Seizing the opportunity, Lauren managed, almost instinctively, to turn the article to her first love – shopping!

Discussing the ways in which social media can be so powerful when used properly, but can also be relied upon too much, to the point that personal, verbal contact is actually more fruitful, have a read of Lauren’s piece here, and post comments below.

Thought leadership, case studies, press releases, social and digital PR, SEO campaigns, not to mention new product launches – all part and parcel of ITPR’s B2B PR campaigns.

2012 holds some very exciting developments for ITPR and yet more new client wins are expected imminently, so watch this space!

Seeing Monday’s Google Doodle celebrating what would have been Robert Noyce’s 84^th birthday was, for many people, the first time the name would have registered in their consciousness. But as “Bob” Noyce had a profound impact upon personal computing and consumer electronics, there aren’t many people whose lives haven’t been touched in some way by his work.

In fact, the Washington Post goes as far to say that Silicon Valley’s innovative spirit simply would not exist were it not for Noyce – affectionately dubbed as he was, “the mayor of Silicon Valley”.

Which of course brings to mind our own area of high-tech industry in East London, the so-called Silicon Roundabout, as coined by Matt Biddulph, CTO of Dopplr.com – one of the roundabout’s debutants. There can be no doubt that it is a thriving area of technological innovation, home to some of the biggest names in technology. Even Google – hardly a company to make spur-of-the-moment investments – bought office space there in September of this year and is planning to open in early to mid 2012.

But perhaps the most exciting side of the roundabout (so to speak) is the hundreds of new companies that have sprung up in the past two years, employing thousands of people and “generating a sense of community and excitement that we haven’t seen in the UK computer scene since the days of Sinclair and the BBC Micro”. Hundreds of new B2C and B2B technology products and services are being devised, created, tested and launched in a way and with a speed that simply was not feasible even five years ago.

The immediate requirements of these start-ups will naturally include office space, infrastructure, legal and financial support and of course investment – and organisations such as TechHub and TechMeetups are providing or enabling much of this. But what must not be forgotten is the dedicated and individual marketing support that a burgeoning technology company requires. Typically lacking extensive advertising budget, start-ups can often struggle to make a substantial enough noise to make the jump from innovative tool used by the brave few, to becoming the mainstream essential that it may well deserve to be. And as a result, they fall away, joining the thousands of start-ups that never quite made it.

While it may sound self-promotional and biased, we firmly believe that PR is the most cost-effective way for a start-up technology business to make a sufficiently loud noise to challenge for the market’s attention. Coverage in relevant trade publications and nationals can shine a far brighter light on a remarkable new proposition than a small advertising budget can.

And that PR content and coverage is inherently more versatile. Put simply, advertisements are unlikely to be effective when repurposed for the sales team, made available on the website, tweeted about or used in marketing communications – but PR material and press coverage is.

As luck would have it(!), we are currently putting together a white paper on the marketing approach a start-up technology company should be taking, and will be releasing it in early 2012. To sign up for an advance copy of ITPR’s Marketing Plan for B2B Technology Start-Ups and to receive it before general release, just fill in the form here and we’ll be sure to send it to you.

Below are our resident Mo Bros Dave, Max, Bob and Will at the end of the long and arduous journey to Mo-dom.

Kieran seen here to the right, despite being away on paternity leave for the latter half of the month also bravely soldiered on with his Movember efforts despite worries of how it would affect his youngest son’s first memories.

Indeed, one of the itpr Mo Bros has managed to escape the psychiatrist’s couch long enough to conjure up a blog on his harrowing experiences…

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Dave Beesley, Account Manager (second from the left)

No Mo, No problems!

Movember is over and with it brought lots of celebration, relief, cleanly-shaven faces and most importantly, a flurry of activity on the sponsorship front. We have achieved our target of beating the £1,000 mark. This is an amazing effort and a big thanks to all those who sponsored the itpr Mo Bro team and supported such a great cause.

Special thanks also needs to go out to our respective wives/girlfriends who have had to endure the itpr MoBros having Irritable Mos Syndrome and having to put up with the strange looks whenever we ventured out into public. Or perhaps that was something that just happened to me?

The competition for best Mo in the office was intense to say the least with our MoBro Team Captain, Max, taking an early lead sporting a very impressive Mo within the first week! But I was quietly confident at that point that my Mo would take shape soon enough… wouldn’t it?

It was safe to say that we all entered Movember with high spirits and each prepared to do our bit to raise sponsorship.

But the month of Movember wasn’t without incident. Scandals included the involvement of ‘Just for Mo’ hair colouring by one of the MoBros, and the growth of a surprisingly ginger Mo by one team member. However one of the biggest scandals in my eyes was my final result after a month of growth. It was quite simply pathetic!

After a month of growth, I had a Mo for which Gary Neville would be justified to mock me. But surely that was the point, to do something that would create a reaction and encourage people to donate funds – mainly out of sympathy for my poor attempt.

In the absence of Gary Neville, the rest of the office (and some of my so called ‘friends’) took up the reins and provided adequate mocking. Questions such as ‘Do you not have to grow a moustache to part in Movember?’ and ‘What is THAT?!’ are some of the friendlier comments I received.

But I think that the lowest part of Movember for me was when a former colleague thought that the face mash of me and our Client Services Director Kieran was actually my REAL FACE!

So it is with a mingled sense of relief and disappointment that Movember is over. I think I can safely say I will think long and hard about growing a Mo again, unless between now and Movember 2012 I can get my hands on some ‘Miracle-grow’ for facial hair

It seems that I can’t open a newspaper, magazine or walk past a billboard at the moment without spotting a black and white matrix square in one corner, prompting me to scan it for more information on whatever product, service or news story it is attached to. Quick Reference Codes (or QR Codes for short) appear to be increasing in popularity in the B2C space, encouraging people to whip out their smartphone or tablet and scan the image for more information which they can view on their own device at their leisure.

But I have started to wonder how these QR codes, originally created in the mid 90s and used in the motor industry to track vehicles, can be used for modern day B2B PR. Conversations with colleagues and friends have thrown up various uses, from an alternative to contact details on a business card – just a quick scan and your details are automatically entered into the device’s contact list – to a virtual media pack that visitors to an event can scan on their smartphone or tablet device then access the press material via a website, driving what could be the final nail into the coffin of paper based bulky press packs.

However, is awareness of QR Codes at a level where they can be maximised to their full potential? It seems that only those involved in the Technology, PR or Marketing industries have a good grip on the use of QR Codes. Friends I have asked who work in engineering, construction and education industries gaze at me with mild confusion when I ask them about QR Codes. This awareness will most likely increase after the London 2012 Olympics with the British female beach volleyball team having QR codes placed on players’ behinds in a deal with Betfair.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/8688595/Beach-volleyball-champions-put-barcodes-on-bikinis.html

At this moment I question the use of QR codes for B2B purposes, for now it seems that the focus should be on educating the wider industries on what QR Codes are. It is definitely something to watch with interest, the same as Augmented Reality, but that’s a different topic all together!

Whose Mo is it anyway?

So at itpr we’ve all been doing our bit for Movember and growing our Mo as best we can. Some, it has to be said, to better effect than others. But it’s created tension in the office, jealousy, and downright thievery.

That’s right, someone’s stolen my tash. But it’s ok because I’ve stolen someone else’s. Well it’s not ok because theirs are rubbish!

Help me find my Mo, by identifying which of the itpr boys has half-inched it. And while you’re at it, have a go at matching up the other Bros to their Mos, as it looks like we’ve all been on the rob.

Of course there is a serious point to all of this and the reason we’re donating our face space is to get you guys donating a little money to the cause, and you can do so by clicking here.

And from a PR Practitioner’s perspective (try saying that several times in a row), the Movember story is simply phenomenal.

When I first did Movember back in 2008, awareness was relatively limited. Indeed the only reason I felt I could do it then was because I was a student, and it didn’t matter how much of a scoundrel I looked like. Of course many ridiculous facial hair combinations were tried, tested and rejected in my time at university, so it really wasn’t that that much of an issue.

Now, awareness is staggering. A few years ago, I tried – and failed – to convince the itpr boys that this was a great thing to do. Just a couple of years later, attitudes have changed as awareness has grown.

And if the trend in participants and donations continues, I can only imagine that 2011 will be a bumper year for Movember.

It is a great cause to get involved in, raising money and awareness for men’s health issues, and all it takes is letting a little face fuzz blossom on your top lip. No training required, although Kieran is a little worried that his newborn baby’s first memory will be of him sporting a moustache (Oliver Luke Kent was born at 11:58am today, welcome to the world!).

Of course Movember may become a victim of its own success if people decide moustaches are back in vogue again, but I don’t envisage that happening any time soon. Role on Movember, long may you plague men’s faces everywhere in the month formerly known as November!

The world seems to have gone social media mad of late, with companies in a hurry to implement PR strategies for Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Wikipedia and a range of other social tools. However, in the rush to embrace all things social, B2B companies need to remember the fundamentals of good PR – know your target audience, find out what they actually read, develop relevant messages and content that will be of interest, and maintain a regular flow of communication.

Without doubt the plethora of new social media tools open up many exciting new ways for companies to engage with their prospects, and with their existing customers. However, in a B2B environment, a social media strategy needs to be clearly defined with measurable goals and objectives if it is to be successful. Simply going down the social media path just to embrace the latest trend, or because you think your competitors are doing it, is not going to deliver any real value for your business.

B2B companies cannot afford to bury their heads in the sand when it comes to social media – without doubt if these tools are used correctly then they can be used to great effect. But companies have to do their homework first. Simply having a social media presence is not enough – it is important to keep in mind why you are doing it; what you are going to say and do, how will you sustain it, and how is it going to help drive new sales.

But do not forget about all of the traditional PR channels. The world of journalism is evolving but there will always be a place for informative, independent editorial which provides an authoritative voice amongst the social media ‘noise’ that some brands are guilty of creating.

The marketplace is changing dramatically but social media remains just another channel. Rather than tearing up the entire PR rulebook, those B2B companies that integrate social media alongside their existing, tried and tested PR activities will be best placed to realise the potential of these new communication tools.

For when they sleepily lather their faces with shaving foam, or take the electric razor out of its holster, this will be the last time that they will be permitted to have a full face shave.

Movember – the month where real men honour those great men who have gone before – Selleck, Hogan, Chaplin, Kitchener, even Einstein – and also raise some money for charities focused on men’s health!

All the ITPR men have agreed (read: been pressganged!) to forgo shaving fully for a month and grow their own tributes to the tash, and are requesting sponsorship.

But we don’t want you to donate £10 and we certainly don’t want you to donate £20 – we’re fully aware of how many requests come flying into inboxes asking for sponsorship for runs, walks, bungee jumps etc. All we want from you is to buy us a drink – £3.50 (well, in an optimistic world this should be enough for a pint!).

We’re aiming for £1,000+ so please help us – there are some extremely worthy charities being supported. Details here.

All you need to do is click this link

When Breast Cancer Campaign’s annual Wear it Pink day came around, ITPR went to town!

Every employee wore pink (including three of us wearing identical shirts and one dodgy cross dresser!), there was a Pink-centric raffle and even pink food on offer!

Prizes for the raffle ranged from luxury pink Champagne, scrumptious chocolates,  a variety of exquisite wines and pampering products including a selection of Christian Dior perfumes. Unfortunately, not all of the pink prizes were of the same standard, with certain employees taking the pink theme one step too far, resulting in the final prize of a pink litter tray, Vanish stain remover, tinned salmon and a pink flea comb!

All in the name of good fun (and a slightly less challenging fundraising event than cycling 37 miles) the gang at itpr managed to raise £150 for a very worthwhile charity.

Pictures are available here – please don’t judge us!

But here’s a teaser…

Stay tuned for the next itpr fundraising event – Movember – where you will be allowed to judge!!!

Max, an intrepid account manager of ours, agreed (in what must have been a beer-fulled haze) to participate in the third annual UK Rock, Paper, Scissors Championship this weekend (yes, such a thing does exist!).

But instead of registering, enjoying the evening and being unceremoniously dumped out of the competition and retiring to the bar, Max proceeded to beat all-comers and emerge victorious! He has of course now qualified for the international competition – we could have a future World Champion in our presence!

Waking up the next morning with a celebratory hangover, Max thought that a few tweets and a Facebook update would be the end of the story, but little did he realise that he would be expected at BBC 5 Live radio studio for an interview on Sunday morning and then featured and covered on BBC Surrey online this afternoon!

Read /watch the full story /video on the links above, and see here for a photo of the trophy, taken by BBC Radio 5 Live’s very own Phil Williams!