Stories and Strategies for Public Relations and Marketing

The University of Oregon has introduced the first master's program in immersive technologies, focusing on augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and extended reality (XR). The program aims to create thought leaders and strategists in the field, helping organizations understand and utilize these technologies.

Despite slower adoption rates than expected, AR and VR technologies are still experiencing steady growt...

This week we’re offering another bonus episode in the form of a “Feed Drop” by The Speak Good Podcast. This episode was first published by Throughline Group in June 2022. 

Brad Phillips and Christina Mozaffari reveal six advanced public speaking tips – from how to present more effective slides to how to improve your look during a virtual presentation. 

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In today’s crowded digital landscape, standing out as a genuine thought leader amidst the cacophony of voices is a unique challenge. Many voices may be influential, but all can claim the title of a true thought leader. Some naturally gravitate to this role, others pursue it, a few stumble into it.

Some are bold visionaries. Others are evolved communicators, or they have a consistent presence (you know what they’re about)....

In 1917 the US Government found a unique way to reach a mass audience before mass media even existed. Movies. When projectionists needed to change the reel mid-movie, that took about four minutes. That was the perfect window of time to deliver a patriotic message and support an effort that ultimately changed the world.

The four-minute speeches used an old tool (speeches) but embraced a newer technology (movies). And the tr...

Wikipedia is one of the most-visited websites in the world. Additionally, it has influence. The information on Wikipedia is also disseminated across the web on Google’s Knowledge Graph and associated search page components, quick summaries of topics on Siri and Alexa, and even into news articles, podcast discussions, and government websites. 

Wikipedia is also of interest for SEO practitioners, heavily influencing Google search res...

The benefits of a multicultural campaign should be obvious by now but let’s document some of them so it’s clear.

• Reflect societal trends and values
• You’re able to actually understand more of your audience/stakeholders
• Involve people in appropriate settings and context
• Create tailored marketing content and strategies
• Broaden your brand’s story as inclusive of diverse cultures

September 15 through October 15 is Hispanic Heritage M...

It’s an area of the world so few of us in the west really understand. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Mongolia. All countries that make up what we can refer to as Central Asia. The list of Global Top 100 companies is growing there as Google, Coca Cola and others understand how important it is. 

In the midst of this region’s rapid growth and transformation, PR and Marketing specialists must consider...

Propel Media has released its Q3 2023 Media Barometer and again it’s showing journalists responded to only 2.99% of nearly 500,000 pitches sent to them. It’s the third straight quarter in which journalist response rates are below three percent and a rather clear signal to PR pros we need to shift our pitching tactics to beyond just mainstream media.

This year alone Buzzfeed News shut its doors, Vice filed for bankruptcy, ESPN laid ...

Understanding the structural changes that happen in our brain when we change our minds adds a fascinating dimension to the study of this cognitive phenomenon. We already recognize that external factors such as new information, social influences and familiarity play significant roles in our decisions but exploring the underlying neural transformations provides deeper insights. 

When we alter our perspectives or revise our beliefs, i...

An online survey of 300 people in the United States, Germany, and South Korea explores consumer perceptions of media brands vs other brands. Among the findings:

• When people trust the content shown on the platform, they were more likely to trust the platform (and vice versa)
• The media channel being used (i.e., television news) has a significant impact on the level of trust in the content being consumed
• We think of television, radio...

One might use social media in a social marketing campaign but they are starkly different things. Social marketing is a marketing approach designed to influence behavior with the primary goal to be achieving the common good.

The first evidence of social marketing was in 1963 at the Indian Institute of Management when they introduced a national family planning program with high quality, government brand condoms distributed and sold th...

Measurement is a key part of the success of any professional communications plan. And it’s the same with internal communications. But the right kind of measurement, and measuring the right things is just as important.

A 2023 Deloitte Study shows 58% of corporate affairs leaders consider data and insights to be their top area for improvement. Good internal communication should go beyond proving value, it should be a strategic tool, ...

The Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) has launched an initiative to find the ultimate Campaign that Changed the World over the last three quarters of a Century. CIPR is asking YOU to vote on one of the seven PR Campaigns shortlisted below as the best in the last 75 years:

•  1948-59 Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott 
• 1960-69 Civil Rights Movement in the United States 
• 1970-79 The first Earth Day 
• 1980-89 AIDS act...

With the emergence of more generative AI (see Chat GPT3 or GPT4…) there’s a new required skillset emerging in Communications – we are going to need skilled people who know how to prompt the AI software successfully. Prompt engineering is a concept in artificial intelligence in which the description of the task the AI software is supposed to accomplish, is embedded in the input. 

Those who know how to speak with the software, to pro...

It’s as if we have a new toy. When Open AI released Chat GPT-3 last November, and made it fully accessible to the public, it suddenly changed how we can create engaging and relevant content for our audiences, with just a few prompts.

Not only can we CREATE content, but we can also gather valuable insights into customer behaviours and preferences like never before. By analyzing the data generated by customer interactions, businesses...

We’ve seen this coming for a long time, but thanks to skepticism, and maybe a little sleepwalking, it’s never really bubbled to the top. 

But with the launch of Open AI’s ChatGPT Tool in November 2022 based on the GPT-3 dataset there’s a sudden surge of interest in in the PR industry around what’s happening with Artificial Intelligence and how we might be either impacted or supported (depending on your personal level of optimism).

This week we’re offering a bonus episode in the form of a “Feed Drop” by the podcast Woman Up With the Sister Brand. This episode was first published by Woman Up in early March 2023

Macro influencers offer huge audience numbers, sometimes in the millions. But right now the trend is toward micro influencing and there are all kinds of reasons for that not the least of which is there are “fake” macro influencers out there charging insa...

A 2023 new study by Social Insider reveals what most social media experts already know. Engagement by followers on social media – ALL social media channels – is down… again. While Tik Tok ranks by far the highest for engagement, it too is in decline.

But more and more leaders, PR pros, marketers, continue to rely on social media. Many think it’s just a matter of “going viral” or growing their following to the point they can be consi...

Web3 marketing refers to marketing strategies and tactics specifically designed to reach audiences within the Web3 ecosystem. Web3 refers to the decentralized and distributed internet and the technologies that enable it.

There are many ways to interpret Web3 communications. It might include using a decentralized social network or web forum to engage with audiences, using blockchain-based systems to track and verify the effectiveness...