whose patron is HRH Prince Charles, ‘Wool Modern’ celebrates the modern innovative and avant‐garde use of wool through creative industries in the 21st century. The exhibition gives highly acclaimed local fashion and furniture designers the opportunity to showcase their works alongside leading international designers.

Mercedes‐Benz has appointed Stellar* Concepts to specifically leverage its sponsorship of Mercedes‐Benz Fashion Week Australia and Mercedes Benz Fashion Festival Australia. The luxury auto brand’s return as the principal of Australian Fashion Week and Sydney Fashion Festival until 2015 follows on from its title sponsorships of Milan, London, Berlin, Paris and New York fashion weeks which started with its initial sponsorship of the very first Australian Fashion Week in 1996.

Photo: managing director Victoria Tulloch on left, and founder Marguerite Julian on right

Think HQ launches Women for Media campaign

Melbourne PR agency, Think HQ has launched womenformedia.com.au for the Women's Leadership Institute Australia.

The site aims to encourage more female commentary in business and finance news by connecting journalists with credible female thought‐leaders. More than 100 business women have lent their names to the project and have backed the need to shift the gender bias in news commentary.

A recent analysis of metropolitan newspaper coverage by the Media Research Group (a division of AAP), showed females accounted for just 20% of news commentary and in finance that figure dropped to 10%.

Think HQ is also currently working with the UN Principles of Social Investment Secretariat, the Queen Victoria Women's Centre and has recently wrapped up the inaugural PR effort for dating for charity project, Five in Five.

Amelia Salter is the latest addition to the Think HQ team – appointed as Senior Account Executive.

Think HQ is run by Jen Sharpe, Director, formerly of Haystac Positive Outcomes.

Think HQ has been operating for two years and specialises in social change campaigns for philanthropic, government, CSR and not‐for‐profit clients.

Think HQ team pictured (left to right; top to bottom): Gwen O'Dea (Account Executive), Anna Anderson (Account Director), Jen Sharpe (Director) and Amelia Salter (Senior Account Executive).

UK: Lobbyist’s tip‐off leads to Conservatives cash for access lobbying scandal

The UK Conservative Party has been caught out offering meetings with the Prime Minister for top donors. What’s interesting is that the story came from another lobbyist.

The media sting was suggested by UK lobbyist, Mark Adams. Adams is the founder of The Professional Lobbying Company; Adams says he informed reporters about a lobbyist selling access to UK PM David Cameron. The lobbyist in question is also a former aide to the Prime Minister.

Adams is a campaigner for more transparency in the UK lobbying industry.

Sydney artist wins Heineken’s global design competition

The Heineken Limited Edition Design Challenge was won by a two designers who connected via the web; Rodolfo Kusulas of Monterrey, Mexico and Lee Dunford of Sydney, Australia.

The global Facebook bottle creative challenge attracted over 30,000 entries from more than 100 countries.

To mark its 140th birthday, Heineken launched an innovative global mission through its Facebook page inviting designers to design a bottle for its anniversary gift pack. The ‘connections’ themed brief asked people to create a design that symbolises how people will connect in the next 140 years and pair it with another through the online gallery. Designers connected with each other to enter the competition together, pairing creative strangers in a global network of creativity.

This two minute video on YouTube explains the competition and the winning entry: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Do5Febv08s

Watterson wins three new accounts

Watterson Marketing Communications, a Sydney‐based communications consultancy, has won three new accounts; GoGet car share, ISI and earthwave.

GoGet, an Australian car share company with over 18,000 members and 800 vehicles across Australia. ISI is an Australian technology company that provides integrated business solutions encompassing consulting, infrastructure and management services to enterprise customers around the world. earthwave Corporation is a provider of defence‐certified Managed and In‐Cloud Security Services, Secure Internet Gateway, Secure Hosting, and Specialist Security Consulting services.

“We begin and end with communication. What I mean is that while we have proven tech credentials and a strong history — we always focus on how to best communicate for each client. If you do this, then it doesn’t really matter what space a client occupies, the client will get the right coverage, strengthen their brands and reputations,” said Hannah Watterson, the consultancy’s founder and principal.

Stoli Vodka sends Aussie fan into space

Following the success of the social media‐led competition, the Stolichnaya® Premium Vodka Global Casting Call, the most original Stoli fans from around the world met in LA last month to claim their prize experience; a trip with Zero G in a specially modified Boeing 727 to the fringes of space to experience zero gravity and an exclusive invitation to the Playboy Masquerade party at the legendary mansion.

Chosen for being some of the most original people from around the world, the Australian winner from WA was Nisha Richardson (25). Selected for her inventiveness and creativity, Nisha stood out from the very beginning and beat nine other hopefuls to take out the top prize. She was joined by her sister on the trip of a lifetime.

The Global Casting Call was Stoli’s first ever global social media campaign and drove traffic to the local Facebook page for countries worldwide. The competition received thousands of entries internationally and reached a new consumer base through the popular social media channel. The Facebook‐ subscribed fan‐base received a 270% boost in Australia.

Photo: Nisha (left, dark grey dress) and her sister Kiren

Marco Ferrari, chief marketing officer for SPI Group, says “In recent years we have seen growth in the importance of social media, Facebook in particular, when communicating with consumers. We wanted to reinforce Stolichnaya’s position as the most original vodka and a pioneering brand by utilising this channel to its full potential. Through the Stoli Global Casting Call we have found some of the world’s most fascinating and unique personalities and rewarded consumers for their loyalty in an innovative manner; what better way than a party with the original Playboy himself and a once in a lifetime trip into zero gravity!”

Nisha Richardson (25) was voted the most original Australian in a national Facebook competition that saw hundreds of creative individuals across the country enter to win a once‐ in‐a‐lifetime, money‐can’t‐buy experience in LA. Nisha initially demonstrated her originality to Stoli through a short quiz with her responses impressing the Stoli judging panel. As an Australian with Indian, African and English heritage and who is able to speak English, German,

Swiss German and Japanese, Nisha’s background alone makes her a real original in Stoli’s view. After successfully making it to the finals, Nisha was then invited to create a video, joining nine other hopefuls vying for top prize.

The Stoli Global Casting Call was an initiative to find and reward truly original people. In order to find these unique Australians, Stoli asked a series of questions and entrants were judged on the creativity of their responses. This included questions such as ‘what’s the most original thing you’ve ever done’, ‘if you developed superpowers, what would your superpower be, and why?’ and ‘if you were a vodka flavour, what would you be?’

Once the judging panel selected the most original entrants, the competition then involved each finalist creating a video showcasing their originality which was uploaded to Facebook http://facebook.com/stolivodkaaustralia The Stoli Facebook community were asked to choose the most original video based on uniqueness and creativity, and it was Nisha that took out top prize with 303 votes or ‘Likes’.

elise garland public relations launch event for TONI & GUY

PR agency elise garland public relations created an event for Australia’s top magazine editors to a top to toe styling session in celebration of the launch of TONI&GUY Hair Care.

Beauty media were treated to a personal makeover session. A transformed Luxe Studios boasted a TONI&GUY Hair Salon with adjacent styling suite, make up bar and photography studio to host guests in style and comfort.

Upon arrival, each editor received a personal consultation before moving to a hair station to begin their transformation.

Guests were encouraged to try a style outside of their everyday look and were talked through each the product and process by their TONI&GUY Hair Stylist.

Following the hair session, guests were led through to the styling suite where a professional stylist designed a look for each editor to compliment their new hairstyle. The makeup bar was the final stop, with a team from The Makeup Store on hand for touch ups before the big reveal.

From hair to high heels, the final transformation was captured in a series of candid Polaroid photos, followed by a professional photo shoot with photographer Patrick McGreal.

Beauty editors left their appointments with the entire TONI&GUY Hair Care range, a framed photograph of their brand new look, and a great deal of excitement about the Hair Meet Wardrobe philosophy.

Intern perspective

The Buzz PR intern: making a difference in Fiji

Blue skies, clear water, a bumpy 4WD ride and a view of Nadi Bay and Mamanuca Islands from her office window. This is a typical day for third year University student, Emma Barton (on left in pic), who is completing a three week internship in Fiji.

As the final practical component of her combined public relations and marketing degree at the University of the Sunshine Coast, Emma is completing her internship with Sunshine

Coast agency, The Buzz PR, on location in their Fijian office.

Emma seized the opportunity to work internationally when she heard The Buzz PR had an opportunity to gain industry experience in Fiji: “When I heard there was an opportunity to work in PR overseas, I grabbed it with both hands,” Emma said. “I wanted to make the most of my internship, bridge the gap between textbook and real life and what an amazing experience to have on my resume when I finish in June this year.”

The Buzz PR director, Nyssa Berryman, offered the internship as a way of returning the favour given to her while she was studying and as part of this internship, Emma will work on a fundraising project called Help Fiji.

“The Buzz PR has always had a strong Corporate Social Responsibility focus, so having Emma work on philanthropic projects enables her to see how PR can be crucial in helping a cause, like Help Fiji, be executed, gain momentum then witness firsthand the results from all our hard work.

Help Fiji is a fundraising project that collects much needed donations and items and distributes them to those villages torn apart by the recent April floods. Help Fiji started when good Samaritan and Sunshine Coast resident Lesley Bryce, who was living in Fiji during the 2009 floods, recognised the need again for donations because of the recent April floods. Help Fiji immediately swung into gear with the help of The Buzz PR and is appealing for all kinds of donations to ease the pain of flood affected villages.

All donations go directly into buying food and fresh water and are prepared by hand by the team on the ground including The Buzz PR, Northern Blue Construction and Naisoso Island Residential Management. Help Fiji is accepting donations and secure money transfers via website, www.lolomafiji.com

Job of the Month

Account Director (Consumer) – Sydney $95k-$115k • • •

Health focus Significant opportunity for advancement Friendly, laid-back culture, desirable office space

Our client, an awarded and highly regarded consultancy, has continued to attract greatly admired and recognised consumer brands to their business over the past 24 months and on the back of further growth now requires a proven AD or exceptional SAM to join the team and lead some very exciting campaigns.

These campaigns will remind you of why you wanted a career in PR in the first place, genuinely exciting, challenging and most importantly, rewarding.

You will bring insights and proven experience working with leading brands, and particular expertise or experience in the healthcare and/or pharmaceutical space would be beneficial. You should have natural creative flair and proven ability to lead teams and execute highly successful campaigns on behalf of your clients. You should have well developed relationship management skills, and have experience in managing a diverse client portfolio of high profile brands. You have proven ability to communicate at all levels, a sharp strategic mindset, sound social media expertise, and clearly demonstrable track record of first class results.

The successful candidate should have at least 5 years experience, ideally within a PR agency environment.

Continued growth means that this role must be filled quickly, and strong potential for further advancement exists.

For further information on the above position please contact Jeremy Wrench at Capstone Careers on (03) 9827 7277 or jobs@capstone-careers.com

Capstone Careers provides specialist permanent recruitment services to the Public Relations, Corporate Affairs and Marketing Communications industry. Capstone is led by Jeremy Wrench, MPRIA, and guided by his 16 years of experience in international PR consulting and senior management

Account Manager (Consumer), 60k‐70k+

SYDNEY ROLES: A truly exciting role with one of Sydney’s most dynamic and creative PR consultancies. You should have impressive local media knowledge and contacts and possess outstanding organisational skills. Experience across high profile brands and/or consumer technology would be a distinct advantage. 3+ years in consultancy required.

Account Manager, (Healthcare), 60k‐70k+ Brilliant opportunity for a proven and experienced SAE/AM with one of Sydney’s most respected, successful independent consultancies.

The agency has outstanding reputation for professionalism, and strong culture of teamwork and support, as well as a proven track record of promoting from within. You will also benefit from a commitment to personal development as well as a happy and down to earth team with positive work life balance. You should have 3 to 4+ years relevant experience.

PR: Senior Account Manager (Consumer/Brand) – SYDNEY ‐ $80k+ This influential and admired consultancy is requires a new senior team member to lead some of its most interesting clients and most challenging and diverse campaigns. You will bring insights and solid experience of consumer & lifestyle trends, underwritten by natural and interest in, and proven ability to leverage, social media. A natural leader you thrive on delivering strategic direction and enjoy the challenge of business development. You should have at least 5+ years experience within a PR agency environment and be driven by working with exciting, compelling and very high profile brands.

PR: Group Director (Technology & Corporate) – SYDNEY – $130k+.

You’re determined to find a no nonsense consultancy that can balance highly professional approach, first class systems and processes and the ultimate delivery of industry leading results, with a genuine down to earth approach and maintain a happy and content culture of support, and actually live up to the claim of delivering work life balance. This impressive and rapidly growing independent agency requires a new senior team member to take a leadership role within its well very highly respected Technology practice division. You will bring insights and considerable experience in technology and or telecoms, underwritten by natural leadership and relationship management skills. 7‐10 years+ experience.

Account Executive ‐ (Consumer) – MELBOURNE $40‐ $45k

MELBOURNE ROLES A great opportunity exists for a very high performing consultant to take the next step to Account Executive/Senior Account with one Melbourne’s most recognised PR consultancies. You will either be a highly talented consultant or coordinator with solid major brand experience looking to further your career with a very highly regarded and well established, local business. 1‐2 + years consultancy experience required.

Account Manager, (Consumer – Travel & Entertainment), 60‐70k+ This very well established networked consultancy is rapidly growing its consumer/brand offer in the Melbourne market on the back of some outstanding results and significant growth of an impressive portfolio of major brand clients in the travel and entertainment sectors.

The consultancy requires a gun AM. 2‐4 + years consultancy experience, ideally within a PR consultancy environment.

Account Director, (Consumer), 80‐95k+ An exciting and challenging AD role in a national consultancy with genuine opportunity to take an office leadership role in the near future. This highly successful business has a first class client list, the envy of most, and a proven track record for delivering high quality results, consistently. A stable and very supportive culture and network await the successful applicant. You have proven strategic and creative ability and a strong track record in tactical delivery and client relationship development. You should have 5+ years experience in consultancy, and be looking for a clear path to leadership, local market experience and contacts required.

Group Account Director (Consumer/Brand) $160k+ if major multinational brands, cutting edge creativity, and a young, fun/lively, highly supportive team culture are your thing, then look no further. Our client, an awarded and highly regarded consultancy, has continued to attract some of the most admired and recognised consumer brands in the country to their business over the past 24 months and on the back of further growth now requires an exceptional professional to join and lead a particularly high performing consumer/brand team. 8‐10 years+ consulting experience required, local market knowledge & contacts preferred.

Enquiries and applications should be directed to:

E: jobs@capstone‐careers.com T: Sydney: 02 8249 4636 / Melbourne: 03 9827 7277 To learn more about these roles or about Capstone Careers go to: W: www.capstone‐careers.com Twitter: @prjobsaust

Group Account Director (Sydney) – Corporate/Government/Tech • Superb agency role for career focused individual

$150K incl.

• Huge, rewarding clients – role can be crafted around successful applicant • Appealing culture which challenges typical agency environment

Group Account Director (Sydney) – Consumer Brand • We have two positions at leading consumer specialist agencies

• • • •

$150K incl.

Both offer career path leading to potential General Manager roles Looking for stand out candidates – brave, innovative, entrepreneurial, strategic, creative Must have PR agency experience but can also bring different related skills Must have big brand experience and demonstrate leadership skills

Communications Manager (Sydney) – in-house • Amazing role on super cool and aspirational consumer brand

$95K + super

• Every day exciting and challenging!

• Integrated experience ideal as this brand has multiple campaigns and stakeholders

Account Director/SAM (Melbourne) – Consumer finance/lifestyle • New position at national (boutique) PR agency

$85K incl.

• Work on leading brand with emphasis on consumer finance • Profile position and opportunity to work at high level • Must be able to work autonomously and with confidence

Communications Executive (Sydney) - in-house

• • • •

$75K + super

Brilliant opportunity to join comms team of significant alcohol brand Champion existing and new brands Must have relevant PR experience either from agency or client-side (4-5 years ideal) Excellent written & verbal comms skills required as well as ability to work autonomously at a high level

Senior Account Manager (Sydney) – FMCG • Highly sought after role in leading integrated agency

$75K incl.

• Work on big name brands on high level PR projects in a close and highly collaborative team • Ideally wanting someone with buckets of FMCG PR exp, and a real hunger to grow the business • Great rewards on offer for candidates with at least three years relevant experience

Senior Account Executive (Sydney) – Healthcare • Learn from the very best in this dedicated healthcare agency

$55K incl.

• Really expand on your previous healthcare and PR knowledge • Be fully immersed in the agency culture from day one, and take part in new business pitches • You must have min two years healthcare experience, ideally coming from an ethical background

PR Consultant (Sydney) – in-house • Join this exciting drinks company in a junior PR role

$45K incl.

• This is an excellent opportunity to gain some valuable skills on the client side • Responsibilities include team management, fielding media calls, writing reports & event logistics

• You will be a bright, enthusiastic individual with at least 18 months PR experience

Senior Consultant, Financial Services / Issues Management  Great opportunity to join a well-established boutique  Get exposure to senior Executives and ASX-listed companies  Further develop your crisis and issues management skills  Must have at least 7 years’ experience, ideally including consulting  Attention to detail essential

Ike Levick 0405 218 626 ilevick@saltshein.com.au

General Manager, Consumer Lifestyle PR agency  Are you passionate about driving a successful team and agency?  Do you have what it takes to be a leader of a large team?  Work with great brands  Must have ten years’+ PR agency experience Account Director, Consumer Lifestyle / Health  Great opportunity to join leading edge, mid-sized boutique  Work on diverse and interesting consumer health and lifestyle clients  Bring your social media and digital outreach skills with you  Open to sponsorship, start ASAP

Claire Radcliffe 0415 835 266 cradcliffe@saltshein.com.au

“I was impressed with the help I received from Salt & Shein. I felt positive that my best interests were at heart … I had someone friendly to advise me through the daunting process of job hunting … and secured an ideal job through them …”

“Their service is honest, fast, and on-brief every time ...

They know our company culture well and take the time to fully understand our requirements … Plus, they’re just straight up nice people to work with.”

Part-time PR Manager  Great opportunity to work for a leading design agency  Promote amazing brand work  Develop thought leadership pieces  Engage influencers Senior Account Manager, Consumer, Integrated Agency  Great agency brand – destination employer  Agency as a whole operates across Marketing Communications  Rare opportunity to join the small PR team  Very strong experience and Australian media knowledge essential Senior Account Executive/AM, FT In-house, Consumer for Corporate brand  Work for PR Agency, based with 3-strong agency team FT inhouse  Huge Australian corporate brand – fun, big budget campaigns  CBD based, strong media contacts essential Account Manager, Corporate PR Agency  Successful independent agency, great team  Long client tenure – take real ownership of accounts  Strong process and systems in place, excellent leadership Account Manager, Healthcare, PR Agency  Independent agency with solid reputation  Strong Healthcare experience and media expertise required  High performing team, work hard/play hard  Well remunerated, strong emphasis on development

Level 46, 1 Farrer Place, Governor Phillip Tower Sydney NSW 2000 www.saltshein.com.au

Mango PR seek pro‐bono helper for launch of Wayside Chapel

A unique pro‐bono opportunity to work on a project for one of Sydney’s most respected and iconic charities, The Wayside Chapel, which will officially open its redeveloped building in May. High‐profile Australian celebrities and Government officials will attend the event and Wayside is looking for a publicist to manage media relations and talent. The successful applicant will be confident, have experience in media relations and will work under the direction of Mango (Wayside’s PR agency), allowing an opportunity to gain valuable experience and build up a fantastic contact base.

No salary is offered; however daily expenses are covered. Working hours will be provided in more detail upon application.

Applicants should send their CV to laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com by 5pm, Friday April 20th

Late news:

Edelman works with Cancer Council Edelman will work with the Cancer Council to assist in raising awareness and funds for cancer research and support services through two key upcoming advocacy projects – Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea and Girls Night In. Started in 2004, Girls Night In now raises over $4 million for women’s cancers each year, as many women embrace it as a great excuse to catch up with their girlfriends and reconnect in the name of a good cause. Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea is one of Australia’s best‐ loved fundraising events, and plays a vital role in raising money towards Cancer Council’s work in research, prevention and support for all cancer types

Edelman wins Thailand drug rehab centre account Edelman Australia has been appointed PR agency in the Asia Pacific region for drug and alcohol addiction specialist centre The Cabin Chiang Mai. The agency will create and execute a regional campaign focused on the issue of addiction in Australian society, with an emphasis on the impact of drug and alcohol abuse within the corporate sector. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, over 142,000 treatment episodes for alcohol and drugs occurred in Australia between 2009 and 2010.

Sphere Public Relations wins Urban Geek

Sphere Public Relations, a boutique PR consultancy specialising in the technology, digital and marketing sectors has won the PR account for Australia’s digital media network for Aussie guys, Urban Geek.

Urban Geek specializes in connecting advertisers with publishers who specifically attract an Australian male online audience through original and engaging content. With a reach of over three million Australian unique browsers per month across 15 male skewed properties covering entertainment, sports, gaming, video and technology, the company provides advertisers a variety of unique marketing opportunities to create influential, results‐driven campaigns that actively engage with the typically hard‐to‐reach Aussie male demographic.

Advertise in The PR Report: http://tinyurl.com/7gb6mhp

Have you got news for The PR Report?

Contact glen@theprreport.com

• Copy deadline 10th of each month • Over 7000 PR people read The PR Report • Subscriber list: http://www.theprreport.com.au/who‐reads‐the‐pr‐report

Previous issues available as high resolution PDF

http://issuu.com/glenfrosttheprreport