Inside PR #126 - Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Can you believe it's mid-December and another year is almost done?

That can only mean one thing ... it's time for our annual episode where we gaze into the proverbial communications crystal ball ...

OK, it's not that dramatic, really. But Gini, Joe and Martin do talk about three of the trends we'll be watching over the next 12 months:

1. Natural language generation and AI writing assistants
2. Values-based communication and leadership counsel
3. Impact and consequences of social media algorithms

Check it out and let us know what you think and what other trends you may be seeing on the horizon.

This is our last show of 2021 and we'd like to say thank you for listening and for supporting us again.

On this episode of Inside PR, Martin Waxman, Joe Thornley, and Gini Dietrich discuss the importance of protecting your intellectual property, even for new business decks and website verbiage.

In the wake of Facebook's bad news month, we discuss the communications challenges the company faces. A blip? Or a step on an irreversible path toward becoming the new MySpace? The necessary impetus to increased regulation? And would a company with an army of lobbyists ever see a regulatory regime that actually curbs its freedom of action in any meaningful way? Is it really becoming the new Tobacco? And, most importantly, is its community decaying from the inside?

Have you noticed your brand is no longer getting the type of engagement on organic social posts? How about ranking for search or interactions when you publish new content on your website or blog?

Perhaps the digital world has become even more pay-to-play and is expecting a higher price from organizations in order for them to achieve decent business results.

That’s what Gini Dietrich, Joe Thornley and I talk about on Inside PR. Our conversation is based on a post by digital thought-leader Rand Fishkind called, 'The Incentives to Publish No Longer Reward Web Creators'.

TL;DR version: Your content marketing strategy needs a balanced and integrated approach.

Have a read, then have a listen and let us know what you think.

In this episode of Inside PR, we talk about the PR Writer's Code of Conduct and ethical communications. An evergreen topic.

It's fall—well, almost—and there's a hint of excitement in the air. At least it feels like there should be!

Kids are going back to school. College and universities are offering more in-person classes. And people are getting revved up for the busiest season of the year.

But are you ready to go back to the office or would you prefer to work remotely or in some type of hybrid situation?

And how will you communicate what you decide to your team?

Of course, there are no easy answers, but if you're interested in our take, check out this episode of Inside PR.

Gini Dietrich, Joe Thornley and Martin Waxman talk about:

• The importance of having a communicator in the room when workplace decisions are being made.
• Why organizations need to listen closely and pay attention to people's reactions.
• Giving employees an opportunity to voice their opinions and know they're being heard, rather than simply feeling they're being talked at.
• Creating a culture of empathy by understanding people's situations, anxieties and fears.
• Being flexible and letting people know nothing's set in stone and that you're prepared to adapt if need be.

OK. Before you get defensive, I want make something clear right from the start: We are NOT saying all PR people are evil.

Far from it.

In fact, most of us are simply trying to do the best jobs we can for our organizations or clients and behave in an honest and ethical manner.

But let’s just say, there are some less than scrupulous individuals and companies whose approach and choices reflect badly on the industry.

And it’s not just PR pros who are guilty of this. Certain bloggers, journalists, media outlets and influencers are also not as honest or transparent as they could be when it comes to conflicts of interest.

And because social media has given us all a voice, we need to make sure we think through the consequeneces of how we use it.

That’s what we talk about for this week’s podcast.

We got the idea from a Washington Post story about a site that bills itself as an investigative blog. Turns out, it has financial ties to a PR firm and seems to focus on stories where the agency’s clients have a vested interest.

In our opinion, this contravenes many PR codes of ethics and standards including PRSA, CPRS and the Global Alliance to name a few.

Have a listen and let us know what you think.

And if you want to dig deeper, check out Gini’s Spin Sucks post on the subject.

Subscribe to the Inside PR podcast

We’re trying to be wherever you want us to be. So, you can subscribe to Inside PR on the most popular podcast apps.

• Subscribe to Inside PR on Apple Podcasts
• Subscribe to Inside PR on Spotify
• Subscribe to Inside PR on Google Play

It’s your turn

We’d love to hear what you think and if you have any subjects you’d like us to cover in upcoming episodes.

Leave us a comment on the blog.

Send us an email or an audio comment to insideprcomments@gmail.com,

Connect with us on Twitter. We’re @inside_pr or connect directly with Gini Dietrich, Joseph Thornley, and Martin Waxman.

Please rate us on Apple Podcasts

We hope you like the podcast as much as we like making it for you. If you do, we have a favor to ask: If you like this podcast, please rate us on Apple Podcasts.

Thank you to the people behind Inside PR

Our producer is Jacob Waxman, a talented musician, producer, and recording engineer. Jacob produced the episode and is also the composer of our new theme music. Roger Dey is our announcer.

Inside PR 548: What I want isn’t important. It’s about what you want by Joseph Thornley, Gini Dietrich, Martin Waxman is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Once they've tasted freedom, it's hard to take that away. It's not what I want as an employer; it's what you want as an employee.

Has your boss told you that you have to return to the office fill time? Part-time? Have they talked about flex work? Or even held out the prospect of working remotely on an ongoing basis?

And how do you feel about this? Do you want to return to the office? Full-time? A few days a week? Or do you want to continue to work remotely?

What are the things that you liked and valued about working from the office? What are the benefits of working at home?

Gini, Martin and Joe talk about mistakes that employers are making in the post-lockdown period. High-knowledge, high-skill workers have discovered the freedom of being able to choose where they work - and with the end of the lockdown, many of them will be thinking about what they want to do, and realizing that they have choices. So, the employer who informs their staff that they must return to the workplace full-time may discover that many of their workers not only don't return, but actually leave.

As with many other key decisions, success in bringing employees back to the office will turn on effective communications. And effective communications starts with listening, understanding others' interests and objectives. And then speaking to their concerns, not just blustering forward with what you want and care about.

So, this week, let's talk about effective communication for the post-pandemic return to the office.

Hello … Helloooo … Check 1, 2 … Is this thing on?

OK, cliches aside, I’m happy to report that after a hiatus of around 20 months and all the things that have happened between then and now, Gini Dietrich, Joe Thornley and I are back recording Inside PR.

Why? To be honest we missed talking with each other about what’s new on with PR, social media and digital marketing. We also missed hearing from you.

Our one big change is we’ve moved to a biweekly or fortnightly format, which fits better with our schedules and commitments. That way, you can expect to hear from us on a regular basis. (OK, given our recent history, my fingers are crossed on that.)

In our first new episode, we catch up and discuss what we’ve been doing.

We also talked about how to establish boundaries when you don’t stray too far from the home office and ways to spark creativity.

It’s great to be back! Thank you for sticking with us.

Yes, it's been a long time coming, a long time behind episodes. But we're back with Inside PR for another year. And we're getting back into the groove by discussing the things that we are looking at in the waning months of 2019.