Mynewsdesk #FutureComms Panel - Meet the panel, part 2

It's time to introduce the next four members of the Mynewsdesk Future of Communications Panel!

If you don't know about the panel, have a quick read of Meet the panel, part 1.

MEET THE PANEL - PART 2

Chris Moss

Chris has been in the world of communications and brands for the last 25 years. And had some lucky breaks along the way. He founded the Orange brand and prior to that was director of marketing/brand and customer experience at Virgin Atlantic for eight years. More recently he was CEO for the launch of 118118 and has spent the last two years nurturing social enterprises and start-ups in technology environments. 

What are the most important challenges facing communicators today?

Staying awake. We all get too much chaff (think of it as email ticker-tape) and not enough chat. Communications should be about a dialogue, a two-way street. The more we just transmit, the more we just become radio beacons pushing our own agenda.

But how do we respond in a word of so much chaff and noise? We need to move social networking into social connecting. Finding "like minds" and creating powerful tribes of interest. And remembering, since the ancient greek times, the only constant is change. So in the words of Billy Connelly "Stay Awake"! (search YouTube Billy Connolly - Women's demands - best bit) 

Eva Keogan
@nixdminx 

Eva has a rounded view of the new world of communications; she’s been a corporate blogger, and independent blogger and also advised many household names as a consultant. She’s been publishing at nixdminx.com since 2008 and @nixdminx on Twitter, as well as speaking at events and in the media about social media and innovation.

Eva recently joined Fishburn Hedges in a newly created role as Head of Innovation, to embrace the opportunities opened up by digital and social media comms. Eva has extensive experience as digital and social marketing practitioner, she was previously Head of Social at technology marketing agency LBi, and prior to that at Lastminute.com, where she developed a business strategy for social media and turned channels into profit centres (as well as editing it’s popular blog), and Cisco working on consumer social media campaigns and the corporate blog. 

What are the most important challenges facing communicators today?

"Competition: what goes where and with whom? As SEO, CRM and digital agencies embrace social media, PR and marketing agencies are under pressure to compete.

"Erosion: the walls that surrounded all the disciplines such as journalism, advertising and PR are no longer there. Social media has made everyone a PR or publisher at work and at home."

Guy Bellamy
@elecomms 

Guy is widely regarded for his strategic and creative thinking. He draws on a distinguished 20-year track record of devising innovative and award-winning corporate and consumer PR programmes for major business-to-business and consumer brands. Following six years with NatWest Group and 14 with FD, Guy founded the elephant communications concept in the belief that the changed market environment called for new PR responses. Guy regularly lectures in business and academic circles and also does broader bro bono work as part of elephant's community investment programme. 

What are the most important challenges facing communicators today?

"Generally I think the market offers more opportunities than challenges for PR, but some challenges would include:

• Moving away from notions of 'new' and 'old' media silos and fully integrating the mix
• Moving beyond the legacy of spin that has, to many, damaged the industry's credibility
• Fosusing on the impact of coverage not its generation
• Helping clients become more comfortable engaging in two-way conversations and reappraising old notions of 'control'

Paul Sutton
@thepaulsutton 

Paul is Head of Social Communications at BOTTLE, the multi award-winning Oxford-based PR agency, and has 15 years’ agency and client-side experience in marketing communications, digital & social media, and PR 2.0. Fascinated by the psychological and cultural impact of social media and the web, he’s a big proponent of integrated communications strategies that impact attitudes, beliefs and opinions. Paul’s big on challenging conventional thinking and going against the grain, and has found a home for minor thoughts and major rants at www.futurecomms.co.uk.

What are the most important challenges facing communicators today?

The shifts we’ve seen over the last few years have left many (for that, read "most"...) communicators in a tailspin. The gap between those who do understand modern communications and those who don’t is getting wider and more apparent, and people/companies/brands are starting to get left behind. And it’s only going to get tougher for them, as the longer they leave it to start becoming customer-centric and responsive, and the longer they continue to focus on tools and techniques rather than people, the greater the change it will require to catch up.

Now you've met the panel (and we may have more panellists joining soon!), look out for a whole raft of content over the coming months, as we pick our experts' brains on the most vital issues facing communucators today.

Adam

Follow: #futurecomms and @Mynewsdesk_uk on Twitter