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Wanted! A talented PR Consultant to work with us

Catriona Pollard - Sunday, February 28, 2010

* Tired of working long hours in a big agency?
* Want to be a valued member of a small, award-winning team?

We are a dynamic boutique agency who is seeking a talented PR consultant to manage a varied client base.

You will manage clients with the guidance and support of the Director, a PR and social media expert.

Your day-to-day work would include:

* Developing PR strategies
* Media liaison – generating awareness about a client’s work on a national and regional level through effective media coverage
* Generating story ideas and opportunities for media coverage
* Developing online PR campaigns
* Assisting in social media campaigns
* Writing articles, stories for newsletters, brochures, advertising, websites etc

PR experience is essential for this position - it isn't a graduate position.

Read all about CP Communications at www.cpcommunications.com.au or our blog at www.PublicRelationsSydney.com.au

We have an exciting and happy work environment. We invest in the professional and personal development of our team members. We welcome candidates who would like to develop within CP Communications over the long term.

If this sounds like you, then we’d love to hear from you. Please send your CV & covering letter to info@cpcommunications.com.au or if you have any questions, please call Catriona Pollard on 9922 1063

Applications close 15 March  2010

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Media Release: Historic Moonan Flat Public School sold under virtual hammer

Catriona Pollard - Friday, February 19, 2010
Historic Moonan Flat Public School attracted over 2000 online visitors from all around Australia selling above the reserved price using soldonline.com.au.

soldonline.com.au provides simple, secure and stress free online property auctions for residential, commercial and rural properties.
 
The Moonan Flat Public School property was marketed by John Wood of North Shore Commercial Industrial to potential buyers using the online auction campaign with bidding starting on 1 February and selling for a price of $124,000 on 15 February 2010. 

Director of soldonline.com.au and Licensed Real Estate Auctioneer, David Scholes said, “soldonline.com.au allows prospective buyers to bid from anywhere in the world allowing for a greater variety of bidders.”

“The process gives buyers more control in the bidding process allowing decisions to be made in their own time wherever they are.”

 “The property page was viewed 2182 times and 36 contracts were downloaded with 19 registered bidders from Queensland, Sydney and Newcastle and throughout the Hunter Valley.” 

“The Moonan Flat Public School property was a wonderful opportunity to buy a piece of local history,” said Mr Scholes. 

“The online bidding system allowed for a greater range of bidders for the Moonan Flat property and the final results we achieved speak for themselves,” said Mr Scholes.

Director of North Shore Commercial Industrial, John Wood, said “soldonline.com.au worked well and made it possible to involve a wider group of bidders from various parts of Australia.”

The Moonan Flat property included an historic timber school building with four bedrooms, teachers’ residence, modern kitchen, grand main room, mature garden, extensive sheds and amenities on 1.5 acres. 

-ends-

soldonline.com.au run simple, secure and stress free online property auctions for residential, commercial and rural properties. The online system allows for increased flexibility in the traditional auction system allowing bidders from anywhere in the world to take part, 24/7. The extended bidding period removes the pressure normally associated with traditional auctions. 
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Media release: A night in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland to support mental health

Catriona Pollard - Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Step into a twisted alternate reality in character to raise money for mental health charity SANE Australia at Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland to be held on 4 March at Gold Class, Event Cinemas Bondi, Westfield Bondi Junction.

The charity event will include watching the highly anticipated Alice in Wonderland in 3D. The film will jump off the screen at the audience combining virtual reality with actual reality as dressed up audience members practically feel like characters in the film.

Organiser, Judith Cantor said, “Tim Burton's 'Alice in Wonderland' is bound to be as brilliant, quirky and dark as his other films, if not better. And we are the first country to see it! So, get dressed in character (compulsory) and come and watch this fantastical new release in 3D!”

SANE are an independent charity with no ongoing government support. SANE conducts innovative programs and campaigns to improve the lives of people living with mental illness, their family and friends. It also operates a busy Helpline and website, which have thousands of contacts each year from around Australia.

“There is such a stigma surrounding mental health and it's about time we broke through it. SANE work tirelessly to help people affected by mental illness live a fuller life. This charity event will assist in raising money for this important group,” said Ms Cantor.  

The event is supported by Edifier, Stevie English Hair, Cocolo Chocolates who are donating prizes. Sponsors Fancy Shmancy Boutique Fancy Dress Hire are assisting in costume hire and Face Focus will be donating their face painting services to make the night even more fun.

To watch the Trailer of Alice in Wonderland click here

A ticket to this magical night is $75 per person including a drink and canapés on arrival and can be purchased through www.whiterabbit.eventbrite.com.
When: Festivities begin at 6pm, Thursday March 4
Where: Set Bar (at top of escalator) Event Cinemas, Westfield Bondi Junction, 500 Oxford Street
Dress:  Strictly costume only
RSVP: 3 March, 2010 (until sold out)
Contact:  Judith Cantor 0402 257 655 or Judith@judithcantor.com

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CP Communications Newsletter - PR Tips & News 16 February 2010

Catriona Pollard - Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Recently I have been helping a lovely friend of mine, Margaret Carey, with setting up her newsletter and blog. She is off to East Timor volunteering her time in an NGO for a month or so.

While she is away she asked if I could help with her next newsletter. That’s easy. The software we used sits in the cloud. Not the raining type of cloud. The cloud refers to the ability to use software and data on the internet instead of on your hard drive.


Ten years ago if you wanted to do something with your PC you needed to buy software and install it. Web 2.0 has made that practice obsolete. So blogs, Twitter, my website program, this newsletter is all cloud computing.


Last Sunday I sat down with a great bunch of people over a long lunch – all organised over the cloud. I let people know about it on Twitter and Facebook and they RSVPd on a free program called Eventbrite, and I even upload photos of the event on a posterous blog.


So I’m loving the cloud – it has changed the way I work – and socialise!


I hope you enjoy reading this newsletter.


So why PR?

I often get asked why PR? What can PR do for my business that advertising or marketing can’t. Whether you run a small or large  business, have a start-up company, or simply expanding into a new country or geographical area, PR is an important tool for you. 

Here is what I think…


Credibility – Public relations holds a powerful position in the communications suite. One of the major impacts of PR is media relations, which assists you in achieving editorial coverage. People in your target market may see editorial as an independent and objective evaluation of your company. 

 

Due to the perceived objectivity of editorial coverage, PR is said to hold more credibility than other forms of marketing communication. Editorial coverage is trusted more than running an advertisement.


Cost Effectiveness – Public relations can be less expensive than other forms of paid communication, even if you hire an external public relations agency rather than performing this task in-house. Whilst you are paying for the services of a PR specialist, what you are achieving in the way of media coverage and changes in public perception may have otherwise cost you much more.


Exposure – Media coverage achieved through PR is likely to be more extensive than that which you would achieve through advertising, given a similar budget. Specialist PR people know which media to target for which message (and often have cultivated good contacts), what content the media want, when to pitch them which story to pitch and what is the best way to deliver your message.

Flexibility – Public relations has the benefits of being flexible in message content and being responsive to news. A skilled PR professional can turn around media releases in reaction to news or crisis situations within hours.

So what are the Twitter rules?

I was interviewed for TechMarketing magazine about the key rules for using Twitter, and I thought I would share it with you. 

What would be your rules for your clients as to how to use Twitter?

Twitter is immediate and permanent. (Technically, you can delete a tweet but it hangs around). The key rule I tell my staff and clients is to only tweet something you will be happy to see on the internet now and in the future.

 

Twitter needs to be credible so obviously only tweet information that assists to build credibility of the brand and the organisation. If it doesn’t, then don’t tweet it. 

 

The role of Twitter is to create relationships with your followers (and target audience) and relationships based on public slanging matches will not last. So if you are having a bad day – log out of twitter or hand it over to a colleague.

 

What are some of the advantages for PRs when it comes to using Twitter on behalf of their clients? What are some of the pitfalls?

We tweet and blog for our clients and for organisations that don’t have the in house expertise or resources, this works well. 

 

Although transparency is important for some twitter accounts, take for example Kevin Rudd’s account – we want to know if he or one of his staff is tweeting. For most companies this isn’t necessary. It’s the quality of the tweets that build followers rather than who is doing the tweeting. 


Quality is key and to figure out how to get that you need to develop a strategy. Asking what type of information would my followers want to read? How can we drive followers to the Facebook fan page? How personal do we go? etc

 

How would you advise a client to implement damage control in the event of a social media stuff-up? 

Because social media is immediate, you need to be immediate in your response. Join in the conversation immediately. Be honest and explain the situation and what you are doing to fix it. Say you are listening – and actually listen – and act on the complaints. 

Do not go quiet, do not say no comment, let your followers know how often and when to expect a response or communication from you. 


Upcoming events

Here are some events coming up that we thought you might be interested in:

LAN Brazilian Festa at Starlight Cinema

The LAN Brazilian Festa returns for a second year to ME Bank Starlight Cinema, transforming North Sydney Oval into a mini Brazil. Starting at 4.00pm with everyone’s favourite Brazilian food, music, caipirinhas from the Sagatiba bar, football clinics and games, frescoball, kid’s activities, dance workshop and lots of fun. Film commences at sundown

28 February 2010


Award Winning PR Case Studies Breakfast

PRIA NSW is offering practitioners a fantastic opportunity to gain a detailed insight into the strategies behind last year’s most outstanding campaigns at a showcase event. 

2 March 2010

Ignite Sydney
Here some great speeches including Claire Moffat discussing how to connect to women using marketing and social media. Each speaker has 5 minutes on stage with 20 slides which rotate automatically after 15 seconds.
2 March 2010

Public Speaking Courses

Changingtools.com runs a course that aims to conquer the anxious, terrified and frustrated feelings associated with public speaking. This course will help you overcome any fear of public speaking.

15 March 2010

Relay for Life 

Relay for Life is a unique, overnight fundraising event! The three aims of the event are to celebrate survivors and carers of cancer; remember those lost to cancer; and to pledge a plan to make a change to fight cancer!

27- 28 March 2010

Click here to sign up to receive the CP Communications newsletter directly in your inbox every second Tuesday morning.

 

 

 
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Director of CP Communications, Catriona Pollard, features in My Business

Catriona Pollard - Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Director of CP Communications, Catriona Pollard, featured in this month's edition of My Business. In her article she discusses how you can improve your website ranking by publishing good quality articles.



To read full article click here.
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Media release: First Rate Announces Exclusive Australian and New Zealand Partnership with SearchIgnite

Catriona Pollard - Monday, February 08, 2010

Search marketing agency, First Rate (www.firstrate.com.au) has been appointed as the exclusive licensee in Australia and New Zealand of the Search Engine Marketing (SEM) technology, SearchIgnite.

One of the world’s leading providers of SEM bid management and reporting solutions, SearchIgnite (www.searchignite.com) will provide First Rate with an advanced suite of tools to manage, optimise, track and report on SEM campaigns for its clients.

The SearchIgnite solution offers advanced features including cross-channel conversion path analysis and end-to-end automatic optimisation of creative, bids and landing pages.

Founder of First Rate, Jon Ostler said “We carried out an extensive, worldwide search for the best SEM technology available. In the end we chose SearchIgnite because of their technology’s leading bid management methodology, unique direct marketing features, and proven client results.”

First Rate CEO for Australia, James Ward, said, “With SearchIgnite, First Rate can optimise and drive our clients’ SEM campaigns further than ever before – generating more clicks, leads, and sales within our clients’ ROI  targets.  As a recognised leader in SEM technology, SearchIgnite supports our commitment to provide the best and smartest SEM service available in Australia.”

Founder of SearchIgnite, Roger Barnette said, “We are excited to form a strategic relationship with First Rate across Australia and New Zealand. We were impressed with the reputation and leadership position First Rate has built up around their search marketing services.   This new strategic relationship with SearchIgnite will further enhance their SEM leadership in Australia.”

About First Rate

First Rate (www.firstrate.com.au) is one of Australia’s leading search marketing agencies, specialising in search engine optimisation (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), and performance online advertising.  They are recognised as leaders in developing strategies and tactics that help their clients dominate the search engines and grow their online market share. First Rate works with many of Australia’s leading blue chip brands.  Its clients are spread over 50 industries including retail / e-tail, financial services, education, energy, travel, and software solutions. First Rate (Aust) Pty Ltd (ABN 87 123 553 042) is a subsidiary of ASX-listed Q Ltd (ASX: QXQ).

About SearchIgnite
SearchIgnite (www.searchignite.com) is a leading provider of search management solutions for optimizing paid search to deliver improved performance and higher ROI. The company's search management and digital media attribution technology offers an advanced suite of tools to manage, optimize and report on paid search campaigns in one central dashboard, as well as gather insights into the relationship between media channels. SearchIgnite optimises $400 million (USD), manages 50+ million keywords and drives $8 billion+ in revenue each year for some of the world’s leading marketers. More information can be found at www.searchignite.com.

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CP Communications newsletter - PR Tips & News 2 February 2010

Catriona Pollard - Monday, February 01, 2010

On Sunday I started reading the book The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet. But that is irrelevant to this story – how I came to be reading it is!

This book was released ‘into the wild’ by Alan Jones (or @bigyahu on Twitter). I didn’t go to a bookshop or a library and choose it. It was literally released at a coffee shop and I picked it up.

Book Crossing is where books take on a life of their own. You go online and register a book(s) you have read and get a number (BookCrossing ID or BCID) then leave it on a park bench, a coffee shop, at a hotel on holidays - anywhere it might find a new reader!

What happens next is up to fate, and you never know where the books might travel. You can even track the book's journey around the world as it is passed on from person to person.

So far 839,659 people in over 130 countries have registered, and the most travelled book is Der seltsame Bücherfreund / Hoffnung's Constant Readers [BookRing] at 460 reads from people all around the world.

Amazing! So take a look at your books just sitting collecting dust and why not set them free? Make the world a library.

I hope you enjoy reading this newsletter.

Top tips for managing a media interview

Recently we ran a media training session with a client who had a very important face to face interview with a few Australian Financial Review journalists. I thought I would share some of the tips I discussed in the session. The first step is preparing for the interview but during the it there are key techniques to get the most out of it: 

Answer plus one
To ensure you maintain control of the interview, don’t just answer the question. Your objective must always be to communicate your key messages. Use the questions as an opportunity to make your points. This is called ‘answer plus one’. In other words, answer the question then add one of your key messages or key issues outlined in your game plan.

Answer in your own time
The journalist is interested in what you have to say, so don’t get flustered if you can’t think of an answer immediately. Just take your time, collect your thoughts and take a deep breath before you answer.

Don’t be afraid of silence
Some journalists use it as a technique in the hope you will fill the silence with unplanned information. Silence can be powerful and there is no need to fill it.

The “no comment” rule
Don’t say “no comment” as it implies confirmation of the question. The audience will interpret it as guilt or a cover up. The rule of thumb for responding is to explain why you can’t respond and use one of your key messages. For example, “I can’t respond directly to that for legal reasons, however, what I can tell you is…”

However, never allow wrongful allegations to stand. If the journalist says something wrong, correct them immediately. Do not repeat the incorrect information or question. If you do, it will only reinforce it. Read more about this on our blog Public Relations Sydney. 

Don't use jargon
Every industry has its own jargon. Remember who your target audience is and communicate in language they will understand. Also, don’t assume that the journalist is trained in your specific area of expertise; as a result, they may not understand your jargon.

Use your customers as testimonials
Depending on the topic of the interview, it may be effective to use one of your valued customers to validate your key messages. You would have to ensure that they are comfortable speaking to the media. Often this is an effective way of illustrating your point and helps your audiences understand and identify with you.

Customer service is more than just good manners

I recently had a conversation with customer service specialist, Nancy Georges, about how important customer service is. Without exceptional customer service, a business cannot thrive, grow or survive long term.  Through the internet and social media customers can share their experiences - both good and bad - immediately. 

Here are some of Nancy’s tips to help elevate your customer service experience:

• Know that customer service is giving your customer what they want, when they want it, not just the greeting as they come into your business.

• Remember that customer service is just good manners applied to your business, your customer and every interaction you have. Be respectful especially in cases where there has been a less than positive experience, this will ensure emotions do not get in the way of resolving the issue positively.

• Be genuine. Smile when speaking to customers (especially on the phone). People respond immediately when others smile at them.  It will also mean that they associate you with a positive experience. People are always happy to do things that make them feel good repeatedly which is good for your business.

• Take customer comments, feedback and complaints as tools to help shape future behaviour. If something had a great response, do it again, apply it to other areas of your business and promote it.  Use complaints to put in systems and procedures to ensure this does not happen again.

• Every single person in your business needs to value the same customer service standards and values.  Training, reinforcement and feedback are vital for any business owner and their staff.

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Media Release: HotelClub.com appoints First Rate to its SEO account

Catriona Pollard - Friday, January 29, 2010
Online marketing agency, First Rate has been appointed to assist with HotelClub.com’s search engine optimisation (SEO) program. HotelClub.com is one of the world’s leading accommodation websites.

First Rate won the company’s SEO account after a competitive bid process, involving several other agencies.

The veteran online marketing agency, which has 40 staff and offices in Sydney and Auckland, has already begun SEO on the HotelClub.com website, generating significant increases to the company’s natural search engine rankings.

Tom Skotidas, head of marketing at First Rate said, “We are excited to be working with HotelClub.com, a global leader in accommodation.” 

“Our early SEO work has already shown great results, increasing HotelClub.com’s natural rankings, traffic, and bookings.  By working closely with their inhouse SEO team, First Rate is helping to ensure that HotelClub.com continues to dominate the global accommodation category,” said Mr Skotidas.

HotelClub Head of SEO Andrew Rodrigues said: “We selected First Rate on the basis of their knowledge and expertise in the online marketing and SEO arenas.”

“We feel that they truly take our best interests to heart and give their all to maximise our online performance and make us successful,” said Mr Rodrigues.

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HotelClub is a global accommodation specialist operating the following websites: HotelClub.com - bookings up to 12 months in advance and RatesToGo.com – bookings up to 28 days in advance. 

HotelClub offers users the choice of over 60,000 hotels in over 130 countries worldwide. HotelClub is available in fourteen languages – Chinese, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish and Thai. HotelClub is truly global offering its customers access through country specific websites.

HotelClub is part of Orbitz Worldwide Inc (NSYE: OWW).

First Rate is one of Australia’s leading online marketing agencies, specialising in search engine optimisation (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), and performance online advertising.  They are recognised as leaders in developing strategies and tactics that help their clients dominate the search engines and grow their online market share.

First Rate works with many of Australia’s leading blue chip brands.  Its clients are spread over 50 industries including retail / e-tail, financial services, education, energy, travel, and CRM.
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