PDS Media

They say it’s all about taking part in competitions – rather than winning.

I agree.

In the recent 12 months three of my clients have reached the stages of awards contests where they’ve been in the category of…”and the nominations for…”

Yes they’ve reached the finals. For me as their PR guru and award entry co-ordinator it always comes as a great source of pleasure when I get the call to let me know they’ve made the final stages.

This isn’t my first blog about awards. As you’ll see from earlier postings I’ve written about the benefits of taking part. I stand by that view.

As we stand on the verge of the final stages and the judges’ results being announced, I’m particularly chuffed because those hard long hours of preparation, research and collation have paid off. Those seemingly endless assignments to satisfy all the criteria in each category have made the grade. We’ve impressed the judging panel – so far.

But of course the stress isn’t over. We’ve now got to face the worry and pressure of the actual awards ceremony. Fuelled with the odd glass of something to calm the nerves those events are usually fascinating because it gives me the chance to scrutinise the opposition’s entries and how they’ve tackled the competition. It’s a learning process all the way.

Three good awards in the bag already for 2011. Another dozen or so categories up for grabs in the weeks to come.

Two of them are of particular interest and meaning to me because of the work I do. We’ve reached “Best Marketing” finals stage in two competitions. I feel I’m a winner already with that achievement. A step further and it’s the icing on the cake.

I’ll keep you posted!

Off out to an event hosted by Radio Clyde and their sales/promotions team.

Be very interesting to suss out the format and also what’s on their agenda for lavishing hospitality on their contacts and clients at the 29 private members’ club!

Will report back soon as…

We’re in the midst of the movie and music awards’ season…

We’ve had the BRITS, done the BAFTAS and now we’re preparing for the Oscars.

Over the last dozen years I’ve looked after many award-winning clients – albeit none of whom have scooped any of the above accolades…yet!

As a result these awards have helped me and the clients generate a bigger and better media profile and given journalists great hooks to focus on for profile pieces and articles.

But be under no illusion…it’s not all glitzy award ceremonies and back-slapping…

Winning awards is hard work.

Aside from the journey these clients have been on to merit their recognition, the task of ‘entering’ can be pretty time consuming. And that’ were I’m called in to do my bit.

Increasingly award organisers are looking for creativity in the entry submission. They’re looking for multi-media aspects to the entry. They need the ‘wow’ factor.

For several entries last year I called on the services of a graphic design team to add their magic to my creative vision. The entry submission took the best part of a week to finetune and package up exactly how the client and I needed it to be. Result? Success…

So all the hard work paid off in the end.

The process has other benefits. It makes clients look carefully at exactly what they’ve achieved in the previous 12 months and that in itself can be very rewarding. That process can also help in deciding which practices should be kept, developed or discarded.

Done properly the entry submission process can be every bit as useful as the award-winning itself.

I’m off to look at the next batch of awards coming up…

Once a month my alarm rings earlier than normal…

Reason? To drag me up and out to my monthly trip into the city centre for the monthly New Media Breakfast run by Gordon White and his Fatbuzz team.

These events are held at 29 in Royal Exchange Square.

I’ve been to most since they launched more than a year ago and from each I’ve learned something new about this ever-changing world of new social media.

Each brekkie usually welcomes a guest speaker discussing some new angle on what’s hot and what’s not from the online world of marketing.

There’s always a very healthy turnout…usually 80-90 and it’s a good opportunity for some breakfast time networking too. It’s a tenner to attend but if, like me, you’re a 29 member then it’s free…

If you’d like to find out more about the next one which is on Friday check out this link http://www.newmediabreakfast.co.uk/

I love my iPad…

There, I’ve said it.

It’s become an integral part of my business life as well as private life, enabling me to have as much www access as I need anywhere in my home or when I’m out and about.

Mobile working has never been so simple. Thanks to my £10 a month 3G connectivity I’m online whenever and wherever I need to be. Now I can work from anywhere. Result.

I look upon my Blackberry now only as the fallback tool – when I’m separated from the iPad or it’s simply been left at home on charge.

But I feel that a Blackberry generated email response isn’t as “grown up” as an iPad one.

More often or not I’ll aim to respond to emails via the iPad…quite simply because the keyboard’s bigger and easier and I’m more likely to respond in the same fashion I would if I was sitting at my desk.

When my iPad love-in began it was clear something would have to give…and sadly it’s been the laptop. My old Apple laptop has neither moved from its last resting place or been recharged since the day and hour the Apple icon burst onto the iPad screen.

Why such finality of existence for the laptop that had served me and the business for about four or five years? Quite frankly it’s all about speed and convenience. If I want to check something online I want to do it now. Not when the laptop finally fires up.

Apple laptop RIP.

I’ve been fortunate that in 13 years or so of working as a PR consultant the majority of my clients “get it” when it comes to the world of media.

Whether that understanding includes getting to grips with the demands of today’s over-stretched and often under-resourced media professionals or grasping the significance of four or five pages of coverage in a particular publication, my job as media and PR advisor becomes easier because the client is in tune with our joint aims.

I once worked with a client who admitted after two years or so into a fairly lengthy business relationship that the first few months of my involvement had put him in a state of near panic.

It wasn’t that I was doing anything wrong or reckless for his business. Quite the contrary in fact as suddenly the media spotlight was on him at a level he’d never experienced. His profile soared – well actually our involvement generated a fresh media profile for the first time. Unknown to me, however, these early days of having switched on the PR power had left the client wondering what had hit him! Not ideal, I hear you say. I agree but he said he quickly appreciated that I knew what was required and where we were going and so he decided to give me an even freer rein, rather than panic more.

That was a learning curve for me too. Knowing how to deal with media colleagues is second nature for me. Understanding their demands is easy because I was that journalist in a previous life. What I’d failed to appreciate was for this client – who up until that point had very limited experience of and exposure to the media – was being guided by me through this brave new world and it hadn’t even crossed my mind that the journey was anything but interesting, rewarding and at times fun.

After our conversation I realised the importance of ensuring new clients – especially those 100% new to the world of media – understood not only the strategy we adopt but also got a handle on the basic rules of engagement.

This is my first website blog for PDS Media. I spend my time advising clients on what to write, what to say, what to announce on their blogs. When it comes to mine do I have a clue what to write? No! But I’ll have a go…

I do know the importance of a good blog. That understanding helps my clients achieve a great deal in their online marketing and profile building.

I’ll give you an example. I helped a client write a blog for a particular service he offered. He’d travelled overseas in pursuit of the knowledge and so I helped him put together the appropriate blog.

Three weeks later he told me of a new client who’d searched for the service on Google – linking his home town – in her pursuit of a local provider. She found his site, checked him out and even contacted the overseas training centre to verify my client’s experience. All her boxes were ticked and she duly became a new client.

One blog generated fresh interest in his business. More importantly from a commercial perspective that one blog generated a healthy revenue stream for my client.

I’m a great believer that today’s social media is not “one size fits all” and that tailoring your social media strategy to meet your aims and objectives is vitally important. This is even more important when it comes to the art of blogging.

I read many blog posts and I find myself questioning not only the relevance but also the ultimate aim. Some blogs are vanity trips. Some are rambles with vague connection to the host site.

I read others that are clearly so well researched and tailored ‘to fit’ that the aim screams out from the screen.

Whatever your aim or objective in blogging may be bear one thing in mind. Your words need to engage the reader. If they don’t they’re wasted words and in turn the blog has potentially failed and will defintely not be paying its way.