Media Meetings from AHA Creative on Vimeo.
In today’s video, Ruth talks about meeting with journalists.
Media Meetings
The Magic Of A Great Speech
Quite often we, at AHA, are asked to develop a speech for our clients. I love speech writing, but have to admit – it’s not easy to develop a great one. It takes a lot of time and effort. For a speech to have an impact it has to have several elements, including being written in the voice of the person who will deliver it, containing good information, providing value and authentically connecting with the people listening.
At AHA, we spend the time needed to write great speeches for our clients. We interview the speech giver, understand the culture and expectations of the audience and research the facts and stats – not to mention craft the language and the message. I usually lock myself away for a few hours and come out and give the first draft of the speech to the AHA crew to get input and feedback. Then it’s back to it again for a few more hours.
Invaluable resources when writing speeches are books. I was delighted when I found a piece on Ragan.com on the must have books for speechwriters. This is a great list and one that had me jumping onto Amazon immediately to add to my collection.
Social Media is a Part of Your Communications Strategy
Social Media is a Part of Your Communications Strategy from AHA Creative on Vimeo.
In today’s video, Ruth talks about social media as a part of your overall communications strategy.
Can You Keep It Short And Snappy?
Years ago I was working at Maclean’s magazine and writing primarily for The People Page. The items on the page were short – about a paragraph in length and each short piece needed a strong headline.
I loved writing for The People Page. First off, it was the most-read page in the magazine and I liked the challenge of putting interesting, entertaining and informative stories into 100 words or less. And I love writing headlines. It’s not as easy as you think to be smart and witty in five words and describe the article.
Fast forward to now. Social media demands short, snappy and interesting pieces. All those late nights of struggling to turn a two-hour interview into a 100 words is paying off for our clients. I understand not only how to keep it short; I know why it’s important. As communicators, we only have seconds to capture someone’s attention and we’re competing with a lot of “stuff” for that attention. Knowing your audience is key, understanding what your objectives are is important and seeing the world in one-sentence connections is valuable.
Crisis Communications Plan
Crisis Communications Plan from AHA Creative on Vimeo.
In today’s video, Ruth talks about the immediate online response to issues and how important it is to have a crisis communications plan in place.