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Archive for November, 2009

GORDO BREAKS COVER TO GIVE FRANKEST INTERVIEW YET

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

MANCON MAN TALKS SHOP IN BRAZEN TWINTERVIEW

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HE’S REGALED as a man who doesn’t mince his words and now Mark Garner – or Manchester Confidential’s “Gordo” as he is better known – is set to reveal his hidden depths in a ‘tell-all’ live interview.

Breaking free of the relative security of his Manchester Confidential base Gordo – feared restaurant critic, fiercely competitive businessman and respected raconteur – has agreed to be quizzed and probed by Manchester-based Brazen PR’s news editor Adam Moss.

And the entire interview will be beamed live to the nation on Twitter this coming Wednesday (25 November) afternoon at 3pm.

There’ll be no hiding place.

But that’s just how Gordo likes it, apparently.

This is the man who transformed the way Manchester held conversations; how its restaurants operated; how we debated pressing city issues papered over by our city council. Gordo and Mancon gave us a new insight into the machinations of this great Northern city, from the perspective of the people who know it best, Mancunians themselves.

And all for free. For now.

That’s the next great Manchester Confidential debate. And we’ll be asking Gordo all about his plans to start charging his Mancon readers for content.

It’s a move described as ‘arrogant’, ‘foolhardy’, ‘deluded’, ‘brave’ and ‘thought-leading’ depending which thread you’re reading on the Manchester Confidential site.

Brazen owner Nina Webb said: “Gordo is one of the Top 5 when you’re talking about notorious Mancunians. We’re really pleased he’s agreed to take part in our Brazen Twinterview, the second in the series.

“There will undoubtedly be irreverence, humour, serious business and a soupcon of rib-poking going on, and that’s even before Gordo gets started.”

You can follow the ‘live’ twinterview by logging onto Twitter at 3pm on Wednesday November 25 and typing in a search for #brazenqt.

The questions will come from Brazen PR’s resident news guru @AdamMoss and Gordo will be responding from @GordoManchester. The interview can also be viewed by following both Adam and Gordo.

IGNORANCE AND THE DARK SIDE (OR WHY NEIL BENSON IS WRONG)

Monday, November 16th, 2009

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TRINITY Mirror’s Regional editorial director Neil Benson said this week that regional newspaper groups should consider running PR agencies and offering web consultancy services to help generate revenue.

A little naïve maybe?

He stated that as some of the “best PR firms are run by ex-editors…..why don’t regional publishers think about launching an arm’s length PR agency.”

While it may indeed be true that some of the best PR agencies are run by ex-editors, does it necessarily follow that all regional newspaper companies have the staff or talent to be successful in PR?

Of course it doesn’t – and to say as much displays a fundamental ignorance of what is involved in real PR.

I know – I have been a journalist working on national and regional newspapers for more than two decades, now working in PR – and I can tell you it is no easy transition.

Effective PR isn’t just about clever writing and spotting a news angle before everyone else. These two elements are crucial to good PR, of course, but to suggest that they are the ONLY necessary ingredients – which is exactly what Mr Benson has done – is not exactly scientific.

His comment illustrates a common ignorance among journalists about PR. I remember sitting inside Canary Wharf as a newspaper staffer many moons ago and reading press release after press release and thinking “I can knock out better releases than this. I’m going to move into PR and milk this lucrative and sacred cow for all its worth before retiring to a green pasture somewhere in England’s Home Counties.”

Having spent the last 14 months working at Brazen I now know different. Effective PR is far more about brand consultancy than it is about news headlines and well-written releases.
And with ‘brand consultancy’ comes the daily task of keeping your clients – the ones who pay the bills – happy.

It’s no easy task, as anyone with any kind of working knowledge of consumer PR will tell you.

And journalists have no experience in keeping clients happy. Quite the contrary. Most journalists set out to shock and provoke their clients – the people who buy their publication – because that’s what sells newspapers.

And therein lies one of the numerous fundamental differences between the two species.

It’s one thing causing uproar, it’s quite another cleaning up the mess afterwards.

And that’s just the tip of the PR iceberg.

By Adam Moss, News Editor

BITE ME

Monday, November 16th, 2009

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‘Vampiremania’ is sweeping the nation yet again as we gear up to the release of New Moon, the second in the Twilight film saga.

A marvel of ‘Potter’ proportions, The Odeon Printworks, Manchester has pre-sold over 3000 tickets alone for the movie and, even there is no official premiere for the film, the special midnight screening on the 19th November is already sold out – the demand is so high that a second screen is now on the cards.

Based on Stephenie Meyers’s books about a teenage girl who falls in love with a vampire, the phenomenon has snowballed since the release of the first movie with DVD, book sales and subsequent on/off screen romances driving interest in the original cast and story line to ‘cult’ status and a wider audience.

But what is it about the lure of the un-dead that brings us back time after time? Dracula, Buffy, True Blood and now the ashen faced Cullens in Twilight? Are we so attracted to the notion of living forever that we’re all ready to throw away our eternal souls?

Forget botox, be young and beautiful for eternity! The only downside it seems is a little blood sucking and senseless murder – a small price to pay?

By Peter Burling, Client Services Director

13 LESSONS FROM THE RECESSION

Friday, November 13th, 2009

This morning I went to Lessons From The Recession, a presentation by Katrina Michel and Liz Bielinska from Planning Express. This particular event was in association with Orchard and, though I go to lots of these things, this one was fun and very informative. Below are a few key points. Hope you find it useful too…

1. IN LOVE WITH NOSTALGIA

• People are harking back to “when it was all good and things were happier” than in the current climate
• Brands have embraced this such as M&S with their 1p Bazaar
• There has been a sales increase in nostalgic brands and products, such as Stork, Cake Mixture, Beans, Bisto and Rich Tea biscuits
• Fray Bentos pies has seen a sales increase of over 40%

THE CONTINUING TREND

• In 2010 and beyond brands that scream nostalgia will continue to thrive

2. GET IT FOR LESS OR FREE

• The current trends are M&S Dinner for 2 for £10. Morrisons launching Christmas dinner for £2.75 a head! Audi offering two free services on their cars
• People want value for money
• Latest data shows 80% of people are actively looking for bargains and 50% are using money off vouchers
• Buying things on the cheap is no longer something to be ashamed of, illustrated by Stella McCartney doing a range for Gap and Jimmy Choo creating a range for H&M

THE CONTINUING TREND

• There will be a long-term resistance to paying full price. Due to the continued discounts and offers in store because of the recession, people have changed their perception of price and what things are actually worth

3. WASTE NOT

• Waste less, spend less
• Throwing things away now fills us with guilt
• Due to our lack of money, wasting things feels bad
• The humble shopping list is now back to discourage impulse buying and some supermarkets are considering putting a ‘shopping list holder’ on the front of the trolley
• People are now eating food way past the sell by date
• People now feel they have to recycle more as they have a moral duty to do so

THE CONTINUING TREND

• Recycling is here to stay
• BOGOF’s are dead as people now see this as wasteful, but money off is here to stay

4. A PENNY SAVED IS A PENNY EARNED

• There has been a mass awakening to the fact that we all have to save
• 86% of people now hate being in debt
• We are taking saving tips from our parents as they did it so well
• Due to the extension of retirement age, people now want to control their own retirement age and the only way they will do that is to save

THE CONTINUING TREND

• People will save save save

5. MEND AND MAKE DO

• Everyone knows they have too much stuff. People are now turning to mending things rather than buying new
• Shoemakers Timpson has recorded a 40% lift in sales due to people mending their shoes rather than buying new
• People are hanging onto products for longer, so cars, beds and kitchen appliances people are getting them fixed or making do rather than replacing

THE CONTINUING TREND

• Having more stuff is becoming un-trendy
• Buying purposeful stuff and less of it is trendy

6. INFORMAL SOURCES OF INFO/OPINIONS

• People want to hear from other people and value what other people say, especially online, across all sorts of products and services
• Even down to mybuilder.com where you can rate the service the builder/handyman has provided
• PR is at the heart of this
• People are now owning brands, not necessarily the marketing department

THE CONTINUING TREND

• Marketing/PR are now directing people’s opinions of brands not shaping them. Consumers are shaping brands

7. OUT OF SIGHT OUT OF MIND

• As we all know big brands have failed this year such as Woolworths GM Motors etc
• 53% of people are less likely to be loyal to brands
• The brands that have failed have been mediocre

THE CONTINUING TREND

• Brands/Companies should always ask “ If we didn’t exist/provide a service would there be a need for us to be invented”

8. LOSS OF TRUST IN THE BANKS

• People see the banks as greedy
• Only 30% of people trust banks
• The current Natwest “HELPFUL BANKING” advert people don’t believe the sentiment

THE CONTINUING TREND

• Anyone operating in Financial Services needs to be seen as truthful

9. BECAUSE IT AINT WORTH IT

• Organic food sales are down 40% and have been denounced by ASDA
• Value lines in supermarkets have come into their own as people buy them and work out the difference between them and branded goods
• Trading down is officially cool
• Fairy Liquid is one brand that has managed not to be affected by this and is still going strong – possibly because of its claim of washing thousands of dishes – people see it as good value

THE CONTINUING TREND

• Trading down to own brand or value is only going to continue

10. HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS

• We are all staying in more
• 35% of us are going out less
• We are even exercising at home due to Wii Fit
• Staying in is trendy as more people invest in entertaining in their home, whether that be on a new HD TV or a PS3

THE CONTINUING TREND

• We will all go out again, but not as much, as now our home is at the centre of entertaining our friends and ourselves

11. BETTER THE DEVIL YOU KNOW

• Trusted brands are going to become ever more important
• Brands that have survived the recession are simply going to get stronger, as these are the brands that have helped people through the difficult climate, whether giving more value or providing discounts – it’s all about goodwill
• And it doesn’t matter what advertising says as never before have so many people been unconvinced by advertising messages

THE CONTINUING TREND

• Goodwill & great PR; advertising will continue to falter

12. KEEP IT SIMPLE

• There is so much technology but people are becoming resistant to higher functionality of products
• Gadgets that are straight-forward and do their job have more appeal
• As consumers we are being over-loaded with technology
• 76% of people just want a mobile to make calls and text
• We haven’t got time to learn new things

THE CONTINUING TREND

• Embrace technology but keep it simple

13. SOMETHING THAT MATTERS

• Grand gestures are out the window
• People now want something that matters “it’s the thought that counts” is now in full effect

THE CONTINUING TREND

• Thoughtful simple products are the way forward

By Gary Bramwell, Deputy MD

THE FEMALE OF THE SPECIES, IS MORE DEADLY THAN THE MALE?

Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

The face of the online community is changing…..to a slightly more feminine one.

Where once women seemed to be bored by technology, excusing themselves from conversations about servers and SEO, now they are creating their own dialogue online, finding an alternative avenue through which to express their opinions and network amongst new groups of friends.

Contributing on the web used to be seen as the social activity of ‘cyber geeks’ but as the number of online citizens increases massively, women are dominating the digital landscape. Recognising that they can share shopping, lifestyle, cooking and even parenting tips with like-minded females online, women of all ages are becoming powerful opinion formers in this new media age.

This isn’t to say that brands should rush out and cover everything in pink in an attempt to get featured on key blogs, forums and websites, completely the opposite in fact. These women hold the key to huge audiences on a global level, if they don’t like your product or approach, they could destroy your reputation on an international scale with a single click!

Great skill needs to be taken in tailoring messages and products for each specific citizen journalist in order to capture their interest and get the best results as a brand. Remember these journalists have no qualms in being as honest as they can, there is nobody monitoring their thoughts and they only hold a personal responsibility to their readers.

So when approaching the female of the online species, take care..she could be quite deadly.

By Heather Kenny, Account Executive

KAI WAYNE GIVES FIRST INTERVIEW – TO BRAZEN PR

Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

HE’S not yet a week old but he’s already an internet sensation – now Kai Wayne is to give his first live ‘Twinterview’ to Manchester’s Brazen PR, live on Twitter.

It’s pretty clear, with only the briefest glance at his Twitter profile photo – a tiny Shrek figure in a nappy – that this isn’t a Rooney-sanctioned Twitter page but, so engaging and downright hilarious are the tweets, it already (after just two days) has 200-plus followers.

At this stage there is no clue who the real author may be – that’s a whole other Twitter debate yet to be acted out – but, whoever the pen-meister behind the page, he’s a comic genius.

He’s already applied for a job at Brazen PR via Twitter – and demanded a company buggy, a Burberry expense account and vouchers for subway to boot!

Now, in his first interview, Kai Wayne tells it like it is – in his own inimitable style.

So what can we expect from the Twinterview?

Well, try a few of these Kai Wayne witticisms on for size……..

“Blimey! Just reading mummy’s copy of ‘Hello’ and learn that Fergie used to be married to Prince Andrew. Like Elton and David I suppose.”

or….

“Really pleased my surname is Rooney and not Ropractor.”

Kai vividly paints a picture of what life should be like in the Rooney household right now, with added comedy bells.

If only, when the real Kai does eventually get his own social media page, it could be as entertaining as this. It’s the best thing online by a country mile right now and is keeping the whole of Twitter entertained.

We’ll leave you with the Kai tweet that had me rolling this morning.

“Dad, why is mum called Colin? Are you like, one of those new couples?”

Class.

The questions will come from Brazen PR’s resident news guru @AdamMoss and Kai Rooney will be responding from @KaiWayne. The interview can be followed by either following both Adam and Kai, or by using the hashtag #brazenqt
We’ll be kicking off at 4.30pm today, see you there!

What a great event! The transcipt from the Twinterview

@kaiwayne Ready to go #brazenqt

#brazenqt Yes, but before we start, what’s the chances of an Action Man, some Love Hearts and a Harry Potter Monopoly. (Love Hearts for mum)

@kaiwayne freebies guaranteed. Q1 – Do you breast feed? #brazenqt

I like to call it having a bit of Billy. Have you not understood my tweets so far? I will try and simplify. #brazenqt

@kaiwayne – Already got your dad’s attitude I see. So, Team Danni or Team Cheryl? #brazenqt

I don’t want that bastard Walsh fella winning that’s for sure. Those Jedward boys are get more column inches than me. Danni 4 me #brazenqt

@kaiwayne So you like falsies then? But what’s the best thing about being a Rooney? #brazenqt

Inheriting none of the intellect, that’s a positive. Cosmetically there’s not a lot that I can do though #brazenqt p.s Say hi to Vanessa Lee

(Vanessa Lee)@KaiWayne – Hi there cute green one! #brazenqt

Hey Nessy – I know I’m only 2 days old, but I’ve got more Wonga than the whole of Widnes. Think about it #brazenqt

@kaiwayne What do you really think about your name. Kai? Sounds like a fish dunnit? #brazenqt

My mummy wanted Keanu. My daddy wanted Pie. I guess it was a compromise. Playground would have been a lonely place as Pie Rooney #brazenqt

@kaiwayne Not in Wigan it wouldn’t have! Talking of Wigan – has daddy bought your first shell suit yet? #brazenqt

Yes, it’s a soft lilac with a kumquat fleur-de-lys. Not unattractive actually. Hold on, daddy’s sniggering at the word kumquat #brazenqt

Hey Nessy – I know I’m only 2 days old, but I’ve got more Wonga than the whole of Widnes. Think about it #brazenqt

@kaiwayne – Dad’s sniggering while mum checks her Kama Sutra DVD eh? What’s your first tattoo gonna be? #brazenqt

I’m thinking “Kai Will Always Love You” – Mum’s a big Whitney fan you see. Oop just barfed. Mum, egyptian cotton towel quick. #brazenqt

Dad would you leave it, it’s the name of a fruit. Go and play on the Wii or count your cars or something #brazenqt

(Vanessa Lee) @KaiWayne Sounds good but what car has Daddy promised you? and when do you get your black amex card? #brazenqt

What car would I like? Maybe a Ford in army colours. Yeah, the Kai Khaki Ka – that sounds like what I did in my pants earlier #brazenqt

@kaiwayne So Kai, apart from stand-up, what do you want to do when you grow up? #brazenqt

I’d quite like to be picked by Bryan Robson for his national team. Then I’d be known as Thai Kai which sounds quite cool. #brazenqt

@kaiwayne Where were you conceived and what was your first word? #brazenqt

Conceived? In the car park of Manchester Uni. Wozza and Colin contemplated the Beckham idea, but I’d have been Uni Rooney. #brazenqt

@kaiwayne thanks for your time. Just one more question – which female celeb baby do you fancy? #brazenqt

Someone who is prepared to peel the onion and look what lies behind. Although mum clearly didn’t do that. How about Apple Rooney? #brazenqt

@kaiwayne She is the Apple of your Kai then I guess. Thanks for today. Catch you soon young Kai. Say hello to dad & Colin for us #brazenqt

Phew. Don’t think I made too much of an arse of myself. Could have done without dad giggling & mum saying clear the sick up yourself fatboy.

Yes dad, I’ll play Mario Kart in a minute, just give me a second. Dinner? Oh whatever, just some crab pate and a dollop of Beluga.

What a thoroughly nice interviewing man @AdamMoss is. Not like that pillock Morgan.