Impact Communications
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Media cases and industry thoughts from a PR consultant working with impact-driven companies.
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Watch until you hear about Patagonia's response.

What I'm noting here for myself is that sometimes the public perception and associations people make with a brand can happen organically, without the company directly controlling or shaping those associations. External factors, events, or people's experiences can influence how a brand is viewed.

While a company may not have full control over how its brand is perceived initially, the way it responds to situations or controversies that arise can still impact the brand's image and reputation.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C7PsInNoDW8/?igsh=MWQ1ZGUxMzBkMA==
Here’s more on Patagonia and finance bros:

The iconic Patagonia vest with company logos, dubbed the "Power Vest" or "Finance Bro Vest", became a popular status symbol in finance and tech circles.

The vests had become so ubiquitous in sectors like banking and venture capital that Patagonia felt it was diluting their intended brand image.

This association with "finance bro" culture went against their brand image as an environmentally-conscious outdoor company.

In 2019, Patagonia started rejecting orders for co-branded vests from finance firms, fintechs, and companies they deemed harmful to the planet.

While a seemingly small move, it signaled Patagonia's desire to distance itself from the "finance bro" aesthetic and reinforce their environmental activism positioning.

Another insight here is that for brand statements and strategies to be credible, companies need to take tangible actions that align with their words, not just make empty proclamations.

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/katienotopoulos/patagonia-power-vest-policy-change
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This TechCrunch reporter is referring to the Apple's WWDC 2024.

In PR, it's crucial to consider the media landscape when crafting your press release to ensure your news doesn't get overpowered and lost in the shuffle.

Here are some key points to consider:

1. News Cycle Awareness:

Major Events: Avoid periods dominated by major news events (elections, natural disasters, etc.). These events can overshadow your message.

Industry Trends: Look for opportunities to align your news with current industry trends or discussions, but don't wait till everyone's too fatigued from the same topic (don't be yet another AI story)

Quiet Periods: Consider releasing your news during quieter news cycles when there's less competition for media attention.

2. Competitor Activity:

Monitor competitor announcements: Be aware of what your competitors are doing and avoid scheduling your release too close to theirs. Some announcements are predictable like an industry research your competitor publishes each year or an annual event like the Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference that happens at the beginning of June.

3. Timing Optimization:

Weekday Mornings: Traditionally, weekdays between 8 AM and 10 AM are considered the best time to send press releases. However, this can vary depending on the industry, target audience, and outlet type. For example, TV news stations operate on a different schedule than print outlets. Reporters who are parents also face hectic mornings with drop-offs and family responsibilities. However, they might have an email window after hours. Sometimes you can get a lot of insights into your target reporter's lifestyle based on what they share on Twitter.

Lead Time: Factor in lead time for journalists to review and potentially write about your news. Aim for at least a week before a major event or publication deadline. During recent layoffs, that lead time doubled and tripled for some outlets.
What's in my inbox today?

PR Week Power List 50: the most powerful movers and shakers in the PR and Comms industries (VPs and SVPs of Communications, Chief Communications Officers, etc).

For the first time ever, women outnumber men on this list 👯‍♀️Given that women hold a majority of entry-level communication roles, this is a significant milestone.
For CrowdStrike, the last 24 hours were not enviable. The Microsoft outage once again proves how vulnerable and dependent on technology we are globally, and even a small issue can cause a major chaos.

Staying in our PR swimlane, here's what I noticed about their crisis communications response, starting with the standard first step – a holding statement issued by the CEO. There are quite a lot of things that were wrong with it. But one thing stands out: NO apology. It was called out in comments, and amends were made only 6 hours later. The follow-up tweet from the CEO contained an apology, and the CEO started his first NBC interview with "sorry."
Former VP of Comms at Substack and Chief Comms Officer at Activision Blizzard is show us how it's done
Reactive marketing genius
I can't help but think about how relevant Marshall McLuhan's theories are today. McLuhan famously stated that "the medium is the message," meaning that the way a message is delivered (whether through an in-person meeting, an email, a Zoom call, etc.) significantly shapes the content and impact of the message itself.
Spotted in San Francisco: An out-of-home PSA billboard campaign caught my attention. The message was simple yet powerful: 'We are different, yet the same.

PSA ad by a foster care non-profit
Morning Brew is one of the new-generation media brands that has figured out how to stay profitable and grow in today's challenging media landscape. What started as a small newsletter is now one of the top B2B content platforms and one of my most admired news sources, having truly mastered a native advertising format that works for both readers and advertisers. I've seen it generate high-quality leads while keeping the content relevant, valuable, and engaging for readers. https://talkingbiznews.com/media-news/morning-brew-expects-25m-revenue-from-newsletters-10m-from-multimedia/
I found a note I made during a Brand & Communications session at a business conference I attended years ago.

Here's what it said:"Moving brands."

So. Power-FULL!

What does that mean to you? Brands that move you emotionally? What brand names come to mind immediately?
In my final year of college, I turned in my thesis and got a comment I didn’t expect: “You write like a journalist“.

My research advisor meant it as criticism—my writing didn’t sound complex or 'academic' enough.

I took it as a compliment.

As someone who always dreamed of being a journalist—who wrote for my high school and college newspapers—my goal has never been to sound academic. My goal has been to make complex ideas accessible. To educate through writing. To help people from all walks of life understand the world a little better.

Long story short: it led me to a career in PR.

Don't get me wrong. I’m all about receiving feedback and learning from it. But sometimes, when feedback doesn’t feel positive, it’s worth asking: is this helping me grow—or just pushing me away from where I’m meant to be?

Not doing it the "right" way might just mean you're doing it in the wrong place.
PSA for publicists in the US: HARO is back!
Mother’s Day emails flooded our inboxes last week, this one stood out to me - a perfect example of how to compliment two people in one subject line. Kudos to Rotunda’s email marketing team.
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Why media outlets are banning fossil fuel ads and why this matters to our news consumption?

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DLWnpa4OHjK/?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==