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The truth, the whole truth…but what is it?

November 19, 2010 15 Comments

This is the latest guest post from Carli-Ann Smith as part of The Student Perspective series – a set of posts contributed by future stars of the comms industry…and this one may ruffle a few feathers.

‘Ça dépend’…‘Es hängt davon ab’…’Dipende’…‘Εξαρτάται’…‘Det beror’…‘Depinde’

Hmmm…I seem to be getting the impression that no matter who you ask they will tell you that: ‘It depends’ and then launch into some sort of reason why there is no set definition of the truth. I was fully expecting to look in the dictionary and it say the same.

A quick search on Google reveals that definitions range from ‘a fact that has been verified’ to ‘one of the first heavy metal albums.’

Is this lack of definition a get out clause? If there is no set definition then how can something be untrue? Most people seem to know what a lie is, so why the confusion about the truth. My theory involves context, the confusion is the context that the ‘truth’ is placed in.

It matters who you ask and at the time you ask them. Facts and figures are the truth, yes? They can be placed in different contexts. Make-up ranges claim 98% of women agree their product has been of benefit to them, you then see in the small print that only 10 women were asked, still the truth but not as you would have expected.

Back in the days when it was regarded the truth that the earth was flat, the people that said it weren’t lying, they were merely passing on what they knew. Isn’t that the job of a PR Professional? Passing on information they know? Yes and no. It is common knowledge that PR practitioners pass on certain snippets of information, some people jump on the old ‘Oh it’s all spin’ bandwagon, this is one bandwagon I would like to pull the wheels off.

Everyone is guilty of selecting certain information to pass on, the difference is we just get paid for it. Individuals do it in real life, when you are out on a date you don’t give them your whole life story and include the story about the time you were charged for stalking an ex-girlfriend. Not if you have any sense you wouldn’t! You would embroider the truth.

So when is it seen as being socially acceptable to not tell EVERYTHING that you know? What about if it would start a moral panic and cause the country to go into meltdown? Maybe the best idea at the time but then if people found out you had hidden it then you get into trouble anyway. However if the public were told everything there would be bedlam!

There needs to be an information flow, and that’s where we come in. Sometimes we are told what to say, what not to say and others we help advise the best course of action, either way the hammer drops on us…

Our job is to put a certain amount of polish on facts, but you can’t polish something that isn’t there. With the rise of the internet and social networking sites there is nowhere to hide, the truth will come out, so what is the point in blatantly lying when your reputation and that of the companies will just be tarnished when people find out the truth?

Outright lying can have serious implications, your reputation as an individual is built on many things just like the reputation of the organisation. If you had a friend that lied about everything you would become tired of speaking to them and you certainly wouldn’t listen to anything they had to say because you wouldn’t know what to believe. Therefore how can you build and maintain mutually beneficial relationships, which is included in our role as PR professionals, if your contacts know you lie to them?

According to the Edelman Trust Barometer for 2010, 72% of people said that ‘A company I can trust’ is a top driver of corporate reputation in the UK. This therefore proves that lying to your customers can have a negative effect on sales, reputation and peoples impressions on you.

According to Julian Henry in an article on PR Week, “Telling porkies can become a necessity. You might be trying to contain something fragile, volatile and potentially damaging to a large number of innocent bystanders, namely your client’s kingsize ego, which has the potential to explode without warning at any moment.”

As the face of the organisation, it is our job to be responsible and make sure that we don’t cause any unnecessary upset, whether that be our clients or to the public.

In my opinion, and it may be controversial, I think that sometimes it is better to withhold certain information if it could start a moral panic. Especially if it is information that the public don’t in fact have a ‘right’ to know. If it affects them directly, then I believe they should be told, but if the knowledge is not essential then to keep quiet is not a sin. However, where the difficultly lies is if someone asks. Now, if someone asks and you don’t tell them then ‘technically’ you are lying.

I believe it is important to distinguish between what the public need to know and what isn’t vital knowledge. My naïve advice to PR professionals is, don’t lie. When we are so successful at promoting businesses and products why are we letting PR fall into disrepute?  How on earth can we persuade people that PR isn’t about spin when the ones practicing it are playing up to the negative stereotypes that these individuals hold? You have my permission to polish but don’t take it too far and fabricate things that aren’t there.

(Kudos to Neville Hobson for his article on truth, which informed this post.)

Carli-Ann Smith

Filed Under: Featured, Guest posts, Public Relations, The Student Perspective Tagged With: , , , ,

We are living in a Twitter bubble…

November 9, 2010 Leave a Comment

…well, I think so, but my good friend Adam Vincenzini thinks otherwise, which is why we’re putting on our gloves, and coming out fighting.

Here are the details:

Let’s get ready to rumble! It’s a #CommsChat co-organiser special!

Over in the blue (comms) corner is Adam Vincenzini, who lives his life through Twitter. In true fighting spirit, Adam has even pledged to change his blog, The Comms Corner, blue for this week only.

In the red corner is Emily Cagle, comms consultant, blogger, and gadget-obsessed Apple fan. Emily loves Twitter, but she’s not afraid to put it in its place.

Two great contenders, one hour and one hotly debated topic.

Want to be part of the The Big Tweet Off? Here’s the run down of how it works:

  • On Thursday, 11 November 7.30pm GMT head to Twitter and follow#bigtweetoff
  • For the first 20 minutes the session will be lead by Adam and Emily who will put their argument forward in 140 punches
  • Following this, it’s your turn to join the debate – start your tweets with either B (for blue corner) or R (for red corner), state your opinion and don’t forget the #bigtweetoff hashtag
  • Of course, Adam and Emily will continue to spar throughout the debate
  • The session will be guided and moderated by @thebigtweetoff which will slap any deviants in to shape – remember, this is a fair fight
  • We will run a Twitt Poll throughout the session for you to vote on the winning argument
  • The bell will ring at 7.30 sharp so dust off your boxing gloves and get training!

Here’s what our contenders said:

Adam: With the exception of a few bots, Twitter is a people driven destination. How on earth can real people be living within a fake bubble? They’re human and have feelings whether they’re on Twitter or sitting in the pub sharing a beer. I even met the love of my life through Twitter.

Emily: Want to meet like minded people? Twitter is the place to do it. Why? Because we’re kinda geeky, pretty friendly, we like our tech and we aren’t afraid to share, chat & debate online. Twitter’s great, but it’s not representative of the population as a whole. A Twit Poll tells us what tweeps think, not what people think (oh I met the love of my life on Twitter, too).

To understand the background of The Big Tweet Off, visit our launch posthere. Feel free to shout any questions to @thebigtweetoff, @thepaulsutton or@beth_carroll.

Got an opinion you want to fight out in public? Let us know and you could be next in the ring.

Now I don’t want to sound overly confident, but I think we all know who’s going to win. Come join in the fun and be sure you’re in the RED corner.

Filed Under: Featured, News, Social Media Tagged With: , , , , ,

One bad tweet: how 140 characters altered a company’s reputation (The Student Perspective series)

October 11, 2010 1 Comment

This guest post from Lindsey Bray is part of The Student Perspective series – a set of posts contributed by future stars of the comms industry.

A story recently broke about a grocery store chain, Price Chopper, in the Northeastern states of the US.

After an unhappy customer tweeted a negative comment about the company, Price Chopper allegedly contacted the customer’s employer and bosses (found in his Twitter bio) to inform them of the negative tweet, as well as encourage actions be taken against this individual.

The Director of Consumer Insights, Heidi Reale, revealed in the comments section of the blog that started it all, that the Price Chopper Consumer Insight team was unaware of the incident.  A newly hired PR employee did however personally respond to the negative tweet without the knowledge of the company.  This PR nightmare has raised several issues.

  • How should negative comments be dealt with?
  • Are our comments a reflection of our employers?

Transparency Leads to Growth

Regardless of who responded to the disappointed customer, it was clearly a breach of social media ethics.  Social media has provided businesses with an amazing platform to easily interact with customers.  Today’s consumers have a powerful voice; they can publicly make their opinions known about a company and have the greatest chance of a response now than ever.

Companies who have made themselves transparent allow for criticism and are the best equipped to respond to comments for the betterment of the organization.  This is where the Price Chopper employee fell short.

Negative comments offer great opportunities for a company to regain trust in customers by striving to grow and right their wrongs. People are much more likely to show loyalty to authentic companies who actively listen to their target audiences and react accordingly.  Instead of attacking a disgruntled customer’s livelihood, the Price Chopper employee should have spent her energy engaging with the customer to ensure his current and future happiness with the company.

My thoughts are mine and only mine…or are they?

A lot of people list their employers in the Twitter bios and Facebook profiles much like the unhappy Price Chopper customer.  The only possible way for the employee to justify her actions towards the unhappy customer is if she believes his comments to be a reflection of his employer’s thoughts, but even then it is still a blatant abuse of social media.

While someone’s thoughts on a social media platform, such as Twitter, are not directly related to an employer, if the employer is listed on his/her profile an association between the employee and employer is created.  Although it shouldn’t happen, lines can be blurred when employees become a representation of the company they work for.  In order to keep them completely separate, either a disclaimer needs to be added that thoughts are strictly your own, or the employer shouldn’t be listed at all on personal social media profiles.

What are your thoughts on the Price Chopper happening?  Does transparency actually lead to growth opportunities for companies?  Was the customer’s tweet a reflection of his employer?

Lindsey Bray.

Filed Under: Featured, Public Relations, Social Media, The Student Perspective Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Let’s not forget the importance of honesty in social media

September 16, 2010 2 Comments

This is a guest post by Mazher Abidi, a marketer and blogger based in Manchester, UK.

Social media (and social networking in the broad sense) could prove to become one of the greatest applications of Internet technology bar none.

As with any community, there are unwritten rules by which its members live by. For example, there are etiquettes related to tweeting and retweeting, recommendations when it comes to selling vs. conversing, conflicting schools of thought when it comes auto vs. personal posting…all of this before anyone has even touched on the thorny subject of sharing Farmville and Mafia Wars stories.

Yet the one common view that appears to transcend all debates is that social media users MUST be honest. This was plainly revealed on August 9th by all the participants in the weekly #commschat on twitter (every Monday 7pm GMT, 8pm BST hosted by @EmilyCagle and @AdamVincenzini from @CommsChat), where the subject under discussion was comms confessions.

Social media users and communicators, both personal and business, appear to need to live by this mantra online or risk being marked out as social media outcasts by their peers, seeing their flaws globally retweeted or (in the ultimate symbol of social media displeasure) being unfollowed and unfriended.

From the discussion, here follows a list of the top 5 reasons why you NEED to be honest on social media:

1. We can see through it

A community of highly intelligent and communications savvy users has formed on social networks, whether as a function of the presence of the tech aware innovators and early adopters or mass uptake. But whoever they are, they all have an opinion; and there are some serious social media influencers out there that have the kind of credibility some offline influencers can only dream of.

They cannot be fooled, nor can they be placated when they feel wronged. There are genuine multi way conversations taking place on social media and ideas are being shared every second.

Spin now has no place in social media and modern communications. Should your message be uncovered as somehow dishonest, a mistruth or a blatant lie, these people will know about it, and the message will spread due to the lack of…

2. Control

The Internet in general and social media especially has spread at a rate that even the word exponential doesn’t quite cover. 24 hours of video is uploaded to YouTube every minute and in just over 5 years the twitterati have racked up 20 billion tweets.

It stands to reason therefore that once your message is out there in the socialsphere, it ceases to become solely your message. For this reason, it needs to be pitch and content perfect, or you run the risk of serious damage to your…

3. Reputation

Increasingly, social media is being seen by organisations as a key part of their PR strategy. It makes sense considering it is a direct route to consumers, key decision makers and influencers within B2C and B2B markets.

PR, as defined by the Charetered Institute of PR, is “the establishment and maintenance of goodwill between an organisation and its publics”. Such goodwill cannot be maintained without the truth.

Reputations can be shattered through social media; witness the way Apple (for example) was forced to take notice and react to antenna-gate on the iPhone4 thanks to the huge swell of opinion against it on social media.

The best way to avoid this? Be honest.

Of course this does not only count for reputation in the here and now. It is also a concern for…

4. The future

The amount of information held on the web does not even bear an attempt to quantify. The consequence of this is that messages, files, images…anything that appears on the Internet – stays on the Internet. Forever.

Companies AND individuals cannot afford for anything they perceive as negative to be on there, even on page 4 of a Google search. For if it’s out there to be found then it can and will be found, more often than not at the least opportune moment.

The picture from the stag do 4 years ago could resurface in a job interview. The accidentally posted press release that was only online for a day could be found on an archived version of a website.

Making sure what goes online is an honest reflection of you or our business will safeguard you for the future.

5. Why not?

Finally, if there’s nothing to hide, there should be no need to hide it!

Filed Under: Featured, Guest posts, Marketing, Social Media Tagged With: , , , ,

Cash for interns – is experience payment enough? (The Student Perspective series)

September 14, 2010 12 Comments

This guest post from Carly Smith is part of The Student Perspective series – a set of posts contributed by future stars of the comms industry.

There has been an ongoing debate as to whether interns should be paid for their work or not. Being one of these interns I thought it would be interesting to give an insight as to what I thought…

If you speak to anyone within PR or the University you are told that experience is needed when applying for jobs. It is therefore necessary for graduates to have a balance between education and real life experience. However this is easier said than done.

For some students their work experience is not a pleasant experience. They spend the entire time being the office ‘dogsbody’ – making tea, photocopying and washing up. Of course we understand that when we graduate we won’t jump to the top and be shouting orders but what do we gain? Fortunately my experience has been a positive one, I work on specific areas and am given ‘real’ work to do which benefits both myself and the business.

I think it is important to establish with a company, before the internship commences, what you want to get out of the experience. And don’t forget an interview is there to see if you are compatible for each other. I was very conscious when I went to the interview for my placement that the company I approached had probably been approached by many other individuals asking for the same thing. That is why I never even considered getting paid for it because I wouldn’t want to price myself out of the market.

So how much is fair?

Should it be the same as the person whose position you are experiencing? Enough to cover your travel and living costs? Minimum wage? A ‘token’ for your hard work? It sounds clichéd but it depends.

I am of the opinion that you pay to attend University where you learn and in your work placement you are gaining their experience and knowledge. Plus it is only for the short term, this experience you gain will help you get a paid job at a later date, maybe with the same company. It is also important to remember that the employer is taking time out of their working day to supervise you on projects and mentor you along your journey. It is mutually beneficial for both parties.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development suggested that interns should be paid £2.50 per hour. This is less than minimum wage and would provide a benchmark for employers. It would also make placements increasingly available as a choice to less well off individuals who otherwise might not be able to take part. But would this set amount make the grey area clearer or would internships disappear because employers didn’t want to pick up the costs? It also raises the issue as to whether there would become ‘unofficial interns’ who still wouldn’t be paid.

10 Yetis Public Relations Agency in Gloucester are setting a good example for others by paying their interns. Andy Barr, Managing Director, said:

“As soon as someone has been part of a team for longer than two weeks, they begin contributing towards the bottom line of a business and therefore they deserve to be rewarded and compensated for their efforts. I don’t think anyone should have to work without payment, as it is both degrading and unfair.”

It would be interesting to hear others thoughts on this debate. Are you an employer who takes interns? Do you pay them a wage or not? Are you taking part in an internship? Do you think interns should be paid?

Carly Smith is currently in between her 2nd and 3rd year at the University of Lincoln studying Marketing and Public Relations. She has a work placement at a local PR agency one day a week on an unpaid basis.

Filed Under: Featured, Guest posts, Marketing, Public Relations, The Student Perspective Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Shock tactics in advertising – anything goes? (The Student Perspective series)

September 13, 2010 4 Comments

This guest post from Carly Smith is part of The Student Perspective series – a set of posts contributed by future stars of the comms industry.

A couple of months back, the Charity Commission updated the guidelines on fundraising and warned charities over the risks to reputation associated with using shock tactics to encourage donations and raise awareness. After reading the article in PR Week, it got me thinking: should shock tactics be allowed? And in such a crowded market place are they effective anymore?

We’ve all seen the adverts featuring the lonely puppy tied up by the side of the road and the children living in a shanty town surrounded by rubbish, but has the time come for charities to find new methods of attracting our attention?

The majority of people know what these charities stand for so don’t need to be reminded every time they see the advert. Some people may find the content of the advert distressing and be so shocked that they disengage with the advert and the charity completely because they associate them in a negative way. There is also the argument that one of the reasons people donate money to charities is because they experience a sense of guilt, these adverts are encouraging this as individuals will look at themselves sat in their comfortable well furnished houses and feel bad. Would it not be better to try and educate donors as to how their money would benefit and show the work they have done already? This is an approach that Cancer Research UK has adopted and I feel it has been successful for them.

However is this all just further evidence of the so called ‘nanny state’ trying to shield people from what goes on in the real world? The advert represents what the charity stands for and illustrates the type of work it does. As my grandparents would say: ‘If people don’t like it then they can just turn it over.’

I do believe that when used effectively shock tactics can be a brilliant addition to a campaign as they break through advertising clutter and are likely to be remembered. In my opinion the THINK car safety campaigns use shock tactics effectively and are memorable. The main message of the advert is always remembered and sometimes I find myself quoting them saying things such as: ‘Don’t be a back seat killer!’ to my friends when they are in the back seats.

Shock tactics should be used with caution and extensive research should be done as to not offend viewers or shock anyone too much. There will always be people who prefer not to see them but that’s their choice. A balance is needed, therefore a campaign should be both informational and attention seeking.

What do you think about adverts relying on shock tactics? Is there a place for shock advertising? Would you be more likely to donate to a charity who didn’t use them or not?

Carly Smith is currently in between her 2nd and 3rd year at the University of Lincoln studying Marketing and Public Relations. She has a work placement at a local PR agency one day a week on an unpaid basis.

Filed Under: Featured, Guest posts, Marketing, The Student Perspective Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Advertising for a freelancer – getting the right replies

August 9, 2010 12 Comments

For many companies – particularly startups – contractors offer a vital resource for keeping things running smoothly. If you have a job that requires a specific set of skills, but can’t offer enough work to constitute a full-time, in-house position, freelancers offer the perfect solution.

But when looking for a provider, often it isn’t practical to go through the same rigorous interview and assessment process as you would for a permanent employee, so how do you get quality work without the HR headache?

In my opinion, word of mouth recommendations are great when you can get them, but otherwise, advertising online (via your website or a job site) is the way to go, and then it’s all in the job description:

Make the title count

The first step to attracting quality bids is to make the most of your post title. Whether it’s on a general job site like Reed.co.uk or a site specifically for freelancers like People Per Hour, front page listings tend truncate titles to around 30 characters, so it’s wise to keep your title below this mark and get straight to the point. For example, rather than writing ‘Help needed with sales letter for accountancy firm’, you could write ‘Sales letter (accountancy)’.

Write clearly

As a provider on several freelance job sites, I read dozens of job listings per week where the project description is so vague, it’s almost impossible to fathom what the advertiser is looking for.

While this might present a challenge to the service provider looking to place a bid, the main victim of the vaguely worded project listing is the buyer themselves, who not only risks receiving dozens of irrelevant bids, but might even go so far as to accept a bid from a provider who has a false notion of what is required.

Be specific

When it comes to the project description, bidders will find it much easier to price up a project if you are explicit about what’s involved. So, for a web design project, for example, aim to explain how many pages are needed, what functionality the site must have, whether you will need a logo and so on.

Outline required skills

If you any specific skills requirements, such as being able to work with a particular piece of software, you should list them and state whether they are essential or preferred. It is also worth mentioning what industry your company operates in, as this can attract bidders with useful experience. For example, an accountant who already understands the typical transactions of a firm in your sector might be better placed to give industry specific tax advice.

Sell yourself

To attract strong bids, you should also consider giving some details about your company’s achievements and reputation. Just as with any job, people may be more inclined to apply if the company has an appealing profile.

Set a realistic budget

It is also important to be as realistic as possible about your project’s budget. If your budget range is very low, you may not attract the standard of provider you are looking for, and if it is unnecessarily high, you might find people bid higher than they otherwise would. If you have time, research what constitutes a realistic budget before submitting your listing. Alternatively, mark the rate as ‘negotiable’ and judge what constitutes a reasonable price based on the bids you receive.

Clarify with bidders

Finally, remember that you are not bound to agree to work with someone based on their initial bid alone. If a bid looks great, but doesn’t answer those last minute questions that have arisen since you posted the project, ask them. A good provider will be happy to discuss your requirements in more detail before asking you to accept their bid.

(This post is adapted and updated from a post I published on PeoplePerHour.com in March 2009)
Filed Under: Copyediting, Featured, Freelancing, Marketing Tagged With: , , , ,

Giving it away: a look at content marketing

June 10, 2010 1 Comment

This is a guest post by Toby Reid, the founder of In A Fishbowl, a business reality website that follows the progress of three entrepreneurs.

If you are in the service or advisory sector these days then, as unnerving as it sounds, your best marketing strategy is to give away everything you know for free. When you think you have given away nearly all the information you have, go and dig up some more and then give that away as well.

It is called content marketing and here are three reasons why you should be doing it:

Reason 1

Because you will no longer gain and maintain customers by guarding and restricting access to information you hold. “We can tell you this but we could tell you a lot more if you pay us”. Really?…

NO and double no. Those days are gone. They are gone because with the internet nearly all information is freely available. Conceptually, people refuse to pay for something that can be found free elsewhere. They may not find it, or understand it when they do find it, but that doesn’t matter because the damage is done… they have already switched off from you.

Free information is your hook to attract the attention of your target customers.

Reason 2

Brand is no longer just about logos and strap lines, it’s about voice. You want to be a market leader, be a market leading voice. It’s difficult to be a compelling voice without talking about what you know and what you think, so don’t hold back, tell them what you know. Providing quality content establishes you as an authority on your subject and gives you serious credibility in the eyes of your target customers.

Proving you’re an expert in your field sustains the interest of your target customers.

Reason 3

Because your customers still need you. In this age of free information, information isn’t your asset anymore. So give it away! But what will your customer buy from you? Well, your interpretation of the information and application to their personal circumstances, the time savings you can offer them in doing so, the peace of mind of outsourcing to an expert and the customer service you offer along the way.

The time saving, peace of mind and customer service are the benefits you offer. These can easily convert an audience of already interested targets into actual customers. But remember you have to attract their attention and prove your credibility first!

Filed Under: Featured, Guest posts, Marketing, Writing Tagged With: , , ,

It’s vital that we don’t cut corners when it comes to ethics

May 26, 2010 3 Comments

– By Eamonn Moore.

There’s a great history of public figures being caught making unguarded comments by the press and media, but such cases appear to be rife this spring/summer.

First there was Bigotgate. Then there was Snookergate. Then Lord Triesman was shown the red card after apparently making some unguarded comments about Spain and Russia bribing officials at this summer’s World Cup. And now Sarah Ferguson has been caught allegedly offering to sell access to her ex husband Prince Andrew. What’s next?

In my previous blog post, I looked at how Gordon Brown’s PR should be handled post-Bigotgate, but did not tackle the ethics of the situation – something that I now feel I should address, especially after the thought provoking discussion on ethics in this week’s #CommsChat.

The whole issue of ethics and the media has always been and will always be a hot potato. Do we have a right to know everything that public figures say (even if it’s said ‘behind closed doors’) or is everyone entitled to their privacy? Should we perhaps only be alerted to conversations that are of genuine national interest, and if so, what constitutes ‘national interest’?

Personally, I feel that there are circumstances when it is genuinely important that the contents of a private conversation are aired – Watergate perhaps being the best example of this. However, in cases such as the one involving Lord Triesman, the desire to have a sensationalist headline (and increased sales) seem to have been received by some as a neglect of ethical standards by the newspaper in question. Whether his allegations are correct or not, you could argue that Lord Triesman has a strong case to say that he has been the victim of entrapment. Furthermore, surely potentially irreversibly damaging England’s 2018 World Cup bid is not in the ‘national interest’? Gary Lineker certainly didn’t think it was.

Working in public relations, I am acutely aware of the importance of ethical and responsible media reporting. We rely on the media to do our jobs, and they rely on us, so I see it as our duty to help uphold, support and encourage the highest ethical standards. Indeed, if the media fall short of such standards, it often impacts on the world of public relations (and vice versa).

Various recent public mudslinging matches between PRs & PRs, and PRs & the media have shown us that it cuts both ways. Of course, there is absolutely nothing wrong with being critical of something (or someone), provided that you go about it in a considered manner, choosing to value ethics over link-bait opportunities, and always aiming to offer constructive criticism by suggesting possible areas of improvement, rather than just celebrating perceived misfortune. It seems to me that events of late have left the PR world feeling somewhat tarnished.

The world of communication is developing apace along with technology, but if we’re not careful, we risk losing sight of the basics, especially when it comes to ethics. As PRs, it is our duty to both protect and enhance our industry’s reputation from within by being positively and proactively ethical at all times (even when we’re being critical of something). If we don’t fulfil this duty, the whole industry’s reputation could well be left in tatters, and none of us want that, do we?

Filed Under: Featured, News, Public Relations Tagged With: , , , , , ,

How to write effective customer case studies

May 13, 2010 Leave a Comment

This is a guest post from Chris Lee, founder and managing director of PR and social media consultancy, Planet Content, and founder/editor of DIY PR and marketing blog RunMarketing.

Are you proud of what you have achieved for your customers and clients? Can you prove tangible benefits and returns on investment that really illustrate what your company does best? If you can, then this is where case studies come into play.

Publications love the “proof in the pudding” – real-life examples of where companies have used a product or service which has had a demonstrable effect on their business. Could you gain approval from a customer and draft an 800-word account on how you helped it operate more efficiently?

If you could, then this is how a customer case study – or ‘customer evidence’, to our friends across the pond – should be constructed:

Title: Hard-hitting, catching title outlining the crux of the case study in a single line (particularly benefits) – e.g. “Company X saves Company Y £X million a year with product Z”

Subtitle: Add some more quantifiable facts about the customer case study – time savings, staff efficiency etc

Introduction: You have a single paragraph with which to capture the audience and encourage them to read on, so make sure your opening paragraph is tightly written and neatly summarises all the key financial, time and efficiency benefits.

Detail: Under orderly sub-headings you should now go into further details outlining:

  • The existing problem
  • What your company proposed
  • Was the contract put out to tender? If so, what did you do that stood out to win it?
  • What challenges did you overcome, be they physical, financial, cultural etc?
  • What you did in practice and more on how benefits were achieved
  • What was the customer feedback? Include a customer quote
  • Conclusion – include a quote from your own MD, CEO or project manager

Try to keep it to around 800 words, use images and regularly deploy sub-headings to retain reader interest. Don’t forget to get permission from the customer to write the case study before you start drafting and run it by the customer’s marketing team to make amends and approve the final draft. They might not let you disclose everything, but highlight the benefits for them – free publicity, for one!

Also, keep the hyperbole to a minimum. Nothing turns people off more than sales spiel, so speak plain English and drop words like “market-leading” and “solution”.

Spread your wings

You could pitch the case study to a local publication, or vertical media outlet, depending on your target audience and the strength of the case study or customer brand. You could also build a page especially for case studies on your company website. If so, don’t forget to make sure that the text is optimised for your company’s keywords to help potential customers find you online.

Also, don’t forget to plug it on social media channels. Tweet the link to your website, or why not post it on Slideshare.net?

Here are some examples of customer case studies from corporations such as Xerox, Microsoft and Virgin Media Business. They vary greatly in style and format, from video to basic pdf.

If you’re worried that you’ve not got the right time or skills resources in-house to generate customer case studies then seek out a professional writer, it will pay off for you.

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