Archive

Year: 2016

  • FleishmanHillard Names Sharon Piehl General Manager in Johannesburg

    April 14, 2016

    JOHANNESBURG, April 12, 2016 – FleishmanHillard announced today that Sharon Piehl has been appointed general manager of FleishmanHillard’s Johannesburg operation, effective May 1, 2016. “Sharon Piehl brings highly creative and strategic thinking to the Johannesburg team, as well as proven leadership abilities,” said John Saunders, president and CEO of FleishmanHillard. “I am confident that she will maintain the office’s commitment to outstanding client service and the agency’s growth trajectory in the African market.” Piehl has...

  • Encryption – Everyone’s talking about it

    April 7, 2016

    In today’s fast-paced, tech-savvy environment, it’s hard to imagine a time when the world existed without technology. Technology has become a major part of our everyday lives and accordingly, more of our data is digitalised than ever before. As of Tuesday night (05/04/2016), WhatsApp, the online messaging service owned by the tech giant Facebook, revealed its decision to make the application as secure as possible by launching ‘end-to-end encryption’. With over a billion people using WhatsApp...

  • Blink and you’ve missed it: Nintendo launches social network Miitomo

    April 4, 2016

    Nintendo just released its first app, and it’s a social network. No, that’s not an April Fool’s joke. It is, however, completely unlike any social network you’ve ever seen. It’s not for reading news, creating events or sharing website links. It takes social networks back to its original function – talking with your friends. The app launched in Japan two weeks ago, and saw its worldwide release late last week. You can either import your...

  • Filling in the gaps

    March 14, 2016

    A big South African telecommunications company decided to use an international athlete to become the face of its campaign much to the distaste of domestic athletes, consumers and media. While I understand the vehemence there is a definite correlation between the message the brand was trying to put out and what the athlete represents. I didn’t really see what the big fuss was about, this athlete ticks all the right boxes. He is well respected...

  • Advantage Sharapova

    March 14, 2016

    Early last week, sports journalists assembled at a downtown Los Angeles hotel, expecting to hear tennis star Maria Sharapova announcing her retirement from the sport. Instead, the 28-year old Russian revealed that she had tested positive for meldonium almost two months ago, during the 2016 Australian Open. Meldonium is a substance that was only recently added to the list of prohibited substances within professional tennis and is one that Sharapova claims that she has been...

  • The power of user generated content

    March 8, 2016

    I bet you’ve heard this before: “The world’s largest taxi company owns no taxis (Uber). The largest accommodation provider own no real estate (Airbnb). The most valuable retailer has no inventory (Alibaba). The most popular media owner creates no content (Facebook). And the world’s leading movie house owns no cinemas (Netflix).” But I bet you haven’t considered the fact at all these businesses have essentially made their fame through user generated content. Without the images...

  • The relationship between public relations and design

    March 1, 2016

    We all know the public relations landscape has changed over time to accommodate new media channels and content types. Communications agencies have changed with the times. For most, it means bringing in-house, the right tools and skills needed to optimise their offerings, to create solid content and meet client objectives...

  • Let’s talk about sextech and how it’s redefining the communications industry

    February 29, 2016

    I recently watched The Drum’s documentary “The Big Turn On”, which talked about the fast-growing “sextech” industry and it got me thinking and reading more about what a powerful driver sex has been in developing innovation in the communications industry. What is sextech, I hear you ask. Just like fintech and edtech, sextech is a technology-driven way to innovate and disrupt in every area of human sexuality. You just need to search #sextech on Twitter...

  • Managing business reputation – a luxury or necessity?

    February 29, 2016

    Minister of Finance, Pravin Gordhan, delivered his 2016 Budget Speech on Wednesday 24 February. Key to the minister’s speech was allaying fears of a possible recession and staving off a possible ratings downgrade.  Hailed beforehand as the most important budget speech in 21 years, Minister Gordhan used the opportunity to outline how Government would cut spending and increase revenue. Following a tumultuous end to 2015 regaining the confidence of the international markets shaped much of...

  • Going the extra mile, when you are miles away

    February 25, 2016

    Key factors to consider when doing business abroad. We’re at the end of the love tunnel that was February, taking a look at our personal and professional relationships we work on daily, as we aim to grow positive and beneficial co-dependencies. So among all the left over Valentine sweets, and puppy dog cards and e-cards, I think it’s good to recap on what makes one of the toughest kind of relationships - long distance...