Why your audience want stories, not lectures
We’ve all been there. “Look at all these facts! These stats! These illuminating nuggets of academic wisdom!” and have been so impressed by the intellectual stock of our own argument that we’ve ended up writing something that read...
Four tips to improve your change management program
“Change is a key feature of modern workplaces … Agencies need to be flexible, adaptable and able to respond quickly to changes in Australian Government direction or in their operating environment so as to continue to deliver effectiv...
Ban the buzzwords and say it plainly
Here at contentgroup, we pride ourselves on our use of plain English. In the spirit of ensuring this is something we truly live up to, two weeks ago a decision was made to ban the following pointless buzzwords and phrases: Double down/dr...
If content is king, writers are its queen
We have well and truly entered the content era. Organisations of all sizes have a daily requirement for content that can help them tell their story better. And while content takes many forms – text, stills, graphics, video, audio – a...
contentgroup: Canberra ⇒ Australia ⇒ Singapore ⇒ World!
Ever since 2013, contentgroup has had the express vision of becoming the world’s leading content communication agency for government and the public sector by 2020. We don’t shy away from this vision. In fact, we talk about it first t...
A few insights for Public Sector Innovation Month
It's a fitting time to explore the notion of innovation within government departments. During my days as a public servant, almost everyone I came across revered the word ‘innovation’. Being able to ‘innovate’ or ‘be innovative’ was the...
Speechwriting for government: predicaments and principles
Arguably, there has never been a more important time for speeches - particularly from those with an authoritative, trusted and educated voice who can help inform the public and media discourse, correct its inherent misconceptions, and...
To nudge or to shove? That is the question
“Be braver. Stand up. Lean in. Speak out.” Hearing these words made me sit up a bit straighter in my seat at a recent iPAA breakfast. While the phrase evoked influencers I admire such as Sheryl Sandberg, it was the charismatic Alex...
The undeniable power of the influencer
Using influencers to promote your brand is the modern-day equivalent of word-of-mouth recommendations. As audiences, we tend to trust them more than brands (often the same brands they’re working for) and feel more personally invested...
Employees want ham, not spam
When email is the appropriate form of internal communication, I implore you – please click with care, or a virtual barrage of send-to-all diatribes may simply spam your audience. Organisations all too often fall into the trap of...
Why the government should think twice before axing comms jobs
contentgroup’s largest stakeholder, the public service, will feel the strain over the next 12 months as savings are expected to be made through job cuts. Measures such as these understandably incite passionate debate. Who should go?...
Forge positive business relationships to achieve your goals
One of our mantras here at contentgroup is ‘go beyond’. As a company, we seek to go beyond in everything we do, particularly when it comes to building positive business relationships. I recently discovered the usefulness of this in my...
Your ‘WHY’ is your bullseye
All too often I come across organisations that focus all their efforts on what they want to say and how they will say it. They frequently overlook the fundamental basis for all communication activities – the purpose, the rationale, the...
Beware the weasel words
The power and potential volatility associated with the written and spoken word is enormous, wielding enough power to compromise the integrity of an individual, organisation, government body or country to the long or short-term...
Change management and communication; you can’t have one without the other
Change management. It’s something several government organisations are experiencing at the moment as they change the way they do their business, while continuing to deliver on their programs and policies in the most efficient and...
Employees hold the keys to your reputation
New research shows internal communication drives reputation. How can you use word-of-mouth to increase your reputation?...
The internal communications playbook
Most communicators are guilty of pushing internal communications to the bottom of our ‘to-do’ list. When you consider the benefits, you will change your mind....
4 tips to help prepare a communication strategy that works
Creating a good communication strategy is integral to success. The new age of technology has given communicators the opportunity to add a new level of depth to their strategies in order to achieve better results. Read on to discover...
Writing an effective communication strategy for government
All good communication strategies are written and implemented in order to achieve a specific objective. In this blog Sophie McKerchar explains how!...
5 tips to improve your two way communication online
Two way communication is more important than ever. When it comes to social media this is no different. Here are five tips to improving your two way communication on social media....
