Digital and social media

Oxfam’s Haiti scandal: Crisis PR guided by a moral compass

My local Oxfam shop, which had always seemed busy, closed down permanently recently. There was no link between this and the allegations of sexual misconduct against senior field workers in Haiti, but as a symbol it's striking. The alleged conduct in Haiti was repugnant, but the story as played out in...


What does it take to create a viral tweet?

If there was an obvious answer to this question then someone could no doubt make a fortune. Recent developments haven’t made this any clearer – as news broke this week that a tweet posted by a 16-year-old boy from Nevada has become the UK’s most retweeted of...


Feedback: the unsung hero of the directories process

Hot on the heels of the recent Legal 500 results, the Chambers UK 2018 rankings are due to be released on Wednesday 1st November. While many firms will celebrate good news stories through Twitter and joyous press releases, there will be firms less keen to herald their results. Of the 221...


How to avoid being part of a social media horror story

Halloween divides the population. There’s the group who live for it: loving the excuse to dress up, spending hours or even days preparing for their big night. There’s the half-hearted: a ripped Primark t-shirt and a dousing of fake blood and they’re away – they look ridiculous but they don’t...


Brands and banter on Twitter: recipe for disaster?

I'm sure over the summer holidays with all the family at home (or even worse in a hot car) there has been the occasional flare up. One such example of online bickering that the Daily Mirror thoughtfully summarised in this article, was an eye-catching Twitter row between the accounts of...


Twitter – it’s not for everyone

Sadly, homophobia is still a problem in the UK. However, it's not that often you come across a public figure openly and brazenly flouting the acceptance and openness for which British society has become so well known. In what must be the best recent example of just how much professional trouble...


Eddie, the Twitter saviour of Southern Rail

Southern Rail hasn't exactly covered itself in glory recently. From disgruntled commuters facing regular disruption to their daily travel, to the barrage of social media abuse and bad press coverage, public perceptions surrounding Southern Rail are pretty darn negative. Of course, the train operator could just find a way to resolve the...


British Airways chaos – how I became part of the story

Never become the story, runs a well-worn piece of advice to PR professionals. It's a rule I broke this week, with a syndicated quote appearing in 40 international news outlets, including the LA Times, Telegraph, Guardian, Evening Standard and the Washington Post. In my defence, I was speaking as a travelling...


What chicken nuggets can teach you about your social media strategy

What does it take to create a viral tweet? If there was an obvious answer to this question then someone could no doubt make a fortune. Recent developments haven’t made this any clearer - back in April this year a 16-year-old boy from Nevada posted a tweet that has recently...


What does Sheppard Mullin have in common with Beyoncé?

I'm heading over to Berlin this week to speak at the Alliott Group event about building your brand online. Recently, I wrote about Beyoncé and how her distinctive social media strategy works for her (you can read that blog here) – but, perhaps unexpectedly, there is also an example far closer to...