The theme for World Mental Health Day this year is workplace well-being. Held on 10 October 2017 the day was created by mental health charity Mind and aims to bring awareness to mental health issues, encouraging people to speak up and listen to others.

Recently 20,000 workers aged 16 to 64 were surveyed by charity Business In The Community (BITC), in partnership with YouGov. The survey found that more that than three quarters had experienced symptoms of poor mental health, with two thirds feeling work was a factor.

In the PR industry, the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) State of the Profession Survey from last year found that 30% of respondents answered ‘somewhat unhappy’ or ‘not at all happy’ in their jobs.

A PRCA #FuturePRoof report from February 2017 looked further into some of the attributing factors to poor mental health in the PR industry.

One of the main factors included the ‘always on’ culture that many PR professions feel obliged to follow.

Whether responding to messages while on holiday or checking emails in bed each evening, PR professionals struggle to switch off.

With multiple tasks running at once, numerous impending deadlines, clients to keep happy, journalist relationships to maintain and teams to manage – it’s easy to see how stress levels can rise.

In an industry of communicators, are PR professionals speaking up enough about mental health?

Xenia Kingsley, Senior Account Manager at Magenta Associates shares how PR employers can support staff with their mental wellbeing.

“As someone who suffers from depression and anxiety, working for an employer who is supportive of mental health and wellbeing in the workplace is really important to me.

“Magenta is one of those companies, offering weekly Pilates classes, subsidised massages and one-to-one mentoring as well as providing a healthy breakfast for everyone every day, allowing dogs in the workplace (something my dog Kipper is very pleased about!), and mental health and wellbeing workshops at every company away day. Our last one focused on managing stress and personal impact.

“But it’s not just these benefits that make this a supportive place to work, it’s knowing that it’s ok to talk about issues openly and without stigma.”

Mind offers lots of resources to help workplaces with mental wellbeing – https://www.mind.org.uk/get-involved/world-mental-health-day/

If you’d like to donate to Mind, you can text ‘SUPPORTUS’ to 70660 to donate £3, or look on their website for more ways to get involved – https://www.mind.org.uk/

The post World Mental Health Day 2017 appeared first on ResponseSource.

A multi-tasking industry like PR requires careful planning, the ability to prioritise and an organised timetable. In reality, it can be hard to keep on top of all the tasks that need doing. Trying to juggle everything at once can be stressful and the longer your to-do list gets, the harder it becomes to avoid your workload weighing down on your shoulders.

So how can you cope? The great thing about being part of a team is being able to share the workload. Whether you manage a large or small team, it’s important to know how to delegate tasks and help your employees to manage their time effectively.

Some deadlines are obvious. If a journalist asks for you to send over some information by a certain date and time, then that is your deadline. Other tasks don’t have a set deadline. This doesn’t make them less important but could mean they end up being pushed back until a deadline is decided.

Managers have the responsibility to make sure their team is performing in a way that benefits the business. They must also keep employees happy and ensure that relationships with clients and journalist are maintained. It’s not an easy job.

Here are a few tips to help with managing team deadlines

Long-term deadlines don’t often appeal to the average employee

Try splitting large projects down into smaller chunks. Chunks should be specific and easy to achieve within a week.

When you set deadlines, put them on paper

This can be done via an online team planning platform or literally handwritten on a piece of paper as a week in progress sheet.

Incentivise

Of course, your employees shouldn’t only be motivated by the promise of an incentive, but sometimes it’s fun to add a bit of friendly competition into your team to get people extra pumped about hitting their goals.

Before setting a deadline, research other options for completing the task and get all the tools in place

Is there something you’ve drafted previously that can be used? Can it be outsourced to an agency (eg. design work, video production)?

Set up regular meetings and an update schedule with your employees to discuss progress and any issues with meeting deadlines

This will give you a chance to catch problems before they really impact the projects and lets your employees speak up if they are feeling out of their depth. Sometimes tasks are more complex than they originally seem. Regular meetings give you a chance to realign priorities and know if your employees require extra support or training.

Encourage

Be confident in your team’s abilities and give encouragement regularly. Sometimes it will help your employees to track targets visually. Could you add a leaderboard to the wall to visually encourage your team?

Deadlines should not be used for the sake of it

False deadlines cause more problems and can panic your team unnecessarily.

Monitor the number of tasks that each individual is doing at once

Multitasking might be essential for PRs but it’s easier to focus on one task at a time. Important tasks should be split down into blocks of time where the focus is only on that project.

Be positive

If an employee misses a deadline, discuss this with them to work out what went wrong and how they can hit the next one.

Be prepared for things to fall on your desk at the last minute and don’t just pass these off to your employees with a short deadline

Unexpected but important tasks are best completed by delegating across a team. Firstly discuss the task with your employees, explain the short deadline, listen to suggestions and give each member a task that suits their skill set. Someone should be in charge of putting all the pieces together – this could be you – and team members should communicate with each other while working on their sections. If the task is not going to make a significant difference then perhaps it’s worth turning down the opportunity or asking for an extension on the deadline.

Take responsibility for your team and all deadlines

Use phrases like ‘we can’ and ‘we will’ to show it is a team effort. If something goes wrong, don’t pass the blame, take it as an opportunity to learn for next time.

Do you have a method for encouraging your employees to hit their deadlines? Let us know below.

The post How to set reasonable deadlines for your team appeared first on ResponseSource.

Employee satisfaction is essential, and offering your team members something that is above and beyond what other agencies offer could give you an advantage and help retain your talented staff members.

We asked PR and communications agencies what perks they offer their employees

atom42

Within minutes of asking for contributions, two employees from atom42 got in touch to share the benefits they receive.

Josh and Jake informed me of the atom42 ‘gift of learning’ perk that allows them to learn something new to advance personally and professionally, funded by the company. New skills team members have developed thanks to the perk include producing short films, boxing in competitions and performing at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Other employee benefits include:

• Free yoga
• An annual weekend away
• Monthly free massages
• Monthly free pizza or burritos

Andy Atalla, founder of atom42 says “Companies talk endlessly about driving efficiency and value through processes and systems – but it amazes me how little they talk about how happy their employees are. We believe that, regardless of the job people are doing, they’re going to do it better when they feel connected, valued and cared for.

For us, our employee benefit program is part of the work we do to make sure our people, who are also our most important asset, are happy. My advice to other companies is that when delivered authentically, this not only works for your team, but it also helps make you feel better about the work you’re doing. Ultimately, positivity and compassion breeds more of the same, but it absolutely falls on the employer to lead this by example.”

Learning bicycle mechanics with atom42 gift of learning

Learning to climb with atom42 gift of learning

Velvet PR

Velvet PR offers team members the opportunity to spend a week at the company owner’s villa in Turkey free of charge

Some other perks offered are:

• A day off for their birthdays
• A gift, cake and mini-celebration in-house for birthdays
• Flexible working
• Open discussions on sabbaticals and working abroad

Fabian Castellani, Senior Account Executive at Velvet PR shared that he took a three-month traveling sabbatical and the perks offered by Velvet PR are one of the reasons he has been with the company for four years now.

Turkish villa where Velvet PR team members get to stay for free

Front view of the Turkish holiday home

Down At The Social

The whole team gets together at 7.45am every Monday to do yoga. Daisy Whitehouse, Managing Director of Down At The Social says “it sets our intention for the week and makes Monday feel less stressful.”

Solve Web Media

Lawrence Harmer, founder of Solve Web Media often takes his team surfing or for a visit to the beach when the stresses of the day get too much.

Claire Fulton Ray shares that the team goes to the beach regularly and finds that it helps to clear the brain, increase creativity, bond as a team and to inspire new and creative brainwaves. Claire says “it’s not good being frazzled by WiFi signals all day every day, so a dunk in the sea helps to cleanse and ground us – moving blood around the body helps re-energise and re-centre your body and gives the spirit a lift!”

The team also takes their clients to the beach after long meetings at their Cornish office.

Solve Web Media client, artist Yvonne Coomber

Solve Web Media team members Hollie and Jack

Mantelpiece PR

Benefits include:

• Each staff member is entitled to take a day out of the office each year for an Inspiration Day to boost creativity and bring back new ideas to the team
• Three lie-in mornings per year for those cold and dark days when employees need a bit of extra time in bed
• Christmas shopping hours in December for each member of staff to get any last minute presents for friends and loved ones
• Monthly team lunch or takeaway for all team members to get together and socialise

Bring Digital

Bring Digital offers ‘Bring pays half’ with the company paying half the cost for any activities they want to do in a small group. This has recently been used for trampolining, an obstacle course, the cinema and footgolf.

Half price footgolf for Bring Digital employees

The Bring Digital ‘Dream Team’ enjoying an obstacle course

Octopus Group

Octopus Group have a company summer festival called Roctostock. The event invloves dressing up in themed outfits and camping in a field overnight. This year’s theme was The Wild West and activities included lassoing, shooting, horseshoe tossing and rodeo riding.

Roctostock is now in its 8^th year and employees love the event because of the atmosphere. Their Head of Talent keeps the activities a secret, they have a house band made up of only company staff and spend the day participating in a team competition before dancing the night away. Giles Shorthouse, Business Development Manager says “there is something for everyone and hangovers for most! Everyone attends, from the founders to the receptionist. We even have a bit of fun at the founders’ expenses.”

Octopus Group employees enjoying Roctostock

CEO Jon’s Wild West wanted poster

Conscious Communications

The team at Conscious Communications have their own Theatre Club. As a small team of nine they enjoy traditional restaurant and bar work socials but all share a passion for the theatre too. The company pays to take the team to see a show two to three times a year. So far the team have seen Motown the Musical, The Kite Runner and will be seeing An American in Paris next month.

The Conscious Communications team trip to see The Kite Runner

Enjoying their team outing

Barefoot Media

Barefoot Media is located near Wadebridge in Cornwall and offers all staff members their own veg plot and access to gardening tools.

Holly Gear, Account Executive, explains that “the business operates from a converted barn in the Cornish countryside, where team members can each have their own raised vegetable plot in the garden. A wealth of produce has been grown in the plots over the last year, including potatoes, green beans, courgettes, strawberries, sunflowers, nasturtiums and cornflowers. Every Friday lunchtime the team enjoy a soup lunch together around the kitchen table, regularly incorporating the vegetables grown in the garden.

Barefoot Media also supports People & Gardens, a charity that assists people with learning disabilities and mental health issues to develop as individuals through gardening. The team regularly spend time at People & Gardens HQ, sharing skills, playing cricket and helping out in any way they can.”

Barefoot Media vegetable patches

People & Gardens, gardening disability charity

Munch

Munch is a boutique consumer PR agency based just off trendy London Fields in East London.

As well as a running club, a creative inspiration day and early Friday finishes, some of the more unique employee perks offered by Munch include:

• The ‘Make Your Mark’ – every new joiner is given a budget to purchase something for the office that best represents them. It could be anything from a popcorn machine or basketball hoop, to a plant or new piece of artwork.
• The ‘Munch Bucket List’ – Lizzie Earl, founder of Munch says that “as Londoners working in PR, we’re busy. We don’t always get the chance to enjoy our fine city, so every new joiner at Munch gets the chance to add events, activities and places they’d love to visit in London to the Munch bucket list. Whenever we want to celebrate our success, someone picks one of these from a hat, and off we go to celebrate as a team by doing something new together in the big smoke.”

‘Make Your Mark’ contributions from Munch employee Jack

‘Munch Bucket List’ at the ArcelorMittal Orbit

One

Employee benefits offered include:

• Perkbox
• Flu jabs
• An annual visit to their client York Races
• Flexitime
• FFS (final Friday Shindig) – breakfast provided alongside updates from all departments
• A training budget that is equal for all staff members irrelevant of position

Does your company offer anything out of the ordinary? Let us know in the comments below.

The post Employee perks: what benefits are companies offering to PRs? appeared first on ResponseSource.

The world of communications has certainly changed since I was an intern five years ago. Smaller brands were starting to see the true benefits of using social media and video was beginning to flourish as a communications tool.

We spoke to a group of interns and a couple of agencies that offer regular internships to find out the main tasks that interns are doing in 2017.

Company: HROC (Heightening Return On Communication)

Each year, HROC offers a one year-long internship to a University student currently completing a degree in a relevant discipline, including Marketing, Media or English. The paid internship is designed to fully immerse the student in the working life of Public Relations through a dedicated training programme that supports them in developing the real life skills required to succeed within the industry.

Throughout their placement, the intern gains all-round exposure into every aspect of public relations by completing specific tasks and projects that not only provide the student with responsibilities, offering a beneficial and worthwhile experience that they can build on, but also create tangible value for our clients.

All of our interns are entirely client facing, so complete daily job tasks that have a real effect and outcome. Supported by other members of the team, who are on hand to give daily support, advice and on the job training, the interns will liaise with clients each day, completing a range of job roles. These include preparing for, attending and partaking in client meetings, and drafting a range of content on behalf of clients such as press releases, blogs and features.

Whilst gaining experience in traditional PR tasks is essential, social media goes hand-in-hand, so our interns will also draft social media schedules and respond in real time to social engagements and relevant industry conversations on behalf of clients. The interns will work as part of a team to plan, create and host events, from product launches to retailer and dealer exhibitions.

Company: OneChocolate

At OneChocolate, we pride ourselves on providing the best platform for recent graduates looking to kick-start their career in PR and digital marketing. With our paid internships (you’d be surprised how many agencies don’t offer this), our interns are tasked with similar responsibilities as account executives. From pitching stories and seeding products to secure media coverage, creating social media content calendars and assisting with events, to attending coffee meetings with journalists, reporting coverage and conducting research for client meetings and new business pitches. The team fully-support our interns and provide weekly training sessions to develop and fast-track their knowledge and understanding of our industry.

Our newest recruit, Sabrina Bowen, has recently been promoted to Account Executive, here is her account of what it’s like to be an intern at OneChocolate:

“I’ve learned a vast amount in the two months I’ve been here. There are several great things about interning for OneChocolate, the support I have received from the team is one of them. I started having had only one month’s experience working in PR and I have been given a lot of training since starting here; I am now confident speaking to journalists, writing press releases, creating E-shots, learning about SEO and how to run a successful event, to name a few. Working here is fast-paced and demanding, but also very rewarding. Seeing your coverage published in print or seeing quality engagement online gives you a sense of achievement and shows you that your hard work is paying off.”

Intern: Jonathan Kerr, Whiteoaks

“Supporting the PR team with organisational tasks as well as working closely with the marketing team to bring in new clients. I am about to move into a Junior Account Executive role where I will support the team with call agendas, meetings and reporting on our progress and coverage to clients.”

Intern: Ashley Lennon, Maggie’s

“My main tasks were to create comprehensive databases of bloggers for the company, as well as being in charge of blogger outreach for our Glasgow and Edinburgh Culture crawls, as well as assisting with an upcoming project in Dundee.”

Intern: Mariela Petkova, Vauxhall

“My main role is to support all campaigns run by the consumer PR team and assist with any ad-hoc tasks in relation to them. We have diverse campaigns and all are equally important and require our dedication to ensure consistent media presence of the brand. I assist with car loans to journalists and social influencers, help with the organization of events such as Vauxhall Art Car Boot Fair and organize press trips as part of the sponsorship of the national football teams. Issuing press releases on certain channels, insuring that our online platforms are up-to-date and tracking coverage are also part of my main responsibilities. Vivaro on Tour is another big project that I am managing in collaboration with Independent Venue Week which aims to support British talent and help up-and-coming UK bands with their tours.”

Intern: Olivia Shalofsky, Direct Line Group

“Promoting and protecting Direct Line Group’s brands is my main task, and this obviously involves a number of smaller jobs that all make a difference. I am here to support my team in reaching their objectives. For example; sharing our coverage with the wider business means that we keep PR on the business agenda, and drawing on my own experiences to write stories brings to life why consumers need insurance. I spend a lot of my time completing tasks that allow me to identify trends and new opportunities, as well as developing tactics that will aid me in my future work. So far, I have spent a lot of time visiting various areas of the business, from the social team to consumer insights, to consolidate my knowledge and make sure I keep my work relevant to theirs.”

Intern: Alex Holt-Kulapalan, Dimoso

“Cliche I know, but I think PR is so varied that I’ve had no single main task. From writing press releases and bylines, to producing research on future tech and pitching to both UK and global outlets. I think my main task would be doing whatever is needed!”

Intern: Yana Miladinova, Red Setter

“As PR & Marketing intern, my main task is developing marketing and SEO plan to improve the reputation and visibility of Red Setter. I also manage the website, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Interested in what interns learnt on their first day in the role? Take a look at our previous blog – http://www.responsesource.com/blog/pr-interns-learn-first-day/

The post What do interns do? A look into PR internships appeared first on ResponseSource.

Tech and business

Cyber security is always good for a worrying statistic or two. NTT Security reports that global cyber attacks were up 24% during Q2 2017 and 67% of malware attacks are carried out by phishing emails. They’re particularly concerned about the manufacturing sector, which suffers more than a third of documented cyber attacks.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93744/cyber-attacks-occurring-more-frequently-and-with-greater-sophistication-/

Let’s counter that with some good news for industry.  Alexander Mann Solutions says 71% of employers believe the Apprenticeship Levy will offer to a new route into the workplace that could rival graduates as a source of talent: http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93761/the-apprenticeship-levy-the-most-fundamental-change-in-our-education. And if you’re an entrepreneur you can boost your chances of success by 16% with a business plan, says a joint study by University of Edinburgh Business School and RWTH Aachen University: http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93698/entrepreneurs-who-write-a-business-plan-are-more-likely-to/

Moving in to retail, IRI’s latest research says that changes to the way retailers and suppliers run promotions have led to an 18% fall in consumer savings through promotions compared to 2016. Annual levels of multibuy sales fell from 14% to 9% which the IRI says is partly down to pressure from the CMA (formerly the OFT), as retailers lower base prices rather than offering promotions. Fill your basket with some more info on http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93766/gbp-billion-worth-of-discounts-disappear-from-supermarket-shelves-as

At home and out and about

Faith in Nature tells us that only 4% of British people have baths, but don’t worry, it’s because 79% are efficient types who just prefer showering (let’s not think too hard about what the missing 17% get up to). If you want to know which workers take the longest showers and just how rarely we actually sing in the bath, see the soapy stats on http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93799/the-myth-of-the-relaxing-bath-brits-are-not-taking/

Faith in Nature says this is probably not happening to 96% of us

 

More relaxation could be just the ticket for the 90% of us who find that commuting leaves us frustrated, stressed or angry for up to 50 minutes after we get to work. Luckily, Evans Cycles wants to make our commute easier, saying e-bikes can counter three of the major excuses for not cycling: time (cited by 27% of commuters), arriving hot and sweaty (33%), and lack of fitness (19%).
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93820/hovis-boy-finally-conquers-gold-hill-after-years-thanks-to/

It’s not 1973 anymore, says Evans Cycles – even the Hovis boy has an e-bike

 

Getting outside, battery-assisted or not, is always good for you. Social enterprise Oomph! says almost 90% of care home residents who take part in classes, trips and excursions say their moods are improved and 68% say everyday living skills are better when they take part in activity and fitness sessions: http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93728/new-channel-programme-shows-one-way-to-make-life-better/

Whatever your age, Vision Direct and Fight for Sight want you to wear sunglasses whenever you’re outside (although it notes children’s eyes are more vulnerable to UV damage). Clouds only reduce the amount of UV by around 10% but good quality sunglasses can block 95% of UV light: http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93742/vision-direct-and-fight-for-sight-launch-thinkuv-campaign/

 

And finally…

We finish with a dip in to Ginger Comms’ newsroom which has survey-based stories on behalf of a number of clients – a few that caught our eye (find all these on http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/newsroom/GingerComms/releases/):

• 38 days of our lives are spent waiting for parcels and goods to be delivered, and a further 18 days spent queuing at post offices (from TalkTalk)
• 90% of us have a dark side, with the average Brit confessing to six bad deeds in the last 12 months – probably plotted in those post office queues, we suspect (from playojo.com)
• Keeping up with the Joneses isn’t as common as you might fear – while 21% covet the life (or possessions) of their next-door neighbour, more of us (55%) want the lifestyle of our best friend (Currys PC World)
• Hectic schedules, family commitments and a lack of faith in our talents are the reason 63% of British people are “letting their creativity die” (BIC)
• It’s not all doom and gloom though, a Giraffe World Kitchen poll said a third of parents say their children are culinarily adventurous and half said ‘they will try most things”. As a result your average 5-year-old today has probably scoffed hummus, churros, edamame beans, gyozas, tagine, halloumi, and chorizo among others – several years ahead of their parents who tend not to have tried such adventurous dishes until their late teens or even their twenties.

 

In these round-ups we’re taking a look at just a few of the stories you might have missed on the Press Release Wire. These may not be to your taste (although do try the churros, they’re delicious, as any five year old will tell you)  so why not take a look at http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news and see if there’s some background for your next story?  Or if you have a news story to share, take a look at our distribution options.

 

Based on Ginger Comms’ story for Giraffe World Kitchen, we think this is a small child making lunch
(Photo by Margo Brodowicz on Unsplash)

 

The post Bad Brits, bath maths, and children who chomp churros – another month in statistics on the Press Release Wire appeared first on ResponseSource.

Here are some of the reasons interns decided to take an internship at these agencies and companies.

Alexander Holt-Kulapalan, current intern at Dimoso

“I had previously worked across pre-sales and marketing in IT for a couple of years and found that I was always the one in the room gossiping about the latest tech, apps and games. I started to become interested in where marketing was heading, that traditional marketing was dying and so enrolled on a digital marketing diploma from the Digital Marketing Institute. Out of university I had always wanted to go into PR but at the time had put finding a guaranteed job ahead of my passions.  I chose to intern at Dimoso because it let me combine these two interests together, with Dimoso being an agency specialising in tech and video games but that also had a focus on mobile, social and digital media. It executes both traditional and digital PR & marketing.”

Olivia Shalofsky, current intern at Direct Line Group

I chose Direct Line Group (DLG) for many reasons, but most importantly, I knew the company’s values would suit me perfectly because of the way I like to work. They demonstrated that these values were integral to the company culture as they were prevalent throughout the interviewing process.
The second reason became clear when I was researching the PR team I would be working with, and felt inspired by the way they are perceived within the industry. They are an award winning team on all fronts. As a group they had won numerous PRCA and CIPR awards including ‘outstanding in-house team’. Individually, to name a few, Chloe had been named as one of PR’s 30 under 30 and ‘young professional’ of the year, Claire had won ‘PR professional’ of the year and ‘in-house professional’ of the year. Frances Browning leads the team, which was great confirmation that the company was committed to elevating talented women to senior positions. I can tell by the way this team works that I made the right choice, and I love learning from the very best.

Jordan Maahs, now employed permanently at Cherish PR

“CherishPR was actually brought to my attention by an old colleague in Toronto who happened to know Cherish PR CEO, Rebecca Oatley. Knowing I was new to the UK and looking for opportunities in PR, she put Rebecca and me in contact with each other. After a phone call with Rebecca and some research on Cherish PR, it became very clear to me that the agency was doing the exact kind of thing I was interested in. I had previously worked at an agency that specialised in arts and film, but was looking to get into technology after completing my degree in data analytics. Cherish PR was the perfect fit!”

Mariela Petkova, current intern at Vauxhall

“Vauxhall has been the second-largest-selling car brand in the UK for more than two decades. Keeping such statute requires persistence and the hard work of all employees who are united around the idea of improving the vehicles and the brand itself, makes it more distinguishable and appealing to customers. I wanted to develop personally in such an environment and gain experience from people who are motivated, driven by desire to progress, love their jobs and are inspired to deliver the best results. As a PR department, we are constantly engaged in developing creative campaigns which demonstrate the features of the vehicle the best way and keep the signature British culture, while at the same time fulfilling the customers’ expectations for interesting and distinctive advertising content. Being aware of diverse PR activities run by Vauxhall in the past, I knew this is something I would love to do and be engaged with. I have also chosen Vauxhall because of the attitude towards interns. Every intern is assigned a manager and a mentor who are constantly available to provide advice and support. Also, interns are given their own responsibilities and projects to run, the opportunity to experience different areas of the business and are allowed to take part in campaigns that present an interest to them.”

Rosie Challis, current intern at Spreckley

“After researching the company, I learned that Spreckley deal with a lot of interesting clients and the team have a proven track record of delivering successful and creative campaigns, so I felt that I would gain a good insight into PR. I was aware that it was a small company and thought that I would be valued, and therefore given more things to do than if I was interning at a larger company.”

Francesca Bjorkegren, current intern at elliotts agency

“I chose elliotts agency to intern at because I found it really interesting for an agency to focus on food, drink and hospitality. I never thought of those types of sectors to need PR, so I was intrigued about what type of clients they had, and also what they did for them.”

Jonathan Kerr, current intern at Whiteoaks

“PR and marketing have always been industries that have interested me. When researching PR agencies at which to apply for an internship, Whiteoaks stood out straight away. Their friendly yet professional company culture was something that I wanted to be a part of.”

Ashley Lennon, current intern at Maggie’s

“I chose to intern with Maggie’s as I was looking to get some hands on experience in the PR sector, and knowing of Maggie’s prior to the position I knew that they were a great charity. As well as looking for some experience, I chose Maggie’s particularly as they are a cancer caring charity, and this is a cause that is close to my heart, having had multiple family members suffering from cancer multiple times. I also was very drawn to the intern role, as it was for PR and Social Media which is exactly the aspect of the field I was keen to learn more about. Everything considered this position was a perfect fit.”

Joseph Scott, now employed permanently at Cream Consultancy

“I chose to apply for the PR intern role at Cream because, as it is a small agency, I believed I would get a much more fully rounded experience of the PR industry than if I interned at a large company. Also, it was in the minority of internships which offered a salary.”

Yana Miladinova, current intern at Red Setter

“While I was searching for a placement, I decided to look at agencies outside London. I found Red Setter while researching agencies in Brighton. Red Setter stood out as it does PR and New Business for agencies in the creative industry. It works in a very interesting niche, and the challenge of helping an agency grow its reputation amongst other creative agencies really appealed to me. This is something that we haven’t studied at the University, therefore I was curious. I wanted to try something different and learn new skills.”

Wondering what interns learn on their first day in the role? Take a look at our blog post from August.

The post Why did you choose to intern at…? appeared first on ResponseSource.

We know deadlines are important for adding structure to your working day but what steps can you take to end the week with a shorter to-do list?

Care about your deadlines

Whether you set the deadlines yourself or they’ve been set by another person, if you don’t care about deadlines then you’ll be less inclined to try and meet them. With multiple projects on the go at once, it will hinder your performance if you don’t acknowledge and respect the deadline that’s been set for each task.

Be clear about exactly when the deadline is for and what is expected

This often depends on who originally set the deadline and whether it’s set in stone. Of course you want to be meeting all of your deadlines but it’s important to know the ones that will make a big impact on your work performance and those that have no buffer room, as these will need prioritising.

Keep a list of projects with deadlines

Display your task list in a place where your team can see them too. When everyone has visibility of each other’s tasks it can provide motivation to hit your goals. It also gives a record of progress which can be especially useful if someone is unwell and the team needs a quick overview of pressing deadlines.

There are some great planning tools available online and here at ResponseSource we use Asana. We find Asana really useful for sharing our tasks across departments and managing our workload.

Sites like Trello let you create project boards and Hootsuite lets you schedule and plan social media content. Try out a few tools before settling, you’ll need to find one that works for you.

Teamwork – work together to get things done on time

If all of your projects are in one place where the whole team can see them, then it’s much easier to know each person is progressing with their task list. Have regular meetings to review tasks and discuss priorities. It’s important to know exactly where everyone stands and admit if you need help to complete a task.

Break the deadlines down to into steps

One huge task can seem daunting and take ages to be crossed off your list. Break each large task down into smaller bite-size subtasks that can easily be completed and crossed off your list. You’ll feel much better knowing that you have done 60% of the tasks towards a final project.

Subtasks should also have deadlines – I know, that means you’ll have 30 tasks instead of 4! Sorry, you’ll thank us in the end!

Block off adequate time to complete each step

Set yourself time to complete each part of the task and remember to allow extra time for other people to finish their part. Using a calendar that your team can view is ideal. Outlook or Gmail calendars are a great way of blocking out time. They also give you reminders too, so if you set these for an hour in advance it can help you see if you’re on track with your current task and ready to move to the next in an hours’ time.

Visually blocking off time is also a great way of helping you to assess whether you are actually over servicing a client.

Don’t be a perfectionist

Of course the work needs to be completed to a good standard and may need sign off from a client and other members of your team but there’s no need to make hundreds of revisions.

Planning, prioritizing, and preparing are all essential, but the execution is what matters in the end.

Avoid the ‘single detail debate’ where there’s toing and froing between your team or client about a small and probably unimportant detail such as whether you should use one word or another.

Be flexible

If another deadline falls on your desk, which it always will, you need to take the time to realign your priorities. Occasions like this are where the team meetings in step 4 will really show their benefits.

If you’re struggling with any deadline, take a step back and decide if someone else can take over part of it so that the final deadline can be met.

The post How to meet deadlines at work appeared first on ResponseSource.

We had a chat with 12 interns from agencies and in-house PR teams across the UK and asked them…

What did you learn on the first day of your internship?

Here’s what they told us…

“I am the third person to intern for a placement year with the PR team since the programme started. The scheme offers a two week handover period with the incumbent intern, allowing for tips to be shared and making for a smoother transition period.

On my first day I was introduced to a lot of new faces and processes, and given an opportunity to learn about DLG’s brand portfolio (Direct Line, Churchill, Privilege and Green Flag). Every office has different processes and expectations, but it is vital to this team that their interns walk before they can run and feel really comfortable with the simpler tasks so that they aren’t surprised by anything down the line. Even answering the phones was made a big part of my first day, which is reflected in our relationships with journalists because they trust our team to always be connected with them whenever they need us.”

Olivia Shalofsky, Direct Line Group

“On my first day, I learnt that PR is a fast paced environment, especially an agency where they have lots of clients to keep up to date and on track with. I was tasked to research several clients on my first day to gain an understanding of them and what elliotts do for them individually. After that, I was researching influencers and bloggers to get in touch with to try and get them to come to a client’s site for a meal in exchange for a review on their blogs.”

Francesca Bjorkegren, elliotts agency

“I learnt about the frustration of knowing that you had done all the work the client had wanted, but then receiving no response when it needed to be signed off. All that effort just for good content to be sat there!”

Joseph Scott, Cream Consultancy

“My first day was mainly an introduction, however I found it very productive. This is the first time I am working in an office environment and learning about safety and security procedure, for example, which was new and useful for me as an employee. We had a presentation delivered from an HR employee, giving us more details about company hierarchy, dress code, working hours, holiday, the procedures to follow in case of a sickness etc. We were also given a tour of the headquarters and introduced to diverse internal communication programmes, available for all employees. For example, a few initiatives I am becoming part of are CSR days, team-building events, such as footgolf and Griffins’ Den which is an internal program to run activities with students from local schools. I have spent the afternoon in the PR department, being introduced to my colleagues which gave me a broader understanding of their roles and the way our department is run. The undergraduate that I was taking from, made sure that I am aware of all campaigns undergone by Vauxhall at the moment and gave me a brief explanation about my role within them.”

Mariela Petkova, Vauxhall

“On my first day I learned that it’s best to speak up. Whether that is asking questions or voicing your interest in a project, I found very quickly that speaking up would allow me to get the most out of my internship. From both taking on a wider range of tasks and personal skills development perspective.”

Jordan Maahs, Cherish PR

Just hired!

“On my first day at IQ I was asked to browse through the main website and learn more about the company and the products they manufacture and install. Once I got my bearings around some of the more popular products I was then asked to write content for a project page to be posted onto our website which is then read by current or future clients to see how the glazing could work for their own projects.”

Bryony Sandy, IQ Glass

“I was thrown right into the thick of it with proper work and genuine responsibilities from day one. I had to research everything about our clients and our competitors. I learnt that this internship is going to be an amazing experience for me.”

Yana Miladinova, Red Setter

“That a lot of PR is research! Lots and lots of research. Something I’m familiar with, but in PR it is almost gamified to find any avenue you can in obtaining media contacts/info etc. I also spent my first day learning about each of their clients; their backgrounds, key objectives, KPIs etc.”

Alex Holt-Kulapalan, Dimoso

“My first day didn’t really feel like a first day to be quite honest… My manager, Clemmie, just briefed me on a few tasks such as “influencer research”, “database tidy”, “campaign research” and then I was left to get on with it. I liked the fact that from day one I felt so on board and getting actual hands on tasks rather than just observing or making photocopies!”

Sarah Dridje, Piccolo Foods

“Something that is very basic but very important to any PR company, it is vital to connect with the publications that the client wants to be featured in, and regularly. Whether that’s by reading the newspapers or surfing the web, without seeing what type of articles they pick up on and the style they look for, you’ll be in the dark when it comes to pitching.”

Rosie Challis, Spreckley

“I learned a lot on my first day in the Maggie’s office. I was introduced to all of the staff members and got to learn a little about them and the role the play for Maggie’s. I filled out essential paperwork, and was provided with some reading materials about the organisation and their work, which was highly valuable to me as it helped me learn more about the organisation. I was shown how to use the company’s software, and had a meeting with my mentor to discuss what I would be doing over the course of my internship.”

Ashley Lennon, Maggie’s

“I learnt about the fundamentals of PR and gained an understanding of the processes that a PR agency go through on a daily basis. A lot of my first day was being introduced to all the team and getting an understanding of the roles I would be doing during my internship.”

Jonathan Kerr, Whiteoaks

The post PR interns – what did you learn on your first day? appeared first on ResponseSource.

Other than the fact you will probably annoy your boss or let someone else down, deadlines are set across the business world to help people prioritise.

Deadlines can be anything from getting your holiday requests in at least 2 weeks in advance, through to getting that important parcel to the post office before 5pm. Some deadlines are not 100% set in stone but others are.

The word deadline has history back to 1860s prison days where prisoners would be shot if they crossed the ‘dead-line’ around the prison. In modern day deadlines are not quite so life-threatening, but they also shouldn’t be ignored.

Having clear and achievable deadlines means you can complete the most important and time-sensitive work first. This makes you more productive and ensures that other members of your team and those relying on you have exactly what they need to hit their own deadlines.

Being given a deadline: helps you prioritise your workload and know which tasks are the most time sensitive.

Giving a deadline: helps you get what you need from other people with enough time to meet your own deadlines.

When you don’t work to a deadline you often continue putting a project off until the last minute and sometimes it never gets done at all. Often the tasks that get put off the most are the ones that could be saving you the most time in the long run.

Some tasks get rushed so they’re finished in time and I’m sure we’re all guilty of putting off tasks that don’t have a deadline, I know I am.

If someone has asked you to complete a task or provide some information by a deadline and they are relying on you, it can often be embarrassing when they have to chase you. And not just for them. If you miss a deadline you can miss out on the chance of taking part in something great and you could stress out the person who set it. On the flip side, you shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep.

If you know you definitely can’t hit a deadline you have a few options.

• Explain to the person giving you a deadline that you can’t feasibly make the cut-off – they might be able to extend the deadline
• Check what resources you have already – could you just tweak a piece of work that already exists?
• Ask a colleague to help out
• Speak to your boss and see if there are any other ways the work can get completed
• Commission an external company or freelancer to do the work
• Decline the opportunity if it doesn’t warrant the extra resources

With deadlines hitting you from left, right and centre, it can be daunting trying to keep up. But with a little determination and careful planning, deadlines can help you succeed.

The post Why are deadlines important? appeared first on ResponseSource.

Security and reputation

KnowBe4, provider of security awareness training and a simulated phishing platform, has identified the most dangerous phishing subject line as “Security Alert” in a study of employees opening emails. Non-work topics are also a danger, with “UPS Label Delivery 1ZBE312TNY00015011”, “BREAKING: United Airlines Passenger Dies from Brain Haemorrhage – VIDEO” and “A Delivery Attempt was made” all opened by 10% of recipients.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93589/knowbe-releases-quarterly-top-clicked-phishing-report-for-q-results

Such human gaps in security might be a particular concern for SMEs – two out of three cyber attacks target small businesses, and 60% of small businesses go out of business six months after a breach, says a survey by privileged account management provider Thycotic.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93676/most-companies-worldwide-failing-to-measure-cybersecurity-effectiveness-and-performance

Of course businesses of any size will still be set back by a security breach – in fact NTT Security, the specialised security company, says the average cost to a UK business of a security breach would come to £1.1m and it would take an average of 80 days to recover from an attack. It found that UK businesses spend an average of 13.7% of their IT budget on security.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93609/a-uk-business-will-spend-more-than-m-recovering-from

Got your security right, and customers love your business? Then you need to tell everyone about it, says testimonial gathering service Appruvo. 81% of companies in its survey agreed that getting references and testimonials from customers was important for their business, but only 34% actually displayed references on their website, and only 2% had references on their homepage.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93672/references-and-testimonials-straight-from-your-customers-to-your-website

Charities in particular might want to make the most of testimonials – surprisingly four in ten people (45%) told volunteering organisation Pro Bono Economics that they were cautious of charities, 18% suspicious of them, and 10% explicitly distrust them. Better news in the trust stakes for doctors (69% of us trust them), teachers (56%), scientists (52%), police (44%) and judges (38%). Even hairdressers have a higher trust rating, at 45%, although bankers, less surprisingly, are down at 9%.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93661/uk-public-nearly-twice-more-likely-to-trust-hairdressers-than

Health and relationships

Brain clinic Re:Cognition Health has been looking at understanding of dementia. 49% of people questioned in its new survey fail to understand that dementia is fatal, even though it’s the leading cause of death in England and Wales. However more people (38%) are concerned they may develop dementia, compared to cancer (26%) and heart disease (6%).
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93610/dementia-kills-but-yougov-survey-reveals-britons-don-t-know

A survey of parents who were teenagers in the 80s and 90s by broadbandchoices.co.uk found 86% identified annoyances and embarrassments their own teenage children don’t face today. Top complaints included having only four TV channels (76% complained about this), having to wait a full week for the next episode of your favourite show (61%) and taking at least three rolls of film for your camera on holiday (57%). However, all that digital native stuff does make today’s teenagers useful to their parents – 42% rely on their own children for technical help.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93659/being-a-teen-today-is-a-breeze-compared-to-what

Just as well we can call on the next generation for their ease with technology – family law firm Brookman says social media use is increasingly cropping up in divorce petitions. Half of respondents to its survey said their partner had sent an email or made a work-related phone call during a holiday and over a third said their partner often takes a laptop or phone with them on holiday. In spite of this almost 80% felt that their partner had a good work-life balance. Social media is a more prickly issue – the average internet user is now on social media and messaging services for over 2 hours per day and over a quarter of participants said they felt frustrated or angry that their partner wasn’t engaged, or seemed ‘distracted’ from the family whilst on holiday.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93547/in-couples-could-see-their-holidays-and-relationships-ruined-this

Home life

Sticking with family values, one smaller survey we couldn’t leave out is from dogsblog.com – dogs who moved their eyebrows making their eyes appear bigger, like babies, were most likely to attract potential new homes. Sad photos took second place, while dogs with happy photos attracted two thirds less attention.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93643/new-study-finds-dogs-use-their-eyes-to-manipulate-humans

If you do find yourself manipulated by a big-eyed hound, you’ll have more washing to do (source: one large mud-loving Labrador) and you may recall that Kirstie Allsopp wants you to keep that sort of thing out of the kitchen, please. However, domestic appliance repair company Go-Assist.co.uk found that 46% of British people keep their washing machine in the kitchen and are absolutely fine with that. 12% of respondents stated their washing machine was in their kitchen but wish it could be somewhere else, and just a fifth say their machine is in an Allsopp-approved location (location, location) in the bathroom, hall cupboard or airing cupboard.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93605/of-brits-say-they-are-fine-with-having-this-disgusting

Assuming you do get the washing machine out of the kitchen, you could invite a few friends around to your newly hygienic home – Anglian Home Improvements says 84% of modern Brits think informal or casual kitchen suppers have replaced “stuffy” dinner parties. Mind out for other bones of contention though – 41% complained of guests drinking too much, 26% have had to deal with a friend or family member starting an inappropriate conversation and 22% have had a guest start an argument with a fellow diner. Anglian provides a list of do’s and don’ts for modern gatherings, although we have to take issue with one: “NEVER serving anything on a cocktail stick”. It’s the fervent belief of the ResponseSource team that nobody can be truly sociable without a nice hedgehog of cheese and pineapple cubes skewered in to half a grapefruit, whatever they may tell the pollsters.
http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/93616/the-dinner-party-is-dead-according-to-new-research

In these monthly round-ups we dig out some of the original research behind stories on the ResponseSource Press Release Wire – we’re bound to miss some out so do search our archive at http://pressreleases.responsesource.com/news/ when you’re looking for background for a feature or blog post.

Feeling manipulated yet? Clockwise from top left, Dogsblog.com survey dogs Jack, Freddy, Rex, Ben, Elsa.

The post Security concerns, mistrust of charities, and where 46% of people keep their washing machine appeared first on ResponseSource.