PR Expectations for 2022

Our thoughts on PR to mull over this week

Going into February, here are some of our thoughts on what to expect in 2022.

It is predicted that the year will bring more normality to the world with countries opening up completely, and the dreaded Covid will change from a pandemic and become endemic.  We are all going to have to live with Covid in our midst, just as we live with the flu.

There is no magic wand that will tell us how we will all adapt to the change, or what will happen in the world of commerce, theatre, sport and other, but we can bet on the fact that we have to be ready for anything!  Covid has taught us that change happens at the drop of a hat.

We believe that the need for public relations will remain high on the agenda of any company this year, whether big, medium or small.  The fight to be heard above the clutter will continue, in fact it will be needed even more than ever!  Brands will remain online, and the need for sublime creativity as well as  aggressive, pragmatic, authentic and thrilling over-the-top (OTT) thinking will be required, and that is the role of the PR guru.  Such dramatic and daring strategies can go wrong very quickly, and the experienced PR will be needed to advise on the right approach to take to travel that fine line successfully so as not to create any negative retort.  If there is a negative comeback, then crisis management and corrective measures can be implemented extremely quickly with minimal, if any, fallout.

The explosion of TikTok changed the landscape with audiences, particularly the GenZers, looking for outrageous, unusual and humorous campaigns and posts.  Look, most brands will not take that brash and daring route, and there are plenty of other platforms to use, but the point is brands need to find that sweet spot that will resonate with their community. And a fickle community it is!  Do something that doesn’t sit with them, and you will feel their wrath quickly.

To sum it up, 2022 is the year of OTT thinking, taking those daring leaps of faith that brands have traditionally shied away from.  And experimenting!  Brands traditionally hate experimenting as this is very scary territory they do not want to dabble in! But that has to change and PR expertise, experience and the ability to turn all staid and traditional brand thinking and messaging into wonderful and creative storytelling is essential to navigate this new untested and continuously evolving world. 

Contact Intune Communications and we will put your brand PR strategy together for you!  We are here at your service.

 www.intunecom.co.za

 

 

 

Organised school sport for children and adolescents COVID 19 and beyond

 

How do you get back to school sport in a safe way? What does school sport look like after the Corona Virus? What criteria do you need to follow to run school sport in a safe way? What does the future of school sport look like? Professor's Candice Christie (University of Rhodes), policy brief lead, and Professor Rowena Naidoo (University of KZN) led a team of professors, scientists and sporting personalities from most of the universities in South Africa together with other a couple of universities from other countries in Africa and sporting research agencies came up with a brief to assist schools with the best practice guidelines to return sport to schools. “Sport has the power to change the world” – Nelson Mandela. Regular participation in exercise, sport and physical activity offers many proven benefits for children and adolescents. Beyond just the obvious physical advantages, physical activity plays an important role in promoting mental health and well-being and social development in children. Schools provide many opportunities for physical activity, in the form of structured and unstructured play, as physical education within the formal academic curriculum or through informal and formal organised sport, including competitive intra- or inter-school activity. This policy brief focuses on formal organised sport in schools and provides guidelines on how to manage school sport during a pandemic. It is premised on the fact that sports participation is important for both the physical and mental well-being of children, as a platform for safe and enjoyable physical activity, and a foundation for acquiring life skills and promoting social interaction. This brief draws on the principles and benefits of physical activity articulated by complimentary policy briefs in this series and from other literature. It is the outcome of a collective effort of experts concerned about the current and future impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children and adolescents who engage in organised sports in school. As many types of organised sport involves close physical contact, it is designed to provide guidance to all those engaged in organised sport in schools; participating learners, educators, coaches, parents/caregivers, spectators and the communities, on how to practice the best possible safety measures during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. This policy brief is best used alongside safety guidelines developed by Health Departments of national, regional and local governments and international health guidelines, as set out by the World Health Organisation (WHO) pandemic response team. Further, this document augments existing school organised sport policies, but can also serve as a stand-alone guide.