ARTICLE
Want to be a content Olympian? Don’t call people “cat ladies”
When someone brings up “bad PR”, what leaps to mind? Rishi Sunak’s D-Day debacle? James Corden’s restaurant rage? Or perhaps JD Vance’s recent decision to brand his political opponent and her supporters as “childless cat ladies”.
Even trusted brands and organisations aren’t immune from making mistakes. The so-called Last Supper parody performed at the Olympics opening ceremony generated an online storm, and last week, The Guardian was forced to apologise after a ‘watch porn’ ad was insensitively placed next to an article covering child abuse.
With online commentators raring to pounce on any slip-up, businesses cannot underestimate the importance of quality control in content creation. As PR professionals, we’ve seen it all, so here are some top tips on how to become content Olympians.
Who’s in the room?
Last month, Sainsbury’s became one of the latest businesses caught in a PR minefield after a term used by online racists was unwittingly sewn into a digital listing for school trousers. Whilst unintended, the tweet reporting the mishap was viewed more than 750,000 times, causing offence among many internet users and sparking calls for greater representation in the brand’s decision-making process.
The blunder just shows the importance of utilising the diverse perspectives of your workforce when creating and checking content – even a seemingly ‘small’ detail that gets missed in the pursuit of ‘getting a job done’ could have huge ramifications.
Enlisting professional PR advice and support is another great tool to help ensure harmful or discriminatory errors are eliminated before they are released. Even with an internal approval process in place, relying on professional spot-checkers with external perspectives will keep your content respectful and up-to-date.
TOP TIP: Think about who is in the content creation room? What perspectives are you missing? Is there potential for something to get misinterpreted?
Sweat the small stuff
Content bloopers happen to even the biggest brands – especially when teams are under pressure to meet a deadline. From an unfortunate typo to mega marketing mess-ups – cue Aston Villa’s sponsors recently revealing the club’s new crest ahead of time – content creation is always risky business. The secret to quality control? Proactive proofing!
With so much at stake, it’s best practice to have at least two pairs of eyes, additional to the creator, scanning the content for mishaps. Establishing a clear approval structure will help to catch any anomalies before they publicly undermine the credibility of your offering.
However, proofing content is more than spotting a rebellious comma. It’s a crucial opportunity to make your content work harder for the business and ensure it communicates with desired audiences in the most intelligent and engaging way.
TOP TIP: Proof your content beyond the typos. Does it serve your business strategy and align with tone of voice? Are your messages clear?
Take a time out
Time heals all wounds – and when it comes to content, it can prevent reputational injuries occurring. Ensuring that your team has time built in to sit with content and consider it from all angles is vital to reducing the risk of a big mistake.
Outsourcing content creation to a PR team will not only remove the burden from your workforce as they go about their daily roles, but it also builds in a thorough and collaborative approvals process that gives your experts time to properly engage with the piece and make any necessary changes.
TOP TIP: We can’t always do everything alone. If you’re finding content mistakes are slipping through the cracks, it might be time to get an external partner involved to keep your business moving.
Looking to develop podium-worthy content? Get in touch with our gold-star specialists.
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