Myths and Misconceptions.GRIN and bear it.South Africa – Flying High.Damage Control. Publish and Be Damned?Remaining Relevant.Copenhagen Calling.

ISSUE THREE | WINTER ‘09

Colin Byrne CEO, UK & Europe

Welcome to the Winter editionof our PR insights newsletter,drawing on the views andexperience of the ‘InternationalConsultancy of the Year’ (UK PRWeek and the UK PublicRelations ConsultantsAssociation – don’t just take my word for it!).

In this edition we cover recession,reputation and litigation, with a detour to South Africa via digital mediamythology, global consumer marketingtrends and clean technology marketing.

Let me just say a quick but meaningful‘thank-you’ to all our clients, staff andfriends who have helped make this such an amazing award-winning year for Weber Shandwick, in Europe and beyond. We appreciate it and never forget that it is you that matters.

When planning campaigns and assemblingthe channels to best reach your audience,PR often relies too much on intuition. Wemust embrace planning and cosy-up todata. To try to right this wrong, WeberShandwick surveyed almost 5,000European consumers as part of its INLINECommunications research into how peopleare truly influenced. We asked arepresentative sample of Europeanconsumers over the age of 18 thequestion: ‘When considering purchasinggoods or services in general, howinfluential are the following sources ofinformation in helping you make yourpurchase decision?’

The results enabled us to challenge manyof the myths surrounding media andinfluence. For the purposes of this article, Iwill focus on the UK data (sample of 1,007adults). The first finding was that onlineadvocacy was cited as being the mostinfluential source of product/serviceinformation for UK consumers. By onlineadvocacy we mean ‘user reviews andrecommendations from people online youdo not know’.

So, digital is ‘where it’s at’ and we canabandon the more traditional elements ofcommunications, right? Wrong. While UKconsumers claimed that online channelswere most influential on their purchasedecisions, 43 per cent also stated theyoften didn’t believe what they read onlineuntil they had checked the facts in thetraditional mainstream media. So whileonline is clearly a critical channel forstorytelling, not backing up that story with activity in traditional media to validate that story is missing a hugeopportunity. We call the need to createconsistent stories across a variety of media‘INLINE Communications’.

Some more misconceptions. Youngconsumers don’t read traditional media,right? Wrong. Exactly half of UK consumersunder the age of 35 believed magazinesand newspapers to be influential. Of UKconsumers over 45, only 29 per cent madethe same claim. In fact, younger consumersare far more likely than their more elderlycompatriots to find all sources ofinformation influential. But the myth thatthe media isn’t the best way to reachyoung adults in the UK must be destroyed.

Some commonly held beliefs do seem tohold up, however. Attitudes to brandengagement within social networking sites(such as Facebook and Bebo) by UKconsumers differ markedly by age group.Almost half (49 per cent) of those aged 18to 24 said they would be interested ininteracting with their favourite brandswithin these online communities. Perhapsunsurprisingly, only 15 per cent of the over-45s were interested in the same thing.

But to further confuse matters, while youngUK consumers are far more predisposed tointeracting with brands within social media,they are just as likely as the over-45s not tobelieve what they read online until theycheck the facts in the mainstreamtraditional media – 43 per cent of 18- to24-year-olds agreed they often didn’tbelieve what they read online until theyhad checked it out in the mainstreammedia, compared with 45 per cent of theover-45s.

What does this tell us? That organisationsneed to tell a consistent story across avariety of channels in order to mosteffectively reach the audience they aretrying to influence. And in doing so, theyneed to challenge preconceptions andembrace fact.

Published 6 November 2009 by PRWeek as part of the Thought Leader series.

View the 2009 INLINE CommunicationsReport and supporting podcast here.

Digital. Yay! It’s the publicrelations industry’s Holy Grail,silver bullet, saving grace and awhole lot more besides, right?Well, no. Digital undoubtedly isa fantastic tool for PRprofessionals to do what we dobest: tell stories. But digitalalone won’t do the job for you.If you want to most effectivelytell a consistent story you needto deploy your resources acrossa variety of channels to reachyour audience.

James Warren Chief Creative Officer, Digital

To tell a consistentstory, research the facts and deploy your resources acrossmultiple channels.

Know what you don’t know.

COMMUNICATIONSREPORT 2009

Colin Byrne CEO, Weber Shandwick UK & Europe

Recent trends, such as the rise ofconsumer scepticism about traditionaladvertising and the power that the Internethas given to advocates and badvocates,have all helped build the power andreputation of PR in today’s marketing mix.As the recent VSS CommunicationsIndustry Forecast has noted, thecommunications industry is expected togrow faster than GDP for the next fiveyears, and one of the key drivers of thisgrowth is the PR industry.

So, despite the downturn, the fact is thatPR’s time has come! But the challengesand opportunities ahead are increasinglycomplex. We must ensure that we trulyunderstand the ways the world is changingand use it to our advantage. That means afocus on strategic planning and a rethinkof some current assumptions on mediaconsumption.

In ‘Future Files – The 5 trends that willshape the next 50 years’, Richard Watsonsummarises these trends as:

1. Ageing2. The power shift Eastwards3. Global connectivity4. The Environment5. GRIN technologies

Let’s start with the implications of ageing.In the U.S. someone turns 50 every eightseconds, whilst in Japan the 75+population is forecast to rise by over 30per cent by 2025 therefore theopportunities in healthcare, technology,tourism, financial services and governmentcommunications are obvious. Yet ourindustry, with our relentless desire to ‘hangwith the kids’, sees companies prioritisethe teen market despite rising youthunemployment and graduate debt. Theassumption is that the sole route to‘teenbucks’ is digital, and to the ‘seniors’market is the mid-market press andgardening weeklies.

On the Eastward power shift, although thedramatic growth of BRIC and CHIMEeconomies may have temporarily slowed,we are still looking at consumer spendingin China alone hitting over $2 trillion by2015.

When it comes to global connectivityWatson notes that 1 billion of us are activeonline, expected to double in a decade,and 2.5 billion of us are communicatingwith each other via mobile phones.Meanwhile 13 per cent of the world’spopulation is now living somewhere otherthan the country of their birth.

The Environment and CSR remain majordrivers of present and future consumer andcorporate behaviour. These days beingenvironmentally responsible is a basicconsumer expectation, but clevermarketing of real environmental benefitscan give a brand a competitive edge in arecovering and increasingly choosyconsumer market.

GRIN stands for Genetics, Robotics,Internet and Nanotechnology, and the big beast for us is the ‘I’. Although theInternet along with (digital and socialmedia) is the biggest driver of change in marketing, there are important moves in the media landscape and consumerthinking/ behaviour that defies mostexpectations. Weber Shandwick’s recentINLINE Communications researchhighlights this.

While the expected upsurge in third partyadvocacy is there, almost a quarter of‘influence’ is still generated by ‘traditional’media – compared to less than half of thatfor advertising – and many of those thirdparty advocates will themselves beinfluenced by other spokes on the wheelincluding media coverage and advertising.

Then there are the demographicassumptions to be challenged. Ourresearch found that 50 per cent of UKconsumers aged 18-34 claimed theirpurchasing decisions were influenced by“traditional” print media. But only 26 percent of UK consumers aged 55+ claimedtheir decisions were influenced bytraditional media.

So the assumption that youth in general nolonger consume print and broadcastmedia; that they only buy what friendsadvocate online, that older consumers aremore influenced by traditional mediacoverage, are all false claims. Clearlyyoung consumers are more interested thanolder consumers in interacting with brandsonline. But they don’t always believe whatthey see. Offline and online are clearlyboth important. Only research andcustomer insights can challenge the urbanmyths that surround modern marketing.

Whether we are truly emergingfrom the recession, and howquickly, is still a moot point. But with confidence graduallyreturning to marketing, we inthe public relations industryhave to rethink some of ourstrategies and assumptions if weare going to be able to help takefull advantage of the recovery.

GRIN stands for Genetics,Robotics, Internet andNanotechnology, and the big beast for us is the ‘I’.

Emerging from the recession?

In order for PR to really help organisationsand clients take advantage of theeconomic upturn, the lack of ethnic – andoccasionally social – diversity in PR issomething that must also be addressed.Research by Weber Shandwick’s Multi-Cultural Communications practice revealedthat not only are ethnic groups a rapidlygrowing segment of consumers andsociety, but that three quarters of Blackand Asian consumers and half of Chineseconsumers in the UK felt that marketing bymainstream brands had little or norelevance to them.

If we are to help organisations and clients,we need to look at our own ranks and workhard to diversify so as to accurately reflectthose who’s purchasing power andattitudes we claim to understand.

Although we are emerging from recession,the question of how quickly and howsustainably we are doing so is still an openone. But when the economic upturn doescome, for us in PR we cannot simply revertback to ‘business as usual’.

Daryn-Lee Gamsy Managing Director, GGi Communications, a Weber Shandwick affiliate company

Wherever you travel in any of the majorhost cities you will experience trafficgridlocks with roads being extensivelyupgraded and a skyline punctuated withcranes and building sites. A newunderground railway system being builtfrom scratch in Johannesburg has alreadyearned the accolade as the largestengineering project currently in the world.Johannesburg, host city to the Final, ispulling out all the stops to impress theanticipated visitors and armchairspectators from all over the world.

Just over ten years ago, the South Africanpublic relations industry was rather isolatedwith only a few large players and manysmaller ones. After years of isolation, SouthAfrica emerged determined to catch upwith the rest of the world. And what betterway than to throw the FIFA World Cup at adevelopmental country on a continent thathas never hosted this tournament before.

Since FIFA awarded the host title to SouthAfrica five years ago, soccer fever has notonly infected most South Africans but alsothe rest of the continent. The spotlight wasthrust upon a country that hadexperienced a mere 10 years ofdemocracy. And in these 10 years SouthAfrica has grown in leaps and bounds.Once a pariah state, South Africa haspositioned herself as the springboard into

Africa where many multinationalcompanies have established their headoffices while trading more extensively intothe rest of the continent.

With this growing multinational presence,the PR environment has also changeddramatically and South Africa hasdeveloped into the creative springboardinto the rest of the continent. South Africahas grown a significant communications,PR and advertising base that can nowproudly compete globally.

The benefits of hosting the 2010 FIFAWorld Cup have already been felt on therest of the continent where Cape Town andJohannesburg have become thecontinental capitals of creativity. SouthAfrica’s PR prowess has followed themultinational excursion into the “lastfrontier”. This creative paradigm isreciprocal with many of Africa’s finest andmost creative people visiting this countryto learn more and gain greater experience.This experience is then returned to theirhomelands where the ante of theprofession is upped quite significantly,mutated and exported within the confinesof national borders and boundaries.

With the advent of the major sponsors ofthe FIFA World Cup increasing theiractivities on our doorstop in preparationfor the 2010 spectacular, South African PRcompanies have been given theopportunity to perform on the world stage.A plethora of hospitality venues, hotels,bed and breakfast establishments have allsprouted up from a very small base.International booking agents are usingtheir clout to deliver enoughaccommodation to the event organisers.The large and small establishments alikeare experimenting with new creativemarketing ideas to attract customers.

The paraphernalia industry is experiencinga steep learning curve too. After SouthAfrica was chosen to host the 2010tournament, huge public and lawenforcement attention was paid to thespread of counterfeit goods. Before thespotlight was turned directly onto thiscountry, counterfeit goods – from thehumble T-shirt to the latest movie on DVD – proliferated. The source countriesof these goods saw South Africa as virginterritory. The law enforcement authoritieshave successfully clamped down on theseillegal activities and have raided andconfiscated goods throughout the country.Intellectual rights are being adhered to and respected as most other countries do.

The impact of awarding the 2010 FIFAWorld Cup to this country will have aprofound influence on its creative mindsand those on the rest of the continent formany years to come. South African PRcompanies have absorbed the bestinternational practices very quickly and we have been adept at emulating the best and discarding the mediocre. The PRindustry here has evolved quickly and isspreading its wings into every corner ofthis continent. Multinational companies areentrusting their African requirements toSouth African PR companies. The benefitto them is quite clear due to our prolificknowledge and understanding of the 53countries comprising Africa, each with anindividual and unique heritage.

By this time next year SouthAfrica will be conducting a post-mortem of the staging of the2010 FIFA World Cup. We willbe celebrating our successes andevaluating the challenges aheadfaced by the industry. The 2010FIFA World Cup will be SouthAfrica’s biggest event ever andwe are quite conscious that theeyes of the world are on us. We have not shied away fromlarge events before, and weactually have an excellent trackrecord in hosting several similar,albeit smaller, events. Whatmakes this event different is that it has already had a massiveimpact on most South Africans.

South Africa – Up Therewith the Best in the World

Dr. Leslie Gaines-Ross Chief Reputation Strategist, Weber Shandwick

These mounting corporate falls from gracedemonstrate that a company's reputationcan be destroyed in seconds. Amishandled response, inappropriate act,product tampering, disgruntled employee,confidential leak, misdirected email,personal indiscretion or financialirregularities all have the power to instantlytarnish a respected reputation. Theaccelerated growth in the Internet, micro-constituencies, media scrutiny and publicdistrust makes managing corporatereputation an increasingly challenging task.While reputation loss may now beinevitable, the well-managed company andreputation-conscious leader need notstand defenceless when faced with adamaged reputation. In these tumultuoustimes, CEOs are increasingly being calledupon to be a jack of all trades when itcomes to reputation management.

CEOs now realise that reputationmanagement is as important and complexas any other high-level business function.As a Fortune 100 CEO once said,“I havetwo functions: lead the company as CEOwith integrity, clarity and purpose, asmeasured by financial performance andreputation; lead the board as chairmanwith vision and openness. . .” CEOinvolvement in reputation building andmanagement is now a strategic line job,not just window dressing.

Failure to protect reputation rests squarelyon the CEO’s shoulders. WeberShandwick’s Safeguarding Reputation™multi-market executive survey found thatwhen crisis strikes, nearly 60 per cent of theresponsibility for the crisis is attributed tothe CEO. CEOs themselves feel nodifferently. Most CEOs would agree thatreputation management responsibilityprimarily lies at their door. Althoughreputation erosion is usually the result ofmore than one person’s failure, the loss israrely shared. In some cases it can reachthe senior management team; however,the blame for reputation loss usually landsin the corner suite.

Not only do CEOs need to take charge oftheir company reputation management,but they must acknowledge that their ownreputation is inextricably linked to that ofthe company’s. When the CEO speaks, thecompany speaks. The CEO is the face ofthe company. CEOs are the ultimateguardians of reputation and must actpromptly, decisively and transparentlyfollowing a crisis or challenge to theircompany’s reputation. Accordingly, theCEO must ensure that the manner in whichhe or she presents themselves tostakeholders – whether it is customers,regulators, analysts, bloggers oremployees – is consistent with thecompany’s vision, code of conduct, andvalues.

The CEO is also the strategic player inreputation recovery. Oxford Metrica, astrategy firm, concluded that crises aretimes when CEOs can build reputationequity and value for their company.Northwestern professor Clarke Caywoodhas said that any assault on the reputationof a company is a crisis and reputations arebuilt on how management responds tocrises. Essentially, a CEO’s ability tomanage reputational difficulty is thedetermining factor in whether stakeholdersretain confidence in the company andbelieve that reputation will eventually be restored.

CEOs are also chief communicators today.In times of reputation failure, leaders mustcommunicate both the good and the badquickly and frequently. One CEO has saidthat people are always hungrier forinformation when times are difficult.Leaders should use channels that are bestsuited for different audiences such aselectronic communications, videos, blogsor wikis, employer-to-homecommunications, and in-person meetings.

Communication is a two-way street. Notonly must CEOs communicate but theymust listen as well. A CEO once remarkedto me that his mother told him that he wasgiven one mouth, one nose and two earsin proportion to how they should be used –to listen harder. In good times and bad,leaders should go out of their way to takeall the bad news they hear and multiply itby 10 or even 100. Instead of shooting themessenger of bad news, leaders shouldwelcome and seek them out. Monitoringthe blogosphere, suggestion boxes, exitinterviews and satisfaction surveys shouldbe at the top of every leader’s to-do list.Reputations are not always destroyedoutright, but are often gradually eroded bya ripple effect.

As the corporate reputation“stumble rate” continues to rise,leaders need to know not onlyhow to build companyreputations but, moreimportantly, how to protect and salvage tarnishedreputations. Recent events athighly regarded companies have shown us that reputationloss is not limited to any oneparticular region and can strikeany company or organisation.

In addition to listening well, CEOs mustsay something worth paying attention to.Weber Shandwick’s CEO Harris Diamondwas recently quoted in Marketing News assaying that “The reason that you can’tunderestimate Barack Obama is we’ve hadvery few presidents who’ve had the abilityto make us listen.” Talk for talk’s sake doesnot safeguard and build companyreputation. Talk that advances theconversation about a company’s role insociety and its well-being breaks throughtoday’s immense information fog andcreates long-lasting impressions.

CEOs must be the first line of protectionwhen reputations are damaged or introuble. They must devote considerableenergy and effort to defending andcommunicating their company’s goodname and most valuable asset.

CEOs are theultimate guardiansof reputation andmust act promptly,decisively andtransparently.

Damage Control: CEO as ReputationGuardian

Rod Clayton Head of Issues and Crisis Communications, Weber Shandwick

Not everybody is so sanguine at theprospect of the media reporting onmatters they consider private. Recently, inEngland, the trading company Trafiguraagreed to pay millions of pounds withoutadmitting any liability regarding certainallegations. When a question was askedabout this in parliament, however,Trafigura’s lawyers obtained an orderpreventing a newspaper reporting thequestion and a further order preventingreporting of the initial order. Americanreaders used to first amendmentprotection may be scratching their heads,but English law takes a very different viewon where the balance lies betweenfreedom of speech and the freedoms ofthose being spoken (or written) about.Hence a number of states in the US haveenacted laws nullifying the effect of Englishlibel laws in their jurisdictions. But the difficulty of enforcing such lawsnowadays is demonstrated by Trafigura’slawyers abandoning these efforts afterTwitter users worked out and wrote aboutwhat was going on anyway.

Of parliament, Wellington’s best knownremark is “I never saw so many shockingbad hats in my life.” Most of us recognisethat our legislatures are not perfect, butthe concept in England of parliamentaryprivilege is clear and we value freedom ofspeech strongly. In this context, it is

surprising if it did not occur to Trafiguraand its advisers how massively their effortscould backfire. Once a company makespayments, even without acknowledgingany wrongdoing, the reputation gamechanges. Fair or unfair, people want to seecorrective actions. Certainly, they do notwant to see aggressive attempts to coercethe media. It seems inescapably the casethat the bulk of the criticism that Trafiguranow faces is less about what it is alleged tohave done and much more about how ithandled those allegations. This is actuallybad for everyone. It means that theunderlying issues may fester withoutresolution and, crucially, that the companynow has far less chance of convincing theworld community that it stands for valuesthat many people would hope to see it(and anyone) support.

A contrasting case is instructive. WhenDole Foods’ Swedish subsidiary sued aSwedish documentary maker fordefamation, critics accused the companyof stifling free speech. It transpired thatDole’s main accusers in the film were paidby a lawyer to say what they said, but Doledropped its lawsuit anyway. Perhaps itdetermined that being perceived asattempting to silence criticism could harmits reputation and – given pressure fromretailers – its business. So while stillmaintaining that the film is “fundamentally

flawed,” Dole’s General Counsel now saysthat he looks forward to an “opendiscussion” with the filmmakers.

Many PR professionals who are averse to“getting legal” with the media may feelthat Trafigura’s experience supports thisview. Yet it is important to emphasise thatlegal recourse is usually worth consideringand sometimes vital. A false statementpublished at the wrong time in the wrongplace can have devastating consequences.It may be imperative to enjoin publication.Without such a defence, rebuilding anunfairly tarnished reputation could takeyears and may well be beyond the meansof many individuals, even of somecompanies. Investigative reporters pursueagendas and it is understandable that theirtargets can be concerned not only aboutgetting a fair hearing at the time, but alsoabout how they recover quickly from anyloss of reputation.

The big picture is crucial. A successfulstrategy will have evaluated the benefits ofboth the assertion of legal rights and thecommunication of strong, positivemessages. Having a close understandingof the opinions of the public and importantstakeholders – how you are viewed, howyour strategic options would be perceived,what people need to see and know – iscrucial in order to get the balance right.

Far less well remembered than thecelebrated quotation with which westarted is what Wellington said next. Hemade clear that “if such trash ispublished”, he would sue. Many of thosementioned in Harriette Wilson’s memoirsdid indeed sue for libel, and their claimsruined the publisher. Yet in the event,Wellington held his fire. Meanwhile theunabashed Stockdale went on many yearslater to sue the parliamentary publisherHansard... for defamation!

“Publish and be damned” is oneof the duke of Wellington’s mostfamous remarks. It was hisresponse to Joseph Stockdale, apornographer, who was about topublish the memoirs of HarrietteWilson, a famous ‘escort’ of thetime. Stockdale had offered toremove all references to theduke, but the duke refused topay. The memoirs were dulypublished, making a fortune forboth Stockdale and Wilson. Yet,though he was married withchildren, the duke’s toweringreputation was unaffected,perhaps even strengthened byhis standing firm in the face ofadversity.

The duke’stoweringreputation wasunaffected,perhaps evenstrengthened.

Publish and Be Damned?

Lisa Sepulveda President, Global Consumer Practice, Weber Shandwick

Authenticity and relevance ruleConsumers around the globe are on thefast track, consuming information aroundthe clock and from all around them. Wemust stay on our toes by understandingthe Tweets, blogs and apps targeted attoday’s consumer. Face it: marketers canno longer completely dictate the pathconsumers take.

Yet although the way we communicate ischanging, there are some core tenets inbusiness that remain constant becausethey work.

ListeningSince I joined the Weber Shandwicknetwork in summer 2009 I have made apoint of travelling and listening. I’ve takenthe opportunity to hear from new hiresfresh from college and already living theirlives ‘INLINE’.

I listen to what's being reported in thenews and consider how it’s reachingconsumers. I listen to colleagues across the US and around the globe sharing theirsuccess stories, their challenges and whatthey have learnt. I listen to existing clientsstriving to make their brands iconic. I listento prospects and try to determine whatkind of impact and changes they want tomake in their space. And, of course, I makeit my daily business to listen to today’sconsumer - whether through traditionalmarket research or by talking to friends - tounderstand what insights drive theirdecisions, motivations and purchases.

When we listen we must also respond.Today’s consumers crave interaction. Fromensuring social media is an integral part ofa campaign to delivering apps on mobilephones, the most successful brands godirect to the consumer letting them knowthat they have been heard.

At Weber Shandwick, we are well beyondthe days of Show and Tell – showcasing theproduct and telling a story to the mediaand ultimately the consumer. Today’sapproach is about sharing that storydirectly with the consumer, piquing theirinterest in the idea and motivating them totake action.

RelevanceEarly on in my career, some of the bestcommunicators in the business remindedme of the importance of remainingrelevant. Whether you make a point ofwalking out of the office to experience thecity in which you live, or going online tocheck the latest news and blog postings,remaining relevant is no longer a ‘nice tohave.’ It’s a MUST.

I’m a working mother with two teenageddaughters, so it’s imperative for me tokeep on top of what my kids are listeningto, learning from and experiencing. Theyare brand junkies, even at 13 and 14 yearsold. Staying in tune with what is impactingour business and our clients’ businessesand leveraging those opportunities is whatwill yield the strongest partnerships.

Think outside local borders…but stay ‘INLINE’We must provide the best ideas, but wemust be receptive to how we share thoseideas. Media relations remains core to ourbusiness, but it must be positioned amongall the other channels, and integrated withthem to communicate with fresh newthinking.

However, not all social media channels areright for all brands. Some channels havemore ownership of your brand andmessaging. In essence it’s aboutdeveloping and nurturing the ‘sharablestory’ that the audience spreads virallythrough their networks.

At Weber Shandwick we are committed toensuring our clients find their niche andunderstand their consumer. While a digitalapproach is a core consideration for us,INLINE Communications dictates that wealign the message across all relevantchannels to ensure that we deliverconsistent, engaging content acrossmultiple media. The outcome: a fresh,meaningful, truly engaging and impactfulcommunications campaign.

Firm beliefMy firm belief is that we won't know if wedon't try. At some point we need to movefrom talking to putting our thinking togood practice. Tapping into pop cultureand current trends to create aconversation about our clients is one way,but when we take that leap of faith, spotthe next trend, trust our gut and thenground it in research and insight, we canhelp our partners get there first.

At Weber Shandwick, we are proud of thegreat work we do around the globe. Wecontinue to challenge ourselves toconnect in meaningful and authentic ways.We search for the insight that then informsgreat programmes and ultimately thegreatest connections.

Let’s always challenge ourselves and ourclients to explore the best in breed,whether it is ours or the product ofanother organisation. While the world maybe changing fast, at Weber Shandwicksome things stay constant. We remaincommitted to assembling the best teamfor each assignment and delivering thebest work.

We live in a constantly changingworld that moves at lightningspeed, where the latest Tweetbreaks news just like CNN. Fromthe shrinking of mainstreammedia to the evolution of citizenjournalism and blogs, we asprofessional communicatorsmust ride the new waves,transforming our business tohelp clients meet and exceedtheir goals.

The More Things Change.

Media relationsremains core to our business,but it must bepositioned among all theother channels.

Michelle McGlocklin Managing Director, Weber Shandwick Technology, UK and Chair, European Technology Practice

For any Copenhagen optimist, one keyelement of any deal on climate is thecontinued proliferation of technologiesand services that are broadly defined ascleantech. This category represents newtechnologies and business models thatprovide a dual return – securing a financialand an environmental dividend.For companies in this sector, providing lowcarbon and environmentally sensitivegoods and services, the businessopportunity is already apparent. The UKgovernment’s recent Low Carbon EconomyReport estimated the global market forsuch products at £3 trillion. This findingcomes on top of successive commitmentsby governments around the globe tocommit funding for clean technologies as aresponse to the recent economicdownturn, triggering a green-ledeconomic revival. ‘Green jobs’ are all therage.

It is estimated that if 20 per cent ofEurope’s energy could come fromrenewable sources this could provide inexcess of one million jobs by 2020.Europe’s cleantech sector is alreadydeveloping at a comparable rate to theglobal competition, particularly inrenewable technologies. Where Europelags behind is in venture capital funding.Recent estimates place total cleantechinvestment in Europe during 2008 at €900million against €1.8 billion in the UnitedStates.

For companies that provide technologiesor services that help address or mitigatethe impact of climate change, it’s essentialto understand the twin dynamics ofpolitical expediency and economicimperative. In short, this means thatcommunicating with one priority audienceat the expense of the others will not work.Unlike comparable start-ups or growthareas, companies in this sector need tofactor in the impact of industry, political,environmental campaign groups and otheropinion leaders on their business modelfrom day one.

For other sectors, the dislocation in theglobal financial markets has fundamentallydisrupted growth strategies andinvestment opportunities. Cleantech hasshown the strongest investor sentimentparticularly amongst “pure investors” whohave identified the opportunity to addresssustainability while simultaneously creatinglong-term value.

The other imperative from the outset ispolitical savvy. Copenhagen and the globalagenda on climate change reiterate howimportant this is for all governments. Thecrux of their needs is solutions. They needguidance and advice from cleantechcompanies to identify products andservices that work, and technologies thatare in the pipeline.

Finally, cleantech companies need to besmart industry players. If your potentialcustomers don’t understand your productoffer, the sales conversion rate is obviouslygoing to be lower. Weber Shandwick’sCleantech practice recently commissioneda report on industry uptake and adoptionof green technology products in Europe.Over half the organisations surveyedhighlighted a lack of information as theprinciple barrier to making cleantechchoices.

Encouragingly, 80 per cent of respondentsflagged that they had some form ofcleantech purchasing policy in place.

There’s a strong and growing take up ofcleantech products and services in Europe,and across the globe. The competitiveadvantage will clearly lie with companiesthat can communicate the benefits of theirproducts and services in a compelling wayto all the right audiences. The first step inthis communication journey is overcomingthe perceived price barrier aroundcleantech products and services bydemonstrating how solutions can createbottom line savings and other clearbusiness benefits.

The greatest challenge for cleantech isalso the greatest opportunity: theimperative of urgent action. Success willsurely come for cleantech companies thatcommunicate quickly, comprehensivelyand smartly. In the long run, being greenwill surely be easier than Kermit envisaged.But there’s still a long way to go.

For a copy of the Weber Shandwick report, entitled Come Clean, please visit the European Technology Practicewebsite here.

When Kermit the Frog lamentedthat “it’s not easy being green,”he could not have guessed howappropriate a warning he wassounding. As the world stands atthe crossroads of a ‘make orbreak’ climate summit inCopenhagen, the political andcorporate appetite for abreakthrough on tackling climatechange hangs in the balance.Can a deal be brokered that willachieve the necessary cut-through for the transition to alow carbon global economy thatvirtually every scientist nowregards as non-negotiable?What trade-offs can be securedthat do not render any globalagreement, like so many pastattempts, a step in the rightdirection but in reality nowherenear bold enough?

Come Clean.Can cleantech provide green shoots?

Brendan May Managing Director, Planet 2050

Meaningful. New. Productive. Exciting.

Strong. Rich. Challenging. Trusting.

Fulfilling. Genuine.

Good relationships are always rewarding.

Winning awards is great, but just as important to us is workingclosely with our clients to create powerful campaigns that reallydeliver. Our deep commitment to client service and creativity has led to Weber Shandwick being named Gold Medal Winnerby PRWeek’s 2009 Global Agency Report Card and recognisedas International Consultancy of the Year by PRWeek UK and theUK PRCA. Thank you to all of the clients and people across ourinternational network for their magnificent contribution to achallenging but extremely rewarding year. To find out moreabout award-winning PR, contact Colin Byrne, CEO UK & Europeon +44 (0)20 7067 0191 or cbyrne@webershandwick.com

www.webershandwick.com