Why is networking important as a PR student?

One of the first thing most PR professionals state when sharing advice for people looking to get into the field is to network, network and then network some more. It was only after attending the annual student/practitioner networking event last week that I realised just how important networking is both as a student and as a PR professional.

It may seem a bit awkward and forced at first, but getting out there and surrounding yourself with people industry is so important, but try and do it in a way that works for you! As cliché as it sounds the PR industry is sometimes all about who you know! It was through work experience that I first began to realise how fundamentally social the industry is. Alongside the fact you're always working as part of a wider team, networking is a core function of the profession, and occurs not only in the work environment, but at industry events, gatherings and nights out!

PR professionals tend to build up relationships with journalists and stakeholders over time, sometimes years, and retain these key relationships throughout their entire career. While we learn this in theory as part of our degrees, actually witnessing these interactions in real life is essential for budding PR professionals, to develop the skills to learn from key people in the industry and form your own relationships with these types of people. With this in mind I thought I'd share my top tips for networking:

The look of concentration!

1. Go to industry events!

Events present the perfect opportunity to start practicing your networking skills, meeting like-minded people and build your network. I was lucky enough that my lecturer hosts an annual networking event on campus with a range of practitioners attending from around the region for my first event (Thanks for hosting Diane!). The CIPR also host regular networking events around the country which are great. Once you sign up to an event, check the speakers on social media and see what they like talking about and what field they're in. This way, you have a topic in mind when you approach.

At these events, you will tend to be out of your comfort zone. But it's important to remember that all those professionals were students before and are only human!

2. Ask questions

These people understand how important it is for students to communicate with successful professionals like themselves, be sure to ask questions about everything you'd like to know! About their role, the industry or any interests. Listening and learning is key as part of the networking process and developing yourself.

3. Stay in touch with your peers

You never know when someone in your class could come in handy! Even in the PR blogging community it's a great way of approaching like-minded talented students. Before I even started blogging and my masters I had conversations with both Orlagh Shanks and Jessica Pardoe about starting my blog and both offered such good advice back in September that I've kept it up ever since! Be sure to look through the #PRStudent hashtag, read their blogs and connect with people - the worst they can do is say no!

4. Get connected 

Thanks to the likes of LinkedIn and Twitter, networking is so much easier now than ever before, students can now connect with practitioners and follow their careers. It's the perfect place to join the conversation and comment on some posts. There are so so many successful people out there who are always willing to talk to students and help out - you just need to approach them!


How have you found networking? Have you got any tips you remember while trying to network? Let me know below!

Beth x

Click-Plate

Dreamy holidays, make up inspo and even work-out plans... Instagram is showing and influencing us on just about everything these days, even down to how, what and where to eat. I read an article this week that claimed that 'one in five brits have shared a food pic over the last month'. So no the wonder dishes we are cooking and buying are getting brighter and more photogenic just for the gram!

Before the world of social media, people would have chosen where to meet their friends for dinner or go for cocktails by a recommendation or review. Yet people's obsession with pretty food and extravagant looking drinks has resulted in bars, cafés and restaurants completely changing up their marketing and PR strategies to make them as "instagrammable" as possible. Some places will even stretch as far as basing their menus and interiors around how their dishes and environments will look in photos.

A study from Zizzi has revealed that 18-35 year olds spend five whole days a year browsing food images on Instagram, and 30 per cent would avoid a restaurant if their Instagram presence is weak. I'm sure a lot of you can relate when I say eating out has become merely a pastime, a good way of catching up with friends - and when we do, we love to share it on the gram. In fact, it's now normal to sit down in a restaurant having already decided what you're going to order because you've spent a few minutes stalking on Instagram in advance.

So - what are these places doing to make sure they are the chosen location in their city to make in to the gram?

Even starting out with the interiors...

I have definitely been guilty of visiting somewhere for food or drinks purely for the back drop - there's just something about a good flower wall, or even a bath tub in a night club. You can bet if I'm in a cool café or bar with a quirky quote on the wall (especially if it's neon) it'll be featured on my Instagram or Snapchat story... and no one will be surprised.

Take 808 bar and kitchen in Sunderland for example, their interiors are to die for (see below), from a gorgeous bathroom to the most perfect flower wall near the bar, these guys have really hit the nail on the head when it comes to the perfect instagrammable bar - and don't even get my started on their amazing cocktails and food! You can tell as soon as you walk in who they're targeting and if you're from the North East and haven't been already I'd highly recommend (and not just for the photo).

Trying out Stunt Food

The food section on the instagram explore page can be a dangerous, dangerous place. From rainbow donuts to freak-shakes, as we scroll in admiration and think we need to try that - we're falling victim to the world of stunt food. Stunt food is particularly popular within fast food restaurants with the rise of competition means if you don't innovate, you're relegated to the "has-been" pile. People use interest, sales drop, stores close, and that's the end of that.

These items are made purely for the novelty factor. I mean, why else would Burger King make a green burger bun? It doesn't exactly look appealling. Or why would Starbucks think of releasing a unicorn frappuccino? But one thing they know for sure is that millennials will buy it, post and share it all over their social media platforms and influence others to do the exact same, even if a regular product would be much more enjoyable.

Burger King feeding nightmares with their Halloween stunt

The Starbucks unicorn frappuccino

It's all in the presentation

It ultimately all comes down to the food and us milennials love to take a quick snap/insta/boomerag/whatever if it looks the part. A bacon sandwich for breakfast or a toastie for lunch doesn't hit the spot like it once did - now we're all about that smashed avocado with the perfectly runny poached egg and the most aesthetically pleasing salad bowl you've ever seen. Who knew Insta could be good for the diet?

It ofcourse doesn't stop with the food though, that would be far too simple. How are these dishes going to be presented? Plates now have to be aesthetically pleasing, usually large oval plates, rather than circular and have some type of print and even occasionally on a board. Gone are the days of a cocktail in a simple glass - you now have smoking cocktails, rainbow cocktails and even cocktails in mini bath-tubs to name a few, with each place trying to be different and stand out from the competition. Millennials are particularly all about this, the more unique the better at the end of the day. It's exciting and I love seeing the personal little touches each place has and it the perfect outlet for creativity - not even just for the photo!

So - next time you're out for food or drinks, try and maybe resist taking that snap for the gram and just enjoy the moment. I don't know about you but I'm now very hungry!

The positive impacts of social media influencers

Is anyone else SO over the constant going at influencers? I do understand that many influencers over recent years have made mistakes - in terms of spreading fake news, not being transparent about ads and Logan Paul for one... but lets not tarnish all influencers with one brush! After scrolling through the #BBCPanarama hashtag during their documentary on influencers a few weeks back and all the Fyre Festival coverage, the amount of negativity concerning social media work was incredible when realistically these cases only concerned a handful of influencers. I almost feel like the mainstream media and potentially the older generation don't completely know how to cope with this new wave of online engagement and content so for most the instant reaction is to heavily criticise.

I can't remember the last time I saw any positive coverage concerning social media influencers, bloggers or vloggers so I decided to write my own and try to balance all of this negativity going around. These people are followed by millions of people - these people aren't going to follow someone they hate or are against for everything they stand for? I think a little perspective is needed in terms of online influencers. Here's a quick look at some of the positive impacts social media influencers can have:

They raise awareness

Bloggers, vloggers and social media influencers have millions and millions of followers across different platforms online and this is often an incredible platform to promote a product, charity or message, to start campaigns and share something they're passionate about and more. I'm sure instead of a news story about 6 or 7 influencers that have broken the rules, we'd rather read a story about how much money influencers have raised for charity and the change they've made (or at least have both).

They create communities

These influencers tend to have a niche, even within the PR blogging community everyone sparks conversation and learns from each other over a common interest. As these influencers are building communities over a common interest, their audience tends to be very niche and is the perfect way for brands to select which influencer to work with depending on their audiences and interests.

They're normally happy to chat!

My undergraduate degree is actually in Broadcast Journalism, and I've found one main crossover with that and PR is that when finding sources and people to talk to, social media influencers are usually happy to talk compared to your standard 'celebrity'. At the end of the day the world is a lonely place when you're working for yourself! The one perk of them working on social media is that they're ALWAYS online, there's always an expert blogger or vlogger on any topic, it's like having a whole host of experts at the click of a button!

They provide FREE entertainment

Free entertainment is often difficult to come by in this day and age. Unlike a newspaper, magazine or Netflix account, you don't have to pay a penny to follow a social media account, watch a YouTube video or read a blog, it's all completely free! There are millions of profiles from across the world providing tonnes of FREE content for us all to consume everything from the latest make up trends to holiday ideas. This is an element of influencer work that should be celebrated and in my opinion more credit should be given to all of those who share their passions online to help and inspire others.

It still to this day blows my mind that I can search a geotag on Instagram for a destination I'm planning on visiting and can plan out where to eat, what to see and where the best photo spots are at the destination, Instagram shows us much more than Tripadvisor or a holiday brochure ever could!

They're normal people

I think the one thing about influencers that most people forget they're actually just normal people (or at least they start out like that). Most 'social media influencers' juggle careers, life AND work hard on their blogs, vlogs and profiles because of their passion for it. I'd love to see more support for everyone and the fact that there are so many people worldwide working their socks off, being proactive because it's what they love to do - don't let a few bad eggs ruin the dozen!


What do you think? Do you think we need to be thinking more about the positive impact of these influencers? Let me know below!

Beth x

5 reasons why brands should start a podcast 🎙️

Podcasting is now one of the biggest audio mediums, from personality and comedy to educational and horror, there really is a podcast out there for everyone and is a platform that over the past year brands have started to get on the back of and be really successful doing so.

Pretty Little Thing's podcast is now one of my current favourites - they've really hit the nail on the head for their target listeners. Guests such as Maya Jama, Sophia & Cinzia (YouTubers) and Megan Barton-Hanson (Love Island) means it's the perfect content for PLT's target audience and it shows in the ratings shooting up the iTunes charts every time a new episode comes out. Another branded podcast that I've enjoyed is #LIPSTORIES (by Sephora), the podcast that tells real "stories from everyday lives" of "influential female founders, creators and thought leaders", all while promoting the Sephora "lipsticks for real life" arm of the campaign and within the first 3 episodes they achieved a 5 star rating on iTunes. So why are these brands using podcasts to reinforce their brands...

1. It adds some personality to your brand and builds a relationship

A 30-second TV or Instagram ad is nice, but if a company has a larger message they want to convey and add some personality, a podcast is the perfect platform to tell a story and convey that over multiple episodes. Even though a podcast is a one-sided medium, it helps in building effective relationships with the listeners. People listen to podcast because they have something in common with the speaker and the brand or topic the speaker is representing, it gives the feeling that the listeners know the person speaking on the podcast after just a few episodes.

A good relationship between a brand and it's audience is key in building trust. This encourages listeners to be associated with the brand. Which, in turn, leads to improved conversation, people are of course more likely to buy something from a friend than a stranger.

2. They're easy and cheap to create!

Creating a podcast doesn't involve a lot of steps at all, the equipment needed for them are reasonably priced and easily available. A podcast can quite literally be created and edited down on voice memos  (or an alternative) on your phone, no audio experience is necessarily required to create a podcast. Once the podcast is created, getting people to listen to it is just as easy - there's free options such as PodBean and SoundCloud or for a small fee you can make your podcast available on all the major listening apps such as iTunes and Spotify.

3. Why not video record it as well?

It's not that much more effort to set up a camera or even an iPhone camera and post your podcast to YouTube, it's all about maximising your audience and listenership and getting your brand out there.

4. Reach out to new, loyal audiences

Using podcasts can easily help you reach out to new audiences for any brand. No matter how big or small the brand may be, a podcast can help in building familiarity with a wide range of audiences. Once someone listens and likes a podcast, they send to subscribe to the series and regularly listen. As long as the series continues, the audience is likely to keep listening.

5. Podcasts are highly engaging

In this day and age we are no strangers to an information overload, with the internet being filled with an enormous amount of written content, an audio platform that attempts to engage with customers can be the perfect break from the norm - I always find with a podcast you can listen to it while doing something else and still enjoy them. This leaves enough room for the speaker to get the message across in a highly interactive, personal way which written content may not be able to provide.

In a recent survey conducted on 300,000 podcast listeners, it was found that 63% of respondents had bought what product the host had promoted. Suggesting that a podcast can be used successfully to engage the audience and influence their buying decisions positively!



Have you got any favourite podcasts? I'm always looking for new ones so let me know below!

Beth x

PR Lessons you can learn from your younger self

Family days really are the best sort of days, every single week without fail we'll go and visit both sets of grandparents but today has been especially family orientated, it's been one of those days where the parents get out the old *usually embarrassing* photo albums and even some videos of my childhood, which has been lovely to sit and reminisce on. But today has got me thinking, I worried a lot less as a child, you're care-free and without the responsibilities of uni, work and the only social life you had to worry about was the kids at the soft play. Here are some of the things we can learn about PR from our younger selves:

We couldn't do a post about child me without a throwback photo now could we! 

Don't be scared to try new things 

So what if it doesn't work out the first time? You'll never know until you try and that doesn't mean it should stop us trying new things. There always has to be someone who does something for the first time, whether it be a new strategy or a campaign idea, speak up! Especially if you think something is not going right or could be done better then say so - don't just watch your team fail in silence and then lay blame.

Be creative

So what if that toilet roll tube isn't an aeroplane/rocket? We can sure make it be one. Using your imagination is key in PR but some practitioners forget this in favour of old habits and the same routine. It's cliché to say, but remember to think outside the box, creative solutions are our thing.

Dream BIG and don't limit yourself

Following on from being creative, make sure you use your imagination, we can always do what we put our minds too. 'I want to be an astronaut! A singer! A fireman! A doctor!' These are all things we hear little kids say and they're all possible. We are never too old to dream a new dream, why not create something that's never been done before? What's the point of building a lego tower three blocks high? Personally, I want my tower to break through the ceiling. As they say, go big or go home.

Look at things from a different perspective

Things look a lot less scary when you're three. You're in your own bubble and this got me thinking a lot about public opinion, it's so important to put yourself in other people's shoes when working in PR and tailoring any campaign work and key messages.

Be honest

Kids always say it how it is no matter how awkward they might make situations... but it's an important trait to have! Take responsibility for your actions. Don't beat around the bush. Don't care so much about what other people think. Also, be honest about yourself, there is a very very thin line between creatively promoting yourself and completely lying about your experience. Make the most of your achievements but don’t lose perspective. Writing a food blog, is not the same as having professional catering experience. Honesty is always the best policy and especially in the working world, it only takes a phone call or two to quickly reveal the truth!

Ask questions

Kids want to know everything. Whether it's in regards to their surroundings, what someone has told them, or what they are watching on TV. They have extremely curious souls and are always pondering, so why stop when you grow up? Just because you've graduated, or settled into a career, doesn't mean you need to stop learning, you never know what could come from it! As they say, every day's a school day!

Just go for it 

Kids really have no sense of fear. Do now, worry later was very much my thinking as a child according to my mam and that's really a lesson we can really take into our PR lives. If you're not brave enough to go for the big campaigns, jobs or clients you might find that your PR world stays very small.

Brands Get Mushy for Valentine's Day 2019 ❤️

Valentine's day is one of my favourite times of year when it comes to PR campaigns, it's a date that every brand gets on board with (or should be) and has brought out some brands best work. However, in my opinion, the build up to Valentine's Day 2019 hasn't been as 'extra' as last years, think Greggs' Valentine's 2018 campaign. As you probably already know the big day falls this Thursday so I've highlighted my favourite 2019 brand contributions to the annual celebration of love (so far)... 

Marks & Spencer's Love Sausage

This has been widely spoke about across national media for obvious reasons, because of course what says romance more than a giant, heart-shaped, bacon-wrapped sausage? The £5 sausage is "lightly truffled" and M&S suggest you serve it with two fried eggs in the middle. 

The usually conservative brand announced the launch in a tweet, and the people of the internet judging by its replies were both shocked and appalled by the retailer's bold innuendo that's certainly got people talking! This special offer has been so popular online that they've now sold out in most stores across the country and people were asking for a vegan opinion - so M&S introduced their heart-beet burger! Made with roasted beetroot and sweet onions, there really is something for everyone this Valentines over at M&S.

KFC's Popcorn Chicken Flower Bouquet & Colonel Sanders Rug competition

KFC really have went all out this valentine's in an attempt to stand out from their competitors from chicken bouquets to a Colonel Sanders bear rug! They've already supplied the scented candles, so it only makes sense for KFC to have partnered with Reddit to host a competition to giveaway a Colonel Sanders Rug to complete the 'perfect' Valentine's Day night. (See below, it's actually quite scary)

To enter the competition, fans simply need to pick one of three ways to play, including a 'photoshop battle' where competitors must transform the image of the Colonel Sanders rug "into a humorous, outlandish or romantic digital masterpiece" - I bet they get some interesting entries! The Valentine's Day prize package also sounds like a dream, it includes two fried chicken onesies, a gift card for a two for a year, and a yearly subscription to an online streaming service - completing the perfect KFC Valentine's night in!

Roses are red, violets are blue, here's some flowers with fried chicken in them too...? The one day a year you are encouraged to show your favourite person just how much they mean to you and according to KFC, nothing says true love quite like a bouquet of chicken! Another way KFC are celebrating the occasion is by revealing the "Bouquet de Poulet", featuring luxurious red roses, intertwined with Hot Wings, Popcorn Chicken and tender Fillets - all in one infamous KFC bucket! Sadly, these aren't available in stores but it's encouraged to buy your loved one some roses and why not add some KFC chicken... right? 

Aunt Bessies Heart-Shaped Yorkshire Puddings 

This is a great idea if you ask me, the way to a girl's heart is most definitely though a Sunday dinner and why not add some extra looove with a heart-shaped Yorkshire! Aunt Bessies have decided to make a limited edition version of their classic treat for Valentine's Day, so you can jazz up your romantic roast this Thursday. It's the same 1995 recipe as the original and they'll be available until March - spreading the love throughout the full month of February! These come in a pack of 6 and cost just £1.50, which is a steal when you think of the usual prices of Valentine's products.

Poundland's Engagement Rings

As you've probably heard by now, Poundland have started selling engagement rings just in time for Valentine's Day - it's a much cleaner bit of promotion than the brands previous campaign with the naughty elf! They announced their new 'bling' engagement rings a few weeks ago, which are all silver (stainless steel) and feature a gemstone of some kind. These Poundland rings have of-course had the entire country talking with even Piers Morgan "proposing" to Susanna Reid live on Good Morning Britain last week.

All at just £1, Poundland have said that this is the perfect 'placeholder' and that these Valentine's Day gifts give people the perfect opportunity to propose 'before the need to invest in the real rock', which if you ask me is a really sweet idea!

Morrisons' Rainbow LGBTQ+ Roses

If you're looking for a valentine's gift that's a little different to the traditional, Morrisons have launched rainbow roses, and they're seriously pretty! As part of the Morrisons' The Best range, the Rainbow Roses were released on February 11th and they come in partnership with LGBTQ+ youth homeless charity The Albert Kennedy Trust. Each limited edition rose costs £4, with 50p from each sales being donated to the charity, Morrisons really have hit two birds with one stone with this amazing charitable collaboration.

Name a cockroach after your Ex - Hemsley Conservation Centre

Okay, this is an amazing idea and a bit of a different way to go about a Valentine's Day promotion! I'd never heard of Hemsley Conservation Centre until this week and I can guarantee thousands of people around the country will be the same. Just in time for Valentine's Day, the centre launched a campaign where you can name one of the cockroaches after an ex-partner - ideal for those still feeling bitter after a break up! People have the opportunity to pick and name a cockroach after whoever they consider appropriate - and it costs just £1.50 for the pleasure of doing so!

The name will be displayed at the exhibit, so you can always pop in to visit the insect version of your ex-partner to say hi and see how they're doing. Also, if you take part, you'll be sent a gift certificate as a keepsake - but the name won't feature on it as the centre doesn't want to 'fuel fires'. But you can of-course add their name to the comments section as a reminder of why breaking up was really a good thing!

Royal Mail Romantic Post Boxes 

Royal Mail have been celebrating Valentine's Day by decorating some post-boxes around the country with romantic quotes from famous English authors. Especially in an age of social media and online messaging, Royal Mail are doing something different and are hoping to rekindle the joy for the handwritten love letter this Valentine's Day. Romantic quotes from works by John Keats, Thomas Hardy, Robert Burns and many more will be decorated on red postboxes in locations across the country including London, Lichfield and Dorset.

Heinz Ketchup Caviar

If you've ever been to a really fancy restaurant and wanted to ask the waiter for ketchup but felt the shame, Heinz have the answer for you this Valentine's Day! They've launched the first ever Ketchup Caviar, conveniently debuting just before Valentine's Day, it's exactly what it sounds like: ketchup, shaped like caviar. No fish eggs included, just a way to make your burger look extra pretty this Valentine's. Unfortunately, there's only 150 pots available, as they're also celebrating the brand being 150 years old!

Those were my highlights of the Valentine's Day campaigns so far... What's the most memorable Valentine's day campaign you can think of? I'm definitely looking forward to see what Greggs get up to this year... Let me know below!

Beth x

You're Hired! 5 PR Lessons we can all learn from The Apprentice

Each year, Lord Sugar's rigorous employment process puts a very predictable range of candidates through a similarly foreseeable range of tasks to decide who to ultimately hire at the end. They'll all come up with a self-assured statement to introduce themselves to the world before the programme ends as this is their shot, with one contestant this year even claiming "I am the Beyonce of Business". We're now 2 episodes into this years series of the Apprentice, with the third airing tonight, and we've already seen the candidates create a kids comic book, find items in Malta and tonight they'll be making donuts (the task of dreams!). Watching the 16 (now 14) candidates trying their best to make a good impression while fighting for survival is very entertaining, but is also brilliant for picking up some dos and dont's for your own career. Here are 5 tips I've come across so far:

1. Have confidence - but don't oversell!

Confidence is a good thing, of course. But there is such a thing as too much. Be assertive, not intolerable. It's important to have confidence in yourself and have conviction in what you say - embellishing facts mean you have a lot further to fall when people discover the truth! Especially in PR - it is essential that any news shared is accurate and factual - making up tales to boost a story may seem a good idea in the moment to gather initial interest but could have massive negative connotations in the long run. 

2. Be nice!

It's not a dog eat dog world, but no one ever said you were going to get anywhere by stepping on other people's toes. Until the end, the Apprentice is essentially team based and if you don't pull your weight, you won't be coming back to the board room. This is also a reminder in daily life, too. Be nice to those you work and associate with because you never know when you might need them as a connection!

3. Admit mistakes

Admit it when you've made a mistake. Especially when you're being filmed and your mistake is being broadcast for everyone to see, there's no running from it. Admit it, learn from it and move on - it's what makes us human!

4. Speak Up

If you think something is not going right or could be done better then say so - don't just watch your team fail in silence and then lay blame. Make sure you put your point across but accept it if the team decides to go in a different direction to the one you think is best. On The Apprentice, we see candidates fired for claiming (after the event) that they would have done things differently. It's important to contribute your opinion while there's still a chance to influence the outcome. However, if you can't convince the other team members that your idea is a good one then take it on the nose! Sometimes you have to admit defeat and just continue to be a great team player regardless.

5. Don't Lie

At all! This happens every single year on the Apprentice where someone gets caught out with the little white lies on their CV or throughout the tasks, there is a very, very thin line between creatively promoting yourself and completely lying about your experience. Make the most of your achievements but don't lose perspective. Writing a food blog, not the same as having a professional catering experience. Honesty is always the best policy and especially in the working world, it only takes a phone call or two to quickly reveal the truth.

Have you been watching the Apprentice? What advice would you give the candidates to include their personal PR? Let me know below!

Beth x

Beauty and the Influencer Beast

The beauty industry is ever-changing alongside the growing amount of social media influencers. YouTubers and Instagram stars have quickly become the only voice that really matters for consumers in the beauty industry. The amount of beauty-related content created by influencers is increasing exponentially, and the industry is seeing more growth than ever before the further we get into 2019.

In 2018, beauty-related content generated more than 169 billion views - with popular types of videos including tutorials, DIY videos, reviews and make-up haul videos produced by beauty 'vloggers'. YouTube is the perfect platform for brands to get involved in because it allows them to get their products out there in full, videos allow influencers to visually display how products can be used, with what to put them with and to they're able discuss the benefits. Influencers through YouTube serve to millions of people as a credible source of information as when looking to buy new products, consumers want a trusted recommendation and what's better than seeing someone physically using the product you're about to buy? A beauty influencer with a large following is bound to be knowledgeable on the industry and should offer their audience with a reliable opinion.

The amount of 'brand x influencer' palettes, lip sticks and full ranges of make-up coming out now are more than ever before. Brands teaming up with YouTubers is the perfect way to reach younger consumers, who make up the largest section of beauty consumers. According to the Office for National Statistics, young women aged 16-24 are the most likely to buy make-up. Brands are noticing the huge impact of social media influencers and have since adopted their PR and marketing strategies to reach younger consumers through social media.

YouTube videos are the earned media that today's make-up brands need to survive. These channels that are posting regular content with reviews and tutorials are providing consumers with real, *mostly* unbiased opinions that they want before making a purchase decision. If an influencer doesn't like a product, they tell you! More often than not a poor product can be as talked about as a great product so it's often a risk for any beauty brand, it's essentially allowing consumers to ignore advertisements for new products and base their decisions on other people's opinions!

Paid media is also increasingly a major part of Instagram and YouTube with the laws and regulations of disclosing the payment being ever-changing for influencers. This happens with beauty sponsoring videos, where the influencer is asked to use and promote a new product, or they are sending them new products for free to review. This is one thing that I always forget online, that these people are more often than not now, getting these products for free and even promoting said products for a fee.

YouTube and Instagram have really changed the game and revolutionised word-of-mouth communication, where we can now search a specific trend, brand or product and instantly have thousands of posts, photos and videos showing me the pros and cons of the product, and how to use it! Online we have access to thousands of opinions of people of all different ages, skin types, genders, countries, makeup artists, now any opinion a consumer could possibly need can be found with the click of a button.

I'm currently following over 30-40 Instagram and YouTube influencers who are far more influential on my makeup decisions than any traditional advert. Ultimately, Urban Decay and L'Oreal might promise a 'perfect finish' with their new foundations, but until Hannah Renée or NikkieTutorials tell me it's amazing, I won't be convinced!

Beth x

Gemma Collins | PR GENIUS OR DISASTER?

Dancing on Ice triumphantly returned to our screens this month, winning the reality show 'launch night fight', by out-performing the returning series of The Voice & The Greatest Dancer! It's secret? The self-promoting ultimate DIVA that is Gemma Collins. 

For those of you not in the know, Gemma or 'the GC' as she likes to call herself has made a huge name for herself in the reality TV world over the past 8 years. Starting from being known as the outspoken, self-styled diva from reality TV show The Only Way Is Essex, she's done (pretty much) every show you can think of from her weeks stint on I'm a Celebrity to trying to find love with a 'normal' person on Celebs Go Dating, there aren't many reality shows that she hasn't tried.

During her noisy appearance on Celebrity Big Brother in 2016, she not only threatened to storm out of the show whenever she was miffed, she point-blanked refused to take part in any tasks and appeared to enjoy rubbing her housemates up the wrong way - something that was more than expected for her Dancing On Ice appearance and is potentially why she brings the viewers in, a smart move from the ITV bosses.

Now - in my opinion, the real moment where Gemma turned into a national icon rather than another reality TV diva was her fall at the teen choice awards 2017, where Gemma left millions of viewers in shock as she fell through the stage while presenting the award to the Love Island cast... (I mean just look at the crowds reaction)

This was a must-see TV moment and went viral online in seconds showing the rest of the world the gift that keeps on giving Gemma Collins. What followed this was a tsunami of Book, TV and fashion offers that have helped Gemma become a very rich woman indeed, with a huge net-worth of an estimated £2.7 million. Coincidence? I think not!

Yes, you did read that right - but credit where credit is due, she works for her money and it's not all just the luck of going viral, I can't even name the amount of TV and public appearances she's done in the past year. But what makes her different to the rest of the TOWIE lot? Gemma knows how to play the game! Unlike her reality peers, she knows how to talk the talk. There's never an awkward silence, there are no botched one liners. And for what she lacks in her sportsmanship on DOI, she makes up for in personality, wit and sass.

There's been plenty of speculation online that both the kick off last week with Jason Gardiner and the fall this week was purely for a publicity stunt, because of the amount of attention it's got online and whether she purposely fell or not. Now, I don't think for one minute that Gemma flung herself onto the ice in an attempt to make some headlines, however the GC isn't stupid - she knows how to play the game and you can tell. From her reaction immediately after the fall, to posting all about it across her socials and to getting a wheelchair the next day, Gemma is a headline waiting to happen at all times and it clearly is working in her favour.

What do you think? PR stunt or not, everybody seems to be talking about the GC!