How Bernays pioneered PR publicity stunts

The earliest publicity stunt in PR (Public Relations) history occurred in the 1920s. At that period  it was a taboo for women to  smoke outdoors. At that time, a cigarette brand  Lucky Strike cigarettes, was seeking  to aggressively grow its  customer base - and this included women.

 Consequently, the cigarette maker engaged the services of a seminal figure in Public Relarions history, Edward Bernays.
As part of his strategy to break the taboo, Bernay's orchestrated a now-legendary publicity stunt by convincing women
to smoke at the Easter parade in Manhattan as a statement of rebellion against the norms of a male-dominated society.

The demonstrators were not aware that a tobacco company was behind the publicity
stunt. Bernays dubbed his PR campaign the: “Torches of Liberty Contingent”
Publicity photos of these beautiful fashion models smoking “Torches of Liberty” were sent to various media outlets and appeared worldwide. As a result, the taboo was dissolved and many women were led to associate the act of smoking with female liberation. Some women went so far as to demand membership in all-male smoking clubs, a highly controversial act at the time.

For his work, Bernays was paid a tidy sum by George Washington Hill, president of the American Tobacco
Company.

Bernays was the profession’s first theorist. He drew many of his ideas from Sigmund
Freud’s theories about the irrational, unconscious motives that shape human behaviour.

Bernays authored several books, including Crystallizing Public Opinion (1923), Propaganda (1928), and The
Engineering of Consent (1947).

He saw public relations as an “applied social science” that uses insights from psychology, sociology, and other disciplines to scientifically manage and manipulate the
thinking and behavior of an irrational and “herdlike” public.

Posted By Dominic Nwelih
Media Accent

10 rules social media management teams must observe

• Social media management teams should learn to  write like humans would speak. Corporate speak will bore people and they’ll dismiss your conversation stream as a waste of time.

• Deliver a recipe of information that’s valuable to the reader. If you spend too much time trying to sell people products, you’ll be regarded as spam.

• In the course of managing your organization's social media accounts be ready to interact with people who comment or reply to you. The worst thing you can do is connect with people and then not answer their comments or questions.

• Don’t be a lurker. Engage in conversations when people are talking about you and your products. But only if you have something meaningful to add.

• Have a sense of humor. Nothing makes information more interesting or seem more
human than having a little fun with things.

• Don’t whine or complain. Someone is going to say something negative about your
organization at some point. If you choose to engage them, do so professionally. Admit
you’re wrong if you are, then apologize. Or correct them if they’re mistaken.

• Don’t spin the truth, tell lies of omission, or flat out lie. This seems obvious, but do this in front of several million people, and someone will find out and tell the rest of the world.

• Stay consistent with the tone and style of the organizational voice. It confuses and
annoys people if it changes every week.

• Never engage in flame wars with competitors or angry constituents. This makes everyone look immature.

• If you don’t have anything valuable to say, don’t say anything at all. It’s better to be
silent than obviously filling space because you feel you should. By the way, go find
something valuable to say!

The differences between Content Writing and Copy Writing

Content Writing vs. Copy Writing

By Dominic Nwelih

Does your marketing team require a content writer or copy writer? Media Accent Nigeria could help you.

Know the difference between a copywriters and content writers

.Content writers answer questions about  products  goods or services through their writings. They raise awareness and interest about your offerings and build trust among your publics.  Copywriters seek to sell products, goods and services through their writing.

.Content writers in Lagos, Nigeria and across the globe produce the materials you read on blogs, web content, newspapers, articles and journals. Copywriters on the other hand produce the materials you see on adverts, product packaging, branded items, social media posts, videos and some other forms of marketing or promotional materials.

.Content writers produce writings that are thorough and well researched using keywords that resonate well with  search engines. This is with a view  to answer  questions about brands, products and services. Copywriters in Lagos, Nigeria and across the globe, keep their writings short and simple. Brevity is the golden rule for copywriters. Their aim is to draw Attention, rouse Interest, cause Desire and get you to take Action on the particular good or service they are promoting.


Media Accent Nigeria

Why image is important

The business world can be extremely competitive. Companies typically want to have something that makes them stand out from the crowd, something that makes them more appealing and interesting
to both members of the public and the media. A favorable image can help increase a company’s sales, and negative publicity can damage a company’s reputation and decrease sales.

Public relations can give consumers and the media a better understanding of how a company works. Within a company, a PR department might also be called a public information department or a customer relations department. These departments assist customers if they have any problems with the company.
They usually try to show the company at its best. PR departments also might conduct research to learn how satisfied customers are with the company and its products.

Early Publicity stunts in PR history : Edward Bernays’ Torches of Freedom Campaign in Newyork

In the 1920s,  it was a taboo for women to  smoke outdoors. At that time, a cigarette brand  Lucky Strike cigarettes, was seeking  to aggressively grow its  customer base - and this included women.

 Consequently, the cigarette maker engaged the services of a seminal figure in Public Relarions history, Edward Bernays.
As part of his strategy to break the taboo, Bernay's orchestrated a now-legendary publicity stunt by convincing women
to smoke at the Easter parade in Manhattan as a statement of rebellion against the norms of a male-dominated society.

The demonstrators were not aware that a tobacco company was behind the publicity
stunt. Bernays dubbed his PR campaign the: “Torches of Liberty Contingent”
Publicity photos of these beautiful fashion models smoking “Torches of Liberty” were sent to various media outlets and appeared worldwide. As a result, the taboo was dissolved and many women were led to associate the act of smoking with female liberation. Some women went so far as to demand membership in all-male smoking clubs, a highly controversial act at the time.

For his work, Bernays was paid a tidy sum by George Washington Hill, president of the American Tobacco
Company.

Bernays was the profession’s first theorist. He drew many of his ideas from Sigmund
Freud’s theories about the irrational, unconscious motives that shape human behaviour.

Bernays authored several books, including Crystallizing Public Opinion (1923), Propaganda (1928), and The
Engineering of Consent (1947).

He saw public relations as an “applied social science” that uses insights from psychology, sociology, and other disciplines to scientifically manage and manipulate the
thinking and behavior of an irrational and “herdlike” public.

Posted By Dominic Nwelih