From Typewriter to iPhone: Ray Jordan’s journey through journalism
If you don't already know who Ray Jordan is, he's one of Western Australia’s most highly-regarded corporate communicators and strategists, who, before moving to corporate communications, held executive positions in the media – including the role of Deputy Editor of The West Australian. Ray is also one of Australia’s most experienced wine journalists and has been writing about wine for nearly forty years, with his first articles published in the late 1970s. He is currently the Wine Editor for Seven West Media. Ray's first photo taken as a cadet journalist in February 1976 Given Ray's long-standing career in media and communications, I was keen
Property confidence soars, despite headwinds
If you’re part of the property sector in Australia, you’re feeling pretty upbeat right now – so upbeat, in fact, that your confidence levels and positive outlook on the industry are at an all-time high. That’s the findings of the latest ANZ/Property Council Survey, released this morning and based on the views of some 830 owners, developers, agents, managers, consultants and government representatives across the country. Now in its tenth year, the quarterly national survey is one of the biggest sentiment measures in the Australian property industry and provides a temperature check on national, state and territory economies, property asset class performance, employment intentions, expected workflows and
How I grew my LinkedIn network by 50% in six weeks
One of the things I do a lot of is training and coaching people who want to improve their use of LinkedIn. The professional social media network has about 700 million registered users, and can be a fantastic place to learn, build genuine relationships, and extend your network. But it’s also a misunderstood platform, and many people aren’t sure what they should be using it for, what they should post, or how to write for the platform. (If this sounds like you, feel free to get in touch with me). The more I have used LinkedIn, the more I realise it’s essentially a
Purple Conversations: Cameron Wong
Cameron Wong is a key part of Cannings Purple’s digital team, helping clients choose the right tools and interpret data to hone their digital strategies. A self-confessed marketing nerd, Cameron has a background working for non-profits and sporting organisations in Western Australia and a leading global technology conference producer in London.
Why media intelligence is important, and how to make it work for you
For business, Media Intelligence can be an invaluable tool, especially when used the right way. Unlike the common perception, Media Intelligence is more than just a regurgitation of every time you or your brand is mentioned. In fact, there are five very important ways following your news can improve your business and client outcomes.
World Health Day: COVID-19
"Building a fairer and healthier world for everyone" is the focus of World Health Day – celebrated yesterday. Founded in 1948 by the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2021 the WHO is calling on leaders to ensure that everyone has living and working conditions that are conducive to good health. Access to health For this year, WHO notes the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted that some people are able to live healthier lives and have better access to health services than others - entirely due to the conditions in which they are born, grow, live, work and age. Australia's health system The WHO has identified Australia as one of the most well-prepared
Cannings Purple Launches New Website
We are very excited to announce the launch of our newly designed website, www.canningspurple.com.au. To discuss our new website and the process behind the strategy, design and copywriting, a few members of the team share their opinions.
Stakeholder and Community Engagement in a Post-COVID World
COVID-19 has created an atmosphere of uncertainty in almost every industry. Overnight, the world was forced to go virtual and with very limited opportunity for in-person interactivity and communication. We are currently still operating in a time of crisis, but businesses need to consider what happens not just today, but tomorrow and beyond. Those that do not take action to adjust their communications strategies risk losing their audience’s trust. A positive shift for engagement Fortunately, the digital era has normalised online communication to the point that many of us now prefer it. The pandemic forced a necessary shift to more online engagement, and in turn we see more opportunities to engage virtually with
Introducing Skyline – A Targeted Commercial Property Content Platform
Cannings Purple’s Skyline platform has been developed to ensure property players can deliver their stories to the right audience at the right time.
The case to Automate
For many people automation is no more than a buzz word, and really, how many more of those can we handle? However, the benefits are irrefutable. Senior Digital Consultant, Cameron Wong, explains how marketing automation could benefit your business.
Press freedom in Australia and defamation cases on the rise
Often the media is referred to as the harshest of critics. Over recent weeks we’ve seen the powerful pull of the media and its influence over public perception regarding royalty, celebrities and even our politicians. Having a free media means journalists have a fundamental right to publish content freely without censorship, control or restrictions. Concerns for this freedom have grown within the last decade as the number of defamation cases against media outlets has risen at an increasingly alarming rate. The international media watchdog, Reporters Without Borders, has downgraded Australia’s global ranking for press freedom from 12th best in the world in 2002 to 26th. Their 2020 World Press Freedom Index highlighted the challenge journalists face. “In 2019, Australian journalists became more aware than ever
McGowan loads up trusted allies in Cabinet reshuffle
In the unusual setting of the Parliament House Dining Room, Premier Mark McGowan gathered his re-elected and newly minted, parliamentary Labor colleagues yesterday. It was not a post-run kebab on the menu, but the first caucus meeting’s main task was to decide the make-up of Mr McGowan’s new Cabinet. Smiles all round as Labor held its first caucus meeting since its election win (ABC News: Hugh Sando) Obviously, Mr McGowan remains at the head of the table as Premier, with Roger Cook staying at his right hand as Deputy. The special of the day was the Treasurer’s role with Roger Cook and Rita
Close The Gap Day: Leadership and legacy through crisis
Today marks the fifteenth annual Close the Gap Day – a campaign that works towards closing the gap in health and life expectancy outcomes between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians within a generation. The aim of Close the Gap Day is to bring people together to share information, and most importantly, to take meaningful action in support of achieving Indigenous health equality by 2030. There are countless individual and community success stories in Indigenous-led health policy, service delivery and human-rights sectors, with one of our clients, Cole Supplies, being one of them. Cole Supplies Cole Supplies is a Noongar-owned and operated Supply Nation-certified supplier of
Working towards a more inclusive economy
Cannings Purple has a history of working with Aboriginal-owned and operated organisations. Our team believes in supporting the development of an inclusive economy which offers new opportunities to indigenous and non-indigenous businesses alike. We are proud of the projects which have involved collaboration with the traditional owners of the Perth region, the Whadjuk people of the Noongar Nation. Matagarup Bridge Our Stakeholder and Community Engagement team provided support for the delivery of the Matagarup Bridge. The size and scale of the project made it a rewarding one for the team, but the focus on meaningful engagement with Noongar representatives was a true highlight. The
Safeguard your business against defamatory content on social media
The rapid evolution of social media and various other digital platforms means legislation is regularly playing catch up. Liability and ownership of defamatory content on social media is one such emerging area of law.
Results explosive, but Election day a fizzer as three-quarters of a million Western Australians go early
Waking up yesterday I needed to remind myself of the occasion, as it has been a remarkably calm lead-up to political decision day 2021. There has been comparatively little tension in the contest this time around on all fronts – the policy debate, the personal attacks and even the politically engaged media have all lacked energy. A quick drive around suburbia on Saturday morning did nothing much to excite me either, the usual sign positioning battles over night must have also been a weak affair, as volumes of paraphernalia and rusted on volunteers appeared to have scaled to match the downsized turnout. A
Branding analysis: WA State Election
With Zac Kirkup conceding that the WA Liberals are facing defeat, and the overwhelmingly positive polls that have been published of late for Labor, it seems that the WA State Election is in the bag for incumbent Premier Mark McGowan. Or is it?
She Inspired Me: Celebrating International Women’s Day
International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. The campaign theme for International Women's Day 2021 is 'Choose To Challenge'. A challenged world is an alert world. And from challenge comes change. So let's all #ChooseToChallenge. To celebrate, we asked the Cannings Purple team to reflect on the women that have inspired them throughout their life. Annette Ellis Our Managing Director, Annette Ellis said that many women have inspired her throughout her life, including women at Cannings Purple. Chris Leitch Account Manager, Chris Leitch reflects on
The battle of the giants: Facebook vs News Corp
There’s an African proverb that when elephants fight, it’s the grass that suffers — and that’s been abundantly clear for Australian media in the past few weeks. Facebook vs News Corp In the blue corner is Facebook, market capitalisation of USD $741 billion, with as many daily users as the entire populations of all of North America, Europe and Latin America combined. In the red corner is News Corp, a mere $10 billion in market capitalisation, but in charge of a sprawling international TV, news, digital and magazine empire that in Australia extends from Sky News to The Australian to the Fremantle-Cockburn Gazette. Alongside are Australia’s other big news houses: Nine, which owns
New Year’s Resolutions: Revisiting Brand Strategy
Every New Year, many of us make resolutions. We stretch to see a better version of ourselves and try and coax it into being. I believe brands are similar. Brands can sometimes get distracted from their true purpose. Often, it's because the people who manage them are time poor, and other times the market has changed, leaving businesses feeling like they’ve lost their way. So, it’s good to stop, take stock and ask the question, “is our brand the best version of itself?” Back to Brand Strategy Basics To answer that question, businesses need to ask themselves: What is our purpose? What is our vision? What is
Facebook blocks news from Australian users
Facebook has made the unprecedented move of banning Australian news publishers (and users) from sharing or viewing any news articles on the platform. It’s a response to the Federal Government’s bargaining code which has passed through the House of Representatives, and which will require social media companies to pay news organisations if their content appears on the platform. For many Australian users, this means their main source of daily news - their Facebook newsfeed - will look very different, with only content appearing from friends and family, and non-news organisations. It’s a bold, even aggressive action, on Facebook’s part. If you look at
Google vs Australia
Google is threatening to shut down its search engine in Australia over a proposed media law. Google said last month that it may stop delivering search results in Australia after the government introduced a new media bill that requires digital platforms to pay publishers to link their content in news feeds or search results. Essentially, Australia wants internet giants like Facebook and Google, to pay to display and link to news generated by Australian journalists. If Google does exit from Australia, it would deny more than 25 million people access to the world's most popular search engine, which handles almost 95% of the country's daily
Purple Conversations: Annette Ellis
In between her very busy schedule, heading our organisation and its teams, Cannings Purple’s Managing Director, Annette Ellis takes a break to tell us who she is when she's not working. In our ‘Purple Conversations’ series, you’ll find out about the Cannings Purple team – what led them to their careers; what they do in their spare time and even what their favourite apps are. Meet Annette With more than 25 years experience in corporate communications, reputation management, crisis communications, change management and stakeholder relations, Annette is an accomplished corporate editor, speechwriter and a highly regarded coach in executive presentation skills. Annette gained her
Safer Internet Day: Together for a better internet
Safer Internet Day is designed to encourage people to start the conversation around protecting ourselves, our families and our colleagues on the web, and this year's message is 'together for a better internet'. Protect your internet 'home' In my house, every day is safer internet day, but I can understand why this dry topic might not be everyone’s first priority. Presumably though, you would say you do everything you can to protect your home (and thus your family): door and window locks, alarms, garden fences, teaching your kids to close the front door, shutting your garage etc. Using the internet safely is just
Caretaker period: What it means for your engagement with government
With January now behind us, the WA State election is squarely in view. As candidates from all political persuasions prepare for the final push towards the March 13 finish line, executive government is gearing up for a different shift - the transition into caretaker mode. What is caretaker? Caretaker government starts when the parliament is dissolved and lasts until the election result is clear. During this period, the government is bound by a number of conventions to uphold responsible government. In particular, these rules govern some key aspects of our government. One eye on the horizon Key contracts and commitments, as well as
The Internet vs Wall Street
It's a story that would make a thrilling Hollywood blockbuster - the underdogs who beat the corporate giants at their own game and got super rich in the process. However, this is not a movie, but a real-life drama unfolding right now. In recent days, mainly-amateur stock traders have come together online to drive up the share price of a struggling (but much-loved) video retailer, GameStop. An army of rookie investors on Reddit’s “wallstreetbets” online chatroom joined forces to target short sellers, resulting in more than two million subscribers loading into GameStop’s shares. On Thursday 28 January, the mall retailer was the single most traded name in
January 26: A Conversation That Matters
As the Australia Day holiday rolls around each year, questions are raised about our history and national identity. At the heart of these questions - multiculturalism, colonisation and inclusion. For some, this date means barbecues, fireworks and gatherings with friends and family – a day to celebrate Australia. But for others, the day is far from a celebration – signifying the beginning of dispossession, destruction of culture and separation of families. Consequently, some Australians refer to January 26 as Invasion Day, Survival Day and Day of Mourning. A Nation Divided The debate around changing the date, saving the date, or cancelling the holiday all
Why is the internet telling you to drop WhatsApp?
There's a lot of noise on social channels right now from people who are switching from WhatsApp to other messaging services. The move seems to be driven by the (wrong) assertion that changes in WhatsApp’s user policies mean the app will begin pushing personalised information about you to its parent company, Facebook. Now, I’m not a huge supporter of Facebook’s grip on our personal data (or indeed what it has done with that data in the past), but the changes it is making do not mean your personal information will be any more compromised than it already is on WhatsApp -
Building for tomorrow, engaging today – community relations for fast-tracked infrastructure
For the McGowan State Government, WA’s economic recovery from COVID-19 is all about infrastructure. Accelerated programs to build roads, rail and bridges are expected to bring about jobs and assets for the future. But what will these expedited projects mean for the communities where they will be built? Our stakeholder engagement experts explain why avoiding tick-box engagement, and developing a strong consultation program, is more important than ever when timeframes for delivery are crunched. How many projects have been fast tracked? More than 80 major rail, road, coastal and cycling projects over the next two years. A streamlined process for contract awards
2021 Conversations That Matter
As we embark on 2021, the world finds itself at a major turning point – politically, economically, technologically and socially. What’s next? It’s never easy to predict, and especially so this year! For businesses and communication experts, the best way forward is to reflect and learn from the year that was – the lockdown; the economic and social impacts; the devastating bushfires; the disruption of everyday life. The events of 2020 transformed how we communicate. We asked some of Perth’s best communication experts to look back on 2020 and give us their predictions for 2021. A purpose-driven focus With lots of social justice issues