INDUSTRY PROFILES

After I’d finished university I moved to London. I knocked on many doors and eventually got a job as the assistant to the MD of a very prominent PR agency. From there I made my way up the ranks of the agency world and was lucky to look after some incredible entertainment / lifestyle brands such as Disney and PlayStation and celebrity clients (I became VERY familiar with the UK tabloids). From there I moved in-house as a publicity manager for TV - firstly to the BBC then Channel 4. A need for some sunshine and the proximity to the beach meant a move to Sydney where I became Head of Communications at Shine the best (I’m biased) content production house in Australia. At Shine I was privileged enough to work on global entertainment brands such as MasterChef, big budget drama productions and to launch international formats in to the Australian market such as The Voice - as well as working with two wonderful CEOs who happened to be brothers, on the business and its corporate brand and reputation.
I came home to New Zealand and joined MediaWorks in 2015 with a remit to lead the group communications function - including content, brand and talent publicity - and corporate affairs. We are a team of nine. What I love about my job is that I can spend a morning with our CEO putting together a corporate strategy, briefing him for a media interview or debating the best way to handle a reputational issue and by the afternoon I can be with producers getting excited about the best way of making sure we make as much noise as possible with some new content or talking to my team about some beautiful new shots we have taken of our talent or finalising the details for an event.

We work with some of New Zealand’s best known and most loved brands from Three and The Edge to Newshub and More FM and the sum of all their parts - the shows, the talent and the inevitable dramas and challenges that are a part of that. It’s never boring and I have a fantastic team who not only ensure these brands have huge profile but take any bumps in the road in their stride.

Our remit is significant - we are publicists, advocates and guardians for more than 15 brands and the content and talent that live within those. All exist under the constant glare of the public spotlight and when it comes to reality TV, perhaps the noisiest part of what we do, not only do we aspire to be the most talked about we are often counsellors too!
It is this jack of all trades mentality that my team embrace. The need to promote as well as protect our brands, talent and content is a fine dance at times - ratings and reputation don’t always perfectly align. What can start as a normal day can quickly turn upside down when an issue suddenly presents itself - and because we are often dealing with live content, this happens pretty regularly. The team are brilliant at being agile and moving at pace.

So many - I love the hype we manage to generate with shows like Married At First Sight, The Block and Dancing with The Stars as well as working with our marketing and creative teams on brand campaigns such as the re-launch of Three. I feel like a proud mother when I watch our talent profiling strategies come to life and we see people like Kanoa Lloyd become more and more of a national treasure. Last year we helped manage some really interesting stories coming out of The Project and The AM Show and we successfully handled what could have become a very tricky situation when our then The Rock FM radio announcer decided to crowdfund a trip to try and find the lost plane MH370. (In case you didn’t hear about it, the trip happened but the plane wasn’t found). But - I am just as happy sitting down with our CFO looking at our financial performance each year and proud of how we communicate that authentically and transparently to our stakeholders, media and staff.

There are many but to draw on one - I believe the communications game needs to improve ITS profile. We don’t sell ourselves enough and in this world of immediacy and the ever growing demand for transparency and authenticity, our role is essential. Just because the methods of communication are evolving and “public relations” has become old fashioned doesn’t mean the function is irrelevant - I would argue it’s more important than ever We need to get better at delivering this message about ourselves and ensuring the appropriate amount of value is placed on what we do.

I love storytelling and I love working in an organisation where that is our core function - and that our team is there to elevate those stories and manage the message. With owned and earned media the channels we have to do this now are almost endless pushing us to innovate what we do all the time - but alongside this I still love dealing with the mags and the papers (call me old fashioned). It’s unpredictable, fast paced and at times hilarious - with just the right amount of seriousness thrown in.....(I can be pretty serious at 6am when I hear something has gone awry on the AM Show and my phone is ringing off the hook...!)

People who have an old-school view of PR and communications and its place not only in the media mix but also the role it plays within all organisations. Without storytelling and a solid reputational foundation - two of the fundamentals of what we do - you are on a hiding to nothing. I think media cynicism towards PR can also be frustrating but this is something that needs to be owned by both sides - in the end we are all trying to do the same thing - inform and/or entertain our audiences - and having an open and honest dialogue at all times is really important.

Managing to juggle being a mum of two preschoolers as well as doing my job in this completely mad and unpredictable business. It IS possible!

It almost sounds trivial now but as a green 25 year old with a very famous sporting icon client in London, at the time it was absolutely awful. I was managing a press day and I didn’t spot he was doing a media iv dressed in clothes - of his major sponsor’s competitor. My boss - understandably - went off the richter.

Interior design. I love it but unfortunately my talent for it doesn’t match my passion.

E: charlottemclauchlan@mediaworks.co.nz
T: @charmclauchlan