How to use PR to improve student recruitment
It’s a given now that every business school wants a diverse MBA class and is presumably recruiting across the world. The fall back thing that everybody does is to advertise. The problem with advertising of course is that people are becoming more worldly and cynical about adverts. Therefore, by comparison, PR is very powerful because it can tell stories and engage people, and has that third party seal of approval – it is not just you saying something, it’s a journalist writing about it. What type of content successfully improves student recruitment? What really works? The voice of the student from the particular country you are targeting, who has gone to your school and talks about what the experience was like for them. An interview with the person who upped sticks from the country in question and came to your school, completed the qualification and is now doing really well and has set up an interesting business. Yet some schools still fall into the trap of using unbelievable case studies that only show the positive aspects - where everything is “brilliant”. And it comes across as an advert. What is much more effective is the ‘warts and all’ picture, because life simply isn’t perfect.
How to get buy-in from faculty
Without publicity and a well-known reputation, a business or institution may have a hard time growing and thriving in its respective industry. A steady stream of efficient marketing strategies can help build an audience. This is where public relations can help build, promote and manage brand reputation.
Four tips on how to deal with a PR crisis
There is no such thing as a smoothly run business. All companies and institutions will have their ups and downs, their challenges and successes, and unfortunately even the best businesses at some point in their lifecycle will face a PR crisis eventually.
Best research in the media 2016
From how to improve online dating success – top tip: forget the anonymity feature – to how to navigate retirement, 2016 was a varied year in the world of press releases and pitches for our clients here at BlueSky Education. As another year ended, I looked back on the research I worked on during the past 12 months and highlighted some of my favourites.
How to develop an international PR strategy
You might be well-versed when it comes to PR in your local country; you know which publications to target with which story and have already built relationships with a number of local journalists, but when it comes to gaining coverage internationally, it might take a little something extra for you to grab their interest and secure that op-ed, comment, or interview.
Why and how to encourage employees to share your content
You might not answer work calls or respond to emails after 5pm, but you are probably unable to escape the presence of social media. Even after clocking off from work, most of us will spend some time in the evening scrolling through the multitude of platforms available. And that’s not the only time we’ll find ourselves scrolling throughout the day.
How business schools can engage with companies
There are various stakeholders within a target company with whom it might be appropriate to discuss the topic of business education. Those in the C-suite, for example, are likely to take an interest in the training of their managers and executives. However, for the purpose of this post we are specifically looking at what is possibly the key group of stakeholders – HR.
What Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber Would Read if They Lived in the UK
Media consumption in the UK - what people are reading online and offline Gorkana hosted an insightful webinar this week on what people are reading on and offline in the UK, based on their latest UKPulse media research, and this is what they shared… What are millennials reading? Photo by Jean_Nelson – DepositPhotos.com Sorry to break it to you Kim Kardashian but Gorkana says you’re too old to be a millennial… when Gorkana talks millennials, it’s thinking more Taylor Swift or Justin Bieber (if they lived in the UK), and what they’re reading might surprise you. Millennials regularly read the Times, the Guardian, the Metro, the Economist and Forbes and are more focussed on traditional news topics. Although, you might be less surprised to note that 20% consider BuzzFeed a primary news source. Erica Harris, Senior Account Director at Gorkana, noted that millennials are after authenticity and honesty. They’ll forgive you if you can acknowledge when you’ve done something wrong but if you can’t… Millennials believe traditional media to be more trustworthy than social media but trust in Twitter and blogs has Photo by Jens Muller/Brunopress – DepositPhotos.com grown in the last five years. The sources they trust the most? TV and radio. And the least? Wikipedia. 34% will watch a video if this is embedded in an article. Are you taking full advantage of this additional media opportunity? Do people still read news offline?
Getting the best out of a media conference - BlueSky's top 5 tips
Every PR professional welcomes the opportunity for networking, getting face-to-face with relevant journalists, building relationships and understanding what they are looking for with regards to ideas and material.
Top 3 tips for turning around your school’s bad media coverage
As a higher education institution, it’s ideal for your name to feature in the media, whether that’s academics commenting on current issues, successful alumni stories, or interesting research results. However, at some point, you may be faced with media coverage which paints your institution in a bad light and unfortunately, this is mostly beyond your control. A professor from your institution has their own mind, their own life, and makes their own decisions. If they make a bad decision and this reaches the media, then they will inexplicably be linked to the school they work for. This can also happen if your institution becomes associated with an unsavoury brand or public figure. You might recall last year, when an unfortunate sausage brand was trending on Twitter along with #boycott after becoming associated with a certain politician.
A lesson in poetry with John Byrne
When Poets and Quants first landed, many just thought that it was another business school website that covered campus news, rankings and admissions for MBA hopefuls.
The wranglings of MBA rankings
The BusinessWeek MBA rankings came out last week to the usual hubbub about what they mean, how accurate they are and what their limitations may be. This year commentators were talking about how BusinessWeek had changed their methodology – and how this had led to some surprising results. Chief amongst these being Harvard’s relegation from second place two years ago to eighth this - the first time the venerable Cambridge institution had dropped out of the top five.
Top 3 PR Quotes
Over a century ago Alvin Adams said: “Public relations are a key component of any operation in this day of instant communications and rightly inquisitive citizens.” Adams was an American businessman who pioneered express shipments by rail in the US – his words are as relevant today as they were then.
Cutting through the noise: Quirky PR for Business and Higher Education
Business Education is a mature market, and with so many programmes out there and relatively few publications writing about them, there is a constant competition between schools for worthwhile coverage. On the other side of the fence, journalists are under considerable pressure to deliver news from education institutions in a new and engaging way.
Client Q&A with Elsa Perez, Sales Manager and Media Liaison at European University Business School
In this Q&A, Elsa discusses her role at European University Business School, why she feels the use of PR to be important for business schools, and any advice for those looking to introduce PR to their institution.
Client Q&A with Patricia Rousseau, Communications & PR Officer at the Vlerick Business School, in Belgium
Patricia Rousseau is the Communications and PR Officer at the Vlerick Business School in Belgium. In this Q&A she discusses her role at Vlerick, why she feels the use of PR to be important for business schools, and any advice for those looking to introduce PR to their institution.
What is Business School PR really about?
If you were to throw out the question ‘What does business school PR entail?’ to a number of people you’ll probably get at least one of these three answers:
