Originally published to www.carnsight.com
You may have noticed that we recently launched our eBook, Powerfully Practical PR.
After a long time in the making, it’s time to share our tips, tricks, and top learnings from the process. So, if you’re considering doing the same yourself or are simply curious, here’s a PR and Communication consultancy’s advice on how to write a Kindle Direct eBook for beginners.
1. Consider the content that you already have
The question “where do I begin?” is one that we’re all likely familiar with. This process can be daunting, and knowing where to start isn’t always obvious. We recommend taking stock of the content that you already have. Where have you already put pen to paper – or more likely, finger to keyboard?
Consider your existing knowledge banks, note down what you’ve already written about (perhaps in the form of blogs, newsletters, detailed emails, external talks and webinars or internal documents such as presentations) and think about how your content might be reworked to contribute to your eBook. You might be surprised at what you’ve already got saved.
2. Nailing the cover art
Embody your brand. Be cohesive. Consider font, colour and styling – how does it work with your logo? Your website graphics? Your social media visuals? Your visual brand is an important aspect of your overall brand cohesion and marketing. It should be recognisable as part of your business, and work to represent it cohesively without trying to do too much on one page. Be strategic with what you create because, on Amazon especially, your cover is a key tool for selling. It’s one of the first, things a potential customer will see and it can communicate a lot in a little time.
So, your cover needs to be effective for its purpose. Ideally, it should be a clear form of visual communication, but the purpose it fills may differ depending on your primary goal – it may need to entice, stir curiosity, convey credibility, or illustrate an idea. Think: what is the style of your content and how can you translate that visually? What is the type of information you’ve shared or what story is being told? Are there important symbols, graphics, or visual cues you should include? Does your audience associate certain things with the content that should be visible on the cover?
It’s also worth having a look at what’s already out there. Is there a theme or a certain set of colours or graphics that are used a lot already for similar eBooks? If you want to stand out amongst the competitors and capture attention, consider what your cover could do differently.
We know we promised answers and have included a lot of questions, but this is to help prompt you to think critically and creatively about your process and point you in the right direction. Grabbing a pen and paper or doing up a quick digital mind map can be a great way to help explore your thoughts here.
3. How to write a synopsis for a non–fiction book
The idea of KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) works well here. Distilling an entire eBook into something short, sweet, and to the point might seem hard at first. Where do you start, what’s the most important thing to include?
It’s a little like your elevator pitch, but in the case of non-fiction, it should be less creative and more to the point. Your readers won’t be standing in a bookshop and they’re unlikely to be browsing on a whim. They’ve likely sought a specific solution or knowledge gap and want to know quickly and succinctly if your book will be able to help them.
So, you need to be clear and concise and explain the value that this eBook provides to the target reader in simple but effective terms. Use a few sentences at most, but if you can keep it to just one or two that’s even better. Many people will quickly scan over big paragraphs of text and your words can easily get passed over. So, use your words wisely!
4. The long game
Remember, this sort of project is typically the kind that involves playing a long game. That is, you’re unlikely to make back what you invested in bringing it to life immediately. Writing and publishing an eBook is a long-term form of passive income.
You put in the effort and resources at the start, and over time the product generates income (and perhaps even leads) as it sits on the digital shelf, meaning that after publication it is incredibly low maintenance.
In saying that, we still recommend putting effort into promoting your eBook after you’ve done the majority of the work. Include a small visual in your email signature, have a page on your website and give a nod to the project in your LinkedIn bio. If you’re doing a speaking engagement, be sure to give a subtle (or not so subtle!) reference to your easy, accessible eBook.
It’s okay to shout about your achievements and be proud (so long as you are tasteful about it, being the general rule we apply) but do be thoughtful about when and how you do so. Your community don’t want to hear about it endlessly or feel constantly sold too, but that’s not to say they won’t want to celebrate and support you.
So, is writing an eBook worth it/a good idea?
We are biased, seeing as we’ve just embarked on this process ourselves. However, both pre- and post-completion, we can confidently say that if you have the scope, the resources, and something worth saying, then YES! Absolutely. Especially if you have a pre-existing knowledge bank to pull from.
If you work with a team, this is a great project for everyone to come together on and pool knowledge. It’s incredibly rewarding when you see the finished product. So, if you’re prepared to put in some overtime to get your product over the finish line, it can become a neat form of passive income and an achievement to be proud of.
Speaking of…our eBook, Practically Powerful PR, is currently available on Amazon. For more on our eBook, and an example of how to promote yours, check our recent blog. Our next blog will also deconstruct the proofing process because there’s more to this than you might first think!
Carnsight Communications, a boutique PR firm based near Bath, is launching its new eBook, ‘Powerfully Practical PR’, on Amazon on February 1. An accessible guide to the art of Public Relations, the book is aimed at helping small businesses take on the key business function of public relations with confidence.
Powerfully Practical PR retails for £5.99 and will be available on Kindle, through the free app on IOS and Android or on the Kindle device.
As a consultancy celebrating its 8th birthday and specialising in SME, agency, and founder-led PR, social media and communications, Carnsight is well placed to help get businesses noticed by the right audience, at the right time, as explained in its guide.
The guide can help businesses with a range of aims, whether they are concerned with business development, generating awareness or leads, or simply bolstering their media presence and profile.
Going back to basics, The Carnsight team take you through everything SMEs need to know to kick-start an effective PR strategy. From what Public Relations is and why you should do it, to content generation and social media management, Powerfully Practical PR has got you covered.
Business owner, Jessica Morgan, brings twenty years of industry experience to the pages of the book. In 2016, Jess made the decision to found her PR consultancy after working with numerous high-profile clients as director of PR agency Pumpkin.
Morgan comments, “Good PR can make a real difference for small businesses, but it’s not always accessible – it can be daunting and sometimes difficult to find the funds to invest in PR support early on. That’s where boutique consultancies like Carnsight and our eBook guide come in. It’s great to be able to share our learned experience and practical advice in a way that can empower businesses to take charge of their own PR. There are no silly questions – just lots of useful, practical advice.”
She adds, “This eBook was a real team effort and the brainchild of Leigh-Ann Hewer, so a big thank you to everyone who helped bring Practically Powerful PR to the market.”
Leigh-Ann Hewer, Senior Account Manager, comments, “Small businesses often wear lots of different hats, and it can be tough to juggle all of them at once. We hope that Powerfully Practical PR will allow people to grow their capabilities and get started with PR on their own terms. It’s a great introduction for those who might not be ready to engage an agency, but are keen to grow their media presence.”
Powerfully Practical PR is currently available for pre-order here on Amazon, and will be officially released on the 1st of February 2024.
Originally posted to www.carnsight.com
We experienced both happy beginnings and bittersweet endings this year. We welcomed Alexandra in April and farewelled Georgia in May. In July, we hosted Ruby for a week as she completed her work experience placement and learnt first-hand about the wide and wonderful world of PR. Our website underwent an exciting redesign spearheaded by Son of Jesse, and we also launched the very first edition of our Carnsight Communicates newsletter on LinkedIn! As the year ends, we’ve just entered double digits, sharing over 20 newsletters with you all. The amazing Jen Allen worked on a fresh brand photoshoot to complement our new digital look, and our What Do You Call This Series was a hit on Instagram, reaching new audiences and sharing our laughter over differences in Cornish, Welsh, and Aussie slang.
In another exciting milestone achievement, we once again secured over 1,000 pieces of coverage for clients in 2023. Together, we made national headlines in publications like The Telegraph, The Guardian, and The Independent. We reached international audiences in Spain, France, Australia, The USA, and beyond. We placed pieces in coveted industry press and trade titles like Campaign and The Drum. We secured appearances for clients on television screens, radio waves, podcasts, magazines, and print and digital publications. ITV, Times Radio and the BBC were among the opportunities secured. We worked across a range of industries, including consumer goods, hospitality, construction, education, technology, property, social care, and B2B/agency.
We had the pleasure of working with some new platforms and partners to deliver educational content and podcasts. Some highlights included:
Earlier this year we took part in Dorothy House Hospice Care’s Women’s Midnight Walk around Bath. In June, our team walked in the memory of loved ones lost and also in support of the amazing people and organisations delivering end-of-life and hospice care. Together, we raised £245 for the cause and had many meaningful conversations with friends, family, and strangers about the life-touching work of palliative care. Thank you to everyone who donated to the cause and all those involved, we are so grateful to have had this opportunity to support and connect with this inspiring community.
Circus Starr is another of the organisations we’re proud to have supported this year. Circus Starr brings the fun and festivities of a family day out to children with additional needs or families in difficult circumstances. This inclusive and inviting initiative has a special impact on each local community it travels to. According to the organisation, for many who are able to attend, the joy of a trip to the circus can encourage creativity, bring people closer, and allow them to grow stronger and more confident. A great way that businesses like us can support this lovely initiative is by donating tickets for those in need. We’ve shared a link here for more information if you’re interested in learning more about what the organisation does or the various ways to support it.
On behalf of our clients and Carnsight community, we ended the year with a donation to the British Red Cross to support people in crisis and humanitarian aid. The British Red Cross aim to get the right aid to the right place as quickly as possible, helping those in need whoever and wherever they are.
We wrote award entries for both ourselves and our clients, earning spots on shortlists and bringing home an AFI win for Wyatt and Sons Fencing. Carnsight was shortlisted for the South West Business Masters’ and Wyatt and Sons earned a place in the running for Business Leader’s Family Business of the Year. We celebrated The Coconut Tree’s Negroni of The Year win from Dine Out Magazine, and saw the Bournemouth restaurant place first in the SME Awards.
“Carnsight have supported us on three award entries to date – including winning ones! We know we have the results but their support is invaluable to present our data in a way which really speaks to the judges and their criteria. With this winning formula we’ll definitely be working together on more in the future.” – Victoria Hockely, Loom Digital
Carnsight treated us to two delightful trips to Lucknam Park to celebrate our hard work and achievements, once earlier in summer and now, just in time for the new year. Taking time to rest, relax and reset was a wonderful treat for us all. Thank you Carnsight!
Our social media manager, Yasmin, breaks down the future of social media in last week’s blog post here, covering the rise of raw content, the need for verification, and the use of platforms as search engines. As for our predictive insights into what may be in store for PR in 2024, here’s a quick recap:
To wrap up our wrap up, we’re finally letting you in on a Carnsight secret (well, sort of). We’ve been working on a project this year, and it’s going live in January! Stay tuned for more on this over the next month – we’re taking a page out of Hansel and Gretel’s book and setting out a few breadcrumbs for you to follow as we get closer to the full reveal.
We’re also bringing back our Spotlight Challenge from 2021 on Instagram, which is a great chance for our local community of small businesses to shine a spotlight on their achievements guilt-free. It will be running from Jan 22nd to the 28th, and we’ll be sharing more details on @carnsightcomms in the coming weeks.
To our clients and our Carnsight community, we want to say thank you. Your support and kindness throughout the year is greatly appreciated. May you all have a fabulous festive season – enjoy yourselves when and where you can, and have the happiest of new years. Happy holidays folks, we’ll see you in 2024.
All our best wishes,
Team Carnsight
Originally posted to www.carnsight.com
No two days are the same on Social Media with trends, platforms and user behaviour continuously changing from one minute to the next. This year we witnessed Twitter’s transformation into ‘X’, the introduction of Meta’s ‘Threads’, as well as continued growth and use of AI to create social content.
What can we expect for 2024? Here are our predictions:
Hate it or love it, AI is here to stay! In fact, 97% of business leaders agree that artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) will play a big role in the future of social media analytics. For many businesses, this will mean stronger strategies for both social media and overall business alike.
It’s not all positive though. You may have already noticed the rise in a lot of social content being generated by AI, weakening human connection and consumer trust. Not to mention, the blandness in content.
With AI continuing to grow, more users will be cautious of how they tread in the online world. We have already seen an increase in fake influencer endorsements that have been created by AI. This will push brands and businesses to pay platforms to have their accounts verified. Looks like a win for Musk, who introduced subscription fees on ‘x’ earlier this year.
Raw content has been favoured in 2023 as the platform TikTok, which supports a less polished vision, grows in popularity. This trend has had a clear influence on Instagram, where more and more users have been posting real footage of everyday life as opposed to when everything was edited to perfection. The days when users spent hours editing their shots on Photoshop are over.
Need to do a backup check on a product before purchasing? Forget the old search engine. Your social media search box is the place to go. Just search for the brand in question and gain access to real people (I am not talking about influencers) sharing their real experiences through tagged content. I have personally done this for several clothing brands.
The answer to this depends on what your business actually uses Social Media for. There has been talk of TikTok taking over the show, but I personally do not see that happening anytime soon. Although the short-form video platform brings a lot to the table, Instagram is still home to 2 billion users, double that of TikTok. But will Meta’s ‘Threads’ steal the limelight from ‘X’? We will all have to wait and see!
Interested in learning more about what was trending in the world of Social Media in 2023? Check out our blog from earlier this year.
Originally posted to www.carnsight.com
As the year comes to a close, it’s not just the holiday season that demands attention; it’s also the perfect time to reflect on and evaluate your PR activities for clients. Taking a moment to review your efforts from the past twelve months can provide valuable insights and help you set the stage for an even more impactful year ahead.
Hopefully, this isn’t the only review you’re doing this year. Depending on the client, we carry out quarterly or six monthly reviews at Carnsight, as well as an end-of-year analysis. This ensures we’re always on the same page, adapting to their changing goals and focuses and hitting targets.
In this blog post, we’ll explore some key steps to conducting an effective year-end PR review for your clients.
Before we get into the specifics, it’s important to note that your review presentation or document needs to tell a story. A dump of information and metrics is going to be hard to understand or at the very least, connect with. Use your data and experiences to tell a story. Where did you start? What happened? Where are you now? Where do you want to be and how do you get there? This should all flow, one section leading nicely into the next.
Similarly, remember that the more visual you can be the better. Showing and sharing the coverage you receive (within NLA guidelines) is a great way to increase the impact of every piece as well as demonstrate your achievements from the year.
Before diving into the review process, it’s important to have a clear understanding of the objectives set at the beginning of the year. Again, hopefully these have remained front of mind throughout the months, or if changed, been updated accordingly. Either way, remind everyone involved what your aims and targets where when you put together the initial PR strategy.
Next, evaluate the media coverage your client received throughout the year. Identify the quantity and quality of the coverage, considering the publications, online platforms, and the overall sentiment. Pay attention to the tone of the articles and whether key messages were effectively communicated.
We use a platform called CoverageBook to track our coverage. This tracks useful metrics like page views and Domain Authority. Ensuring that you have a solid way to track your coverage and coverage metrics as you go along will make this step much much easier. If you don’t have a method that works for you already, make this a key focus moving forward.
We always say that PR is an art not a science, and it can be hard to measure due to it’s nature. But the more data and concrete numbers, such as the increase in media mentions, growth in social media engagement, and improvements in online sentiment, you can provide the client the better. Comparing these metrics against initial goals will provide a clear picture of success.
Social media is a powerful tool in the PR landscape, so make sure you also assess your client’s social media presence, engagement rates, and follower growth where relevant. Look at which content performed well and resonated with the audience. Assess the effectiveness of social media campaigns and whether they aligned with overall objectives.
Evaluate the consistency of key messages throughout the year. Did the client’s positioning remain clear and aligned with their overall brand strategy?
If your PR strategy included specific campaigns, review their performance individually. Assess the goals, execution, and results of each campaign. Identify what worked well and areas for improvement. Consider whether the campaigns contributed to achieving the overarching PR objectives.
Just as important as the coverage itself is the way that your teams worked together throughout the year. Examine how effectively projects were carried out and how if communication felt smooth and efficient. Identify lessons learned and develop strategies for improvement in the future. Usually very small alterations can make a huge difference.
Seeking feedback directly from your clients in the session is key. Understand their perspective on the PR activities and whether they align with their business objectives going forward. Use this feedback to refine your approach and better cater to their needs in the coming year.
Based on the insights gathered, create a comprehensive plan for the upcoming year. Outline strategies to build on successes, address challenges and capitalise on emerging opportunities. Set realistic and measurable goals that align with the client’s overall business objectives. For more tips on kicking off your new year PR efforts read our new year blog.
By following these steps and engaging in a thoughtful analysis of your PR activities, you’ll demonstrate your commitment to client success and position your team for even greater achievements in the year ahead. Remember, the key to effective PR is continuous improvement, adaptation, and a commitment to delivering value to your clients.
Hope this helps!
Originally posted to www.carnisght.com
You win some you lose some, but either way, there’s a lot to be said for entering awards beyond the obvious benefit of winning. From networking to the credibility that still comes with being shortlisted even if you don’t take home the top spot, awards can be a great way to scope out like-minded businesses and perhaps even potential clients. They’re also a testament to what you’ve achieved and can provide well-earned recognition and morale boosts for your team because you still made it this far.
Sometimes the competition is stiff! Yes, winning will always be the most coveted benefit but even when you don’t win, there’s still value to be taken and joy to be had. Building on that, award-winning small businesses are also reported to see a 63% increase in income and a 39% growth in sales. So let’s unpack this a little more – here are five reasons you should enter awards (other than to win).
Awards and the events that are often associated with them allow you to make the most of another networking opportunity. Attending ceremonies, industry events, and gatherings related to the awards can allow you to connect with a wide variety of other businesses, potential clients, and industry leaders whom you can form relationships with.
Reconnecting with old faces or getting to know new ones is always a benefit in some capacity, especially when they are considered worthy of being shortlisted.
The process of preparing award submissions can also be valuable because it often requires a deep dive into your business strategies, achievements, and future goals. Entering awards also often involves a thorough examination of your business operations, strategies, and achievements. This self-assessment can help identify areas for celebration or improvement and set benchmarks for future success.
Applying this critical lens inward, answering prompts, and having to articulate things about your business that you may not normally have the time to prioritise doing can be a very insightful and reflective practice. It can also just be a useful document to have on hand for the future to refer back to, and can help your team gain clarity too.
Being shortlisted or nominated still sets your business apart from competitors. Being recognised for excellence in a particular area can be a key differentiator in a crowded market, helping you stand out to potential customers, partners, and investors. It can also have a positive impact on the recruitment side of things, as the positive association and attestation of excellence can attract talent.
There’s also the benefit of building trust and loyalty within your client or customer base. The credibility that comes with being shortlisted shows that your product or service is of value according to external and impartial judgment.
Even without winning, being a finalist can build trust because it demonstrates that you meet, and more so exceed, industry standards to the point where you stand out and are worthy of being shortlisted.
The recognition associated with awards can boost employee morale and motivation. It’s a tangible acknowledgement of their hard work and achievements, fostering a positive work environment and culture of value recognition. It’s also just nice to get dressed up and enjoy a night out together as a team, celebrating your efforts and achievements and building up team collaboration.
As well as these internal benefits, awards also give you a good chance to survey the lay of the competitive landscape from an external perspective. It may help identify which of your peers and competitors or product/service offerings are catching attention.
So whether you win or not, it’s fair to say that attending awards is still time well spent as a team, and as a business getting your name, face, and credibility out there amongst like-minded company. The process can provide great insight and incentivise you to prioritise putting time into reflecting on your business. If you’re interested in the topic of awards and entries, we’ve got some more posts that dive deeper into the actual process of preparing an entry. You can also get in contact if you have any questions, as we have experience entering awards for a variety of clients and industries.
This post was written on www.carnsight.com by guest author, Jill Misson. Jill Misson is a freelance writer and broadcaster with over 20 years of experience working on radio stations in the UK and around the world. As a presenter and producer, she has hosted programmes, podcasts and documentaries for the BBC and BFBS.
Your favourite radio station is probably on in the background while you are busy working, driving or washing up. The familiar sound keeps you company without demanding your full attention yet certain conversations catch your ear and draw you in to listen more closely. The challenge for the team behind the scenes is to create compelling content that appeals to their particular audience, provokes a response or keeps them tuned in for longer.
Radio producers and presenters need a constant supply of fresh ideas to set up interviews, features and phone-ins to fill programmes. Press releases may drop into their inboxes every day but they don’t just sit around waiting for emails to tell them what to cover and who to speak to. The creative process is much more proactive than that with a drive to produce original content by finding untold stories and new voices.
So where do the ideas come from and how are they turned into on-air content?
News
All radio stations cover the news to some extent so that’s a good place to start. Current affairs can be considered from various angles by reflecting different viewpoints or delving deeper than the headlines. Most newsrooms still get daily newspapers delivered and producers will scan them for ideas as well as searching online on websites and social media.
Programme teams have access to shared newsgathering diaries where events happening on a fixed date are added in advance with relevant contacts which helps forward planning.
Breaking news can mean dropping everything that was lined up and starting from scratch with little time before broadcast. Guests need to be found quickly. Trusted speakers who have been interviewed before on related subjects will often be called up to comment but producers also ring around other potential guests and book them at short notice.
For local radio, there is an appetite to show how people in the area will be affected or to discover how they feel about a topical issue. Reporters will go out onto the streets to record vox pops to gather a range of thoughts. Posting on social media can also bring in case studies, particularly in specific groups connected to the story by location or interests.
A big news story is always a good hook for content so pitches to a radio station can land well if they are well-timed and relevant with knowledgeable speakers available for interview.
TV & Film
Popular culture gets everyone talking from the latest plotline on a popular soap opera to the must-see movie at the cinema. TV and film can therefore be a source of good ideas for radio, not just for reviews or interviews with the stars but when stories or ideas portrayed on screen can be opened out for wider discussion or to offer advice and greater insight.
Everyday Life
Stand-up comedians come up with sketches from observing the world around them and the same goes for radio. Some of the best content starts from a simple observation that can spark a talking point. Listeners can relate to a presenter revealing an embarrassing moment or chatting about a personal experience and in turn share their own anecdotes.
Questions
A random thought or question can create fascinating content. What have you always wondered but never fully understood? People love learning new things so producers will search for experts who can explain a concept, show how something is made or answer queries on a phone-in programme.
Success
It is often heartwarming or inspiring to hear about other people’s achievements particularly when there is an element of triumph over adversity. People who are prepared to talk honestly about their own journey or personal experience, including the highs and the lows, can make great radio content. Someone at the top of their game in any field can share tips to help others succeed. To tell the story of a successful business, try to focus on the people in the company rather than the product or service you are trying to sell.
Nostalgia
We all love any excuse to look back with rose-tinted glasses and reminisce. Stories that trigger memories are a rich seam of content and can lead to warm recollections or moving accounts. This can work well on local radio where people in a community can come together to share their experiences of a school, a workplace or a venue.
Campaigns
Producers keep an eye out for fundraising events and charity challenges as they often lead to people who are passionate about raising money or awareness for a cause for personal reasons. Experiences of illness, bereavement, disability or mental health can make for strong content. Ongoing campaigns to achieve a goal can also prove interesting if listeners can follow progress and feel part of the journey.
Occasions
Certain events roll around every year so spotting an occasion like Valentine’s Day on the calendar might suggest a theme. However, finding a new way to cover it is the tricky part as so many ideas will have been done to death so an original or unusual idea is key.
Sharing stories
As you can see, radio producers find their ideas everywhere and can make content out of anything. They are always on the lookout for new people to meet and new stories to tell.
For more on the world of radio broadcasting, check out Jill’s previous blog on preparing to be on air and working within time constraints.
Originally posted to www.carnsight.com by Leigh-Ann Hewer
Being a PR can be really fun and exciting. That coverage buzz you get when you land a piece you worked really hard on is incredibly rewarding.
But it’s also not an easy job.
It’s an incredibly fast-paced industry and requires PRs to wear a lot of different hats. You have to be resilient and tenacious. You have to be great at writing and creative problem-solving. You have to be able to work with all kinds of different people.
The most challenging part by far, however, at least as far as I’m concerned, is learning how to balance the mental load.
As a PR, you have a lot of plates to keep spinning. You’re working across a number of different accounts and likely have a number of projects on the go for each of them. If, like Carnsight, you work across different sectors, these accounts could be vastly different, requiring different processes and approaches on any given project. Any given day, even! Your tone of communication is likely to shift from one email to the next. You’ll likely have to shift mental gears multiple times throughout the day.
Luckily, when you’ve had a bit of practice at it, it gets easier and easier until most of the time you don’t have to think much about it at all.
But that can still take a mental toll. It’s a lot of mental work. It’s a lot to balance in your mind.
I definitely found that this balancing act was the trickiest thing to master when I joined the industry. In fact, I still struggle with it at times. Maybe no one ever does master it completely. But there are definitely things you can do to help yourself, and today I wanted to share some of my top tips for managing that mental load.
It’s paramount you don’t try to keep everything stored in your brain. It’s too much to ask of yourself to remember everything. Instead, write everything down. To do lists, notes, even little sketches. Get as much of the information out of your head and on to paper. It’s much easier to manage when it’s there.
If all you have is one massive to do list then you’re quickly going to become overwhelmed. Try to group tasks and to dos together in a way that makes most sense to you. Maybe it’s by client, maybe it’s by type. I usually go with the former but I’ve also tried batching tasks related to how long they’ll take to complete as well eg. 5min tasks, 15min tasks, over an hour tasks.
The advice, eat the frog (or the elephant or whatever) first is great. But I do think there are times when the opposite might actually be helpful.
Eating the frog first is basically doing the hardest task on your to do list first. That way you might have the most energy for it and you’ll get the big dreaded thing out of the way before anything else. I love this, an it can be a great way of ensuring your prioritising correctly and using your energy in the most efficient way.
However…
Some days, eating the frog is just too much. It’s important to know how to check in with yourself and understand what your brain needs on any given day. Sometimes, on harder days, letting myself start by ticking off some nice and easy quick wins allows me to build a bit of confidence and momentum before getting stuck into the big hard task.
Know yourself well enough to know when you need to eat the frog and when you need to nibble away at a few side dishes first.
In an ideal world, our working lives and personal lives would remain entirely separate and sacred, but unfortunately our complex brains mean that regardless of how great our work-life balance is, one will usually impact the other.
This is especially the case when it comes to managing the mental load. If you’re stressed and overwhelmed in your personal life, it’s going to be very hard not to carry that into work. The same goes the other way around too.
In order to be your best self at work and at home, you have to get good at taking care of your own needs as well as rushing around after others. It’s so much easier said than done, right? Many of you reading this might have children, be caring for someone or be working multiple jobs or balancing multiple projects. It’s so much easier to give the advice than to take it. But it is worth bearing in mind.
Being your best self will look different every day, just like your needs both professionally and personally will change every day. Be as kind to yourself as possible and remember that it’s nothing to be ashamed of if your work or personal life seems to be bleeding into the other. Just take note, take a deep breath, and ask yourself ‘what’s one small thing I can do today to feel more at peace in my work/home life?’ (or in control, or happy, or fulfilled – whichever feels most resonant to you).
Despite what society likes to tell women all the time (😜) no one can be perfect and no one can have it all and get it right 100% of the time. You must and I mean must know when to ask for help or delegate some of your overwhelming mental load to someone else.
This shows strength, maturity, self understanding, effective communication. The list goes on and on. Asking for support is vital. Find someone you feel secure asking, and if you can’t find someone, well frankly reconsider who you keep close by – both professionally and personally. Everyone deserves a helping hand when they juggling a lot.
So there you have it, my quick tips for managing mental load at work. They’re not anything ground breaking, I confess, but I hope if nothing else this serves as a reminder that if you’re a PR struggling a bit with mental load at work, you’re not alone.
Celebrate those coverage buzz wins, take breaks when you need and remember, you got this!
For more tips on mental health and productivity at work, check out my blog on managing stress in PR.
First published on Carnsight.com
“We just want to be in the Economist”. This was a response from a potential client when I asked about target media. They were new to PR, hadn’t ever really raised their profile before and were still working through their proposition. So, appearing in the Economist was definitely a case of aiming high! But, we always like something to work towards.
Whilst clients will often give us one or two key focus publications, we usually have a range of media in our sights. We’ll share a list when we first start working with clients, and we’ll keep growing and developing this list over time.
And often, we’ll share opportunities in new publications or media with clients – sometimes ones that they haven’t heard of before. Having worked with over 100 clients since starting Carnsight Communications, we always find those that are open to a range of publications get the most out. There are a number of reasons why it pays to be open to new media:
For more on this, we’ve also written about the importance of reading your target publications.
Originally posted to www.carnsight.com
Maybe it’s generational, or perhaps it’s just a mix of personality and communication style. Either way, I can’t deny a professional pitfall of mine is working up the confidence to pick up the phone and dial.
But it’s so important.
Hearing someone’s voice on the phone helps to develop trust and can build better relationships, especially if the contact is purely digital/remote. It can also be a quicker and more direct way of reaching someone when emails get lost in the inbox. Organic conversations can flow and things that may otherwise go unsaid can arise in this more natural form of reciprocal communication.
And yet, this aversion is apparently becoming more commonplace. One article describes the phenomenon as “telephobia” and shared that one survey of UK office workers found that 70 per cent of millennials experience anxious thoughts when the phone rings, while Gen Z was described as ‘generation mute’ by some.
But, when you work in PR like I do, that ‘phone call phobia’ has got to go. Of course, it’s not as simple as flicking on a switch, and the transition to cool and confident doesn’t come overnight. But it is absolutely a skill and attitude you can work towards honing, just like I am.
Different approaches will suit different people more, but are all equally valid.
For some, charisma comes naturally. Confidence is as easy as breathing, and speaking on the phone is a breeze if not a joy. But for those of us who find it a little harder, the route to success can be the classic ‘fake it ‘til you make it’. You can be whoever you want on the phone, so try adopting a persona. A version of yourself that is calm, cool and collected. It’s still you, and it’s still genuine, just with a little false pep to get you feeling confident.
Another tip from communication coach Mary Jane Copps, who is known as “The Phone Lady”, is to
print or cut out pictures from a magazine of a smiling person and look at that while talking on the phone. Apparently, this can help you feel more comfortable with how the other person is receiving your conversation. It also helps to humanise the conversation. It is also said that certain aspects of body language can still translate through the phone and the voice, such as smiling – speaking with a smile can affect your vocal tone. It can also release natural mood-boosting chemicals in the brain like dopamine and serotonin.
For the people pleasers of the world, this sip can be a hard one to swallow. But swallow it we must, because it really is true – you’re not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. And that’s okay.
When calling someone up in a professional context, I try to strike a balance of being polite but direct. In PR, the people you’re calling are generally busy people doing busy jobs, where time is precious. So don’t be blunt, but at the same time, try not to beat around the bush and waste words. Be impactful with your time. But also remember that the person on the other end is just that – a person. Being genuine, kind, and respectful is equally as important.
I might not feel like it, but remember you’re allowed to call someone. Especially if they’ve given you their work number. It’s not automatically intrusive or taking up time, and if it is – they’ll let you know, and that’s okay too. Just be respectful. Make sure you’re recognising someone’s working days/hours. If it’s not someone you speak to often such as a new journalist, check they’re the correct contact (e.g. they still work for the publication and haven’t moved on!). Relevance is also key in that instance – try to keep your discussion relevant to them.
As you develop professional relationships, you’ll also come to understand how different people prefer to communicate, and you can navigate from them.
These tips may help you in the short term to build confidence and get familiar with professional phone calls, but it’s not necessarily a long-term fix. That’s because sometimes you need to understand why you fear something – the anxiety that drives the aversion and apprehension – to properly address it and move forward. When you know what the problem is, you can research and adopt more targeted strategies that specifically address the root cause.
Some of the reported reasons that Millennials and Generation Z like me might dislike making phone calls include:
But how can you figure out your root cause?
Aside from speaking to someone with more expertise than myself, I’d start by making one of those calls, and as soon as you put the phone down, grab a piece of paper. Sit with your mind and body for a moment, and really analyse what you’re thinking and feeling. Try to name the emotion or write some of the phrases floating in your mind and put pen to paper. If you can identify some of these things, you might unpack a common theme or feeling which can point you in a good direction for what you want to work on developing. Emotion wheels like the one below (courtesy of The Junto Institute) are a great tool to help dig deeper with this exercise:
At the very least, I always try to remind myself: what’s the worst that can happen?
Technically this depends on the context of the call, but generally, the stakes are never that high. You might get a sharp decline or a blunt hang-up, but that’s rarely the case, and if it is, it’s really not the end of the world. Even though sometimes it can feel like it is (silly, I know – but this kind of stuff isn’t always rational, it certainly isn’t for me otherwise I’d have no trouble here) it isn’t. I’m still growing my confidence when it comes to this, so I’m by no means an expert. But if you’re a bit like me and have found this skill one that needs a little TLC, then I hope this blog has been helpful, or at the very least, validating. Now, if you’re interested in a refresher on PR strategies and tactics, have a look at this article here.
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