FAME IS THE SPUR

WHEN EVERYONE'S DISCUSSING IT, A BRAND ATTAINS CELEBRITY STATUS IN ITS OWN RIGHT. THAT'S THE BEAUTY OF POSITIVE NEWS COVERAGE, SAYS CLARION COMMUNICATIONS' CHIEF EXECUTIVE

BY GARY FREEMANTLE

Just like celebrities, a brand that can make the news positively has genuine power and currency

As a PR agency we offer many services, from crisis management to brand reputation building - but the one which excites clients the most is news generation. Getting their brand talked about (positively of course) on the news pages, on TV, on the radio or online – or preferably all of these. PRs and marketers alike love it.

But are we right to love it? 

PRs In London Need A Short Sharp Slap

Gary Freemantle, CEO, Clarion Communications

I could just leave it at that I suppose, and there'd be a few nods of general agreement. But what I'm referring to is the ‘London bubble’: walk down any central London street of an early evening and you'll find people spilling out of pubs, even on a Monday (and don't even attempt to buy a pint on a Friday). Try to book a fancy restaurant for a celebration and they can probably squeeze you in at 6pm on a Tuesday in November if you vacate the table by 6.30 AND leave a 90% deposit. Because of course London is a country within a country, an international mega-city still increasing in global popularity, fuelled by the City and by massive investment from prosperous countries around the world.

Fab or Farcical?

Gary Freemantle, CEO, Clarion Communications

So since mid-April, BBC Breakfast has been broadcasting from MediaCityUK in Salford.  BBC Children’s, Sport and Radio 5 Live are also - or soon will be - at the shiny new offices, which along with other departments will bring numbers of BBC staff at the site to a massive 2,300.

Another Week, Another Award...

By Gary Freemantle, CEO, Clarion Communications, part of the WPP Group.

Winner of Consumer PR Agency of the Year and Highly Commended Business/Trade Advertising Agency of the Year at the The Grocer Marketing, Advertising & PR Awards.

I'm proud to say Clarion was awarded Consumer PR Agency of the Year at last night's The Grocer Marketing, Advertising & PR Awards which recognises creativity and business excellence in the FMCG industry. We were also awarded Highly Commended as Business/Trade Advertising Agency, which demonstrates our breadth of skills.

The Most Prestigious PR Awards in the UK

Gary Freemantle, CEO, Clarion Communications, A WPP PR Agency

Winner of 'Campaign of the Year' & 'Live PR Event' at PR Week Awards 2011

I am proud to say that Clarion won the top award at last night's PR Week Awards, the PR industry's 'Oscars'. In front of 1,200 of our peers we collected the Campaign Of The Year Award, presented by host Alastair Campbell, former No10 comms director. Commenting on the winning campaign 'Lakeside's Living Christmas Fairy' the chairman of the judges DJ Collins, VP public policy and comms at Google, said "The best ideas are the simplest ones and this was a great example of how an idea reduced down to its core will shine".

PR Leads to Trust, Leads to Sales

Gary Freemantle, CEO, Clarion Communications

Imagine the scene: an all-agency meeting with the client to discuss the next steps for Brand X.  The client is edgy – the economic climate is dire and he, or she, is under increased pressure to deliver on sales targets.  Each agency is being pressed harder than ever to defend their territory and prove that their discipline will make a real impact on sales…