Ep 53 - Picking A Fight: How to go head-to-head and win!
Apella Advisors Partner, Andrew Brown: "Early on in my comms career I was taught that conflict, strife, disagreement – that’s fundamentally what people are interested in and what helps our journalist friends sell newspapers."
It is hard to get genuine cut through, where everyone knows and has heard of who you are and what you do, especially if you are a small firm trying to make it big. But, one tactic that has worked consistently well over the decades is the art of picking (and winning) a fight.
Having an enemy and picking a fight may seem overly combative, however it can be a mechanism to give you focus: something to push against – letting people know what you are against helps them understand what you are for.
But how do you make your fight noble and just? How do you decide who, or what, to target? Are their rules to such a fight? If so, how do you play them? And, what do you do if you, unwittingly, find out you are the enemy?
All of these questions and more are discussed on this edition of The Little Questions with Apella Advisors.
The Little Questions podcast is presented by Andrew Brown and Matt Young.
Matt Young is an Apella Advisors partner with 25 years of experience in corporate affairs. He was Corporate Affairs Director at Lloyds Banking Group, part of the senior team which rescued the bank and rebuilt its reputation following the financial crisis. Formerly communications director at Santander UK and board member of the BBA.
Andrew Brown is an Apella Advisors partner, a former Director of Communications and Public Affairs at Ageas Insurance. He has more than ten years’ experience leading the corporate affairs functions for global firms across a range of regulated and unregulated sectors, developing considerable experience in issues, crisis and change management. Formerly Director of Communications at Drax Group plc and Group Corporate Affairs Director at Regus plc.
We’d love to hear what you think. Get in touch on social media or email podcast@apellaadvisors.com
Picking A Fight: How to go head-to-head and win!
(Ep 53 - Clip 1)
Picking A Fight: How to go head-to-head and win!
(Ep 53-Clip 2)
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