Stories by Nicole Schuman

Earth Day may have come and gone, but businesses like Pandora and Eleven Madison Park are taking what used to be a once-a-year acknowledgement and committing to sustainability in their day-to-day activities. 

While some executives believe banning political discussion can protect workers and create a more productive environment, employees and consumers may disagree.

PRNEWS welcomed Julie Ulrich, Idaho National Labs communications strategist, to discuss recent communications campaigns promoting a diverse and engaged workforce.

There are plenty of reasons for communicators to celebrate Earth Day this year. More companies are including conservation and sustainability in their corporate culture. In addition, media is hiring more full-time journalists to cover the environment. There are many ways to make sustainability stories more attractive to them and their audiences.

With cannabis legal in a growing number of states, it’s no longer surprising to see pot products and messaging within the mainstream. 

 While we lack data on it, we’ll guess that with so many employees working from home since the start of the pandemic, the already-sparse scheduling of desktop crisis drills has contracted even more. One of the characteristics of crisis is an uncanny ability to arrive according to its schedule, not yours. As a result, a PR crisis strikes when the CEO is in a remote part of China negotiating a deal or the COO is on a ski vacation in Aspen and has gone off the grid. As such, the most realistic crisis-readiness exercises, pre-pandemic and now, were and are conducted with staff situated in various locations.

PRNEWS Live welcomed Jenan Matari, director of accounts at Victory Public Relations. Jenan discussed inclusive messaging, recent campaigns to promote Ramadan and the importance of marketing to the Muslim population.

PR pros and the media face a critical situation. They must get the J&J vaccine narrative right, informing the public about risks while not inducing undue concern and spurring more vaccine anxiety. It’s also an opportunity for government, the medical community and media to regain public trust.

For many stuck at home in 2020, social media provided one of the only ways to continue exploring the outside world. According to a report by Hootsuite and We Are Social, social media usage increased by 13 percent this past year. It should come as no surprise that new research by Sprout Social shows that 91 percent of executives anticipate their social budget will continue to increase over the next three years. Nearly half expect to bump spending by 100 percent. 

Along with what you say, how you say it, or tone of voice, helps establish a public perception. Tone can be critical during a PR crisis.