23 Sep The Friday Five: Authenticity, Influencer Marketing, Mental Health in PR & Social Media Popularity

Something occurred to me when I was recording this week’s Drive Time video. I was coasting down the M40 on the inside lane, as I tend to do when recording these things, with the setting sun shining in my eyes and making seeing very difficult, let alone videoing. And I realised that in just a few weeks the clocks will go back and my commute will be done in the dark. Which means that it’ll be very difficult for anyone to see me. Hmmm…to be continued…

Anyway, in other news it’s been the CIPR elections this week and today (Friday) is the last chance for CIPR members to vote. Last year’s elections made a mockery of the entire thing, with dirty tricks and smear campaigns making the body look like a laughing stock.

So I’m delighted that this year things have looked (from the outside at least) to have been run professionally and smoothly, with the three candidates all doing a great job. Personally, I’d love to see Sarah Hall get the President-Elect gig as I think she would add a new dimension. Results are announced next week…

Below is my list of the five articles that I think you should read this week. To ensure you receive this every week, SUBSCRIBE HERE.

1. Getting real, for real. What it means and why by Lisa Gerber

2. The ‘reach myth’ of influencer marketing by Scott Guthrie

3. Should you use digital personas? by Adam Cranfield

4. It’s time to combat the mental health epidemic in PR & Comms by me on Comms2Point0

5. The disconnect between social media popularity and business effectiveness by Mark Schaefer

For a summary of the week’s major news in just 5 minutes, check out this week’s edition of Digital Drive Time below. This week I’ve covered yet more developments in live video streaming from Facebook and Twitter, a fantastic PR response from Skittles, the CIPR elections and a seriously powerful piece of campaigning video from the United States. Enjoy!

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