Sick of the financial gloom? Bored reading and hearing about
money misery and mayhem? Sorry to mention it, but I bring you hope.
Here's how to feel more cheerful…
Firstly, you have to banish the F,
C and R words from your
vocabulary. Stuff the Financial crisis. To hell with the Credit
Crunch. Away with the Recession. Rise above the media-fuelled
depression. Don't let the gloomy forecasts get you down. Easier
said than done, I know. But it's essential if you're to come out
the other side smiling.
Obviously, we must all manage our businesses and our personal
finances within the current financial straightjacket if we are to
survive. But that's no reason not to be bright and cheerful and
upbeat and concentrate on my favourite thing right now inside
beetroot - the O-word.
O is for Opportunity . . .
While times are tough, there's plenty of Opportunity out there
to help cash-strapped companies deliver world-class communications
within squeezed budgets. To give them more bangs for their bucks.
They'll remember how good and loyal and supportive you were when
the good times return, and will reward you accordingly, so it's
worth hanging in there.
Our skills are more needed now than ever. Good communications
are critical in a recession, because companies absolutely need
their employees to be on message and onboard.
Delivering such communications for less money is only possible
if you're truly up for it and you're prepared to give your all. And
if everybody in your organisation is obsessed about giving your
clients superlative quality and outstanding service at lowest
possible cost.
In some of the world's biggest companies right now, it's all
about Doing Fewer Things Better. In fact, that's the title of the
internal campaign being run by a leading corporate communications
director we know, to help him cut huge sums from his budget and to
drive up quality. Having conducted a 'root and branch' review of
communications spend, and then slashed it, he's now all about
getting maximum value for the remaining money. He's very
typical.
To underline this, a recent industry-wide survey showed that
companies are looking to make their communications budgets work a
lot harder for them, by being more selective about what they do. It
also showed that 78 per cent of internal communications budgets are
being frozen or cut!
Two-thirds of companies surveyed said they are changing the way
they communicate with employees - placing greater emphasis on face
to face communication (80 per cent will spend more on it this year)
and intranet communications (62 per cent more). While print is
still important, only eight per cent plan to spend more. Major,
set-piece employee events, meanwhile, are under the cosh.
We found a similar picture during our recent communications
audit for a big-name British company. Directors, managers, the
communications team and the rest of the workforce were at one in
wanting clearer, rationalised channels which speak with one voice -
via a clean and simple mix of print, web, audio and face to
face.
All of that's possible within a sensible budget. If we're to
help ourselves and our clients through the difficult times, we have
to step up to the challenge and deliver. No shirking, no hiding.
Just deliver.
Oh - and, by the way, despite political claims to the contrary,
there's still no F in Green Shoots . . .
If you wish to comment on Bob's Blog, email bob.wailling@beetroot.co.uk