Distinctive Dispatch #15: What does content *actually* mean?
Making your content work better; Distinctive turns two; ads done badly; why noone's listening to boss's 'work wisdom'; Bristol's housing boom hits home.
Better comms for people, places and work
Since last month’s post after the local elections, the country finds itself gripped by election fever. Or is it overwhelmed by apathy? Either way, there’s plenty to keep us busy. Whatever the outcome of the general election on 4 July, change is coming. We hope it’s meaningful and provides a platform for the brilliant organisations we support to succeed. Thanks to you all for supporting this newsletter. If you have thoughts or suggestions on what you’d like us to cover in future, let us know in the comments or get in touch.
Are you content with your content?
Clothes form the content of your wardrobe. Food makes up the content of your fridge. Stories, blogs, images and videos are the content for your website.
It’s hard to nail down a specific description that defines content, when it sort of means *everything*.
Olivier Blanchard sums this up well when he says:
“The thing about the term ‘content’ is that it’s just vague enough to mean everything and anything, which is to say it doesn’t mean anything at all.”
It may not sound eloquent. But content is essentially *stuff*, following this train of thought. However, just because it can mean ‘anything and everything’ doesn’t mean it will be effective.
Content needs strategic direction to make it meaningful and impactful. Without this, you’re just saying or creating *stuff* without a purpose. And just because you can, it doesn’t mean you should.
We have a seven-step guide to help you build a communications strategy with confidence. We’ve used this to help organisations in the built environment, skills and affordable housing sectors identify stories that define their work.
We’ve found it essential in ensuring your content lands well.
Content that works harder
Once you know what you want to say and you’ve got an idea for some stand-out content, it’s a shame for it to run in one place and nowhere else.
People consume content in different ways, be it Podcasts, social media or print magazines. Find out how your audiences access information and think about how your content idea can be developed in ways that reach them.
In her blog, Arianne explains how to reshape your content for different channels and introduce your message to a wider audience.
Making your content shine
Drilling down further, Content Marketing Institute offers the definition of ‘compelling information that informs, engages, or amuses’. This definition resounds with us.
However you define it, good content is the *stuff* that gets you noticed.
We’re here to help your content shine – whether that’s through strategic PR planning, design to showcase your idea simply or copywriting. Our team can help you deliver results.
Celebrating two years of Distinctive - and some fantastic new clients
This month we enter our third year in business – and we have certainly stayed busy!
We’re thrilled to have supported some brilliant clients, from local authorities and developers to energy organisations and not-for-profits. We share the highlights on our website.
Place-makers and purposeful organisations are at the heart of our work. So we were delighted to recently announce three new purposeful clients.
Read more on our website or see us in Bristol 24/7. Thanks to everyone who’s supported us since 2022. Here’s to a successful year three.
Things we’ve seen
Apple falls flat with bad ad: Apple’s CEO Tim Cook hailed the latest iPad as the ‘thinnest product we’ve ever created.’ The ad he shared showed a machine crushing cameras, books and musical instruments, to create the new device, sparking a huge backlash from creatives. A testament to tech’s power, for sure. But also, perhaps, a metaphor for the sector’s impact on the creative industries it feeds off. Apple quickly scrapped the ad. How the marketing team didn’t join the dots before launching it is baffling to many of its customers.
Things we’ve read
The power of good crisis comms: Another tech company, another ad storm: dating app Bumble received a backlash when its billboard advertisement appeared to mock celibacy. But the company seems to have come through with its reputation largely intact. How? Bumble released a prompt, authentic apology, made a donation to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, and offered up the remainder of its advertising space to relevant charities.
This demonstrates the power of good crisis comms in maintaining your reputation and turning a negative into a (sort of) positive. Whilst some people may boycott the app, our guess is that by putting their hands up to the mistake and responding well, Bumble’s reputation will remain.
No one is listening to your boss's wisdom! – Make Work Better: There are some familiar grumbles from bosses in this piece. A veteran sales professional struggles to connect with a Gen Z colleague who doesn’t share his enthusiam for post-work pub outings. Another tires of younger employees' reluctance to work late. What these comments miss is that work is changing, and their ideas of office culture don’t hit the mark with many younger employees. Rising cost of living and commuting combine to shift priorities. It’s not easy, for sure. But, having gone through a round of interviews recently, we know culture and flexibility are top issues for candidates. And it’s why we strive to be better in this area.
Bristol: The city that’s now as unaffordable as London – The Telegraph: After years of writing about Bristol as a destination for Londoners to flock to, the same media are beginning to turn their attention to the city’s overheating housing market. Around 800 people live in vans due to soaring property prices, with the average home now costing nearly £350,000. The piece highlights the challenge facing the city, which many reading this newsletter will understand only too well.
Things we’ve heard
Special report: Could Net Zero destroy a whole community? – The News Agents Podcast: This special report calls at Port Talbot, where thousands of well-paid jobs are at risk from the closure of the great steel works and its transition to greener steelmaking. Questions around the impact of the transition to Net Zero are pressing and urgent for an area already hard hit by previous rounds of deindustrialisation.
Whatever side of the Net Zero debate you are on - and we firmly support a transition - this is a key challenge. The piece was notable for Tata’s head of PR not addressing this point in an interview on site with reporter Lewis Goodall.
How to slow down but achieve more: We all want to be more productive. But while speed might be your first thought, slowing down might actually help us to achieve more. Isabel Berwick from the FT speaks to academic, author and productivity expert Cal Newport about pseudo-productivity, the impact project overheads can have on your productivity, and how email and instant messaging is a drain on our focus. An interesting listen, that might just shift your thinking on how you approach your work.
Things we’ve said
Does the PR industry need a code of conduct for the pitch process - PR Week: Ben recently helped to explore this question alongside fellow comms professionals and agency heads. Pitching to new clients is an energising and exciting part of what we do. But sometimes, poor behaviour gets in the way and can become a burden. While we don’t think a code of conduct will work, we are refining our approach to new opportunities by asking organisations to commit to giving us feedback to our proposals. And if they ghost us, they can expect an invoice. The response we’ve had to the piece suggests this isn’t an issue limited to comms. We’re happy to speak with anyone about what we’re doing to address this issue.
Distinctive difference: PR that builds positive value: PR professionals aren’t always great at explaining our role and purpose. Ben posted some thoughts on our work and why we do it in response to recent questions. We appreciate the prompt.
How to repurpose content for maximum impact: Your audience consumes media in different ways, be it reading local news sites, listening to industry podcasts or scrolling social media. Make sure your message reaches their eyes or ears! From press releases to Podcasts, repurposing your content ensures you make the most of your hard work and share it with as many people as possible. Arianne’s blog sets out how to make your content work harder for you.
Seven steps to creating strategy: Creating a strategy is crucial to sustained success, but agreeing an approach is challenging.
A solid communications strategy will guide you to:
🤝 Reach your key stakeholders
💡 Highlight your strengths - and how you can help people
📈 Help you measure the impact of your work
Jasmine sets out written a seven-step guide helps our clients strategise successfully -with great results.
We’ll see you again a day after polling day. Whatever you do until then, please make time to find out more about the candidates standing for election in your area. And please vote on 4 July. We’ll keep an eye out for the party manifestos and hope to produce some headline analysis. If you’d like us to share these with you, or want to discuss anything, please leave a comment or drop us a line.