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Your PR Primer: Microsoft outfoxes Google then plays Minecraft and your free guide to behaviour change communications

Welcome to this week's PR Primer with me Stuart Bruce! 

News

🐨 How Microsoft outfoxed Google and Facebook

In Australia there is battle with the Australian government and media owners on one side and Google and Facebook on the other. The battle has just been won by Microsoft, who weren't even participants. Google is using its corporate muscle to bully the Australian government by threatening to remove its search service from Australia. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella called Australian PM Scott Morrison to offer Microsoft's full throated support for the new legislation. With one call he forced Google back to the negotiating table. What makes it so clever is once Google has conceded to the Australian government it will eventually have to make similar concessions elsewhere.

Image from Wikipedia with a CC licence.
thespinoff.co.nz

Corporate affairs

🏞️ Microsoft created a Minecraft map for its sustainability report

Sustaining interesting in sustainability reports is one of challenges we as public relations and corporate affairs professionals help to solve. That's why I loved this innovative approach from Microsoft which used the fact it owns Minecraft developer Mojang to create an interactive map. Sustainable City is a new Minecraft map which is available as a free download. It is also available in the education version of Minecraft with six lessons for students covering everything from water outflow and treatment to responsible forestry.
theverge.com

Tips and tricks

🌐 How to plan PR campaigns in an uncertain and unpredictable world

I recently published a review of the latest edition of Professor Anne Gregory's Planning and Managing Public Relations Campaigns, and she's now written a great article on how to plan PR campaigns in an uncertain and unpredictable world. She tackles why planning is so important even when the world is moving and changing so quickly.
influenceonline.co.uk

👭 Free guide to behaviour change communications

The UK's Government Communication Service (GCS) does some great work. I'm not talking about political comms, but the day-to-day work of government communications such as getting people to pay tax on time, stop smoking and drive safely. It creates lots of guides and templates for its own staff and other public sector organisations in the UK. But what's great is it publishes these on its website so all public relations and corporate affairs practitioners can use them. They aren't just relevant to the public sector as I often use them with private sector clients. GCS has just published its latest which is an updated guide on the principles of behaviour change communications.
civilservice.gov.uk

Your PR Primer is written by PR Futurist Stuart Bruce, founder of Stuart Bruce Associates. If you spot any stories for next week’s PR Primer Round-up then send them to @stuartbruce or stuart@stuartbruce.eu.


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