The Spark
Accessibility is key with newly published PRCA guidelines
As professional communicators, creating messaging that’s accessible to everyone should be a key priority for our sector. However, as candidly pointed out within the PRCA’s recently updated Accessible Communications Guidelines, there’s still a long way for our industry to go when it comes to optimising our communications and catering to audiences with differing needs.
What’s more, with the report detailing that one in eight people globally has a form of disability, it’s clear that a large section of our society is being unfairly excluded from resources relating to all areas of their lives — through no fault of their own.
If, like us, you’re keen to see our industry step up a gear so people of all backgrounds and abilities are able to access content, head to the PRCA’s latest accessibility guidelines to learn more.
Beth Lunt, account manager
X marks the spot
The recent rebrand of Twitter has seen the familiar bird symbol replaced with a solitary X – not only representing a new name, but also a new direction for the platform. The future of X, according to its executive chair and CTO Elon Musk, is to become an ‘everything app’ – hosting social updates, gaming, banking and more. However, rather than receiving excitement and rave reviews, the effort has fallen flat with many of the platform’s former fans who have felt blindsided by a lack of involvement and coordinated communication throughout the process.
With grand plans for the future, it remains to be seen whether X really is the next big thing. But there’s no doubt that, in Elon’s mind, the possibilities are endless. Check out technology platform The Verge’s thoughts about what could be coming next.
Lauren Boyles, PR executive
Do what you love and never work a day in your life
If you’re a talented wordsmith, adding passion and pizazz to every piece you pen, we may have the dream opportunity for you. Scriba and our sister agency The Bigger Boat are on the hunt for a skilled copywriter who can write at ease for our combined extensive client roster. We need a strong technical writer, who can turn their hand to a range of different content styles – researching, drafting and editing copy to high standards – and is excited by an opportunity to really stretch their creative capabilities. In return, we offer a competitive salary and excellent employee perks. Sound like you? Check out the job description to find out more.
Carrie Webb, group head of content
Do we hear jingle bells?
With the summer holidays drawing to a close, we’re all looking ahead to the festive season. Well, perhaps that’s not quite true, but department store John Lewis most certainly is. It was announced preparations are already under way for its much-anticipated Christmas ad – which, this year, will be directed by Saatchi & Saatchi London.
Scriba enjoys a festive campaign every bit as much as the next agency – in fact, it’s our favourite season for PR and marketing. A meaningful campaign for us? Working alongside a charity, perhaps raising awareness of the magic that storytelling can hold for those in families where toys are few and far between, maybe even providing storybooks to gift to children too. At Scriba, we recently donated to an amazing organisation called Grimm & Co, which would be perfect!
Lauren Spencer, PR executive
The FIFA Women’s World Cup final: marketing and messaging wins
This month has seen us celebrating all the players in the phenomenal 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup football tournament – and, as expected, marketing and PR leveraging the England vs Spain final didn’t disappoint. Charity Breast Cancer Now launched a creative and hard-hitting ad featuring the centre spot on a football pitch and raising awareness around the importance of women checking their breasts. Powerfully stating ‘we can beat more than just Spain today’, this crucial messaging scores a winning goal for us.
Meanwhile, the US Women’s National Soccer Team (USWNT), whose campaign sought to destigmatise mental health challenges, encouraged us all to ‘unite for mental health’ during the tournament and beyond.
Bravo to the brands that used their creativity for good, while maximising engagement with fans too.
Grace Lenihan, account director