Mixing traditional & new PR tools successfully

Berlin is a city of stark contrasts - particularly evident in its buildings. In a recent visit I snapped cool, contemporary architecture alongside beautiful buildings of huge historical weight and interest. The Reichstag building (left: filming a short piece on Berlin outside the Reichstag, right: a contemporary building near the museum district) wraps together history with contemporary values with Norman Foster's glass spiral walkway where people are elevated above the politicians to remind them when they look up of who they work for.

It's the history of the city that makes it so unique - from a a once divided city to one that is now still under construction and constantly changing.

Similarly, businesses are looking to a combination of PR tactics - a traditional and online approach - to tell their own story in a way that appeals to different audiences. Using short audio and visual clips specifically designed to appeal to social media audiences can help bring key elements of a company's story to life in a new way. At a recent social media conference at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, hundreds of businesses gathered to hear about what it can do for their business - it was packed! Rory Bremner's presence no doubt helped attract interest, but there definately seems to be a hunger for more knowledge on the most effective ways of reaching audiences with their messages.

Combining a 'traditional', strategic approach of defining key goals and then selecting the most appropriate tools for the job is proving successful for clients. Helping businesses monitor and then join in and start relevant conversations with audiences online can produce valuable results.

What'll make your business tick in 2010?

Whilst planning for and thinking about 2010 it's good too to reflect on the positives from the year just gone. It's so easy to forget achievements, even the smaller 'wins' and obstacles overcome.

A key highlight for me was attending the Parliamentary Awards at the House of Commons at the end of the year organised by ComRes. It was a significant event in terms of the recognition of the charities' achievements and the involvement of key MPs and businesses.

There's always highs and lows in any business's year - PR is certainly no exception! Getting results for clients is one of the things that makes me tick. I doubt I'd be in PR if it didn't!

However, some other memorable moments have been those with a particular 'feel-good' factor (e.g.the awards mentioned) and events such as securing David Cameron's support of the OX5Run at Blenheim Palace for the Oxford Children's Hospital. I'm enjoying working on that event again for sponsors Allen Associates.

Whilst the year has had a fairly quiet with the snow flurries I've thoroughly enjoyed working on the launch of my sister's year-long charity event 10 4 10 (which she's organising in her spare time outside her busy job) to raise funds for ten charities. I'll be doing the DIY Dare. Keeps me ticking!

Could Twitter help solve a business problem?

Twitter personalities (above) suggested by Paul Armstrong of Kindred

Another packed room recently at the CIPR HQ - all gathered to hear if Tweeting is good for business. Read Paul's presentation here.

Before using Twitter for marketing or PR purposes ask: "Why use it? What's the business problem?" It could be used, for example to help drive more people to your website or provide a 'face' to your business. An upcoming feature of Twitter is the ability to create lists of key influencers for your business.

Setting up a Twitter account is easy - it's what you use it for that needs some thought. To engage with an audience consider being a resource too, be relevant, honest and clear.

Social media takes time, so you need to define the goals for using it and allocate time wisely. Have a presence on all relevant platforms but choose carefully which ones to spend time on. 37 million Tweeters across the globe is impressive, but there's around 316 million people on Facebook.

With a digital PR strategy in place, and perhaps some training in how to use social media platforms businesses can test out the benefits of Twitter and its counterparts. Happy Tweeting!