| Building and Protecting your Reputation |
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Hi John,
There's only one story dominating the news right now. It's a widespread phenomenon, which has caught the attention of millions of people. Yes, it's the Eurovision Song Contest, and the news that the UK entry has been selected.
It's James Newman whose younger brother is Brit Award nominee John Newman, and who has already written for Ed Sheeran, Jess Glynne, Calvin Harris and Little Mix.
I think it's very good. But will it be good enough to beat off the block votes that dominate the competition, and the impact of Brexit (Er...no, Ed). |
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| | Do you ever watch "food hacks" on YouTube? Millions of people do. But alas, a lot of them don't work and some of them are downright dangerous, as a BBC Click investigation found out.
Don't be taken in, Buy a decent recipe book instead.
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The MediaMaestro is a shop called Odell & Co which has been trading in the same spot on Stony Stratford High Street in Milton Keynes since 1740.
Vicky Holton, who has lived in the town all her life, said the hardware shop had "always reminded" her of the "Four Candles" sketch. Co-owner David Odell said the sketch was mentioned by customers every week.
Ms Holton decied to recreate the iconic sketch, and enlisted the help of a local videographer and actors from the Milton Keynes amateur dramatics scene - with Sean Calvert and Dave Pibworth playing the roles filled by Corbett and Barker in the original version.
Miss Holton herself makes a brief appearance, as does Mr Odell.
She said she hoped the video would "shine a light on a marvellous shop, especially as High Streets are at risk in all towns".
"A similar hardware shop a few miles away closed down a few years ago and it was so sad," Miss Holton said. "Odell's has been around since 1740 and it's a real community hub. They've got a really good ethos, fantastic service and always sell tickets to local events in the shop."
What a brilliant piece of PR! |
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The MediaMug is a managerial spoilsport at the review site Tripadvisor.
They suspended reviews to an attraction lovingly referred to as the "NatWest hole" - a circular hole in a wall next to a bank branch's cash machine.
After a flurry of posts from online jokers propelled it to the top five attractions in Ilkeston, Derbyshire, the online travel platforms says it is freezing contributions because they "do not describe a first-hand experience".
One recent "visitor" said they had spent hours "admiring the architectural beauty" of the hole, which was added in the 1990s so people using the ATM could check if anyone was lurking.
They gushed: "I could easily compare to the majestic wonder of Stonehenge or even the Pyramids, Quite how the workers of the 90's managed to construct such a work of this magnitude is beyond imagination."
A red label at the top of its page on TripAdvisor now says: "Due to a recent event that has attracted media attention and has caused an influx of review submissions that do not describe a first-hand experience, we have temporarily suspended publishing new reviews for this listing"
They're no fun, are they? . |
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| Speaking Tip - To what do you refer? |
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Do you have good references? No, I don't mean testimonials from previous employers. I mean do you have some strong reference points in your speech. While no-one warms to the insincere "It's good to be back in Manchester..." speech opening, there are a number of ways to include a reference that will strengthen your connection with your audience. Here are four examples.
1) Location OK, I just rubbished that one. But if used more cleverly, it can be a really good way of making people feel you care about them. If you have a genuine family link, or there are similarities between your home and where you are speaking, use them. If not, find out something that local people are very proud of, and use that. It could be a local food, industry or famous individual. It can even be a humorous reference, as long as it demonstrates that you've put some thought into it rather than paying it lip service.
2) Personal This can be a bit tricky, since you don't want to sound self-serving. It's best to use self-deprecation instead. No-one will mind if you poke fun at yourself.
3) Literature Though you shouldn't fill your speech with other people's quotes, using a line or two from a book or poem can work well, provided it has a strong relevance to your topic. For example, you might open by saying "As Dickens put it in The Tale of Two Cities, 'it was the best of times, it was the worst of times'. That sums up my analysis of the business environment perfectly".
4) Anniversaries You can always look up a matching date in history and make a connection. If you're reading this when it arrives on February 28th, you may not be aware that on this day in 1953 Francis Crick and James Watson discovered the double helix chemical structure of DNA. Well, you know that now! |
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| Media Tip - It's over when you get home |
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Many interviews are straightforward conversations with a clear beginning, middle and end. However, there will be occasions when you could be caught out if you didn't keep your wits about you. Being aware of what might happen will ensure that you will never be ambushed. Here's what I mean:
1) The silent assassin If there are two journalists in the studio (often a breakfast or drive-time show), only one will usually conduct the interview. The other may appear disinterested, looking at their notes, or listening to the producer in their earpiece. As you answer the last question and relax, the other journalist will spring to life, and say "just one more question on a different subject if I may". You need to stay alert, otherwise you could fumble your answer.
2) The sand-filled sock You may be hit with a sudden heavily-weighted question right at the end of your interview. For example, it could include an assumption or assertion that is untrue, leaving you only a few seconds to respond. You must make sure that you deny any untrue accusation, even by just using the words "That's untrue", before delivering your brief core message.
3) The technical hitch. You sail through the interview, deliver your message, and avoid any tricky questions. As you lean back to relax while the recording is being checked, you mention to the interviewer how glad you were not to be asked about THAT topic. A message comes through that the recording didn't work properly, and you need to do it all again. You can guess the first question.
The moral of all this, of course, is never to relax until you're safe at home. |
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| Social Media Tip - Become a specialist |
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Many companies that I speak to say things like "We need to be on social media - how can we get a presence on all the big sites?" My response is always "Why do you want to be on all of the sites?" The thing is, not all social media sites are the same. OK, some, like Facebook, are approaching half a billion members. That's a big potential audience. But there are many "niche networks" that could be much more worthwhile spending time and effort in.
The age-old adage that "The best fishermen fish where the fish are" is true of social networks too. If you are trying to have a conversation with existing and potential customers, you should do some research to find out what types of networks they use. Don't rely on "conventional wisdom", either, since it may turn out to be completely wrong. Instead, take a sample of your customers and ask them about their use of social media. You may well find that they ignore the larger networks for specialist forums where they feel more comfortable.
Of course you should not ignore Facebook and Twitter completely. But you may find networks of only a few thousand people where your fans get together. When you find them, simply join the debate. Don't treat it as a high-quality marketing list. If you do, they will either ignore you or go elsewhere. Specialise in finding out where your customers are talking, and go and join their conversation. |
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| Sometimes news reporting goes wrong, and at 3:06 in this clip, there is an absolute classic of the genre. |
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| Need a MC, or even Emcee? |
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| The information in this ezine may be freely re-used in any online or offline publication, provided it is accompanied by the following credit line - "This information was written by Alan Stevens, and originally appeared in "The MediaCoach", his free weekly ezine, available at www.mediacoach.co.uk." |
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