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From media strategy to reputation management, we explore the trends shaping public perception and share the approaches that drive measurable results for growing brands.

Warning: This Blog May Help You Use Humor in PR

Happy April Fool’s Day! Remember to take everything you read today with a grain of salt; you might find an announcement that’s meant to elicit laughter instead of, or in addition to, press coverage. The best uses of humor can make a positive, memorable impression, but the worst can turn people away.

 

How to Use Humor in PR

If you’ve weighed the risk against the reward and think humor could be a good strategy for you to increase awareness and reception of your PR content, there are a couple of tips to consider to ensure your work successfully lands with target audiences:

  • Use humor to expand and sharpen your brand messages. Humorous content is often more memorable and sharable than a standard press release. Humor can engage an audience more effectively and result in content being shared more broadly on social media. To use the power of humor to elevate your brand, make sure to align your content with your company’s brand promises and messaging and make sure they’re cohesive with your marketing/PR program.
  • Consider your audience. The perceptions and demographics of your target audiences, and their relationships to your company, can impact if they find something funny or in poor taste. An audience of retirees might not view a joke in the same light as recent high school graduates.
  • Boost your company news with humor. While April Fool’s Day may not be the best time to make real announcements, pairing a crowd-pleasing spin with company updates may help the content spread further and attract more journalists. For example, check out Dollar Shave Club’s funny and viral introduction to the shaving industry.
  • Avoid attacking other brands. Self-deprecating humor is less likely to push customers away or spark defamation lawsuits from competitors. Using lighter, approachable humor like self-deprecation can indirectly differentiate your brand from competitors and drive interest from new customers.

 

The Elements of Humor

To explore the use of humor in PR and offer some best practices, we need to first explore what makes something funny. According to an opinion piece about what makes things humorous from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, “humor occurs when things seem safe, playful, acceptable, or benign,” and laughter corresponds with motor inhibition and muscle weakness, changes associated with being in a safe environment. This can potentially make a brand seem to be on your side, leading to increased trust.

However, creating a funny PR campaign is a skill and one that can be tricky to do successfully. Humorous things can include wordplay, physical comedy, irony and many more strategies, but the most consistent element of humor is the defiance of expectations. Dubbed ‘benign violations,’ humor occurs when something is an affront to someone’s wellbeing, identity, understanding of the world, or communication and social norms, especially with illogical or aggressive undercurrents. Importantly, while they go against expectations and beliefs, these attacks are actually safe, playful, or impermanent. This results in conflicting or ambiguous interpretations with no real harm to the audience.

Here are a handful of ways to make something funny:

 

April Fool’s Day Announcements

When it comes to April Fool’s Day announcements, some brands have taken approaches that have brought adoration. However, using humor in PR and sharing joke announcements must be approached thoughtfully.

A joke made in poor taste can cause damage to a brand’s reputation. Approaching a sensitive subject, like abuse, race, disability or illness, can cause your humor to bomb and for people to be offended.

If your timing is off or if it’s not clear that an announcement is a joke, like Volkswagen’s fake rebranding to ‘Voltswagen’, journalists may take it seriously and share untruths about your company. This mistake can make journalists look bad and lead them to not trust your company or chose to report on your news again. In the case of Volkswagen, this also brought up other times they lied to the public and these statements from reporters and advertising leaders:

  • “Now we know the rebrand was nothing more than another lie from a company that’s become known for something else: lying.” – Sean O’Kane (The Verge)
  • “This is the most pressing challenge of the auto industry, ‘Can you go electric?’ It’s an odd thing to be joking about. Choosing to joke about it undermines their commitment.” – Tom Morton, chief strategy officer from NY advertising firm R/GA.
  • “Media outlets, including CNBC, reported it as news after it was confirmed by unnamed sources within the company, who apparently lied to several reporters.” – Michael Wayland (CNBC)
  • “Several outlets, including this one, were hoodwinked. This outlet is removing the name of, and descriptions of, whatever it is the company was trying so hard to market.” – David Matthews (New York Daily News)

My coworkers have written about April Fool’s Day announcements in the past; for more information: PR Guidance for April Fools’ Day.

Whether you want to use a pun in a headline, exaggeration in your social media, or share a joke press release, make sure that your humor is aligned with your brand, funny for your audience, and inspires people to laugh with you, not at you.

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Excuses Don’t Solve Problems

While the NCAA tournament is arguably one of the biggest events in college sports, the organization was recently under fire for the disparity in amenities offered to the male versus female athletes.

Initially, the NCAA released a statement claiming it was not able to provide adequate amenities for the women due to the lack of space. Though shortly after, Oregon women’s basketball player Sedona Prince filmed a video showing there was indeed adequate space for additional amenities, directly contradicting the statement made by the NCAA.

Not long after, more photos began to pop up on social media showing that this wasn’t the only disparity between the men’s and women’s amenities. Women were offered smaller swag bags and limited food options in comparison to the men.

From the outset of this situation, the NCAA failed to acknowledge its mistake and hold itself accountable. In falsely claiming there was a lack of space, they missed an opportunity to own their mistake, apologize for the lack of equity, and showcase the steps they would take to address this issue in the future.   

Making mistakes is natural for both organizations and individuals, but not acknowledging a mistake leaves little room for growth.

While it’s easy to deflect blame, in a world where everyone can take photos and share them on social media, it was easy to refute the NCAA’s claims that there were space limitations. In addition, even if space was the true issue, why were there not steps taken to ensure both the men and women players had equal space, equal equipment in their locker rooms, appropriate swag and equal access to food.

Excuses don’t solve problems and the NCAA missed out on the chance to make things right by not owning up to their shortcomings. By admitting to a mistake and addressing it head on, they wouldn’t have had to face the ensuing backlash.

In a year defined by the fight for access and equality, admitting oversight and outlining steps to fix these important issues would have spoken volumes to fans, the media and most importantly the women in the NCAA tournament.

A sincere apology with a commitment to rectify the situation can often go a long way towards making amends. At the 2017 Academy Awards, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) gave the incorrect envelope to presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, who proceeded to announce the wrong best picture winner.

In response, PwC began by apologizing not only to the presenters, but also to the films and the audience. While it could have been easy to blame outside factors, the executives with PwC admitted wrongdoing, apologized and conducted an investigation to ensure this would not happen again. It isn’t always easy to admit fault, but the response was sincere, honest and well received.

In my own experience in the workplace, I’ve had to learn to take ownership of my mistakes and acknowledge growing pains. Whether I’m learning new workflows or familiarizing myself with new tools, mistakes are bound to happen – it’s part of the learning process.

Rather than taking feedback as a criticism of your work, it’s important to recognize it is an opportunity for growth and improvement. People are receptive when you are able to recognize shortcomings. When you can view external evaluation as a chance for betterment instead of a setback, you open yourself for progress and development.

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7 Tips for Returning to Work After Family Leave

Point blank, transitioning back to work after family leave is challenging. Getting your head back in the game after a weeklong vacation can be difficult. Imagine after several weeks or months.

It’s an “intense physical and psychological adjustment,” notes Denise Rousseau, a professor of organizational behavior and public policy at Carnegie Mellon University.

While I have only been back to work for one week, here are a few guiding principles that have kept me grounded.

Be gentle with yourself. Similar to other areas of our pandemic-driven life, it is important to give yourself grace. It’s an emotional time so it’s good to recognize that it will take time to acclimate.

Consider your schedule. Some choose to return gradually by working a couple of days a week or resume full-time work from the get-go. Not everyone has an option, but if you do, it’s sensible to consider the pros and cons of each. Whichever path you choose, experts recommend exploring working only two or three days in your first week back on the job.

Be upfront with your boss. Be transparent and honest about the new realities of your life as they relate to your job. Acknowledge that the coming weeks could be a bit bumpy but make it clear that you are committed to your job and your team. Experts recommend thinking about what you need from your employer and how to make your new situation work best for you. Additionally, seeking your boss’s advice and counsel on how to reenter successfully is a helpful way to better understand what is most critical and demonstrate a collaborative approach.  

Set expectations with colleagues. Be mindful of how you manage relationships with colleagues as you settle into your new work life. Be direct about how and when you will work. Make your schedule predictable, or as predictable as possible. Things may change over time and even on the fly, of course, but if your colleagues know what to expect they will learn how and when to adjust as needed.

Seek support. Returning to your professional life is a process — don’t go it alone. You can join parent support groups, build connections with neighbors, and seek advice from colleagues who have been through the process.

Be mindful about your time with your family. As you adjust to your new routine, think about how you will spend time with your kids – and your spouse. Will it be in the morning before work? Mostly weekends? Be deliberate about carving out that time and be present with your family in the moment.

Reset your expectations. Returning to work after leave provides you with an opportunity to recast yourself. Think about what unique attributes you have to offer. Then consider how to modify those traits to suit your new life. “If you were the hardest-working person in the office, then maybe you become the most efficient. If you were the best mentor or project leader, you become the best delegator,” says Daisy Wademan Dowling, the founder and CEO of Workparent. The goal is to reset your expectations for yourself so you are set up to succeed in your new life.

 

In addition to the above, I personally believe a gracious return is extremely important – especially to those who have been picking up the slack for you while you were on leave.

I understand everyone’s experience is different, but I hope that a few of these tips can help other parents as they acclimate back into the work world.

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To Do More, Do Less

As many of us face the challenge of balancing work and home life as they try to co-exist under one roof, I suspect I’m not alone in my quest for ways to accomplish more in the limited time we all have.

Always on the search for ways to be more efficient and productive, I’m a sucker for articles on wrangling an email inbox or YouTube videos on bullet journaling and product reviews of planners. Often the advice requires more work to implement than it delivers in productivity gains, but some of the tips, like daily task lists and relying on email search functions rather than scores of subfolders, have had a measurable positive impact.

One of the areas where I’ve been looking for efficiencies is with deep-focus tasks like writing, one of the most common tasks of my job. Recently I read an article in the Wall Street Journal about using rest to increase focus and get more done. Backed by neuroscience research, the article advised playing mindless games on your phone or letting your mind wander as you watch a pot of water boil – doing less in order to do more. Like a reboot is often the only way out of a hopelessly stuck computer, giving your brain time to wander allows it to engage its “default network,” which enables it to do the background work of problem solving and creative thinking.

This is a hard pill for me to swallow. I’m the kind of person who doesn’t voluntarily take breaks until a project is finished. Rather, I power through even admittedly unproductive periods to finish the job. And if I do take a break, say to let the dog out or grab a cup of coffee, I’m inevitably noodling on the project all the while.

Those aren’t the kind of breaks the article is advocating. According to Barbara Oakley, a writer and professor whose work focuses on the relationship between neuroscience and social behavior, “When you take a break, you may want to do something mind-consuming to help with motivation, but technically your best way of taking a break is to do something mindless.”

The idea was intriguing, and I decided to give it a try in a small, very controlled way. My daughter had told me she was using the Pomodoro Technique to write her college thesis, and that framework struck me as a good way to experiment with intentional rest. Pomodoro, often used to manage distractions or procrastination, involves dividing projects into 25-minute segments of work separated by 5-minute breaks. So, I blocked out time on my calendar, set up timers on my phone for 25 and 5 minutes, and took myself offline.

After four cycles, I had a well-crafted piece of writing and a few observations:

  • During my initial 25 minutes I felt like I wasn’t accomplishing much, and my first rest period felt unnecessarily long. As I got into a rhythm, however, I noticed that both the writing and rest segments seemed sufficient in length.
  • The transition from rest to writing had been relatively smooth, and I hadn’t struggled to find my place upon returning to work, as I’d feared.
  • The writing periods were focused and intentional. Unlike in the past, I hadn’t had any of the unproductive periods where I found myself staring at the page after hours of work, unable to make sense of what I’d written.
  • During the rest breaks, I made a point of not doing anything that involved reading or thinking – no checking my email or scrolling the news on my phone. I either stared out the window and let my mind wander or closed my eyes and focused on my breathing.
  • Unsurprisingly, it was initially a challenge for me to intentionally do nothing, but it got easier and more familiar as I repeated the process.

 

Ultimately, this experiment feels like a success, and I intend to employ this technique going forward. I’m curious whether I will be able to use it when I’m under pressure – when improved focus and creative thinking would be especially helpful.

I’m excited to see if this works for me on a larger scale as well. Maybe I’ll try some of the suggestions made in the article like taking a long walk without listening to an audiobook or cooking a big meal without a reason or a schedule.

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How to Offer Writing Feedback That’s Constructive and Valuable

Providing constructive feedback on written materials is a daunting yet valuable opportunity to help advance an individual’s writing career. Without receiving feedback, a writer cannot truly work on improving their skills and ultimately becoming successful in their profession. It plays a vital role in both personal and professional development, with as much as 96% of employees saying feedback is one of the most important parts of their growth.

In public relations, writing remains the most basic skill a successful individual can hold. Writing that is clear and compelling helps PR professionals secure positive media exposure for clients or can effectively communicate key messages to the public. Obtaining constructive feedback on written materials is important for each public relations professional because it challenges their skills in a helpful way. It also encourages them to learn how to better express compelling and thought-provoking story ideas within their writing, no matter where they stand on the career ladder.

While the majority of individuals who provide feedback do so with good intentions, it can all too often come across as not helpful and confusing for the writer. Below are three tips to help editors provide helpful suggestions that can contribute to a winning final document.

 

Be Empathetic and Understanding

Writing can make people feel vulnerable. It takes years of practice and deep expertise to grow into the type of writer who can consistently deliver exceptional pieces in the first draft. To help the writer combat this insecurity, an editor should first acknowledge what the writer has done well, in conjunction with what needs to be improved. The majority of writing has strengths, so it’s important to point out what those are when you see them. This sort of positive feedback helps build the confidence and capability of the writer, and increased confidence can equate to stronger writing.

 

Ask Open-Ended Questions

As an editor, it’s important to remember that the goal of a review isn’t to impede the writer’s ability to deliver quality work. Instead, ask questions that may lead the writer down the right path and help them reach their fullest writing potential. It may take more work initially, but it will help inspire the writer and guide them to understand where revisions need to happen.

Some of these questions might include:

  • What do you want the reader to take away from this article or paragraph?
  • How could you condense the information?
  • Does each of your topic sentences include one or two concrete details to support them?
  • What are some of the concrete details that could be added to back up your topic sentence?
  • How could the structure of the piece be improved?

 

Turn on Track Changes

The Track Changes feature in Word is one of the most useful tools that allows editors to record all changes and easily distinguish them between corrections and comments. For writers, it allows them to visually see the suggested changes and accept them one at a time. Additionally, this feedback can be referenced over and over again for writers looking to fully engrain the feedback and apply it to future work.

When critiquing someone’s writing, it’s the editor’s job to determine whether or not the writer accomplished the specified goal. Concentrate on what the writer can do to improve the subsequent version and you’ll support their creation of a winning final piece. Remember, practice makes perfect so as long as the writer keeps working at their skills, they will improve!

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