“Even the Most Brilliant and Powerful Ideas Need Champions”
Brand-new campaign or big, looming crisis, communications teams are pivotal in shaping how stories are told, remembered and leveraged. 4A's ANGLES 2024, which is set to take place in New York City on 3rd December, will bring together comms experts and innovative visionaries reshaping the communications landscape. The powerhouse line-up of speakers will share insights on everything from new business and storytelling to must-attend industry events. The sessions will empower agency comms professionals with deeper insights into pitching and positioning stories, leveraging technologies, cultivating partnerships and more. The sessions are designed to help comms professionals from agencies of all shapes and sizes.
Speakers include Jon Iwata, executive chairman, data & trust alliance, and former IBM chief brand officer, Geno Schellenberger, CEO, Breaking and Entering Media, Adrienne Lucas, head of DEI & strategic partnerships, The One Club for Creativity, Leah Steinhardt, VP of marketing, POSSIBLE, Matt Ryan, CEO, Roth Ryan Hayes (RRH), Simone Oppenheimer-Mandel, co-founder, NBZ, and others. Check out the full line-up here.
Co-chairs of the 4A's Comms Committee, Rebecca Sullivan, director of public relations, North America, VML, and Suzanne McGee, director, marketing & communications, EP+Co, will be the emcees for the event. Journalists from a number of publications will also speak.
In anticipation of the event, the 4A’s, in partnership with LBB, asked some of the speakers about the evolving role of PR and comms in new business and growth, the dynamics between great work and strategic PR, and the hurdles they overcome in their line of work.
Up today is Anaka Kobzev, global chief communications officer, McCann Worldgroup.
Anaka’s mission is to drive innovative and culturally resonant brand communications for one of the world's top marketing services companies, leveraging her experience to drive the organisation's mission to build enduring brands together. This includes overseeing internal and external communications, events, social and reputation management. Anaka is passionate about fostering a collaborative and inclusive environment where diverse perspectives are harnessed to elevate our global narrative.
LBB> Earlier this month, LBB's CEO Matt Cooper penned a thought piece in which he said, "There is absolutely a direct link between successful, great work and good PR and marketing!" What are your thoughts on that?
Anaka> Yes! If success is defined as work that gets talked about by regular people — not just the ad bubble — and is shared and discussed on social, talked about in the news and breaks into culture, then PR is essential, because that kind of momentum doesn’t happen by accident. Behind almost every successful campaign or programme, there’s a strategic PR and marketing effort, with PR engaged from the beginning to help shape the idea. There is an unquestionably strong link between successful work and good PR and marketing.
LBB> At what stage of growth does the mantra 'the work speaks for itself' stop being enough, necessitating strong, strategic PR?
Anaka> Even the most brilliant and powerful ideas need champions. It’s estimated that in the US, people are exposed to upwards of 4,000 ads and media messages each day. People spend on average 12 hours a day on media and entertainment platforms. Letting the work speak for itself isn’t going to get you far in a world in which people are inundated with content around the clock.
It’s never been easier to create ecosystems that reduce exposure to paid ads, which is why earning attention on social or in the news is so critical.
Behind almost every successful campaign or program, there’s a strategic PR and marketing effort, with PR engaged from the beginning to help shape the idea. There is an unquestionably strong link between successful work and good PR and marketing.
LBB> The ad industry, as we know, is partial to an award show. What are your thoughts on the link between great comms and the winning of great awards?
Anaka> “And the world started talking about it!”
We’ve all seen that line in the case study video. Over the past 10 or so years, the real-world impact of an idea — which is often measured through earned media attention, engagement on social media, mentions in pop culture, which ultimately leads to an uptick in sales or customer engagement — is illustrated by media coverage and social share of voice. That’s why having a strategic and proactive PR strategy is essential. PR savvy minds can influence the work early, sometimes with the simplest tweaks, to set the stage for earned media success. Now, awards should come because of impactful work, but doing this work upfront can strengthen the ideas themselves and the chances for success.
There’s a second component to consider. Anyone who has ever judged an award show will tell you that it’s both an honour and a big commitment, because there is usually so much work to watch and consider. That’s another way PR efforts can make the difference. It’s immensely helpful when judges see something familiar in reviewing work — it can amount to a mental shortcut and increase the odds of bringing the work into final discussion rounds where meaningful discussion happens.
Also, if people know your work and love it, they are more likely to be able to advocate for it or bring an informed perspective to the discussion.
LBB> In your opinion, how has the role and stature of a PR/comms professional evolved during your career span? Have things changed greatly?
Anaka> Communications professionals should have a seat at the table when it comes to key business decisions. Thankfully, this is happening more and more, but it’s not a given. Comms pros are natural storytellers, and we can see around corners. We bring specialised expertise to important discussions of culture, employee engagement and the business marketplace — it only makes sense to ensure your comms lead is part of your leadership team.
