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Luxury travel brand Cunard has appointed Samsung’s Rachel Lloyd as head of PR.
Lloyd will be responsible for driving the company’s PR and social media strategy globally. She will report to Angus Struthers, Cunard’s marketing director.
Otherwise, the current global PR team for Cunard will remain unchanged. Michael Gallagher and Ruth Harrington will report to Lloyd.
Struthers said: “As head of PR, Rachel has a global remit to really drive our communications – particularly with the luxury and lifestyle media. Rachel will play a key role in Cunard’s marketing team as we implement our campaign to support the remastering of the company’s flagship, Queen Mary 2.”
Lloyd said: “It is a real privilege to be leading the PR efforts to heighten awareness of such an iconic British brand and at a pivotal time for the company. There is a huge opportunity in the travel sector for those who understand the opportunities that PR provides in brand-building and business growth in the future.”
During Lloyd’s time at Samsung, she was responsible for delivering multiple award winning campaigns and leading the communications to promote Samsung’s sponsorship of the London 2012 Olympic Games. Lloyd has also worked with Hewlett-Packard and airport operator BAA.
Airline group Monarch has appointed David Page as its new group head of communications.
Page’s brief covers internal and external communications and CSR.
He will report to chief people officer Pauline Prow.
Page joins from consumer and corporate PR agency Freuds where, over a three-year period, he was business director on its Mars and Asda Walmart accounts. His previous roles include business director of the Danone account at Burson-Marsteller.
Prow said: “David brings a wealth of communications experience, knowledge and insight to the company and we know that he will be a great asset to the group.”
Page added: “Monarch is an established player in a progressive and dynamic industry. I’m delighted that I’ll be part of its future and look forward to playing a key role in addressing the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.”
Corporate and financial PR agency Temple Bar Advisory is working for Upham Group, a pub operator with its own craft brewery, as it plans to raise up to £12m through an AIM listing.
Today Upham announced its intention to float in a bid to raise funds to grow its pub portfolio.
It currently manages a portfolio of 15 high quality pubs, 13 of which it owns, principally in Hampshire, Berkshire and Surrey. It has opened four new pubs in the past 12 months, and the Group aims to double the size of the estate to 30 pubs in the medium term, subject to funding.
Upham Brewery, located in Hampshire, brews three regular ales, Punter, Tipster, and Stakes; nine seasonal ales, and supplies approximately 300 local pubs. It also sells its beer in bottles through Majestic, Co-Op and Tesco.
Temple Bar was appointed in early March following a competitive pitch process. Its team consists of partners Tom Allison and Ed Orlebar, supported by account executive Alycia MacAskill.
Chris Phillips, CEO of Upham, said: “We have ambitious expansion plans, and see a wealth of opportunities around our existing locations, principally in Hampshire, Berkshire, and Surrey. Upham’s highly skilled and dedicated team provides a fantastic service, and has created a loyal customer base. We are very much looking forward to the exciting next chapter in Upham’s history.”
Digital marketing and PR firm Threepipe has won a competitive pitch to develop a social strategy to promote Fire! Fire!, the Museum of London‘s next major exhibition which will mark the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire of London.
Fire! Fire! will run from 23 July 2016 – 17 April 2017 and all visitors to experience an “interactive and immersive” exhibition telling the story of the fire and the destruction it wrought.
Threepipe has been tasked to develop a year-long programme to engage UK families, schools and influencers to generate conversations about the exhibition. It will also develop and implement a digital strategy to drive ticket sales.
Andrew Marcus, Museum of London head of communications, commented: “It is crucial that our communications are impactful, well-targeted and as vibrant as London itself, whether it be on paid, owned or earned media. Threepipe impressed us with its understanding of our business, strategic thinking and its experience of creative social campaigns.”
Jim Hawker, co-founder of Threepipe, added: “We are big fans of the Museum of London. So we are delighted to be working on such a high profile exhibition which has so much interesting content to share across social channels.”
Threepipe specialises in PR, digital, social and content services. An independent agency with 60 employees, the firm’s current clients include Cancer Research UK, Sweaty Betty, and Sport England.
The fully interactive new pop up will host a cocktail bar, live performances, and a selection of South London’s finest street food this summer.
MCPR has also announced two recent client wins. After representing Elton John and the Rocket Group, MCPR will now handle press and comms for the Elton John AIDS Foundation. It also recently picked up Dumi Oburota and Tinie Tempah’s boutique 360 entertainment company Disturbing London, where it will manage trade press as well as brand and talent activation PR.
Murray Chalmers, MD of MCPR, said: “We’re really excited to be working with the Elton John Aids Foundation, Disturbing London and Brixton Beach Boulevard. These new client wins and the recruitment of a junior publicist signify a time of growth for our brands and events division, and an expansion of our business in general.”
The firm is in the process of hiring the junior publicist who will support brand and events campaigns across the music, entertainment and lifestyle sectors.
Lottie Lander, head of brands and events at MCPR, will handle the three new accounts and report to Sarah Henderson, director, and Chalmers.
Murray Chalmers PR was founded in 2008 to focus on PR for musical artists. Since 2011, it has expanded into media and event services. The agency’s current brands and events roster include the NME Awards with Austin Texas, Letters Live, Attitude Awards, MAMA & Co’s Citadel Festival and Wahaca’s Day of the Dead Festival.
City Hypnosis, a therapy clinic based in Chancery Lane, London, has appointed PHA Media to launch a comprehensive new PR campaign titled ‘Changing Perceptions’.
The agency will also manage City Hypnosis’ social media accounts, as well as run its press office day-to-day.
City Hypnosis offers alternative treatment for conditions including phobias, addictions, sexual health, unwanted habits and weight loss. It was established in 2001 by director and therapist Aaron Surtees (pictured).
Surtees said: “We’re really excited to be working with PHA Media as they share our enthusiastic attitude towards wanting to challenge pre-conceived opinions of hypnotherapy. It’s vital that we inform consumers that hypnosis is a valid form of treatment for a range of different conditions, and we believe PHA Media are the team to help us do that.”
PHA Media specialises in integrated PR and digital services for crisis and reputation management, sports, fashion, health and business.
“We’re absolutely thrilled to be working with City Hypnosis,” said Sarah Sharp, account director at PHA Media. “The clinic and its success rate proves how popular alternative therapies are becoming for the treatment of various health issues. The PHA team will lead a fully integrated campaign which will build on the success City Hypnosis has already had.”
A new fundraising regulator for the charity sector has appointed Pagefield on comms and press office support ahead of its launch later in the year.
The Fundraising Regulator, which has appointed Michael Grade as interim chair, has asked the agency to provide its press office function and is set to begin operations in the early summer.
Craig Westwood, partner at Pagefield, will lead the account.
Westwood said: “The new Fundraising Regulator has been established to strengthen the system of charity regulation and to restore public trust in fundraising. Pagefield has broad experience in the charity sector to bring to this fascinating and important brief; we are greatly looking forward to working with the Fundraising Regulator and to playing a role in rebuilding donor confidence.”
Missed out on this week’s PR News? Get your handy round-up of the essential highlights of PR and media stories, features and events content over the last seven days on Gorkana News.
Pitch Wins
Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts has chosen HSE Cake as its retained global PR agency, following a four-way competitive pitch.
Credit comparison site TotallyMoney.com has brought in Citypress as its retained PR agency, with a brief to raise the profile of the brand among consumers.
Global digital marketing company Criteo has appointed Nelson Bostock Unlimited as its UK PR agency, following a competitive pitch.
Global property consultancy JLL has hired Farrer Kane to help build the profile of its corporate solutions team across a range of targeted sectors.
Manchester-based PR agency Carousel has been handed a PR and social media brief to launch the first Digital Kids Show, which takes place in October.
The BIG Partnership has been briefed by Glasgow Science Centre to help promote the scientific institution and the benefits of science to a range of audiences over the coming year.
People News
Noreena Hertz
Weber Shandwick has partnered with economist, author and honorary professor at UCL Noreena Hertz to explore how brands engage with ‘Generation K’.
Caroline Blainey, advertising industry veteran and former senior art director at the Guardian, has joined Unity as creative director.
Red deputy editor Saska Graville has been named director of consumer lifestyle at Ketchum London.
Racepoint Global has enhanced its tech practice team with the appointment of Nelson Bostock Unlimited’s Jenna Keighley as vice president.
CNC Communications & Network Consulting, a member of MSLGROUP, has made two strategic hires in its London office with the appointment of Richard Rigby and Riku Heikkila, who join as consultant and senior associate, respectively.
FleishmanHillard Fishburn has appointed MHP’s former MD and head of global health, John Gisborne, as MD of its healthcare team.
Agency News
The Effect PR team
Burson-Marsteller has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Turkish comms agency Effect PR.
A management team at global comms consultancy Infinite Spada, led by co-founder Jamie Diaferia, has acquired co-founder Gavin Ingham Brooke’s majority shareholding for an undisclosed sum.
News coverage drives charity campaigns finds Gorkana survey Gorkana’s first Charity Attitudes Benchmarking Survey shows how positive and negative media coverage can affect charity campaign success and, in particular, how positive media coverage can influence people to make donations.
White Paper
Crisis comms in the evolving media landscape Crisis comms is facing more challenges than ever as the media landscape continues to fragment and transform. PRs are expected to respond at a fraction of the time they have had to in the past and be up-to-date with the all the latest digital platforms to ensure messages get to the right audiences at the right time.
In this White Paper, we hear from crisis experts at a range of businesses and agencies, including TUI Group, Burson-Marsteller, Weber Shandwick and Launch PR, on how to plan and prepare. In addition, we hear exclusively from Moonpig on what it is like to be in eye of the storm as the e-tailer reacted to its recent crisis challenge on Mother’s Day and shares the lessons it has learnt.
Journalist News
Miles Johnson has been appointed global investment editor at the Financial Times. He was previously hedge funds correspondent at the national title.
Metro UK has today launched a new Eat & Drink section celebrating London’s bar and restaurant scene. It will feature news, updates, reviews, interviews with chefs, new drink trends, dates for the diary and more.
BBC Radio 5 live’schief political correspondent, John Pienaar, has been appointed deputy political editor of BBC News. He will continue to contribute to the radio station and present his weekly show, Pienaar’s Politics, at 10am on Sundays.
The Sunday Times’Style magazine’s deputy beauty editor, Sarah Jossel, has been promoted to beauty editor.
Kiss 100 producer Adam K has been appointed as a producer for Capital London.
Features
PR Case Study: #directfix When car and household insurance company Direct Line wanted to enhance its “fixing” proposition, Unity took on the challenge to see just what the company could fix. With Longford AFC labelled the “worst football team in Britain”, the agency launched a #directfix campaign with the help of England football legend Stuart Pearce to see what could be done for the ailing team.
Gorkana meets… Metro Features Desk
With the launch of a new daily Eat & Drink section in today’s (21 April) Metro UK, commissioning editor (features) Jenny Stallard talks to Gorkana’s Caleb Greenland about the free paper’s newest content, the growth of dating features and why there’s sure to be a raccoon café in Shoreditch some day soon.
60 seconds with EM CEO Tom Blackwell Tom Blackwell, CEO at EM, on why there is no such thing as a ‘dull mandate’ in Russia, his admiration for Alibaba’s Jack Ma and the challenge of finding the right cheese.
Gorkana meets… Risk.net Duncan Wood, editor-in-chief of Risk.net, talks to Gorkana’s Niall Davies about structural changes within the title, his new role and how PRs can pitch to him and the Risk.net “desks”.
Preena Gadher
Behind the Headlines with Riot co-founder Preena Gadher
Preena Gadher, co-founder and co-MD of arts and culture specialist agency Riot Communications, on her days of being like Charlie Bucket, what got her “hooked on” the publicity game and why you should never use age as a guide to ability.
Gorkana’s first Charity Attitudes Benchmarking Survey shows how positive and negative media coverage can affect charity campaign success and, in particular, how positive media coverage can influence people to make donations.
Gorkana’s survey examines how media coverage of charities affects public perception and what guarantees campaign success. The manner in which charities are covered is of high importance to those surveyed as 51% of the 1000 people who responded stated that negative coverage of a charity would ‘definitely’ affect their decision to donate to a charity. Some 47% said it ‘might’ affect their decision to donate and only 7% said it would not affect their decision.
Positive media coverage in online news, broadcast media and press, in particular, was most likely to influence respondents to donate to a charity with 39% stating this is why they did so compared to 18% for social media, 17% for advertising offline and 11% for online campaigns.
When it comes to demographics, however, there were quite a few differences in what influenced people to donate. Positive mainstream coverage was more likely to make men donate than women, as 44% of men said this would make them donate over 35% of women. Social coverage was most influential amongst those who earn an income of £10-20k and advertising offline has the biggest influence of those earning over £40k.
The different sectors where charities operate that people most recall seeing coverage from are: children’s (35% of respondents), cancer (28%), animals (25%) and humanitarian/relief at 22%.
Sara Morad, information and public affairs officer at Muslim Aid, describes how importance of public trust in charity makes positive media coverage vital for charities.
She said: “Charities generally require a level of trust from the public that exceeds the level required in any other sector. As the public do not receive tangible products or services that can be witnessed first-hand, feedback, communication and positive media coverage are heavily relied on in the industry.”
In addition, she adds that the nature of the work of charities makes this challenging: “It is very difficult to avoid negative coverage in the sector due to the nature of the work carried out. The best way to counter negative coverage is to be as transparent as possible with the public and to share the benefits of the work being done through case studies, for example. This helps the public develop an understanding of the importance of charitable work and the hugely positive impact it has.”
With access to 4.5 million potential respondents, Gorkana gives you the ability to shape your communications strategy quickly and accurately by conducting instant, cost-effective surveys and poll a representative sample of the UK population.
To find out more about surveys, Gorkana’s Charity Attitudes Benchmarking Survey and the monthly Gorkana Charity Barometer, which helps charities and agencies benchmark media activity in the sector, please contact [email protected].
Sunfly Karaoke, provider of karaoke hardware and music tracks, has appointed Quite Great to handle its communications.
In addition to handling Sunfly’s PR, Quite Great will support the company in launching an innovative new streaming service to allow users to access Sunfly’s karaoke library via their tablets, smartphones and TVs.
Established in 1991, Sunfly holds a catalogue of 14,000 karaoke songs. Its offering includes tracks available for download, streaming, or CD purchase, alongside a range of hardware products including microphones.
Poppy Ballard, head of client strategy at Quite Great, will lead the account supported by account manager Zoe Colegate and account executive Ellie Thompson.
Dan Maidstone, head of development at Sunfly Karaoke, said: “It is a very exciting year for us, every home in the country will now be able to enjoy karaoke in a way they have never done before. We are delighted to have Quite Great on board. They are creative and enthusiastic with a wealth of history in the entertainment industry – for us it is a great match.”
Quite Great’s clients have ranged from famous musical artists, including Mick Jagger, Paul Simon and Mariah Carey, to media brands, such as Macmillan, Sky, and Virgin.
