Taking Crisis Communication training to a new level with iPad

What do you do when the media is hammering at your door for a comment and all you want to do is hide? How will blogs, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social media networks make your job harder? And is it possible to talk yourself out of trouble?


These are questions Darwin based public relations agency Creative Territory is helping local companies answer through its new crisis communication workshops using iPads.

Recovery was developed by Creative Territory to help organisations work through the steps of a crisis without actually getting their fingers burned.

Creative Territory Managing Director Tracy Jones says the new training module is like a create your own adventure for crisis communication.

“We put participants through a simulated crisis with the iPad, allowing them to make choices about how to deal with the communication challenges that come along,” she said.

Recovery uses expert facilitators and iPad-based consoles to provide a safe environment in which participants can learn about how a crisis develops, grows and can be managed.

Drawing on Creative Territory’s extensive experience in dealing with major issues and crises here in the Territory, Recovery is the only crisis communication simulation that takes the special needs of the Territory into account.

It is an Australian first, using an iPad interface to take you through a crisis scenario, the end of which is determined by the decisions you make along the way.

For more information on Recovery contact Tracy at Creative Territory on 8941 9169.

Tracy Jones honored with President's Award

Creative Territory Managing Director Tracy Jones was honoured with the President's Award at the annual Public Relations Institute of Australia Golden Target awards last night.

The awards were announced in conjunction with the National Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA) annual conference, which is being held in Darwin for the first time this week.

The President's Award recognises outstanding service to the PRIA and its President.

Tracy has been a member of the National Board of the PRIA since 2004 and is the current National Treasurer. She served for two years as National President until 2009.

For more information about the Golden Target Awards winners, see
http://www.pria.com.au/blog/id/996

Creative Territory's Jeannette Button honoured by PRIA

Creative Territory’s Jeannette Button will be inducted as a fellow of the Public Relations Institute of Australia tonight.


Fellowship is one of the highest honours bestowed on a member of the institute.

The induction ceremony comes just days after Jeannette was elected President of the NT Division of the PRIA.

Creative Territory’s managing director Tracy Jones said the team was proud of Jeannette’s achievements and wish her well as she now carries out duties at a national level.

“Jeannette is one of the Territory’s most senior and experienced public relations professionals and a role model for others,” Tracy said.

“She has chaired the National Conference Committee that arranged this week’s PRIA national conference, which is being held in Darwin for the first time."

Solar campaigns win PR awards

Campaigns to encourage Alice Springs residents to sign up to solar power have been honoured with State Awards for Excellence by the Public Relations Institute of Australia presented in Darwin last night.

The campaigns for Alice Solar City were planned and implemented by Creative Territory.

“Alice Solar City is changing the way central Australian residents live and work by harnessing the power of the sun,” Creative Territory Managing Director Tracy Jones said.

“It’s a great initiative and we’re proud to have been part of its success.”

Tracy and Laurelle Halford won a Gold award for the overall Energy Champions campaign. Laurelle also won a Highly Commended award for 100 Days of Solar, a campaign to convince 100 Alice Springs residents to install hot water systems in 100 days.

“Alice Solar City was Creative Territory’s very first client when we started four-and-half years ago, so these awards are special to us,” Tracy said.

Tracy also congratulated other Northern Territory award winners, the Michels Warren Munday team for the campaign Support NT Caught on behalf of the NT Seafood Council and Eleanor Sheppard from the Department of Education and Training for Recruiting Quality Teachers to Deliver Quality Education.

All NT award winners go into the national Golden Target Awards to be announced in Darwin next week.

GRIND Youth Website Wins Internet Best Practice Award

Darwin City Council’s youth website GRIND has won the 2010 Australia and New Zealand Internet Best Practice Awards in the Best Youth Initiative category. GRIND was also a finalist in the Best Access Initiative Category.


GRIND has many purposes. It aims to be a positive website that is genuinely "by youth for youth". It provides a supported vehicle for a youth voice, promotes the positive contribution that young people make in our community, provides an outlet for youth culture and expression and debunks the negative stereotypes so often portrayed in mainstream media of young people.

GRIND, one of Council’s key projects, presents and coordinates diverse activities such as large scale music gigs, skills workshops and youth community consultations.

The entire production of GRIND from running team meetings, design of the site, editing, interviewing and administration is undertaken by the GRIND youth team with support from Council's Youth Services. All decisions relating to the running and production of the website are made by the GRIND youth team. Visit the site: http://www.grindonline.com.au/

“I would like to congratulate those involved in the GRIND website, one of Council’s key youth projects. Too often these days, young people receive bad press – GRIND is an excellent way to showcase and demonstrate to the Darwin community and on a national level just how vibrant, creative and active these young people are,” Lord Mayor Graeme Saywer.

This recognition continues to showcase Council's excellence in providing high quality websites. In August Darwin City Council’s website scored the highest rating in an independent website usability study by 600 people of Australia’s capital city council websites.

Why every retail and hospitality business needs to get on to Foursquare

By Tracy Jones

There’s a revolution going on in the social media world that will change the way retail and hospitality businesses interact with the public – Foursquare.

And anyone who thinks they can ignore this platform like all other social media networks should think again – your business is probably already on it.

Foursquare is essentially a tool that allows people to mark places on an electronic map and post comments about them. Using mobile phones, users can “check in” to these places and share their views with the world.

The places people tend to mark are shops, restaurants, cafes, hotels and entertainment and tourist venues.

What makes Foursquare different from other social networks is its ability to locate nearby places and tell you in full detail what other people think of them – good and bad.

Here’s how it works. If you stand in the middle of Smith Street Mall and log into Foursquare using your mobile phone, the application brings up a list of places nearby including cafes, apartments, hotels and bars.

Now click on the “Tips” and you’ll get a list of what people think about these places. Here are a couple of real examples (without the names of the venues):

• “The banana spring rolls are tremendous.”
• “Not a fan of the prices here.”
• “One of the best restaurants in Darwin.”
• “Try the rice noodle soup with crispy chicken … delish.”
• “Girl at the front desk is rude.”
• “Avoid this place like it’s on fire.”

My bet is that 90 per cent of the Darwin businesses listed on Foursquare now have no idea they are there, let alone what people are saying about them.

If you’re not convinced about the value of being on Foursquare yet, here are four good reasons you should reconsider:

1. Go viral: If one person checks in to your business, they share the news with 50 or more friends on Facebook and Twitter. If 10 people check in, that’s 500. You can do the maths…

2. Get honest customer feedback: If someone checks in and loves your steak burger, you’ll find out straight away, along with all their friends. Conversely, if someone hates your schnitzel, everyone will find out. But at least you can do something about it.

3. Offer special discounts to people nearby: You can check out Foursquare places that are close to you and see if they have any special offers for anyone who checks in. Curve Café at Darwin Waterfront offers a “buy a drink and get a drink for a friend” for every second check-in. Worth a visit.

4. Reward your loyal customers: Get a loyalty program without the expensive set-up costs. Offer a free meal for every 10th check-in to your business. It’s easier to keep existing customers than to find new ones.

Students on track to complete house construction in just three days

After one day on the job young construction trainees at Marrara Christian College are on track to build a house in just three days.

Students from the College’s Fabrication and Construction Trade Training Centre – which includes 65 per cent Indigenous students – have installed the walls, floors and roof trusses on the revolutionary wooden flat-pack house.

Marrara Christian College Trade Training Centre Manager Richard Hart said the shell of the house will be complete at the end of day two.

“Today the students will concentrate on completing the ceiling and start on installing some windows,” Mr Hart said.

“The wiring and plumbing is underway and will also be finished before the day is out.”

The quick build home uses a unique panelised building system by Carter Holt Harvey which allows a home to be constructed on site by trainee construction workers under supervision and is perfect for remote communities where labour and accommodation costs can be high.

“With this new panelised building system, we can build a house from the ground to lock-up in just three to five days using construction trainees under the supervision of qualified tradesmen,” Mr Hart said.

Members of the public are invited to watch the house under construction.

The home is under construction at the training centre at the school in Amy Johnson Avenue. Visitors should follow the signs to the centre from the school entrance.

 

Facebook evangelism: Vatican uses social media to reach a modern congregation

Pope2You online TV, a Vatican Facebook app, YouTube channel and an iPhone app signal the bold entrance of the Vatican into the world of social media. 

Monsignor Paul Tighe, Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications will be in Darwin this month to talk to public relations professionals from around Australia about the opportunities the World Wide Web and social media has presented to the Catholic Church.  

“We recognise that a church that does not communicate ceases to be a church,” said Monsignor Tighe. 

“Many young people today are not turning to traditional media like newspapers and magazines any more for information and entertainment.” 

“They are looking to a different media culture and this is our effort to ensure that the Church is present in that communications culture.” 

At www.pope2you.net you can watch videos of the Pope’s latest homilies and speeches or watch a live feed of activity in St Peter’s Square via satellite.  

The Pope’s Facebook application gives Catholics the chance to ‘meet the Pope on Facebook’ and send virtual cards with messages from the Pope to their friends.  

“New technologies mean that priests have the possibility to reach people that maybe traditionally they wouldn’t have been able to reach,” said Monsignor Tighe, live to camera on another Catholic video sharing website, all.gloria.tv. 

All.gloria.tv shares videos from Catholics around the world, from the Pope himself to US President Barrack Obama. The site even offers an online dating service for Catholics.  

“The priest is, at the heart of his vocation, a communicator,” said Monsignor Tighe. 

 "Communication of the Gospel must be at heart of the ministry of a priest and I am pleased to work in the Council that has a mandate to harness the potential of the media - new and old - as a means of evangelisation." 

Monsignor Tighe will be speaking at the 2010 Public Relations Institute of Australia National Conference at the Darwin Convention Centre along with representatives from Virgin Galactic, James Hardie and BBC Australia.  

PRIA National President Robina Xavier said the Vatican presentation fits perfectly with this years’ conference theme, PR in a Different Space.  

“All of the conference keynotes, workshops and panel discussions will inspire and encourage participants to do what they do best in a different space or from a new perspective,” Ms Xavier said.  

The conference includes eight keynote addresses and forty speakers over nine streams in a line-up that promises to get public relations and communication professionals ‘all hot under the collar’, according to Ms Xavier.  

“There’ll be case studies including that from Jessica Watson’s Manager Andrew Fraser on her round the world voyage and the BBC’s Louise Alley on bringing Top Gear to Australia. 

The 2010 Conference program includes a Gala Dinner and the 2010 Golden Target Awards Ceremony that celebrates PR campaign best practice at a national level. 

- - -ends - -  

Media are welcome to attend all events at the conference at the Darwin Convention Centre from 25 to 26 October 2010.  

For more information on the PRIA Conference visit http://www.acevents.com.au/pria2010/.  

To arrange an interview, or to attend one of the keynote addresses, please contact:  

Janelle Rees at Creative Territory on 8941 9169 or at janelle@creativeterritory.com.

Taking Crisis Communication training to a new level with iPad

For some time Creative Territory has been offering workshops about communicating in a crisis. With our extensive experience in handling crises in the Northern Territory in particular, we’ve developed a good understanding of how communication can make or break your reputation when things go wrong.

But in delivering our training, something has always been missing – the consequences. Most crisis training includes some type of scenario exercise, but they are virtually all linear. The scenario plays out the same regardless of what people decide in the workshop itself. While they promote discussion, there are no consequences for choosing the right or the wrong path.

For six months we’ve been working on a way to get some real interactivity into the mix, so people could make choices along the way and see the consequences of those choices.

Thanks to the iPad, and a lot of work scenario planning, we’ve developed a way. And the feedback has been amazing. See Recovery in action with a free demo at this link.

Here are some comments from our first workshop, held in Alice Springs last week:

“We’ve only been going for two minutes and I’m already more engaged in this than I have ever been in a workshop before.”

“The iPad delivery is cool. We were all sitting there waiting for our turn to play.”

“At first I wanted a whiteboard to write everything down on, but then I realised we didn’t need one.”

“It’s great that there are consequences for what you decide. It makes it more real.”

We’ve called our new workshops Recovery, because we teach our clients that this is where your decisions need to be leading whenever you are faced with a real or potential crisis. The decisions you make and the things you say in the heat of the moment can have a lasting impact on your reputation and bottom line.

Recovery is presently undergoing trials in the Northern Territory and Queensland, with plans to launch it in Darwin in October.

International and Galactic Speakers Announced

Stephen Attenborough, Head of Astronaut Relations for Virgin Galactic, has been announced as one of the keynote speakers for the 2010 Public Relations Institute of Australia National Conference.

Other speakers announced for the conference include:

-          Sean O’Sullivan, Public Relations Manager of James Hardie

-          Andrew Fraser, Managing Director of 5 Oceans Media (media campaign manager for Jessica Watson’s solo around the world voyage)

-          Jeff Bullas, Founder of JeffBullas.com

-          Anne Gregory, Board Member of the Global Alliance of PR and Communication Management

To find out more about these and more than 40 other speakers visit http://www.acevents.com.au/pria2010