How to damage a business with one social media post

One errant post on social media can potentially bring any business crashing to the ground in a matter of hours – as one growing restaurant chain in the Midlands has found out to its cost.

In November 2017, an Italian restaurant hit the headlines for fanfaring a £200,000 investment that paved the way for the opening […]

By |10th January 2018|Crisis PR, Facebook, PR disaster, Social media|Comments Off on How to damage a business with one social media post

Sorting the factual from the fake news

Following my recent piece about fake news, the phenomenon has continued to wreak havoc across the web, including in the recent UK general election. But steps are being taken to help the public to distinguish whether online articles are true or not.

As reported by the BBC, Facebook has launched a nationwide campaign to raise awareness […]

By |7th July 2017|Brands, Facebook, Social media, Twitter, YouTube|Comments Off on Sorting the factual from the fake news

Is Facebook the right marketing channel to promote your business?

A school recently approached me and asked my advice about whether it should be on Facebook, as the governing body was looking at ways to improve its communication with parents and the local community.

I said “no”.

It’s not because Facebook isn’t a fantastic communication platform. It is. And there are plenty of schools who do use […]

By |10th March 2016|Facebook, PR, Social media|Comments Off on Is Facebook the right marketing channel to promote your business?

Why consumer backlashes can be good for business

“There is only one thing in life worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.”

It seems that sections of the marketing community are taking Oscar Wilde’s famous quote to heart – as there seems to be a rise in the number of campaigns that are deliberately designed to stir the […]

By |14th September 2015|Crisis PR, Facebook, Social media|0 Comments

Monopoly lets cat out of bag with game-changing PR

One of the first was the revival of Cadbury’s Whisper. Then we had the Walkers Crisps Do us a flavour challenge a year later. And now board game manufacturer Hasbro is the latest brand to reap the PR rewards of an internet campaign giving fans the chance to say what goes into their product offering.

Hasbro […]

By |7th February 2013|Facebook, PR|Comments Off on Monopoly lets cat out of bag with game-changing PR

Facebook a mobile company? Is it heckers ‘Like’?

So Mark Zuckerberg reckons Facebook’s a mobile company does he?

Well, just in case you haven’t heard, the social network has just released its latest financial figures accompanied by a statement in which Zuckerberg claimed that 2012 was the year that Facebook became a mobile company.

To sum up briefly what’s been going on, the company has […]

By |1st February 2013|Facebook|Comments Off on Facebook a mobile company? Is it heckers ‘Like’?

Don’t destroy your online reputation this Christmas

Now that the Christmas season is upon us, the time has come for many of us to let our hair down and have a good old knees-up at the office Christmas party.

But before you log onto Facebook to upload photos taken while you were stumbling around in a drunken stupor, you may be wise to […]

By |19th December 2012|Facebook, PR, Social media|Comments Off on Don’t destroy your online reputation this Christmas

New social media insurance highlights risks to reputation

Imagine that someone hacked into your Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter account and started posting malicious or derogatory comments using your personal or business profile.

Not only could the damage to your reputation be catastrophic, but you could also face a lengthy uphill battle to regain control of your account and bring legal action against the hackers […]

By |18th September 2012|Facebook, LinkedIn, Smart marketing, Twitter|Comments Off on New social media insurance highlights risks to reputation

Time your Tweets for top Twitter results

Ever noticed how some of your Twitter messages generate lots of interest while others almost vanish into the ether with little apparent impact or response?

Well, according to URL redirection and social bookmarking service bitly, the timing of your Tweets may be a far more significant factor than you think.

The company, which provides the default link […]

By |22nd August 2012|Facebook, Social media, Twitter|Comments Off on Time your Tweets for top Twitter results

Phoney Facebook Likes undermine PR potential

With a long list of successful Facebook and Twitter campaigns already behind us, social media activity has firmly established itself as part of the service that we offer many of our clients.

But, although we remain keen advocates of Facebook as a public relations tool, one aspect of the social networking site has recently given us […]

By |9th August 2012|Facebook, PR, Social media, Twitter|Comments Off on Phoney Facebook Likes undermine PR potential

Facebook tiger tug challenge a roaring PR success

If you’re a regular visitor to this blog then you’ll no doubt have noticed just how much we love talking about social media and just how much it has changed the way we practise PR.

But when you consider the stunning results that a well-executed social media campaign can achieve then it’s not particularly hard to […]

By |4th July 2012|Facebook, PR, Social media, YouTube|Comments Off on Facebook tiger tug challenge a roaring PR success

Follow up on your Facebook following

Too few companies are failing to exploit the true PR potential of their Facebook business presence by neglecting to follow up on people who click on the ‘Like’ button when visiting their branded pages on the social network.

Somehow, it would seem, many businesses still think that success in social media simply boils down to merely […]

By |28th June 2012|Facebook|Comments Off on Follow up on your Facebook following

Twitter hashtag trial highlights PR potential

Following much of the recent debate about the future of Facebook as a viable long-term business model, many of us in the PR fraternity have been openly speculating as to where Twitter is planning to take its own rival social networking service.

However, now that the microblogging site has successfully completed the trial of its first […]

By |14th June 2012|Facebook, PR, Twitter|2 Comments

What Facebook advertising failures mean for PR

With barely hours to go before the much-hyped flotation of Facebook shares on the US stock market, yet another leading company has announced plans to stop advertising on the platform, reigniting the debate about what the future holds for the social network as an ongoing business concern.

US car manufacturing giant General Motors is the latest […]

By |17th May 2012|Facebook, PR|Comments Off on What Facebook advertising failures mean for PR

Foul-mouthed Facebook bus drivers in PR hot water

We may have seen it time and time before – yet despite all the high-profile stories it is still astonishing to think that many employees are still blissfully unaware of the dangers of airing grievances about their work on social networking sites, such as Facebook and Twitter.

And now the latest case to hit the headlines […]

By |13th April 2012|Crisis PR, Facebook, Twitter|Comments Off on Foul-mouthed Facebook bus drivers in PR hot water