When I was on air, I clocked up numerous hours trawling through interviews in search of the golden sound bite to help bring stories alive. Most journalists are looking for a sound bite no longer than 15 to 20 seconds in length. In the grand scheme of things, this is not long especially when you factor in pauses and common ‘ums’ and ‘ahs’.  It’s important interviewees are aware of what journalists are looking for and are confident in their key messages and can deliver them in a way that meets the needs of the journalist.

These skills are often the difference between an audience actually engaging in what you say or making them switch off entirely. This is where media training comes in and it can give interviewees the skills to deliver and impress. Where media training helps is in understanding the media, knowing your target audience(s), tailoring your messages to suit those audiences and having a “tool box” to help you prepare and get the most out of an interview.

As Emma often says, communicating through the media (both traditional and digital) is not a dark art, it is a learned skill and once you have built those muscles you need to exercise them to stay in shape.

Posted by Cat.

Every year islanders celebrate Liberation Day to remember the difficult times and those that experienced them and to revel in everything that makes Guernsey special.

A quick survey of team Orchard shows a keen few ‘lib dayers’, so here are their thoughts on the high points of Guernsey’s very own public holiday.

Harry: “The best thing about liberation day is getting together with friends to celebrate in town. You always end up bumping into someone you haven’t seen in years and having a good catch-up.”

Emma: “The occupation and all that happened in Guernsey during that period of Channel Islands history is pivotal to life here and this seems to mean more to me the older I get.”

Di: “Going into Town to lap up all the nostalgia going on and this year to listen to Dealer’s Left who are kicking off Lib Rock, on the Albert Pier!”

Our team have some ideas on ways we can make Liberation Day even better…

Harry and Chloe: “Bring back the fair!”

Cat: “Like the Queen’s jubilee later this year, I would give everyone another day off on the 10th to recover from the festivities.”

Steve: “I think we should be exploring more ways of keeping Liberation real for younger people – the digital generation.”

Emma: “I think the Liberation Day celebrations are a real testament to the coming together of the island and the fact it is not “over-produced” means there is something for everyone from vintage cars and remembrance to fireworks and parties. It is perfect as it is.”

Four years ago there were hardly even any websites but this election we’ve seen some really impressive sites, plus candidates communicating via Twitter and Facebook and some even making daily broadcasts using audioboo.

Capitalising on the media revolution of recent years has brought benefits to both candidates and voters. Candidates are no longer restricted to the amount of information they can squeeze into a four page manifesto. They can expand on this, and react to the issues raised during household visits, as their campaign unfolds in a variety of other ways.

Voters who want to do their homework can find out much more about their candidates and interact with them directly or through a number of online public forums.

One new tool that some candidates have chosen to use to express their views is audioboo. This is an application that allows users to post a personal broadcast via an Internet link that can be distributed through channels such as twitter, facebook or email.

Broadcaster Kevin Stewart was the first candidate to use audioboo and he was soon followed by a number of others. Some have used it to talk in depth about their views on a hot topic; others as a stream of consciousness. It is much more personal that a written statement as it captures tone of voice, personality and even humour.

The introduction of more “DIY media tools” meant that candidates could stretch their allowable election budget much further. In the old days candidates could just about afford photography, printing of manifestos and posters and postage. New media is much more cost-effective.

It will be interesting to see whether successful candidates who have made use of social media will continue to do so over the next four years.

Posted by Steve.

In America the site has become a sensation with the crafting community who use it to collect together DIY tutorials and picture inspirations. Great, but what if you’re not crafty? What if you the sporty type or you’re a business? Fear not, there are many more uses for Pinterest than looking at cakes (though admittedly, this is how I spend most of my time!)

The great thing about Pinterest is that you can use it to gather together information that you want to share and use the images to engage likeminded pinners. If you need any more convincing check out President Obama’s boards: where else can you find information about private sector job stats next to a picture of Obama’s face on a cake? Genius.

Of course, there have been some teething issues as with any new technology. The biggest problem has been for people who earn a living through people looking at their images, like bloggers and photographers. Whilst Pinterest retains a link to the original site these are not always followed and if the image was originally found whilst browsing on Tumblr, for example, the original link is lost. This has led to bloggers like Liberty London Girl protecting themselves by watermarking pictures on their sites.

So it’s not perfect but it has the potential to be a really useful network for businesses and individuals alike. Local hair salon (and Orchard client) The White Room uses it to share hair styling tutorials as well as inspiration, product advice and make-up tips. Crafty blogger Martine a.k.a iMake uses it to showcase her handmade items and lead pinners to the tutorials on the iMake website.

My boards? Well, they’re mostly pictures of cake, but I haven’t heard any complaints from team Orchard about this rather delicious source of inspiration!

Posted by Chloe.

Aladdin asked Jasmine before she got on his magic carpet and Jack asked Rose in Titanic…before it sank.  It’s a weird concept;  hard to gain and easy to lose – what makes you trust someone over someone else?

What about trust in businesses, media, politicians?

Edelman publishes an annual Trust Barometer which measures trust in governments, companies and the media across 25 countries. This year its findings were interesting but not that surprising considering the recent economic issues and the Leveson inquiry into press standards.

As revealed by PRWeek, the barometer showed an increase in disillusionment with both businesses and the Government in the UK. Trust in governments fell to 43% globally making government officials the least credible spokespeople in the report.  Trust in business also fell with only 30% of UK respondents finding CEOs to be believable spokespeople for their organisation.

This presents PR people with a challenge; finding credible spokespeople stakeholders can warm to and trust is a key part of many communications strategies.

What the research did reveal is that members of the public are increasingly looking to ‘people like themselves’ for credible information. This doesn’t just mean friends and family as with the increase in use of social media, not surprisingly, trust in online peers is at a record high.

This shift in credibility away from government and business towards media and in particularly social media has been described by Edelman as a “dispersion of authority” and represents a major shift in how organisations are having to manage their public relations.

It is now more important than ever to seek third party endorsements and support, and to create ambassadors for your brand that live both inside and outside your organisation. Satisfied customers and happy clients recounting positive experiences, or employees telling their peers about the great things they do every day – these are the things that make a difference to public perceptions in a world influenced by social media.

Posted by Harriet.

The end is nigh for my time at Orchard PR and I can safely say I have thoroughly enjoyed myself and learnt a great deal about the industry I hope to become part of one day.

My few days here have really surprised me as this is certainly not your average 9-5 desk job. It was good to see early on that PR would not just be about being in an office when straight away, before I’d even had the chance to take my jacket off, I was off to the Guernsey Press to get a real understanding of how working with the media and PR go hand in hand and are key in this industry.

During the time I’ve spent here I’ve witnessed client meetings, brainstorming and seen how you need to have one eye on the media at all times. I’ve learnt that timing is everything in PR – it’s not all about being punctual but having an understanding of how the media and the clients’ days pan out.

I have enjoyed my week at Orchard and have learned a great deal from Brooke and the team. I have seen the process of how the local paper is made and even helped give out Easter goodies to the rest of the media around the island. Doing my management shadowing at Orchard has certainly shown me that in PR no two work days are the same and this is why I’m glad I chose to do the scheme and will hopefully (fingers crossed) work in the industry in the future.

Posted by Brooke.

Here are some of the highlights:

1. All school children will be transported to and from school in armoured land rovers (but only if they live more than a mile away…)
2. Following the success of the runway refurbishment the harbour should be moved 120 metres to the west and have improved safety areas at each end.
3. All Billet D’Etats are to be written using 140 characters or less.
4. Launch a Mulkerrin style review of Guernsey’s media to investigate sub-standard reading ages.
5. Tony Vance for Chief Minister.
6. A ‘blanket’ ban on fog in the island.
7. Introduce a vocational qualification so that La Mare de Carteret pupils can build their own school.
8. Solve the road traffic strategy by forcing islanders to drive in reverse and only turn left allowing the buses to run on the tears of frustrated islanders instead of money from taxpayers.

And probably the least controversial from our friends at Island FM – compulsory Naked Fridays for all islanders!

Posted by Chris.

Alas, all their efforts were to no avail as in the first round the Channel TV team romped away with an early lead they were to hold on to for the whole night, fending off a BBC Guernsey team who challenged strongly until the free bar got the better of them, and latterly the Guernsey Press news editors, who mounted a late run up the leaderboard thanks to a boost from their bonus round manifesto pledges (more on those later).

Congratulations to the CTV team – Rob Moore, Andy Richards, Gary Burgess, Gillian Mabbet, Melita Schiemann and Miles Plumley, they’ve taken the Orchard Trophy back to the studio where it will take pride of place, at least for the next year…

As ever, we’ve got photos of the event in our gallery:

Thanks to everyone that came, but don’t forget, there’s always next year!

Posted by Chris.

Businesses are expected to talk, often on issues that are less than comfortable and certainly defend their position across a range of media platforms from newspapers to broadcast, LinkedIn to Twitter. In the past, an understanding of how the media works and how to deal with them may have been a “nice to have” but now it is vital if a business is to be seen to be reputable, accountable and to have a clear understanding of their position and messages to demonstrate expertise.

Being a credible spokesperson with an ability to craft positive and controlled messages has never been more important. Hiding and not engaging with the media is not an option. Worse still is being interviewed or writing a statement without understanding the media and doing it badly. The worst is rehearsing your message so much it is the only thing you say in an interview and you come across as a bit of a robot…

Understanding what the media do, how they do it and how you can deliver your business’ proposition in a credible and palatable way brings a level of confidence in the engagement which heightens awareness, reputation and trust in the spokesperson and the business.

Dealing with the media is not a dark art. It is a learned skill which can be taught and, once taught, it is a muscle that needs exercising to keep it honed.

Orchard PR aims to help you do exactly this: understand the media; refine your messages; and be seen as experts in your field. We are offering a comprehensive media training course at The Farmhouse in Guernsey on 24 April. The full-day course includes theory and practical exercises in a dynamic environment. You will leave the course with knowledge and confidence; able to flex your muscle in a variety of business communications.

For more information on the course, download our course flyer or visit the training section of the Orchard website.

Posted by Emma.

Young people and politics in Guernsey enjoy an uneasy relationship for many different reasons. These issues aren’t unique to Guernsey as democracies throughout the world are struggling to engage with young people. However there are several factors unique to island politics that create barriers to participation. Despite these underlying structural political issues, there is also cause for optimism.

Firstly it cannot be stressed enough that the problem is not young people. Young people are passionate about the issues that affect them and have strong opinions across a wide range of topics. Whether it is education, welfare, jobs or the environment young people have valuable and insightful views. However they are frustrated by what can be an arcane and remote political process that all too often moves at a glacial pace. Young people see the issues important to them slip further and further down the agenda, and the solutions to important problems fall further and further away. Naturally this breeds apathy and distance between young voters and the politicians that are meant to serve them.

As with young people, the States isn’t entirely to blame. The States has taken bold steps forward in engaging young people. By lowering the voting age to 16 Guernsey is ahead of almost the entire democratic world when it comes to constitutional empowerment of young voters. Sadly however, many young people won’t go to the polls due to apathy and a lack of interest in what the States is doing. They might be interested in the issues but find the States’ solutions unpalatable and incomprehensible. A large part of the problem is down to communication.

At Orchard we have been involved with the @ The States project. Though this initiative has been very successful at increasing awareness of how the States operates it cannot remove the larger roadblocks to engaging and communicating with young people. To its credit, the States isn’t blind to these communication problems. The recent Scrutiny Committee report “Public Engagement in The States of Guernsey” makes it clear that the States isn’t doing enough to keep the public informed. A new States will have to take action to tackle these issues and with a fierce democratic mandate will have no other option.

Recently a slew of Deputies and prospective candidates have appeared on Twitter and other social media and to a large extent have begun to break down the barriers between the public and politicians. In their droll asides, many Deputies admit to being as baffled as the public by some of the States’ more perplexing traditions and policy roadblocks. Whilst a cynic would suggest that this is naked electioneering, an optimist would hope that new forms of engagement would lead to a more open and transparent States. I tend to fall in the latter camp, and hope that in future many Deputies continue their social media activities long beyond the close of the polls.

The local media has enthusiastically embraced social media and the in the run up to the election have created the #gsy2012 Twitter hashtag. This will allow people to link up and discuss the important political issues that arise during the election. Twitter users can debate and discuss the issues with fellow voters and politicians. It can help people stay informed and enrich the debate.  Social media will help to connect local voters during the election, and the means of communication they discover can continue into the future. The Guernsey Press has started to run a Guardian-style live news blog that covers major political events. Such online innovations will help to improve communication between the politicians and the people.

Better communication and projects such as @ The States will make young people more aware of the States and how it works, but it can’t be a substitute for engagement. In my experience young people get involved with politics due to the ideologies and the communal activism of political parties. There is wide, and in the context of Guernsey, justified scepticism towards party politics.  Guernsey voters favour the rugged individualism of independent Deputies and are uncomfortable with the alleged cronyism, reneged promises and infighting associated with political parties. However it is difficult for young, political islanders to get enthused by individual politicians working in the ideological no-man’s land that is Guernsey politics.

However just because there are no parties, it does not mean that there is no place for activism. Social media had brought like-minded people together across the world and given them a unique platform.  In Guernsey with its strong civic society, there is no reason why it can’t be the same. Single-issue, non-partisan campaign groups empowered by social media could serve as an alternative to party politics on the island. I would hope that many young people would get behind that.

Posted by Laurence Makins.