Muckle Media is pleased to announce it has passed the PRCA’s Communications Management Standards (CMS) – the hallmark of PR excellence, which must held by PRCA Matchmaker members.

The PRCA exists to raise standards in the PR and communications profession. It promotes all aspects of public relations and communications work, helping teams to maximise the value they deliver to clients.

The CMS combines elements of ‘ISO9001’ and ‘Investors in People’ with PR and communications specific criteria. Consultancies are scored on nine core areas:

• Leadership and communication
• Client satisfaction
• Business planning
• New business
• Business improvement
• People management
• Financial management and systems
• Diversity
• Campaign management

By completing the CMS, Muckle Media has demonstrated it is:

• A well-run business that utilises the correct systems and structures
• Committed to its staff and their development
• Committed to excellence – giving clients peace of mind

Through completing the CMS, Muckle Media has identified key areas of improvement and growth in all areas of the business, and will continue to strive for excellence.

Want to find out how we can help your business achieve its goals? Get in touch on [email protected]

At Muckle Media this year we took the conscious decision to invest in video. We now have a dedicated in-house videographer who is integrated across all our accounts.

Whether as an internal tool to provide new content for the website, social media or company presentations or as part of a PR campaign to specifically reach target audiences, the value of video has never been greater. Video now dominates online content and with more and more of that content is being consumed via smartphones, audiences can be reached on the move from their commute to their couch.

Video is easy to share but it is also easier than you might think to create. Effective videos can be produced for all sizes of budget and can really add value to a campaign and engage your audience directly.

Working alongside traditional media
Video and traditional media go hand in hand. Video content accompanying a press release and resulting coverage can give your story a longer shelf life. The lines are so blurred now between content that takes off on social media and ‘news’ driven by traditional media that broadcasters will often be influenced by the popularity of a story that started online and if you can provide raw footage, they will take it.

Demonstrate your work
A short video can say a thousand words, audio-visual case study content for your website is a great way to attract new business and display your best work. It can also be used for presentations or at pitches. Video testimonials are an authentic way to demonstrate customer feedback and third party endorsement. Using a video to evaluate the success of a campaign can help strengthen client relationships and secure future work.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wwpj5NVJYU

Video is an essential aspect to any event
Whether you are showing video content at the event, filming the conference to post online later, or live streaming – analysing the best use of video for an upcoming event can help increase its success. Trailers or short teaser videos can help build a buzz about future events and are particularly useful for use on Twitter or Instagram where videos are often much shorter.

•  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ANVUMjj05s

Show company culture
Video can also bring your culture to life, allowing you to choose the style and tone you want to set with your audience online. This could be as simple as recording your own take on a viral online challenge.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzpC9pQS1YU&t=6s

Meet the team video profiles can add personality and highlight key attributes of your staff. Internal training videos are an effective way to engage new and current staff and are an important part of continued professional development.

•  https://youtu.be/tKL4-2vEKYU

If you want to create some video content but don’t know where to start, get in touch with [email protected]

In a commitment to promoting professional standards, Muckle Media has become a corporate affiliate of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR).

The affiliation will help Muckle Media develop and nurture its team of grade A PR professionals through tools including:

• Workshops introducing CPD, ethics and the CIPR Code of Conduct
• Insight briefings revealing the latest thinking on key PR issues
• Tailored CPD advice and recommended learning
• CIPR’s interactive Ethical Competence assessment

The Corporate Affiliation scheme shows Muckle Media’s commitment to promoting professional standards by investing in its staff, preparing for the future and developing the business into an industry leader. By developing skilled, confident and values-driven employees, Muckle Media is able to provide the best possible service to its clients.

Find out more about the CIPR Corporate Affiliation here or get in touch with us to find out more about our services.

As news consumption continues to evolve, brands and events are constantly looking for the most effective ways to reach audiences. People want news on the go and want to be constantly kept up to date with breaking news and updates from the events that interest them.

Smartphones bring a whole host of possibilities to users, from receiving breaking news updates with the BBC News app to viewing events on social media via Periscope and Facebook Live. Snapchat is also proving popular with brands that want to stay connected to technology savvy consumers.

Snapchat enables users to send ‘Snaps’, or photos, videos and messages, to friends and followers, that delete after viewing.  As the app grows in popularity, new features are constantly being added, such as fun ways to mix-up your selfies e.g. face swap, Geofilters that show which city you’re in or event you’re at, and Bitmojis which let users create their own caricature to use in Snaps.

Brands and news media can also share their latest updates and bring users live updates from the world’s biggest events in real time – giving people a fun way to stay up to date. One of the biggest events taking place at the moment is the Rio 2016 Olympics and it’s getting in on the Snapchat action!

Snapchatters can follow @Rio2016 or will be able to see sponsored Snaps from the account. Snaps have been sent from the Olympic Torch Relay across Brazil, followed athletes’ journeys from the airport to the Olympic Park and met the mascots before the opening ceremony. Since then, coverage has been accelerated to bring followers a Games experience different to what they see on TV.

Behind the scenes videos, updates on who’s about to compete and who’s won medals and meeting the athletes after they’ve competed – the Snapchat account gives people an up-close look at what’s going on in Rio.

And it’s not all business, Snaps show the celebrations going on in Brazil and bring a sense of fun; really conveying the atmosphere of the Games that you rarely get through traditional media coverage.

For brands and events like these to reach the largest audience possible, they must analyse the types of media people are consuming and innovate to stay ahead. Content created on the likes of Snapchat can also be saved and shared on other social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Do you have an exciting event coming up or interesting visuals you think consumers may be interested in? Snapchat may be a new outlet to explore to reach people in a more personal, fun and interesting way. Let us know about your Snapchat campaigns by tweeting @mucklemedia – happy snapping!

Muckle Media, the creative campaign agency, has partnered with SharpSpring to offer a new range of digital PR and marketing services to clients. The partnership, which will see the agency offer discounted SharpSpring licences to clients, will provide a range of new tools to help plan, deliver and evaluate online campaigns.

SharpSpring offers customer relationship management (CRM), marketing automation and campaign tracking, meaning that the agency can now evaluate the success of digital content campaigns in much more detail.

The CRM allows clients to manage and track leads which can be assigned to sales teams and traced back to sources such as social media or PR. The marketing automation element allows the client to nurture leads, by creating a content path that can be tailored for different prospects – e.g. sending retail focused content regularly to prospects in the retail sector. The campaign evaluation tools provide invaluable insights into which activity is working, allowing clients to fully understand the return on investment on their marketing spend.

Muckle Media Managing Director Nathalie Agnew said, “We have been searching for the best partner to offer more digital tools to clients for some time and carried out extensive research into the marketplace before selecting SharpSpring. It was a clear winner due to the simplicity of the platform, the wide range of features and a price point far below most competing products. We can’t wait to work with SharpSpring to help our clients grow.”

Muckle Media is currently offering significantly discounted SharpSpring pricing for early clients during the piloting phase, to discuss how we could help you to deliver more efficient content marketing campaigns please contact us here.

Muckle Media, the creative communication campaigns agency, has been shortlisted for four awards at this year’s CIPR PRide Awards, taking place on 13th October at The Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh.

The agency, which acquired Platform PR in November last year as part of its strategic growth plans, has been shortlisted in the following categories:

• Outstanding Public Relations Consultancy for Muckle Media in the category that recognises the achievements, performance and excellent work over the past three years of a public relations consultancy with more than £500,000 in annual fee income

• Not-for-Profit Campaign of the Year for Muckle Media’s ongoing support for Entrepreneurial Spark, the world’s largest free business accelerator for early stage and growing ventures

• Best Use of Photography or Design for commissioning of creative photography to support the 50^th anniversary of Highlands and Islands Enterprise

• Best Event for launching Mortlach 75 Years Old, the world’s most exclusive whisky, for Gordon & MacPhail at a media event in London

Commenting on the awards shortlist, Nathalie Agnew, managing director said, “The CIPR PRide Awards are recognised as one of the top awards in the industry and we are incredibly proud to be shortlisted for four. As we work towards our objective of being a top ten agency outside of London by 2020 creativity in our approach is key, so we’re delighted that our creative approach to delivering results is being recognised in these awards.”

The full shortlist can be found here – https://www.cipr.co.uk/content/awards-events/pride-awards/scotland

Remember to follow us on Twitter for updates on the awards @mucklemedia

We’re delighted to be shortlisted for three PRCA Dare Awards for Small Consultancy of the Year, Trade and B2B Campaign for work with Entrepreneurial Spark and Rising Star of the Year for account manager Linsay Moore.

The Small Consultancy of the Year shortlist comes just months after acquiring leading communications company Platform PR and some exciting projects with clients both old and new. The Trade and B2B Campaign shortlist is for work as part of a retainer for business accelerator Entrepreneurial Spark and for fast-paced, reactive PR to the most recent Budget announcement as part of the business’ executive visibility programme. The third shortlist is for Muckle Media’s very own rising star Linsay Moore! Since joining the team just over a year ago, Linsay has had a huge impact and is very deserving of this award shortlist.

Keep your fingers crossed for 15th June when the winners are announced at the Grand Central Hotel in Glasgow.

Full shortlist available to view here: https://bit.ly/23oDQp7 Remember to follow us on Twitter for updates on the awards @mucklemedia

As someone who started out pursuing a career in PR without much knowledge of the industry as a whole, I’ve always been really interested in looking at encouraging the next generation of could-be practitioners to join our wonderful (if slightly manic and stressful) industry and help those who have joined to get the most out of it that they can.

That’s why I’m delighted to have been appointed Chairman of PRCA NextGen Scotland, a group which focuses on developing and helping practitioners across Scotland at all levels to get the most out of their career in PR.

I originally set out to be a journalist before making the transition to PR and securing a BA Honours degree in PR and Media from Queen Margaret University. Halfway through my final year I undertook a placement with a leading PR agency in Edinburgh, who took a chance on me and offered me a full time position as an Account Executive in one of the consumer teams.

During my first year in PR I learnt a lot. But mostly I remember learning that a) the stuff you learn during University doesn’t really prepare you for the real world, b) no-one will actually know what you do when you tell them you work in PR, they’ll automatically picture you in either AbFab or The Hills, and c) it’s so important to have someone else within the industry to turn to for advice and support.

When I started out I spent a lot of time googling things, asking my superiors questions and trying to find out how the world of PR works. As a result of this when the opportunity to join NextGen Scotland came up, I was keen to get involved and play a more active role in bringing together professionals from graduate level up to Senior Account Manager, and help further a group based on supporting, informing and helping practitioners across the industry.

I can’t wait to work with Vice Chairmen Stephanie Malcolm and Sarah Mooney to shape what NextGen Scotland will look like. Together we have a wealth of ideas on how we would like to expand and develop the group and ensure we are reaching the right audience and giving them the information they need. From organising regular meetings with PR professionals, specific skills focused events, informal drinks evenings to get to know one another and some round-table Q&A sessions to explore the industry and learn how to work together in a collaborative manner to encourage effective practice.

With the aim of inspiring the next generation of professionals at the core of NextGen Scotland, I’m excited to work with Stephanie, Sarah and the wider industry to really look at what the next generation of PR professional looks like and how we plan to attract them.

If you’re interested in hearing more about upcoming NextGen events in Scotland, have any key points you would like to raise to the committee, or would just like to say hi, then please do drop me an email on [email protected].

Whether you’re loved up, happily single or contemplating making use of a break-up service like The Break Up Shop (yes, that is an actual thing), brands have been showing the love for February the 14^th.

Tesco’s Basket Dating

Supermarket giant Tesco has been lending a helpful hand to shopping singletons by matching them with potential suitors based on the content of their shopping baskets. A promotional video shows a psychologist playing matchmaker by analysing the baskets of shoppers and pairing up the best suited.

The video shows psychologist Rachel Morris’ thought process: “These two will go together because all they want to do is sit and chat and have a couple of nuts”, and “‘Cleaning guy’ can go and spend some time with ‘domestic lady’”

The video then goes on to show dates between the paired couples with mixed results. Creating shareable content is the key objective with this campaign and it worked well, with social media users sharing their thoughts on the video from “amazing” to “ridiculous”!

House of Fraser gets #emojinal

Followers of House of Fraser’s Twitter account were left confused after its latest campaign which aimed to bring some fun to Valentine’s Day marketing activity.

#emojinal sees House of Fraser sharing images of celebrities with emojis Photoshopped into the picture. Followers are tasked with cracking the emoji code, which represents a romantic comedy, for the chance of receiving a 10% online discount.

However, followers weren’t feeling the love. Many Twitter users even questioned if House of Frasers’ Twitter account had been hacked with the departure from its usual tone.

Lessons learned? Campaigns need to match the brand. The tone and messaging of campaigns should be carefully considering – that being said, it certainly sparked debate and got people talking.

Ya Big Darling, Tennent’s Lager

To mark the launch of its Valentine’s-themed 12-packs, Tennent’s Lager is offering one lucky couple the chance to get married at its Wellpark Brewery in Glasgow.

With leap years traditionally being when women can pop the question to their partners, Tennent’s Lager is asking women to send in their proposal videos which will then be shown on the ‘big telly’ on the outside of the brewery on busy Duke Street. One of the couples will then be chosen to tie the knot at the brewery.

Everyone who submits a video will receive a discount voucher on the Valentine’s-themed packs, which includes bottles labelled with phrases such as ‘Pure Stunner’, ‘Hiya Hot Stuff’ and ‘Ya Big Darling’! The email address for submitting videos is even [email protected].

A really fun campaign with huge potential for sharing on social media, whether it be the proposal videos or clips taken by passers-by who see the proposals on the ‘big telly’. The strategic campaign is also complemented by a weeklong Valentine’s takeover on Tennent’s social media pages, with users being asked to share their cheesiest chat-up lines and nicknames for their other halves – bravo, Tennent’s!

Have you seen any funny, interesting or successful Valentine’s campaigns from brands? Tell us your favourites on Twitter @mucklemedia and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MuckleMedia/

As we wave goodbye to 2015, what better time to reminisce about the biggest PR and social media talking points of the last year?

Polar bear joins the London commute

You may have seen the photos of a life-sized polar bear delighting/terrifying users of the London Underground at the start of last year. The stunt was to promote the new Sky Atlantic show Fortitude. The imagery of commuters and travellers amazed by the additional passenger resulted in widespread media and social media coverage. Simple but effective.

Talk Talk’s emoji people

Staying on the Underground, emoji-faced people were spotted travelling the tube in May. The characters were a clever piece of marketing by Talk Talk to mark its research into the popularity of the emoji. It claims that 80% of people use emojis regularly, with 62% of those saying they use them more than they did a year ago. Working alongside a linguistics professor, Talk Talk created an ‘Emoji IQ’ study and quiz for emoji-aficionados to test their knowledge.

You could say 2015 was the year of the emoji: the study also claimed the emoji was being adopted faster than any other ‘language’.  2015 also, for the first time, saw an emoji being named Oxford Dictionaries Word of the Year – the ‘Face with Tears of Joy’ emoji!

Snickers: You’re not you when you’re hungry

Jeremy Clarkson was at it again in 2015. This time by allegedly hitting a Top Gear producer for refusing him some food. Cue an opportunity for Snickers and its tagline ‘You’re not you when you’re hungry’. The chocolate brand simply sent a box of Snickers addressed to Clarkson at the BBC with the tagline written below and posted a photo of it to Twitter. The tweet resulted in thousands of retweets and likes.  A simple and easy social media opportunity, however, the stunt could easily have backfired due to the serious nature of the incident.

#thedress

Are you fed up of hearing about #thedress yet? Probably. But it was one of the standout social media sensations of the year.

When a photo emerged of a black and blue (or was it white and gold?) dress, the internet exploded in a heated debate. And brands were quick to spot an opportunity to jump on the bandwagon. Dominos posted photos of its black and blue uniform claiming it was white and gold and Specsavers offered eye tests for anyone confused by the photo. Another example of simple but effective reactive PR.

P.S. It was black and blue…

Christmas dinner in Hogwart’s Great Hall

A nice one to round-off the year – Harry Potter fans were offered the opportunity to experience Christmas dinner in Hogwart’s Great Hall. For one night only, the Warner Bros. Studio Tour opened the hall’s doors to allow special guests to indulge in an early Christmas dinner and Butterbeer or two. The highly sought after tickets and opportunity to dine in such an iconic set resulted in widespread media and social media coverage – a great way to boost pre-Christmas business.

Any other PR stunts or social media campaigns catch your eye in 2015? Let us know your favourites by tweeting @mucklemedia

Winner Daniel Campbell can truly claim to be born and bred in the Scottish hospitality industry: he started out clearing tables at his parents’ hotel on the shores of Loch Ness and, after studying at the Cesar Ritz School in Switzerland, worked at top restaurants such as Balmoral Number one, the Witchery Group and Martin Wishart.

The judges were impressed by Daniel’s enthusiasm and passion for the food and drink and tourism sectors, and felt he would bring this energy to the conference and debate, and offer a fresh perspective from someone who has worked at many levels across Scotland and overseas.

The Taste for Tourism conference on 4th November aims to catapult Scotland to the top of the wish list for tourists who see high quality food and drink as the main reason to travel. The event will bring together food producers, caterers and travel firms to create more mouth-watering attractions and brand Scotland as a food destination.

Daniel, currently general manager at Edinburgh’s Royal Over-Seas League, also runs his own businesses – two Cobbs coffee shops in the Lothians area.

He spends his free time touring Scotland’s most spectacular spots and enjoying its delicious local produce. Daniel says “On an occasion in my teens, when a tourist asked me had I been to Applecross, to my embarrassment I said I hadn’t. From then on I set myself a goal to get around Scotland and to know my country and its food, heritage and culture.

“It’s such a great privilege to be part of the great food revival here in Scotland. We live in a beautiful country with an abundance of locally-produced artisan foods. I love driving my partner and son all around Scotland, sampling the very best Scottish produce. From langoustines freshly caught at the Applecross Inn and eating fresh mussels on the pier at Oban, to spending a week in Islay tasting and visiting each distillery, my hobby is food and drink.”

As winner of the competition, Daniel will join industry experts James Withers, CEO of Scotland Food & Drink, and Marc Crothall, CEO of Scottish Tourism Alliance, as they put forward their opinions and expertise on how to shape the future of Scotland’s food and drink and tourism sectors. 

The summit has a line-up of prestigious speakers including international experts responsible for setting up highly successful food destinations overseas. It takes place in Oban, Argyll, on the 4th of November, 2015 with optional activities on 3rd and 5th.

Full information and for details on how to book click here

1.     How did you get into PR – what’s your background?
 I studied in Edinburgh at Queen Margaret University; the course was BA Hons PR and Marketing. During the final year I undertook a placement in-house for a boutique hotel on an island. This placement really helped me gain an insight in to the PR industry. Also how important it is to be organised and good with your timekeeping, especially keeping to deadlines.
 
2.     What’s the best piece of coverage you’ve secured for a client?
I would say assisting in my second photo call in Edinburgh, for a Fringe client. As everyone who performs at the festival wants coverage!

3.     Is there anything you’ve done in your career that you’re particularly proud of?

It would be being asked to stay at Muckle Media for a longer period of time than my initial three month internship. As I am eager to extend my knowledge and I wouldn’t want to stop the learning process. Also being part of the conference team for the successful Cold Water Island conference prior to joining Muckle Media was a great experience. It gave me a real first-hand insight into what really goes in to putting on an event. 
 
4.     What brands/startups do you think are doing a great job with their PR and marketing at the moment?
For a café that solely sells cereal the CereaI Killer café is having great success. Being in the spotlight on numerous occasions for selling expensive cereal in one of London’s most deprived areas, they have managed to turn round even negative stories they have faced. One incident involving a channel 4 reporter actually resulted in queues going out the door. After only opening in December 2014, they have already expanded and opened another café. Unusual stunts such as an early morning rave fittingly sponsored by Alpro means they are a regular in the tabloids, including the Metro. I think it’s good for brands to engage with their customers on social media and not just advertising all their products. If a brand seems fun or informative I’d be more inclined to follow them.
 
5.     What’s been your biggest achievement out of work?
In primary school I won a competition to have my design used as one of the North Ayrshire Council’s Christmas cards. I was ecstatic about this as art was one of my favourite subjects, and still is a hobby of mine. Also being part of the cross country running team gave me a sense of achievement. It was a great feeling being part of a team but also to individually motivate yourself.

6.     What’s your favourite song at the moment?

I’m not that great with keeping up with music, anything upbeat and lively usually works for me.

7.     How do you like to spend your free time?
I’m currently living in Glasgow, having never lived there before I like to go out and explore the city. So you’ll either find me out socialising or trying to organise the next festival I’m going too. For me summer time is all about going to festivals. Let the planning commence.

8.     What are your ambitions for the future, in and out of work?

Although I don’t have a specific time frame for how I want things to go, I definitely would like to progress in PR. Importantly to work with some great people is always a bonus. Out of work my ambitions for the future would be to travel and see the world more. Firstly I need to make my flat more homely!