Landscape

You can learn a lot about what other people admire and what they are proud of.

As an experiment, I asked comms people in a Facebook group I’m admin of the two questions.

The answers were compelling, fascinating and illuminating.

Sometimes people aren’t always keen to shout about the things they do but are happy to applaud things they may see.

I think we should always be proud to celebrate the good work we do as comms people.

For a long time I’ve argued that PR is actually pretty bad at its own PR.

The first step on the road to tackling that is to stand tall and be proud of the things that we do.

If we can’t be proud how the heck do you think other people will respect what we do as a sector?

We should all be proud of making a difference in what we and what others do.

What are you proud of?

“Being involved with an animation which helps women and men going through the abortion process. Now adopted in four other countries including Ireland soon, which is a really big deal for me.” – Leanne Hughes.

“I was part of the team that launched the #CitizenGirl project for Girlguiding Scotland which is all about encouraging girls to learn about politics and use their voice now and in their futures. One year on, I still see lots of girls with their Citizen Girl badges on their uniforms and it gives me all the feels every time.” – Mairi Gordon.

“Asking myself if I am making a difference to communities I can serve, help or improve in the best way possible. If it is, then that work is what I am proudest of.” – David Grindlay. 

 “I think the thing I’m most proud of is the brand we’ve built over the last decade or more, its coherence, consistency, and creativity, and the genuine sense of pride and belonging, both at a place level, and an organisation level, that it has contributed to.” – Polly Czoik. 

“Social media-led rape prevention campaign for Thames Valley Police getting the message through worldwide, being mentioned by the Incredible Hulk – Mark Ruffalo –  and used by the Chicago Tribune to bash Donald Trump’s idiotic claim integrated armed forces is reason for rape.” – Victoria Caddy.

“When you get feedback at how your comms helped people or they enjoyed your joke on social media.” – Nartari Venning.

What do you most admire?

“Comms colleagues who retain a sense of humour and help each other surf the silliness with kindness, expertise and a sense of self. Also creativity. Always.” – Claire Robson.

“People based deep within council services who appreciate the value of taking the time to look into difficult enquiries that my team gets from time to time on social media.” – Nick Moore.

“Brands and organisations who get that narrative and human-interest are the key to engagement and place them at the heart of their strategies.” – Eimar Fitzpatrick.

“I admire the diligent colleagues scheduling posts, testing ads, fighting for sign off against all odds and answering social media messages at 11pm – because they care. Superstars with hearts of gold.” – Rachel King.

“The willingness of the people I work with to go the extra mile in all corners of the council, but especially the lovely comms people.” – Mary Willis.

Thank you to the members of the Public Sector Headspace Facebook group for contributing to this post.

Picture credit: Flickr / US National Archives.

 

Original source – The Dan Slee Blog » LOCAL SOCIAL: Is it time for a Local localgovcamp?

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