PR news round-up (8-12 April)

Here’s a round-up of PR news this week, including AMEC Awards nominations, Cision’s latest webinar and new hires at Milk & Honey and Pagefield. 

Webinar: Algorithms and augmentation: the future of earned media measurement

The explosion of data available to communicators has led to huge advances in how the comms industry is able to measure and attribute value to the work it does. However, another revolution is already sending tremors through the industry; artificial intelligence.

Reacting to this shift, next month’s AMEC summit – the annual gathering of PR’s “measurati” – is focused on analytics, algorithms and augmentation.

Ahead of the summit, we’re delighted that AMEC global managing director Johna Burke and Cision Insights COO Timo Thomann-Rompf will join us to discuss the latest earned media measurement trend in our latest webinar.

The pair will present their view on why algorithms and augmentation have become as critical to measurement as analytics, showcase examples of how communicators are using the 3 As to sharpen their work and offering their view on the current industry landscape.

Awards news

Cision has secured the highest number of nominations at this year’s AMEC Awards, with the company featuring in 14 shortlisted campaigns.

The company, including its PRIME Research division, has been nominated for 12 awards, while its insights work has also been name-checked on a further two award nominations.

Read details on all of Cision’s nominations in this article, while a full list of nominees is available on the AMEC Awards website.

Falcon.io London Community Meet-up

On Wednesday 24 April, Falcon.io will host its very first meet-up in London at Cision’s UK offices. In collaboration with Lonely Planet, KCOM and The Drum, the meet-up will focus upon one of the topics that puzzles many marketing professionals – How to meet your audience where they are: finding the best comms channels and content formats for your brand.

Find out more and sign up to the event here.

Interviews

Clemmie Moodie, associate showbiz editor at The Sun on Sunday, talks about her Press Awards win, how she likes to work with PRs and her dream showbiz story.

Daniel Freeman, co-founder and director of Colour PR, discusses the agency’s first year, what the future holds and why he looks to make the agency a platform for marginalised voices.

PR case study

Find out how The PHA Group’s Sport and Fitness team helped Xercise4Less to create cut-through in the crowded January fitness market.

Opinion

James Sharman, VP, commercial at influencer marketing platform Buzzoole, discusses the importance of transparency and availability of data in influencer marketing.

People news

Francesca O’Connor

Milk & Honey PR has hired Francesca O’Connor as associate partner. She will join the agency’s board and work alongside managing partner Kirsty Leighton by heading up a range of consumer and B2B brands.

Marcomms and advertising agency The Mission Marketing Group has appointed James Clifton as group CEO. Clifton will take responsibility for leading and building the agency’s brand throughout its next phase of growth, while working alongside chairman David Morgan.

Pagefield has appointed Southwark Council deputy leader Rebecca Lury as a partner. She will join the firm in mid-May to further strengthen its public affairs offering.

Rebecca Lury

Integrated marketing agency McCann Central has appointed Pat Southwell to lead its PR and social team in Bristol. He will report to Andy Reid, MD of McCann Bristol, and work on accounts including Cathay Pacific, FlyBe, Haynes Manuals and Bottle Green.

Pat Southwell

Account wins

Strava, the sports participation platform and social network for runners and cyclists, has appointed Seven Hills to manage its comms brief. The agency will focus on raising brand awareness of the platform.

English sparkling wine producer Ridgeview has selected Kapranos PR to work on a series of PR initiatives ahead of the the winemaker’s 25th anniversary in 2020.

Coty-owned skin and suncare brand Lancaster has appointed DeVries Global to handle a forthcoming brand campaign this summer, spanning media relations, influencer engagement, social media and consumer events.

Managed services provider ITEC Group has appointed Context Public Relations to support a comprehensive PR brief.

Scheduling tool Doodle has extended its partnership with Common Industry following its launch of the company’s Meeting Report and a six month press office brief. The agency will work on Doodle’s second Meeting Report, set to launch next year.

The Can Group will handle PR for Dr Milad Shadrooh – also known as the Singing Dentist.

Dr Milad Shadrooh

Satisfied Snacks has appointed Little Miss PR to help launch its first product, Roughs, to the UK market.

Home appliance service and spare parts distributor Connect Distribution Services has selected Prova to deliver an integrated campaign to build its brand profile to support its corporate growth plans.

Hacks vs Flaks

Picture credit: Justin Thomas

It’s that time of year again. The 2019 Hacks vs Flaks Easter Sports Day takes place on Sunday 28 April. Both industries’ leading football and netball players will lock horns at Club des Sports, Ealing, to raise money for mental health charity Mind.

The fixtures will be the 14th installment of Hacks vs Flaks, which is close to breaking through the £400,000 fundraising mark, having supported more than 20 charities since inception. Last year the Hacks won the netball convincingly, but the Flaks won the football with a barnstorming late strike.

The Hacks vs Flaks committee extends its thanks to sponsors co-sponsors Blackstock PR, EY, FTI Consulting, Sharpener Communications, City & Docklands and VisMedia for their generosity around the event.

Any football or netball players, supporters or sponsors looking to take part should contact Ed Berry or Jamie Ricketts at FTI Consulting: edward.berry@fticonsulting.com / 020 3727 1046, or jamie.ricketts@fticonsulting.com / 020 3737 1624.

About Alister Houghton

Alister writes about the PR and comms industry as content marketing manager at Cision. Send press releases, interview pitches, Inside the Campaign/PR case study examples and thought leadership pieces to alister.houghton@cision.com.