Stories by Hayley Jennings

Healthy fast-food chain Pret A Manger is in hot water after reports on Oct. 7 that another customer died from an allergic reaction to a Pret food item, making this the second account of an allergen-related death at the chain within the past two years. The brand seems to be reacting correctly, though.

A good infographic can help any company engage with its audience and provide information in a compelling way. Infographics can help nonprofits in particular increase interest in their cause as well as lead to an upsurge in donations. Here we share an infographic to show why the medium can be so impactful specifically for nonprofit organizations.

Blogs can be an excellent way for brands to connect with audiences, but tying them back to business objectives can be difficult. This infographic provides a step by step process for creating compelling blog posts that will take your content from good to great.

Any communicator worth their salt knows that video is one of the best ways to engage with audiences, but it’s not as simple as it seems. What platform should your video appear on to reach your target demographics? Are most of your consumers accessing video on desktop or mobile? Is pre-recorded or live video the better option for the product or topic you plan to discuss? 16best, a buyers’ guide and reviewing website that analyzes marketing campaigns in its reviews, knows that while video is a must in marketing in 2018, there’s a lot more that goes into brands using marketing than just shooting, editing and uploading. So it created an infographic about how brands are using video in their marketing strategies, and how consumers react to it.

If you’re feeling like there is a new business crisis in the news every day, you’re not wrong. There were more than 800,000 crises reported in the media globally in 2017, and that number has continued to grow. So it’s more important than ever for brands to think about crisis not in terms of if one will happen, but when. Responding to a crisis is really about preparing ahead of time, so make sure you have a robust plan in place so that you can handle anything that comes your way.

Each year, PR News recognizes outstanding achievements in communications and marketing at its Platinum PR Awards luncheon. The 2018 event, hosted at the Grand Hyatt in New York City on Sept. 21, saw nearly 500 top brand and agency communicators come together to celebrate the accomplishments of their colleagues in the previous year.

A key factor in recruiting and maintaining a fulfilled and productive workforce is good internal communications throughout the company. An engaged employee, who feels that their company is keeping them informed and prioritizing their well-being, is a happy employee. But how many businesses are actually making internal communications a priority? Not as many as there should be, according to a recent infographic from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., a risk management, insurance and consulting firm.

The 70th annual Primetime Emmy awards talked the talk about increasing diversity on television and Hollywood at large, but did not walk the walk. Despite numerous jokes and skits poking fun at the traditional snubbing of people of color in the entertainment industry, and the most diverse group of nominees in the history of the program, 22 of the 26 award winners were white.

Imagine this: Your company has an exciting new product, service or achievement to share, and you’ve been tasked with writing a press release to get the word out to the media. You’ve taken your time, carefully curating the proper information and crafting the release with painstaking precision. Finally, it’s ready, you’ve released it to the press, and…crickets. Perhaps it’s time to switch up your strategy.

As Hurricane Florence makes its way towards the U.S. Eastern seaboard, officials are urging residents of coastal North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia to evacuate before the storm makes landfall. But, as with all with major storms, some people just won’t listen. Communicators across government agencies and political offices alike must contend with skepticism, fear and just plain stubbornness from constituents when making announcements about hurricane preparedness and evacuation.