NORTHERN PLANNER

Creative agency type people have looked down on PR types since the dawn of time. The cliche of the 'PR girlie' is still rife within the corridors of most shops- chauvinist and elitist in one fell swoop.

Of course, if you've worked with PR practitioners, you might feel aggrieved that they seem to only be judged on equivalent media value' rather than actual results in the way people think, feel or behave around whatever brand you're working on, but the dark arts of PR types have ben employed by the best in adland for ages.

Getting stuff talked about, generating headlines, getting on the front pages. These are the core skills of the Max Clifford's of this world – but also the key to ridiculously successful advertising, digital or integrated (shouldn't everything be integrated these days?) campaigns. Not just 'PR'.

Because:

1. 'Fame' campaigns, work that gets the brand talked is the most effective strategy you can pursue accrording to the IPA Databank.

2. Budgets are continuously driven down and clients want ever more return on their investment. While the attention of people is continually eroded by the ever increasing media clutter.

3. Honda Cog, Cadbury's Gorilla, Sony Balls, all had a much smaller media spend than you would think, they just got talked about a lot, they generated headlines.

4. Talk value is the real commercial benefit of digital and social campaigns. Ignoring the hot air from brand consultants and social media gurus, the value of digital or social media campaigns is not in the number of people who get involved- piddling in relation to the size of the audience or the category – but the headlines they generate and the REACH from the people getting involved. Chalkbot, the Old Spice Response campaign, The Best Job in the world the real value is talk value.

The sweetspot with the work highlighted above is they are suprising, entertaining and disruptive, with some sort of story behind them.

That's the sweetspot since the media are always looking for new and entertaining stuff to write about or report on.

Stunts in the loosent sense. Real life events or content that stops you in your tracks.

But never forgat that while stunts get talk value but the real objective is to get your client or your issue talked about.

That means more than shock value. It means 'stunt' must be inextricably linked to the brand or the product promoted.That's where creative agencies will always come in because PR wheezes always run the risk of getting 'headlines' that do sod all for the busines issue.

But we need PR folk too, they have the relationships, they know what the media is after and how to sell it to them.

In other words, like all inter-agency, inter-discipinary stuff, the key to fantastis results is pretty simple. Mutual respect, the surrender of egos, open mindedness and filling each other's gaps.