MxMIndia

Category: PR ETC

  • Though Outlook was owned by a corporate house and had a style that was not very much liked by right-wingers, it definitely brought in a freshness to journalism, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu on Vinod Mehta: They don’t make editors like him anymore

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    It was my final year of high school and I still remember my dad coming home with this new magazine in hand. My home saw four daily newspapers and three weekly magazines that came through subscription, which meant the newspaper man or the postman delivered these. One of the three magazines had stopped abruptly (Sunday from the ABP Group). There was a vacuum.

     

    India Today was losing its shine and The Week was becoming predictable. This new magazine in my dad’s hand was a welcome read. It was called Outlook and was a weekly, versus India today which was then (in 1995) a fortnightly. Well, the rest they say is history and Vinod Mehta drove the magazine’s editorial content for almost 17 of the 20 years it has been in existence.

     

    It was always a joy to read the last page of the magazine when it featured ‘Delhi Diary’ authored by Mehta himself. I was at the entrance of Hotel Taj Palace in New Delhi on 22nd November waiting for my cab. I had just left the venue of the HT Leadership Summit after attending a session on Twitter. As I was waiting feebly walks Vinod Mehta. We exchanged glances, then a smile and as he waited for his car I told him he was a much admired Editor.

     

    He asked me what I do and then quickly referred to the session we had both attended few minutes prior. He was quite upset that the social network site did not have a mechanism to prevent anonymous handles that were spewing venom. He was quite alright with the idea of criticism. He also mentioned that he was also not happy that there was a parody account on him called @DrunkVinodMehta. To which I told him he should have his own account (I have been successful at convincing couple of other Editors to get on to the medium), and he responded that he had created a twitter handle the previous weekend mainly to promote his memoir. (See @vinodedmehta)

     

    Just then his car arrived, followed by mine. He needed help to get down the final flight of stairs and extended a hand. I was more than happy to extend mine. Both, his driver and he thanked me followed by which my cab arrived as well.

     

    Barely 100 days later news trickled in that he had passed away. He stood for fearlessness. An attribute that few Editors can claim to have in this day and age. Though Outlook was owned by a corporate house and had a style that was not very much liked by the right-wingers, it definitely brought in a freshness to journalism and branched out create few other titles under its franchise. Vinod Mehta did not shy away from publishing the brickbats sent by the readers. He was loved or hated but never ignored. He definitely lived the 73 years of his life very well. I wish there are more like him in the journalistic fraternity. I also hope Outlook posthumously published the entire collection of Delhi Diary. And may his soul rest in peace.

     

  • Peer influence, word-of-mouth marketing, new connections are all taking place at these weekend events around the country, notes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: The art of Public Relations is changing

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    India is seeing a new breed of events that were never heard of until a couple of years ago. I just returned from one and my biggest takeaway is that Public Relations is changing faster than we thought. And it is happening through real-time human interaction.

     

    Peer influence, word-of-mouth marketing, new connections are all taking place at these weekend events around the country. The Coalition, Construkt Festival INK conference and The Goa Project are just few of the events that have mushroomed. These are the new media outlets where ideas are brought to life and discussed threadbare.

     

    We talk of PR professionals not getting their due.  If we PR professionals do not take time out and invest in attending events such as these we will for remain in a shell. Besides the learning and meeting with new people that these forums offer there is an amazing power to float trial balloons and test new concepts that these gatherings offer.

     

    Three things I liked at the The Goa Project, which I feel are reasons enough to attend such unconferences in the future. People from different walks of life who are complete strangers attend. I did not know a single person but at the end of two days I had made friends with nearly a dozen interesting individuals including an art therapist, a make-up artist, an in-film placement expert, a design thinker, an econometrician, a bespoke designer, a theatre actor, a linguist, a podcaster and a spa owner among others. Can there be a wider variety?

     

    The unconference meant anyone could apply to be a speaker and share a point of view. So one could attend sessions as diverse as women-centric cinema, fund raising in the arts, the power to change habits and stress management among others. Most importantly the sea-side ambience provided a relaxed setting for learning with fun.

     

    Lastly, one goes back with entirely new perspectives on life that one would not get at a gathering of like-minded or fellow professionals. So why are PR professionals not at such events? I don’t have an answer. All I know is that there is a need for such events and these are great places for communicators to create traction for brands and organisations they work for.

     

    We cannot complain that we do not have adequate forums to meet and discuss ideas. We must make use of these platforms to evolve ideas. Until the next unconference, then.

     

  • How many PR professionals across the below-30 and above-30 category innovate or do something remarkably outstanding, asks Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: 30 under 30 and what they need to do

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    I was a member of the jury that chose the first list of 30 under 30 in Indian PR. Two things that clearly stood out were, that there is great talent out there and the future of our profession will be in great hands in the years to come. The other interesting takeaway is that some of these should also feature in the list that Forbes India brings out and there are some who would make the cut but do not nominate themselves.

     

    Now that brings me to a Twitter discussion I was having with Deepa Dey who heads Corporate Communications at a leading consumer healthcare company (it’s a different matter that she refers to the discussion as an argument). She felt it was saddening that PR professionals did not feature in the Forbes India list whereas I felt how does Forbes find out that some bright sparks exists unless they do some PR for themselves or come under the radar of the journalist compiling the list. I think it is really optimistic to want to see PR professionals in this list and never impossible.

     

    I’m reproducing the methodology that Forbes India used to arrive at the list from their website:

    The research process was three-fold: One, interviews by Forbes India staffers with sources across relevant categories as well as through studies of databases and media coverage. Two, an online application on forbesindia.com, inviting applications from entrepreneurs/ professionals who felt they qualified. Three, by spreading the word through social media. This helped arrive at a long list which went up to over 300 names across 13 categories. (Finance as a category was dropped for lack of adequate representation.)

     

    Now the question is whether Public Relations as a category even featured at all? And if it did, whether PR professionals featured in the minds of sources that Forbes India staffers spoke to. Also, did PR professionals who felt they qualified, even apply to be in the list. When I refer to PR professionals I mean both – those who work inhouse and those who work in consultancies.

     

    Keeping both the above in context the question I have is how many PR professionals across the below-30 and above-30 category innovate or do something remarkably outstanding? If they do, why is it not brought into the fore? Well, the answers to these will never be found.

     

    The point I’m trying to make is that PR professionals get into the profession to contribute towards building reputations using the power of communications in different forms. Very rarely do PR professionals want to hog the limelight. It is a strategic backroom job with a lot of power and responsibility.

     

    Now that we have our own list that features not one or two but thirty bright, smart professionals we should celebrate and get more people to apply next year. Let’s hope these 30 contribute in outstanding ways to themselves, their organisations and to the profession. And may some of these apply to be in the Forbes India List in 2016.

     

    More importantly, may some of our own who are in the 40s and 50s get to be the people Forbes India speaks to next year! Till then here’s cheering up the 30 under 30. May their tribe increase and may our optimism grow.

     

  • They did ABCD: Aimed (to make a difference), Believed (that nothing is impossible), Committed (to the cause), and Dreamt (really Big)…

    #AAPHEW! | Amith Prabhu: Another election where Public Relations won

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    It is easy to do a post mortem of an event but rarely possible to accurately predict outcomes before the event. The Delhi election, counting to which took place yesterday, was more historic than the 2014 watershed general elections. It was historic because in 2014 the incumbent was written off and the challenger was going full-steam. Here, in 2015 the victorious Aam Aadmi Party was written off and rose like a phoenix. It was the original incumbent in Delhi which resigned after 49 days in power. The President’s Rule in Delhi gave the national government an opportunity to make an impact but they got most things right. I’m not even making a reference to the other grand old party of India because lesser said the better.

     

    What did BJP do wrong that led to a massive victory for AAP with a vote share of 54%. The list is long but let’s pick out the key factors:

    a) BJP ran a negative campaign both externally against the opponent and internally with long standing party members. There is no scope for negativity.

     

    b) BJP imported its CM candidate at the eleventh hour thus creating unrest in the party. There is no scope for haphazard parachuting.

     

    c) BJP’s leadership allowed the likes of Sakshi Maharaj to spew venom and other sister organisations ran a mindless campaign of reconversion and attack on places of worship. This is no more an option.

     

    d) The BJP-led government invited the US President not expecting that his final speech in India and his speech at the National Prayer Breakfast would be without mincing words. This definitely played a role in the minds of undecided voters.

     

    e) The famous million rupee personalised suit of the Prime Minister was the most ill-advised stunt from a man who has been following a playbook. The perception of being elitist was created.

     

    The list can go on and on. But I’m only focusing on the key factors. Contrast that with the way AAP went about with its campaign:

    a) They figured that ‘the early bird catches the worm’ and launched their campaign much before the election dates were announced, anticipating the event could come upon them anytime

     

    b) The leader of the party did something very few politicians have ever done. He went about apologising for his ill-fated 49 day government. Imagine politicians in this day and age doing something like that!

     

    c) They used the Arvind Kejriwal muffler which was otherwise ridiculed to their advantage. They ran a social media campaign to drive home the message that they were truly one like us.

     

    d) They communicated right at every step of the way. Be it their manifesto, their focus areas, their candidates. They did it with élan.

     

    e) Last but not the least, they managed to recapture the imagination of the ordinary folks, the common citizens despite all the odds being stacked against them.

     

    And they did something very basic. They did ABCD: Aimed (to make a difference), Believed (that nothing is impossible), Committed (to the cause), and Dreamt (really Big)…

     

    In simple terms, they did what Public relations is supposed to do. They organised well, they engaged with the audience, they communicated strategically and built a formidable reputation that got more than half of those who voted to vote for them. They not only won, but Public relations won, as well.

     

  • While events like Praxis are great ways to celebrate the profession and they attract professionals of all levels there is a need for another gathering that is introspective in nature, writesAmith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Time for more meaningful Engagement with the most important stakeholders

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    Without doubt the customers are the most important stakeholders of an organisation. But more often than not we forget our immediate customers who are internal and only focus on the end user. In communications consulting and inhouse communications management, the CEO for the corporate brand and the CMO for the product brand are invariably the key stakeholders – they are the primary customers of the counsel we offer.

     

    While inhouse leads and teams interact with the CEO or CMO, whichever the case maybe. And the consulting firm engages with the CEO and CMO either during a media training, or a media conference or a review meeting, we miss out on cross-learnings that a variety of this business leaders can offer to us collectively in the form of a forum of learning and exchange. A conclave style approach that outlines a futuristic outlook for the profession in the short term is missing.

     

    While events like Praxis are great ways to celebrate the profession and they attract professionals of all levels there is a need for another gathering that is introspective in nature. Wherein the real customer of the communications service spells out his or her experiences and expectations from counsel and support. This could also lead to the fraternity getting a general outlook for the year ahead, if held annually.

     

    The CXOs need to understand in an increased manner how Reputation Management which is called by different names is a management function and not just another vendor service, just because purchase departments get involved in procurement. An integration of ideas and an assimilation of thought process is definitely a need of the hour for mutual benefits. Where the corporate or brand leadership derives more out of the communications function and communications professionals – both inhouse and in consultancies benefit from the knowledge of the experienced leaders.

     

    That being said a possibility of organising a day-long annual conclave is on the anvil and may see the light of day before the next financial year begins. To make it easier to pull off, both in terms of budgets and logistics the plan is to host this in one of the three main metros. The format will be straightforward where a group of CEOs, followed by a group of CMOs and then a group of Chief Communications Officers share perspectives either through a panel discussion or through a short presentation.

     

    The audience will only be senior professionals from inhouse departments and consultancies. The rest of the fraternity can track the conclave through a webcast. The outcome will not only be great insights but also a white paper that guides investments in terms of training, hiring and planning for the year ahead.

     

    So here’s to another gathering that will help do PR for PR. The profession is getting its due. But it needs to happen in smarter and quicker ways.

     

  • Quality, affordable post-graduate education for a career in strategic communications is the need of the hour, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: The PR Business in India needs a school of its own

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    It is high time that the fraternity of over 5000 professionals get together to invest in the future of the profession. Good talent is becoming increasingly scarce. The handful of premium schools produce talent that is either not looking at jobs in PR firms or corporate communications. The few that do are not up to the mark and I have personally worked with several of them over the past year.

     

    Where do we go from here? Where do we source trained talent from? How do we solve this epidemic? There is no one clear answer. But there are umpteen possibilities. And we have to make all three come together in a synchronised way. The writing is on the wall. The PR business needs a school of its own. And the time is now.

     

    It requires the coming together people from big and small organisations, both global and local, from in-house and consultancies and this dream needs to be realized. Quality, affordable post-graduate education for a career in strategic communications is the need of the hour. We need to bring together future talent and organisations to make it happen.

     

    What comprises a good school? There is no defined answer. But there are indicators. It needs to be run by practising professionals. It needs to guarantee that the programme translates into jobs. And it needs to ensure stickiness, where organisations want more of the talent they hire and the talent dos not want to leave organisations.

     

    Can hiring organisations offer a reward for loyalty? Perhaps, the comparable low-fee should excite organisations to offer graduating talent the entire sum on completion of a certain number of years in the organisation. For example, students should be nominated to the programme after being interviewed by professionals with a letter of intent to hire them on the successful completion of the programme. These students then spend a pre-defined time in the organisation in order to reap the rewards of loyalty. A retention bonus that is truly meaningful.

     

    Unless freshers spend three to four years in their first job they are not going to be able to be impactful in the middle to long term. The continuous learning that the early year’s offers is certainly an important aspect in becoming well-rounded professionals. There needs to be a futuristic syllabus that students learn with a focus on understanding creativity and respecting research. The clear message the school should send is that there are no shortcuts. I’m certain a school of this kind will have takers. And I’m hoping it is an idea whose time has come.

     

    Disclaimer – I’m putting together the building blocks for such a school and I’m hoping it will be the dream come true for those who want to enter the domain of strategic communications and for organisations who are desperately seeking well-trained, well-groomed and well-educated talent. 

     

  • A list of 15 people in consultancies and in-house in organisations to watch out for in 2015, by Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: 15 people to watch out for in 2015

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    This should have ideally been the first column of the year but it is able to make it in the first month of the year, nevertheless. This is in my humble opinion the list of 15 people in consultancies and in-house in organisations to watch out for in 2015. Most of them donned new hats in the last 12 weeks and are in interesting profiles within their organisations.

     

    Valerie Pinto – One of India’s few employed female head honchos. By that I mean, most other women at the helm of large firms are founders (Prema, Nandita, Archana). But what makes Valerie stand out is that hers was one of the biggest movements in 2014 when she exited Perfect relations after a very long stint to join Weber Shandwick.

     

    Amit Misra and Chetan Mahajan – These two low profile gentlemen were in the limelight after the exit of Jaideep Shergill as they were appointed to co-lead the Publicis Groupe’s flagship PR firms in India. It will be interesting to see how Chetan and Amit take MSLGroup to the next level.

     

    Dilip Cherian and Bobby Kewalramani – Both these pioneers made news throughout 2014 for a proposed sale of Perfect Relations, a company they founded two decades ago from the house of a member of Parliament. One won’t be surprised if they sell out this year.

     

    Rakesh Thukral – Rakesh was appointed Edelman India’s first Indian CEO in October and continues to build on the legacy that Robert Holdheim leaves behind. 2015 will be interesting for this company in India which is the world’s leading firm in revenues as it consolidates some great wins and deals with the absence of two pillars of the Mumbai office – the late Allwyn Fernandes and Roger Darashah.

     

    Madan Bahal – Madan’s is a rags to riches story that very few know of. His 17 year old company is India’s number one firm in revenues. One needs to watch closely if Madan will be the first Indian PR firm that will make inorganic inroads into the Americas this year.

     

    Nikhil Dey – Having spent a decade at Genesis Burson Marsteller, it will be interesting to see how Nikhil under the guidance of Prema Sagar takes the WPP flagship firm to greater heights in the year ahead.

     

    Manish Kalghatgi – Manish is establishing himself as the aviation communications specialist. After stints at GVK managed Mumbai airport and GMR led Delhi Airport Manish moved to Jet Airways to lead its communications function. With Etihad infusing new lease of life into India’s iconic private airline one needs to see how they handle reputational issues in the months ahead.

     

    Chhavi Leekha – After a fair amount of time spent in traditional companies Chhavi began the new year by joining Uber Technologies to be the first Director of Communications to this start-up which is in great need of strategic communications support.

     

    Rohan Vyawaharkar – Rohan became Twitter India’s first head of corporate communications when he moved on from Red Bull late last year. How Rohan, a former journalist brings his learnings to this social networking company will be watched closely.

     

    Neha Mohanty – Neha will have a daunting task to build a stronger reputation for Air Asia after one of its aircrafts in another market crashed in the Java Sea in the last week of December. Instilling traveler confidence and positioning airline safety will be top on every airline’s agenda, especially those that have faced recent disasters.

     

    Paroma Roy Chowdhury – As Head of Communications at Google India, Paroma has one of the most challenging and interesting jobs. How Google continues to build on its strengths and conveys that will be important as it expands and grows through numerous ways.

     

    Sukanya Ghosh – This will be the first full year for the new CEO of Infosys. Handling global communications of the IT giant will be a herculean task after various phases it has gone through during the leadership changes. Sukanya is the only Bangalore based professional to feature in this list.

     

    Girish Huria – Girish made an exciting transition from Delhi to Mumbai late last year. A transition from Avian Media to eBay India to head the e-commerce portals India communications remit. In an age where Amazon and Flipkart are the flavor of the season positioning and promoting eBay will not be easy but Girish could be the right person for the job.

     

  • Political communications is tricky and at the same time it can also be a straight forward business, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Time for real Reputation Management professionals in Politics

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    There is an interesting piece of news last week on how the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister is hiring a plethora of journalists to manage media monitoring and relations in the state. I wish evolved politicians like him thought differently and went beyond media managers to hire reputation managers. People who can advise on what is the right thing to do and also on doing the right things.

     

    That reminds me of another state which is largely managed by a few bureaucrats and a super chief minister which recently organised an international business event. The event was high profile and one of the biggest organised by a state government. But several shortcomings of the event were in the area of reputation management because the bureaucrat in charge thought he knew too much.

     

    Then there are states where friends and family are given the task of managing communications and building reputation with or without the support of consultancies. The question I repeatedly ask is why is that politicians can’t professionalise this aspect of their public persona. Of hiring professionals to manage communications and reputation who are trained and are experts.

     

    Well, the only three answers I can think of are: That politicians do not know that professionals exists. Or if they know they do not want to trust their reputation management with these professionals. Lastly, the professionals that exists are not good enough or according to the politician not well qualified for the task at hand.

     

    Political communications is tricky and at the same time it can also be a straightforward business. There are few who can pull off political campaigns from a communications perspective and they need to train more professionals to follow suit. I have been contemplating starting a programme to train political communications specialists because I believe it is the need of the hour.

     

    By the time we head into 2019 there will be a need for over a thousand political communications specialist. This is based on the back of the envelope calculation that at least two candidates in every constituency, if not more is looking for one. I hope this dream of seeing a new professions emerge can see the light of the day.

     

  • India is seeing a greater demand for good talent than ever before. We need to see good institutes for Public Relations education in India, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: 15 things we need to see in a PR Institute in 2015

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    The Public Relations business in India is really coming of age. But the education for Public Relations professionals at the entry level has not seen significant evolution. This could be due to a variety of factors. There are a couple of institutes offering integrated courses. But India is seeing a greater demand for good talent than ever before. We need to see good institutes for Public Relations education in India. Here’s my list of 15 things we need to see in a PR institute in 2015

     

    1. A dedicated academy – India does not have an institute that teaches only Public Relations like it has for law, technology and medicine. PR is an art and a science and needs a dedicated environment for a focused evolution.

     

    2. An option for mid-level professionals to do refreshers – No institute offers consistent and affordable career development programmes for mid-level to senior level professionals. This is the need of the hour.

     

    3. Practising professionals as Faculty – Very few PR institutes of repute are located in Mumbai and Gurgaon which is where the best professionals in the business live and work. Hence getting them as visiting faculty to other locations is never easy.

     

    4. Affordable fees – Any course that costs more than Rs 5 lakh immediately makes students assume that their starting annual salary will be on similar lines. We need more affordable courses because salaries will not rise drastically for freshers.

     

    5. Smarter curriculum – In an age of unconferences, we need to have two types of curriculum running simultaneously. One that is fixed and the other that the students evolve in the first week of the course based on global trends that are constantly shaping.

     

    6. A better selection process – Gone are the days of group discussions and written tests held for the masses. The entrance procedure needs to find the best of the best. This needs a contest like approach to attract the finest for the future of PR.

     

    7. Lesser focus on placements – Students should worry less about placements as good courses and good students will find jobs. The focus needs to be on getting well trained for a bright future.

     

    8. Radical internships – PR is not an easy career to progress in. A good grounding should include internships in restaurants, news outlets and more out of the box places.

     

    9. Quality over quantity – Faculty needs to be full-time and fully equipped. A few who teach a lot. Rather than a lot who teach little.

     

    10.   An international outlook – Programmes need to have international collaborations in terms of exchange programmes, faculty visits and wherever possible internships as well. Eight of the Top 10 PR firms in India are headquartered in USA or France.

     

    11.   Undoing the factory mentality – Media schools have become factories. Hundreds of students graduate and several are half-baked. The focus should be on high quality rather than high quantity.

     

    12.   Creating realistic salary expectations – This is the big one. Unless students are sensitized about salaries from the time of admissions they will build unrealistic expectations and won’t want to join PR firms after all the training because the salaries do not match up

     

    13.   Emphasis on research – An eye for detail and a passion for research must be the be all and end all of good Public Relations. The initial training needs to set groundwork for this

     

    14.   5 C concentration (Corporate responsibility, Crisis management, Content creation, Communication packaging, Creative thinking) – These need to be taught in theory and practice. These are the future of the profession. These are pivotal for successful career growth

     

    15.   Making students realize the importance of  Focus, Commitment, Knowledge – From Day one the cornerstone of student achievement needs to be set around Focus on the task at hand, commitment to the profession and knowledge of various domains.

     

  • Starting now on, more CEOs will embrace social media to use it as a tool to communicate with stakeholders with Twitter being the preferred social network of corporate leaders, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Public Communications and Public Reputation – Perspectives for 2015

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    The two links pasted below are from archives, interestingly written in 2011 about the profession of Public Relations and the PR professional as the authors visualized it would be in 2015:

    http://is.gd/nzkLPy and http://is.gd/fPKtCY

     

    As we start off a new year here are a few thoughts on what will work and what will not in the year ahead. But before we crystal-gaze, it’s important to look back on the most eyecatching event of the last week of 2014 and how the leader of the organisation led from the front by doing three things most important in a crisis. Hats off to Tony Fernandes of Air Asia who rushed to the site of the incident, who communicated through every step of the way and showed genuine empathy.

     

    Leading from the front – leaders of organisations prone to risk and crisis need to learn how to lead from the front from this incident and be better prepared when crisis strikes. So starting now on, more CEOs will embrace social media to use it as a tool to communicate with stakeholders. Twitter will remain the preferred social network of corporate leaders.

     

    Content, content, content – storytelling and content creation will continue to rule the roost. There will be a rising demand for specialist writers who can write on healthcare, finance and technology. Writing skills will be the most important attribute that hiring managers will look for in candidates.

     

    Stability and longevity in organisations – PR firms will want to hire talent that has spent a good number of years in the previous organisation. People who jump the ship often will find it hard to get well-paying jobs as the strength of the workforce increases.

     

    School for PR – There may emerge newer academies that teach the art and science of Public Relations, as good talent that is affordable is the need of the hour. This also means retainers are not going to change dramatically, the only exceptions being the Top 20 organisations paying the Top 5 PR firms top dollars.

     

    High profile movements – Both within consultancies and in corporate communications there will be people movement at the highest level. 2014 saw some interesting changes at two of the leading firms. The trend will continue.

     

    Events on the rise – High quality events that offer great speaking opportunities will evolve. This will not only offer opportunities to speak but to sponsor and partner as well. Keeping an eye for the right events will be key.

     

    Feel free to add to this list of trends and share your feedback on this list of perspectives on PR in 2015.

     

     

     

  • A list of fourteen articles published in the last twelve months in various portals relevant to the profession, compiled by Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Fourteen must reads in 2014

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    As the year comes to an end, I have compiled a list of fourteen articles that are worth saving and reading that were published in the last twelve months in various portals that are relevant to the profession. Make sure you read them during the next long weekend and share them with fellow practcioners.

     

    1. 5 PR trends that are going to be making an impact in 2014 -https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/openforum/articles/5-must-know-public-relations-trends-for-2014/

    2. PR’s Battle For Marketing Relevance – http://www.holmesreport.com/long-reads/article/cannes-2014-pr’s-battle-for-marketing-relevance

    3. Why the Future of Digital Marketing Is Pure PR – http://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2014/24859/why-the-future-of-digital-marketing-is-pure-pr#ixzz3L0C4tIs6

    4. The One Lie That Brought Down Walmart’s PR Chief – http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-09-16/the-one-lie-that-brought-down-walmarts-pr-chief

    5. 5 Measurements for PR ROI – http://www.forbes.com/sites/ilyapozin/2014/05/29/5-measurements-for-pr-roi/

    6. Social Media, Marketing and PR: Who’s Responsible for What? – http://mashable.com/2014/03/26/social-media-marketing-responsibilities/

    7. 8 Ways Public Relations Can Fuel Successful Content Marketing – http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2014/06/public-relations-successful-content-marketing/

    8. The Real Difference Between PR And Advertising – http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwynne/2014/07/08/the-real-difference-between-pr-and-advertising-credibility/

    9. Edelman P.R. Firm Acts to Correct Faux Pas – http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/business/media/edelman-pr-firm-is-taking-steps-to-address-faux-pas-.html?_r=0

    10. Why Are There So Many Women in Public Relations? – http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/08/why-are-there-so-many-women-in-pr/375693/

    11. Public Relations Has a PR Problem – http://www.huffingtonpost.com/molly-borchers/public-relations-has-a-pr_b_5942660.html

    12. Goodbye, SEO: PR is the new king – http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/17726.aspx

    13. The communications industry needs great storytellers – https://www.facebook.com/SachinKalbag/posts/10152882797843013?fref=nf

    14. Time for communicators to build brands by giving proper consideration to the ‘hopeful’ consumer – http://www.ipra.org/itl/12/2014/i-love-advertising-because-i-love-lying-seinfeld-s-barbs-point-the-way-to-consumer-happiness

     

    And here’s a bonus for 2015: Free articles to read at leisure http://www.cuttingedgepr.com/free_articles.asp

     

  • Aptly titled PRactice what you PReach, Vikram Kharvi's book is a peek into the intriguing world of public relations by a young professional who has worked both in-house and in a consultancy

    Amith Prabhu: A book to remember because the PRactice of PR in India has so few

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    Fellow public reputation management practitioner Vikram Kharvi has self-published his first book which is commendable. If I ran a reputation management school, I would prescribe it as a text book. The book is indeed a labour of love for the profession that the author displays by the loads.

     

    The book is a collection of twenty essays and each one ends with an interesting quote by a prominent author or thinker. Aptly titled PRactice what you PReach, the book is a peek into the intriguing world of public relations by a young professional who has worked both in-house and in a consultancy.

     

    It is a great read for professionals of all ages, from the student to the CEO of a PR firm, from an intern at a corporate communications department to the one heading it. There is something for everyone. The inaugural chapter on comparing our profession to the various facets of Lord Ganesha is very innovative.

     

    The book acts as a ready reckoner of tips and tricks for the profession. I like the fact that Vikram refers to PR companies as consultancies and not as agencies, which they are not. I also like the focus on PR as a practice rather than a mere profession. A practice makes it both an art and a science.

     

    The book shows that PR professionals can be creative if they apply their mind to being so. The 20 chapters are in an easy to ride format of seven to eight pages each on an average. I read the book in one go two consecutive flights and would recommend this to every professional as a must read.

     

    The book could have done with some more focus on editing to make it crisper but as a debut it is worthy of praise nevertheless.  Hats off to Vikram on this effort. May there be more books authored by you.

     

    The 160-page book is priced at Rs 300 and is available online at a discount. I wish more professionals attempt to write a book. After having compiled my columns into one earlier this year I don’t think it is a hard task. Go write yours!