The PR Network are in the news again. This time as part of a really interesting feature in Director magazine on ROWE (or Results Oriented Work Environment) http://bit.ly/9FP1pP - What do you think to this concept for PRs? We’re interested to hear your views…
Vodafone’s decision to appoint Paratus to handle the lion share of its business is a momentous one http://bit.ly/9w9XLs
Vodafone has not only had the foresight to understand that - above all else - what really counts in PR is having the best people, not the best known agency brand or the shiniest office. But it’s also had enough courage in its convictions to follow through with a decision that could well give other big brands the confidence to explore the possibilities beyond the traditional agency model.
Paratus’ model is similar to that of The PR Network - blending a core team of full time PRs complemented by a large group of freelance specialists. This gives clients access to a much wider and more flexible skill set and the guarantee of senior ‘hands on’ experts. We are able to bring this solution to clients at a more competitive rate than a “traditional” agency, weighed down by fixed costs, could ever hope to offer.
Vodafone has obviously found this a compelling proposition. Doubtless, the PR industry will be following this one with interest.
Read an article by Nicky just published in the CIPR’s online magazine about freelance market trends:
http://www.profile-extra.co.uk/articledetail.aspx?page=4E592225-D771-43B9-9826-0D4AD7A0AE32&article=772E66A0-B3D9-435A-8C35-2821507E8488
This week we’re launching a new corporate practice within The PR Network which unites the fantastic corporate expertise we’ve built over the last few years. The new practice group will be called The Corporate Pod, and is made up of six consultants supported by a further 100 from within the network.
We’ll be working with blue chip clients and growing companies to help them with their corp comms requirements, whether that’s advising on a CSR strategy or providing counsel on how to avoid a Dominos-like social media reputation disaster. We can also provide crisis management support at short notice through our panel of crisis comms experts. We’ll be working directly with clients but also with some agencies who need to bolt senior specialist support onto their existing teams.
We are already talking to some big companies about helping with change management projects scheduled for this year.
Check out the Pods page on our main site to read more.
We’re fast becoming the PR specialist when it comes to unleashing exciting new apps to the world. With numerous high profile successes under our belts, including tubeexits, last week we were at it again with the launch of Buxter.
If you haven’t already heard Buxter is a Facebook application developed by ClickandBuy that enables people to send or recieve money within the world’s most popular social network.
Coverage highlights secured by our team include The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, CNN Online, BBC Online and BBC Click.
Buxter is set to turn Facebook into an ecommerce marketplace as online businesses now have the chance to sell products or services to any of Facebook’s 400 million members.
But it’s not just limited to businesses. Remember that fiver you borrowed off your friend? Or the pizza you shelled out on last week when your boyfriend had no money? Well now you and your pals can settle every outstanding debt through Facebook ! You can even use it for altruistic purposes, such as collecting money for a charity run. The possibilities are limitless. To sign up for Buxter click the link http://apps.facebook.com/mybuxter
Apps really get our blood racing here at The PR Network so if you’re wondering how to launch a new app we would love to hear from you at directors@theprnetwork.co.uk
After a busy week of making the headlines for our clients, today we’re making them ourselves!
The Guardian’s Sandra Haurant has penned an excellent article in Saturday’s Work section, uncovering how more and more companies are looking for services like ours. Services that offer clients a far greater degree of flexibility and agility compared to conventional business models.
The article also features our lovely client at Adobe, who says of us…
“We were looking for skilled, knowledgeable and motivated individuals… who could work directly with senior management within Adobe in the UK on a number of projects.”
Read the full article here http://tinyurl.com/yzswpe3
After a very successful project last year we’re delighted to say that The PR Network is going to be working throughout 2010 with ClickandBuy, one of the leading payment systems on the internet. ClickandBuy is growing fast year on year with a dynamic management team who we really enjoy working with. Our initial project involved traditional print media relations and an online PR campaign to promote the results of some specially-commissioned research. We have a great team working on the account and expect to deliver sterling results for the brand this year.
At last we can finally use the term ‘green shoots’ as the UK pulls itself out of The Great Recession. Only time can tell whether this is a false dawn or the real McCoy, but with January’s unemployment figures also heading the right way things certainly appear more optimistic.
Of course we can perhaps afford to be more optimistic than most, as alongside a truck load of interest in our freelance services, we’ve also been set loose on a number of exciting briefs for permanent PR positions. Both in house and agency, all at the senior end of the market in line with our senior consultant focus.
So if you’re agency side looking to climb the ladder, in house and up for a fresh challenge or a freelancer that fancies a perm, let us know by sending your CV and what you’re looking for to directors@theprnetwork.co.uk
Just when you thought it was safe to leave the home, the big freeze is back with a vengeance. And this time it means business. Literally.
According to the Centre for Economics and Business Research, Britain is on course to take a hit of €1.1bn from the harshest winter in decades (oh how us PR folk love a good stat…).
And it’s ‘snow joke’ (…and a well worn pun) in Europe either with the German economy predicted to lose up to €2 billion in lost activity - 0.4% of GDP in Q1.
Thankfully there are a growing number of virtual businesses out there that are weather proof, and can work from anywhere at any time. And the stalwarts here at The PR Network are living proof of ‘business as usual’ as we continue to busy ourselves whilst the rest of the UK skids to a halt.
Indeed, in my first week here at the PRN, I have certainly been encouraged by the number of new business leads and enquiries we have received in the opening weeks of 2010, across all aspects of our business.
Who knows, perhaps a sign that - whilst the roads, rivers and railways are frozen over - maybe, just maybe the economy is starting to thaw.
James
Happy New Year!
We wanted to share some positive news to end a rather cold, icey week in Blighty! The PR Network is expanding! We are pleased to announce the addition of a director to our team. This, combined with our ever expanding network of over 400 senior PR consultants with presence on every continent in the World, proves that 2010 is going to be an exciting milestone in PR Network history.
We are delighted to welcome James Read to our team. James is joining as a director and will work with me and Nicky to build The PR Network’s presence as a leading player in the virtual PR world. James will be involved in all aspects of our business and we are excited to have him on board.
Before joining The PR Network James was a Director at Citigate Dewe Rogerson. During his ten years at CDR James gained a reputation for his ability to interpret and deliver against a broad range of corporate and consumer briefs, giving him invaluable experience across multiple disciplines and sectors. His eclectic mixture of past clients include Santander, Halifax, LloydsTSB, TalkTalk, AOL, Fujitsu Siemens, Logica, EDS, Serco, Kwik-Fit and Halfords.
Here’s to a really successful 2010 for all of our associates from the ever expanding PR Network team!
