I used to spend a couple of hours a week reading, watching and experimenting to stay up to speed. Now? spend a day on R&D so you don’t have to.
When I first went freelance, I filled in the knowledge gaps for teams that didn’t have time. I’m pleased to say this was a good horse to back.
It has been fascinating.
Besides, late Robert Phillips’ suggestion that we must as communicators ‘embrace chaos,’ has never felt more prescient.
With that in mind, I’ve reflected on how some of the old certainties have dissolved over the past twenty years.
Old certainties replaced
Vimeo > upload video natively everywhere
Shoot in landscape > shoot in portrait for Reels, TikTok or LinkedIn
Drive traffic to the website with links > tell the story on the platform
MySpace > Snapchat
Print first > digital first
Newsrooms > news deserts
Leaflets > Facebook updates
Press conferences > live-streamed press conferences
Retaining information > publishing the ethnic background of those arrested to prevent rioting
Post to Twitter > Post to Facebook
Display ads in the newspaper > Reels
Letters to the editor > trolls
Signing petitions > joining Facebook groups
Attending protests > sharing memes
Learning new skills in 2025 is essential.
To bring some calm and order into your life here are details of the upcoming training and September dates.
Your call to action is to book your training.
ESSENTIAL COMMS SKILLS BOOSTER
This is the six-part catch-all to bring you up to speed in one blast. Media landscape, comms planning and evaluation, creating content, algorithm updates, underused channels, to stay or go from X, Facebook groups, LinkedIn, dealing with comment, criticism and abuse, AI basics.
Workshop #63 starts 18.6.25
Workshop #64 starts 24.9.25
Drop me a note on the contact form about arranging an in-house session.
ESSENTIAL AI FOR PUBLIC SECTOR COMMS
Twelve months in the planning and research this weekly updated session looks at how to apply AI in the public sector. The biggest barrier to learning AI is a lack of time, my survey showed. I’ve done the hard work so you don’t have to. Five one hour sessions. Big picture, using AI safely, prompts, AI tools and spotting and dealing with fake content.
Workshop #9 starts 16.6.25
Workshop #10 starts 24.9.25
Drop me a note on the contact form about arranging an in-house session.
ESSENTIAL VIDEO SKILLS REBOOTED
The first and best training session to equip you and the team with all you need to know to plan, shoot, edit and post effective video for landscape and vertical. The big picture, planning, planning for vertical, the white box, sound, equipment, editing, cutaways, music, filters, uploading to Facebook, Reels, TikTok and LinkedIn. Staying legal with copyright, accessibility and GDPR.
Workshop #38 starts 3.7.25
Workshop #39 starts 10.10.25
Drop me a note on the contact form about arranging an in-house session.
ESSENTIAL MEDIA RELATIONS
The one you need for shaping content for media attention. You’ll learn about packaging a story, the media landscape, newsroom trends for user needs and away from being papers of record. Pitching to a reporter. Dealing with a reporter’s questions step-by-step effectively and without worry.
Workshop #24 starts 3.6.25
Workshop #25 starts 24.9.25
Drop me a note on the contact form about arranging an in-house session.
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Creative commons credit: By Beach goers, Margate Beach by Oast House Archive, CC BY-SA 2.0.