Is most PR material irrelevant? It would seem so, according to this story from Hold the Front Page, itself reporting the preliminary findings of a survey on the changing nature of press releases by former newspaperman turned post-grad, Iain Fleming.
Fleming’s survey can be found here. As you can see, he’s studying for a post-graduate diploma in public relations at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh. Hold the Front Page’s snippet on the interim results makes for worrying reading for some – though not all – in the PR sector:
Early results have shown that half the respondents consider less than 10% of the content delivered to them by the commercial PR sector is relevant and that two-thirds of them want to receive less such material.
Other findings revealed that 80% of journalists regard ‘follow-up calls’ to check if a press release has been received as attempts to pressure them into using the story.
The futility of the practice is highlighted by more than half of editorial staff admitting to telling PR callers their press release has been received, even if it has not.
Assiduous PRs, take heed. That follow-up call may do more harm than good. But flippancy aside, we bring you the results of another survey, commissioned by a leading newspaper executive and focusing on the changing nature of the media. Startingly, it found that most readers regard online surveys as a waste of time, and revealed that:
1. More than two-thirds of people who complete online surveys do so because they are either bored or need a break from their work;
2. 75% of people who complete online surveys make up their answers ‘to see what will happen’; and
3. 98% of online surveys are consigned to oblivion within three hours of their publication.
Online surveyors, beware. That survey may be less reliable than you think.
Pictured: garden shoes by giamarie. A follow up call confirmed what an online survey revealed – that the image is nice and colourful, but has no relevance to this post.
Whilst we’re on the topic of polls, readers might like to see this gem – an online campaign that forced the Daily Mail to shut down a loaded poll on their website: http://blogs.journalism.co.uk/editors/2009/06/20/twitterers-claim-victory-over-loaded-daily-mail-gypsy-poll/
So Farewell, then, Sir Fred Goodwin.
Now you are just Fred.
Not Right Said Fred, but plain Fred.
The Forfeiture Committee did for you.
No one had heard of it before,
But Dave said it had to act, and it did.
Trouble is that no one knows what to think.
Is it ‘Alas, poor Fred‘,
Or ‘Hurray! Sir Fred is dead!’?
We don’t know.
Do you?
By A. Mob, aged 1,378 and a half.
STOP PRESS:
Fed up with being stuck on the Thames in south-east England, London yesterday decided to move. In a dramatic gesture which augurs ill for the Olympics, the city upped sticks and relocated to East Anglia.
Lawyers were not consulted about the move, and the city’s precise motivation remains unclear. However, financiers fear that London’s decision is a sign that it wishes to downsize. Moreover, a source from London said: “We no longer want to be Britain’s seat of power. If the Scots can deregulate, why can’t we? East Anglia is a nice place where nothing happens. It’s time for a quiet life. Please respect our right to privacy.”
Elsewhere, Birmingham did not do anything, but Manchester was seen to be packing its bags. “There’s an opportunity for us,” said Manchester. “We can become London.”
East Anglia said: “We don’t mind. It’ll be refreshing to be associated with something other than fens and flatness.”
A cartologist at CNN, which broke the extraordinary news, was later fired.
We seem to be visually led this week but sometimes words proliferate far too much and letting an image do the talking is no bad thing. That’s another way of saying that ACCESS Agency’s work with Lego is absolutely top drawer.
Is there a geek inside all of us?
Excellent Nike ad
Memo to would-be hacks: good writing is no longer a tool of your trade
Released almost a year ago, Spada’s groundbreaking research report, British Professions Today, is available for free download
This bank is so well designed that many of its staff never go home (allegedly)
In the latest of our series of white papers, Spada Research examines trends in environmental reporting.
After a raft of phone-hacking admissions and allegations, we are no longer seen as the gruff but dependable watchdog. Neville Thurlbeck, formerly of the News of the World (part of his Damascene conversion; to be continued).