Fireside Wednesday:

Episode 8 – Sea-change: Advertising/Public Relations
第八集 – 廣告公關急轉彎

May 20 (Wednesday)

 
English Synopsis

How can advertising and public relations professionals adapt and change to suit new mediums and audiences? Who can survive? How to prepare yourself to join the business?

Alex Lo, Founder of Social Strategy Hong Kong stressed the important calibre of public relations professionals, “One must think and respond quickly.” He established his company in 2017 which has been helping its clients, including higher education institutions, public organisations, banks and shopping malls… etc., to manage social media communication and risk.

“One single message online complaining about staff can develop into a disaster for a company. As a PR professional, you must be aware of such messages and news faster than the media. It’s not only checking news clippings or surfing new websites; you must be on the pulse of the whole social media landscape, and keep an eye on different social media, discussion forums, etc. You can make use of new technologies and tools to get updated information so that you can communicate with your clients to work out response strategies immediately. Young people, being quick in responding, tend to have the edge to fulfil these jobs,” he said. However, Alex advised those who are interested in joining the business should try to gain experience in other jobs first, in order to consolidate their techniques in communication, presentation and research.

“A public relations crisis can happen and keep going any time of the day, and so you may need to work on it for 24 hours a day. A public relations professional should be like a “stalker”, be persistent and never give up. It is important to have strong determination to solve problems for clients.” Alex said.

Anthony Chung, Associate Planning Director at Publicis Groupe, a 4A’s advertising company, believes that it is hard to mark a line between online and offline in the advertising business nowadays. Clients are looking for an integrated creative idea that can take care of both online and offline experiences.

He disagreed that a reduced budget under the current economic downturn would give a constraint to advertising creativity. “Advertisements these days not only have to work on a budget, but have to make use of a variety of mediums with different presentations to showcase the creative idea. There are so many possibilities with the advertising business. And we can never stop learning,” Anthony said.

He does not think that only those who study communications can join the field. Instead, he hopes that people from different backgrounds join the business. “Advertising is about changing people’s behaviour through communication. With target audiences from all walks of life, an advertising team should have colleagues from diverse backgrounds and perspectives, so as to keep a finger on the pulse of public sentiment. The advertising industry needs new blood with a keen interest in a broad spectrum of viewpoints and an understanding of the marketplace from different channels. Make sure all voices are heard to avoid an echo chamber.” Anthony said.

 
足本重溫 Video Link :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rj_MLLBTq6s


Host:

 
Guests:

  • Alex Lo 盧勁業 (BA 2007)
    Founder of Social Strategy Hong Kong

    Alex 於 2017 年創辦 Social Strategy Hong Kong，為客戶管理社交媒體危機及製作內容，專門處理 Online 公共事務。目前客戶包括大專院校、公營機構、發鈔銀行、大型商業公司等。短短三年間成長迅速，員工人數增至 60 多名。

    Alex 曾任記者多年，對社會及網上民情有深入見解。他後來創辦網站「攝影札記 (Photoblog.hk)」，全職分享攝影技巧、作品等，同時吸引相機品牌的廣告收入，其 Facebook 專頁上有近 40 萬個 Like。
     

  • Anthony Chung 鍾偉耀 (BBA 2010)
    Associate Planning Director, South China, Publicis Groupe

    Anthony 從事廣告、市場營銷及公關行業多年，現時在跨國廣告傳訊集團 Publicis Groupe 擔任助理策劃總監，為客戶鑽研消費者見解及提供策略建議。Anthony 亦曾於 J. Walter Thompson、Publicis Worldwide 及香港電台工作，對傳媒關係及市場見解有深入認識。他亦持有 Google、Microsoft 及 Facebook 的證書，對數碼行銷及分析有專業了解。

    他亦緊貼消費者趨勢及文化，曾在國際趨勢網站 trendwatching.com 及信報 Startup Beat 撰稿。

 
Fireside Wednesday 星期三開爐 new online series for the HKU Family – alumni, students, staff and friends – for partnership, passion and paths. The 10 episodes will cover tourism, retail, culture, social, NGOs, freelancing (slash), education, technology… Resources and support available to students and fresh graduates at HKU iDendron. Tell us if you want to suggest themes and speakers for future episodes. Share and stay tuned!

 

Revisit –

Episode Seven: Idea to Impact
第七集 – 意念變新 Teams
[ 鄧日朗 • Kyle Leung • Harris Cheng • Jasmine Poon ]

Episode Six: A Brand New Me
第六集 – 無限變身
[ 麥嘉緯 • Emi Wong • 易宇航 • Husnain ]

Episode Five: Art & Innovation
第五集 – 色空變焦
[ 蘇敬恆 • 鄭振揚 • 方圓明 • Stephanie Ho ]

Episode Four: Sports & Innovation
第四集 – 運動急變速
[ 譚志源 • 方力申 • 江嘉惠 • 楊文蔚 ]

Episode Three: COVID Cadenza
[ Prof Daniel Chua • Cy Leo • Serrini • Daniel Lei ]

Episode Two: Retail – Partners & Opportunities
第二集 – Shopping 變陣
[ 羅永聰 • 陳子堅 • Terence Hon ]

Episode One: Culture, Tourism & Innovation
第一集 – 旅遊變法
[ 陳志雲 • 陳智遠 • Rubio Chan • Jamie Cheung • Gurpreet Singh ]