Views From the Cove
Each month, the average employee spends 31 hours in unproductive, inefficient meetings. Estimates put that lost productivity in the neighborhood of $30 billion annually.
Given the number of hours spent in meetings, it’s easy to imagine that people lose their focus.
But, complaining about meetings isn’t a productive use of time, either. Instead, we recommend a few tips for more effectively planning and hosting productive meetings.
For many businesses, a surefire way to build thought leadership and brand awareness among target audiences is through coverage in key media outlets. Landing a hit in an article is an effective, organic way to reach audiences by having them ‘stumble upon’ your ideas in their normal news consumption, rather than forced upon them in an advertisement.
But, like growing produce, organic does not mean easy; it takes hard work. Convincing a reporter of your expertise is only half the battle. The winning formula comes when a skilled spokesperson delivers meaningful messages at the right time, in the right manner.
In this day and age, when news can go viral instantly, organizations need to be ready to respond to a crisis not only efficiently, but quickly too. Not all crises are the created equal; each is different and presents a unique set of challenges. But they can be avoided. How can you and your company prepare?
Behind today’s charitable “big checks” there’s so much more than just a signature. No longer is a company’s giving limited to the CEO writing a check, posing for a photo with the recipient organization and walking away. Corporate philanthropy has grown up to become a key component of a company’s brand and mission.
Whether you refer to it as “touching base,” “circling back” or just a “quick reminder,” following up is a part of business, and life. Sending and receiving a follow-up email can be annoying. The recipient hates to get one and the sender wishes they didn’t have to write the message. It is a Catch-22 for everyone involved.
Does public relations really work? Yes, and there’s one simple reason: people trust, and share, news content in ways that they’ll never do with advertisements.
While news consumers don’t trust all news sources, everyone has at least a few outlets that they trust. Whether they’re trade publications, national newspapers, or online news resources, we each have go-to places for information about the world around us.
The power of social media cannot be overstated. From overthrowing repressive governments to exposing environmental risks, to helping locate people in crisis, social media has the ability to shine a light on the world.
Given social media’s strength, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that it can even help nurture and develop leads in the business-to-business sales process. Eighty percent of leads in the B2B world come from LinkedIn.
Yet, despite the success of social media, and LinkedIn in particular, many businesses and professionals are hesitant to dip their toes in the water. Why? That’s hard to say. But, what we do know is that the more you put into LinkedIn, the more you will get out.
