Do you want…

• No two days in your working life to be the same? You will be writing, reading and organising different PR activity every day

• To be sitting in on board level meetings? At all levels, all members of the Orchard PR consultancy team work directly with clients and contribute regularly to meetings

• To share an office with a donkey? Well we have one in our offices…OK it’s not real, but we love him

• #Socialmediatobeapartofyourjobnotjustyourdowntime? It makes and breaks news in the world we live in and is an important part of a communications strategy. We track, advise on , contribute to and use social media every day and would need you to do the same (Find us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook)

• To live, breathe and think media? Take a job in PR and you will never consume media in the same way again; turn on the radio and catch the morning news, monitor the daily paper, online business newsfeeds and social media, head home and catch the late news  – all of it will affect Orchard’s vast client base – be prepared to LOVE NEWS and never be able to turn it off

• To spin* many plates? We do PR across loads of different industry sectors – expect to be thinking about anything from lobsters to top class DJs, employment law to 3D printing, banking to selling homes and EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN

• An excellent training ground? Some people, like me have stuck around, put in a lot of hours and been lucky enough to rise through the Orchard ranks and now I run my own portfolio of clients at Orchard.  Past colleagues, of whom we are very proud, have secured top PR jobs across the globe. We offer a unique training package to get you grounded in PR

Not only is Orchard the biggest team of dedicated PR professionals in the Channel Islands but we are a friendly bunch and we have a pretty good summer party.

So get in touch, tell us about yourself, why you should be the next apple in our Orchard and what your favourite tipple is. We might be adding it to our cocktail list at our summer party this year.

*Not this type of spin, that’s not a part of our services!

As the team’s official sponsor we wanted to get them something to wish them luck so we handed over some apple (obviously) flavoured Lucozade* to captain Matthew Hann to help the team in their pursuit of their first championship trophy.

He even asked if Pip could turn out for tonight’s game – but we think they were just being polite. Pip does look good in the Orchard PR kit though!

* Other apple flavoured isotonic drinks are available. Probably.

What is PR all about? My time in a PR consultancy has led me to the conclusion that PR is in some ways an art; knowing what people want to see and making this a reality.

I had hardly had time to get acquainted with my desk before I was whisked off to meet with a client. There, I learnt the importance and the value of having and maintaining a healthy client relationship. I also saw first-hand the best ways to deal with issues that will inevitably arise when engaging with clients and the media.

What most struck me was the importance of communication in the PR industry. Communication really is everything. PR links in directly with the media and this requires the relationship between the media and Orchard to be fast and efficient in order for things to run effectively. A PR team has to be proactive and on top of things at all times.

Initially, as you would expect upon setting foot into a roomful of strangers, I was unsure as to what to expect and admittedly a little nervous. However I soon discovered that there really was no need to be. I received a warm reception and was met with a great deal of support from everyone at Orchard.

Communication is evidently a major factor in how the team is able to deal with so many clients at one time so well. Even small things such as the radio being on in the background and the layout of the room reflect this. Everyone is in one room, around one giant table, all working together in an environment where communication can happen effectively and, most importantly, fast. Everyone is aware of what everyone else is doing. Communication is always at the core.

I am incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to observe up-close how professionals operate and work. I am beginning to understand what it takes to proficiently run a team and sustain strong relationships with both clients and the media.

After gaining a reasonably sound insight into the industry and having seen first-hand how it works I am warming towards the idea of pursuing a career in PR. Being someone who is keen on offering advice, working with people and interested in the media it suits me down to the ground. Perhaps what is most appealing is the unpredictable nature of PR; there is rarely a dull moment walking into an office where day-to-day, you don’t know what to expect!

Sadly I have come to the end of my time here at Orchard PR but I can say that it has been a most beneficial and thoroughly worthwhile experience. Thanks to Steve, Brooke and the team I have been fortunate enough to gain a valuable insight into the PR industry and all that it entails.

The reputation and practice of PR is often discussed negatively in the media and is often referred to as ‘spin’ because of a lack of understanding of what we actually do and this doesn’t do the industry any favours.

Parsons, an expert on PR ethics, said: “If there is one question that haunts the public relations industry it is the question of ethics” (2008) and she’s right. Ethics is an increasingly important issue for the public relations industry and with the Leveson enquiry giving the British press a bashing for its inappropriate and sometimes unlawful conduct; it is one that must be tackled. What is considered to be ethical and unethical in public relations practice is subjective and is hotly debated by industry practitioners and academics.

The nature of PR work can mean making ethical decisions is difficult as PR professionals have the added dilemma of making decisions that satisfy a number of different stakeholders including their client, their employer, the public, the media and any professional organisation they belong to.  The UK PR professional bodies, the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) and Public Relations Consultants Association (PRCA) both have codes of conduct which members should follow.

These codes do play an important part in improving the reputation and ethical standards of the industry however, there is only so much a voluntary code of conduct can do especially when less than a third of those practicing public relations in the UK are members of a PR professional body, so the majority are not held to account by professional bodies. Also, the fact that the codes are difficult to enforce does not help.

Here at Orchard PR, we are all members of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations and a number of us are currently undertaking qualifications through the institute to improve our knowledge and professional development.  I’ve just completed the CIPR Diploma and for my final project I investigated whether public relations professional bodies’ codes of conduct are encouraging ethical practice, improving reputation and professionalism of the PR industry.

As part of this project I interviewed Phil Morgan, the Policy and Communications Director for the CIPR and Francis Ingham the Chief Executive of the PRCA. They highlighted a number of important factors in improving the ethical practice, reputation and professionalism of the industry including education of practitioners and the public and observance and compliance of the codes of conduct.

I also undertook a survey of public relations practitioners which uncovered some interesting statistics including that only 65% of the survey respondents were members of the CIPR or PRCA and of the 65% only a quarter had reviewed the relevant code of conduct for the professional body. This highlights a problem for the PR professional bodies – how can the professional bodies help us to act ethically if members don’t read the code of conducts?

Professional development is important, but ultimately the PR industry really needs to do a better job at ‘PR-ing’ itself. It’s said time and time again; the industry is misunderstood by the general public, the media and sometimes even by the businesses that undertake public relations activity regularly. Negative and un-ethical public relations practices make the headlines and the more normal positive and completely ethical communications work that the industry undertakes is overshadowed.

The majority of public relations practitioners are professional, completely ethical and may I add ‘totally reem’ people who work hard to ensure their clients’ reputation is well looked after and mutual understanding is achieved between their clients and its publics. Hopefully we are well on the way to improving awareness of ethical standards and in turn the reputation of the industry as a profession.

It’s also something that comes up all the time in Orchard seminar training sessions. ‘What do I do when it all goes wrong?’ is a very familiar refrain.

As has been said before on this blog, and by many others, communicating quickly and honestly, and engaging with your customers or contacts in a human way, is the best way to go about things. There are handy statistics to back this up and this infographic shows the impact that this communication has on the perception of brands in crisis.

Businesses make mistakes. So do people. This is a fact of life, but what if, instead of focusing on lessening the impact of our mistakes, we focus instead on how not to make them – or even on how to turn a looming crisis situation into a positive PR experience.

It’s been referenced many times before but the ‘United Breaks Guitars‘ video is a good case in point. What if, instead of refusing a popular musician a new guitar and therefore ensuring he would take to the internet immediately, United had agreed to replace the guitar and ‘encouraged’ him to write a song extolling the virtues of their customer services?

Take the recent example of Luka Apps for example. Someone at Lego (probably in the PR department!) is obviously on the lookout for opportunities to show off. They recognised the potential of a, seemingly minor, lost minifig. Instead of risking adverse publicity (‘Lego wouldn’t replace my figure,’ says heartbroken boy etc) Lego replaced the figure and also allowed their customer service team to reply in a way that was fun, engaging and human. This turned a routine replacement toy into a media story and got the company valuable positive online sentiment for the brand.

We can’t all be as fun as Lego but if businesses take that much care over their customer interactions, and ensure that their public relations people are involved in all forms of communication, then pitfalls will be avoided and the massive potential for generating positive profile and improving reputations will be realised.

Taking an early lead with a flawless 15 out of 15 in the politics round (boosted by the use of their joker) Les Quizerables held on determinedly as their lead dwindled. Despite strong challenges from previous winners Channel TV and Orchard PR’s account executives in the end it came down to a nailbiting finish between Les Quizerables and Oscar Quiztorius, the team from Island FM.

A strong sport round from Island FM looked to have lifted them into the lead but Les Quizerables hung on to win by a solitary point.

Congratulations to team captain Jordan Allen and his colleagues Liz Mahy, Oliver Farrimond, Ollie Guillou and Mike Wilkins!

The unfortunate honour of the booby prize went to Universally Challenged from the Guernsey Press – who received a slightly fishy award…

See all the photos from another great night here…

The CIPR in the Channel Islands aims to promote the highest professional standards within the sector and plans to host a number of PR events in Guernsey and Jersey over the course of the year including a Meet the Editor series, talks from leading PR experts on topical communications issues and training courses for members.

Many of these events will also be made available to non-members.

Steve said: “A new CIPR state of the profession benchmarking survey, of almost 1,300 members, indicated that the sector continues to adapt and innovate; taking on skills, responsibility and roles not previously considered in the public relations remit as practitioners aim to influence both communications and business strategy in the boardroom.

“We are all ambassadors for PR and communications in the islands and we can make a significant contribution to the businesses that we represent as employees or consultants.”

Orchard’s Emma Anderson and Brooke Kenyon were also re-elected to the committee.

Essentially the video starts with a helmeted man dancing unnoticed in a room full of people. A few seconds later, when the bass kicks in, the room is suddenly filled with lots of fancy dressed people dancing erratically… a simple enough concept that could easily lend itself to people replicating the video.

By February 10, the upload rate of Harlem Shake videos reached 4,000 per day. As of February 11, about 12,000 versions had been uploaded to YouTube. By February 15, about 40,000 Harlem Shake videos had been uploaded, totalling 175 million views.

As a result of the popularity of the phenomenon, Baauer’s single reached #1 on the iTunes America chart and #2 on iTunes in the UK and Australia on February 15.

So on Wednesday night, myself and Harriet went to perform in the Fusion Harlem Shake.

Dressed in our best onesies – with Harry sporting an amazing Welsh Rugby hat – we headed down to Orchard client Fusion Nightclub and became some of the latest people to take on the dance craze.

There was a storm trooper, a sheep and a ghost buster to name a few – oh and yes, that person in the front is wearing a full diving suit.

Most publications and websites within these sectors have their own ceremonies and invite interest from a myriad of businesses. There are awards for excellence, for client service, the best deal, the best team, marketing campaigns, leading individuals, innovation, technology… the list goes on.

Winning, or even being nominated, for the right award clearly helps to boost profile and win business but winning an award which has no credibility can have the opposite effect.

A good PR consultant views many of these opportunities with a healthy dose of scepticism and will advise clients according to a stringent check list they use to assess an award’s worth.

Here’s a few things a business should consider before bothering to enter:

- Does the award event organiser expect payment of any sort for involvement in the process?
- Is the publication or organisation hosting the awards respected by peers and clients?
- Are the organisers trying to compare apples and oranges, i.e. are you expected to compete with other  businesses   that are not similar to your own?
- Do the awards questions/criteria ring true in terms of giving you confidence that organisers really understand the business sector?
- Is the judging panel one in which you have confidence?
- Will your reputation be boosted with potential clients and introducers if you are nominated or win?
- Can your business truly meet the criteria?

Once you know that there is a strong argument for entering there are cardinal rules too for what you should say and how you should say it. Thinking “it would be nice to win this one” is not a compelling enough argument for entering. You need to have a good story but you also need to be able to tell it well.

Even the best business in the world will fall at the first hurdle if they have failed to:

1. Meet the criteria, i.e. answer the questions asked rather than the ones you wish had been asked

2. Keep answers brief and on subject and within the demanded word count

3. Demonstrate growth, success and difference from others in the sector

4. Be confident enough to quote figures and examples which demonstrate success

A badly written submission will see you fail to captivate the judges. So, my final piece of advice is work with an expert to get the wording right – a PR consultant that has a proven track record can save you time, resources and angst. You might win an award that brings you extra business and kudos.

Orchard PR had three clients short-listed in five categories for the 2012 Guernsey Awards for Achievement with our three nominations for Livingroom Estate Agents winning their categories.