WH Smith needs to buck up its corporate communications. It has been hit by two mini scandals: It is charging up to 50% more for the same goods in its WH Smith hospital shops than on the high street; and It is not refunding vat at it airport shops and pocketing about £10 a year Read More
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John Lewis screws up the Sharpe’s blinds
John Lewis, the department store, trades on its reputation for goods and services. In the Sharpe house this reputation is pretty low. It has taken from early April to the middle of July to get some blinds fitted. That’s the date we have been given. We placed the initial order in early April. John Lewis Read More
Nationwide personalises direct mail with intelligent printing
Excellent piece of corporate communications by Nationwide Building Society using direct mail. It has used intelligent printing to put the forename of the recipient on a cup of cappuccino. This one fell through the letterbox addressed to my son, Michael. Plenty of direct mail comes through the door. But with this neat personalisation the chances Read More
Charities get the corporate message over: well done Great Ormond St Hospital for Children
Charities have vastly improved their corporate communications in the past five years. The Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children has an appeal on to raise millions of pounds to improve wards and services. And is making a good fist of it. Chugger wins I was caught by a “chugger” at a station in London this Read More
Heinz screws suppliers and leaves a nasty taste
Heinz is, or rather, was a great brand. Tomato ketchup, probably the best in the world next to Amoura’s. Tomato soup, delicious with a sandwich for lunch. And I can’t beat cold Heinz baked beans straight from the can. Doubling the time to wait for payments But is has shot itself in the foot, according Read More
Eurostar should train its train crews to handle bumps in the track
Eurostar does not seem to learn from its mistakes: it has had another disaster. Things go wrong. But it’s how a company reacts when they do go wrong that shows its skills at corporate communications. This time power lines failed outside Lille stranding 1,200 passengers on 2 trains overnight. One of them got to Brussels Read More
Netto puts ball into own net
The fierce supermarket stores in the UK continue to throw up examples of good and bad corporate communications. The latest one is a bad one from Netto. It has returned after leaving the UK 4 years ago. It could not find its footing despite being here for 14 years. Per Bank, CEO of Netto’s parent Read More
What’s in a name: everything, so what is TNT doing changing to whistle or is it Whistle?
The mail operation of TNT, delivering post to your door, has decided to change its name to Whistle, or is it whistle? Not sure in its marketing statements which it is, capital or not. Be very careful about changing names or choosing them in the first place. It is a key part of corporate communications. Read More
How do you control your message?
When Mr Miliband spoke for over an hour – without notes! – he must have thought that this memory feat alone would secure positive support and endorsement for his personal brand. Now, he knows better. Let’s look briefly at the main components of his message: EXPECTATIONS This largely forms the “context” of the message, and Read More