Our News
Smoking Gun's 2017 Almanac
With just four days until Father Christmas gets here we thought it about time to unveil our annual roundup of the year according to Manchester’s most ingenious comms agency.
resources & news
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Our News
Merry panto season from team Smoking Gun
This pantomime season, the hard working Guns have temporarily paused their pens, faded out Facebook and iced over their influencer campaigns to share some festive themed comms insights with you. Watch our latest animated video: After yet another exhilarating and successful year for many of our clients and ourselves, the office will be closed from … Continued
Seen This?
Smoking Gun's 2018 ultimate PR, internal comms, marketing, and digital trend roundup
It has taken some doing, but after pooling our resources, sources, and heads, Smoking Gun has come up with the following not-so-short-list of the best online trend predictions for 2018 in SEO, social, PR, internal comms, marketing, and digital.
Marketing
Male sexism and the modern marketing minefield
Over the last 12 months here on the Smoking Gun blog we’ve tackled a range of issues that directly impact on our work as a leading marketing, PR, and comms agency. One of which is sexism, and the way in which gender stereotypes play out in the media as a whole, and specifically advertising. ‘Are … Continued
Broadcast
ITV's digital plans should interest online PR agencies (and their clients)
ITV News, one of the biggest names in UK current affairs broadcasting, has unveiled its biggest push into digital yet, with three unique programme formats heading for the brand’s website in the near future. Online PR agencies take note, then. It’s a major shift in terms of investment, to date the organisation has been less … Continued
Media News
Public relations agency thoughts: #Royalwedding coverage (and jitters)
So as you won’t have managed to miss, news hit last Monday that Prince Harry and his American squeeze Meghan Markle will be tying the knot in May 2018 at St. George’s Chapel in the grounds of Windsor Castle. Naturally, the UK and international press reacted by dedicating a good proportion of their content to the event, … Continued
Newsletter
newspapers
Love it or loath it, just don't ignore it! Smoking Gun dissects the national newsbrand that splits opinion more than any other
It doesn’t matter which wing your politics falls into, what side of the fence you prefer to stand on, or how you like your eggs in the morning (incidentally mine’s with a kiss) the idea of genuine editorial neutrality in the UK is a myth, and has been since the birth of news as business. … Continued
Christmas adverts
Newsletter
5 Controversial Christmas campaigns
We all know the deal with Season’s Greetings, right? Brands throw themselves into the spirit of December with the same gusto Santa chomps down on cookies, attempting to win our hearts— and purchasing decisions— through positive tales of people coming together, being nice to each other, and taking stock of their loved ones. But not … Continued
Content marketing
Newsletter
Best online platforms for digital storytelling
The oldest art form in history has long since had its 21st Century awakening, but that doesn’t mean we all know the right tools with which to etch our tales into the world wide cave. Here are six of the most effective, and how best to use them. *Medium Not just the daddy but the … Continued
Newsletter
Top tips on Instagram, from the experts
The Facebook-owned, image-focussed social network has long-since come of age. Home to more than 800million active users, 500million of which log in every day and the majority of whom are considered young or millennial, the huge engagement rate on high profile accounts has made it a huge hit with online marketers, with some of the … Continued
Newsletter
Our News
Recently in the Smoking Gun study
With the year almost over, and only a few weeks left to buy those all important gifts for under the tree, it’s very nearly time for our annual round up of the highs and lows from the last 12 months. Before all that, though, here’s what’s been happening over the last four weeks. First up, … Continued
Seen This?
Comms agency thoughts: Digital answers, creative industries, and the Budget
So yesterday the UK budget was delivered by our Chancellor, Philip Hammond, and the outlook is unarguably bleak. Productivity has been downgraded well into the next decade, the deficit may be falling but the debt level continues to climb, housing, healthcare, transport, education and your chances of getting the internet speed you think you paid for are … Continued
Content marketing
Digital marketing: Consumers want honesty, and to create content
Here at Smoking Gun we’ve long been advocates of transparency and honesty amongst brands- the best policy, you might say. Now a new survey has revealed just how vital that authenticity is when it comes to which companies consumers ally themselves with.
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