PUBLIC RELATIONS INDUSTRY TAKING THE SHINE OF #ESKOMLOADSHEDDING?

-

 

                                               (Eskom announces permanent load shedding)

From a balanced supply of electricity across the whole South African country, what really went wrong, it has been almost 16 years now since load shedding was introduced. Electricity is being cut off in some parts of the country for certain hours and sometimes for the whole day because the Eskom utility is unable to provide or generate enough electricity for the whole country at once. So far it has become that one topic that everybody talks about every second of the day, from verbal conversations in schools, households, the streets, in transports, actually everywhere to all the social media platform hence it is always on the trending list every day. Although load shedding is not a good thing at all, the public relations industry can steal the shine, or should I say “shine” though? Anyway, the PR industry or public relations practitioners can use this trend by tagging the #eskomloadshedding in its social media posts for their messages to spread across really fast and effectively because of the traffic that comes with the hashtag.

(Using trending topics to generate traffic)


For your public or audience to recognize your messages or posts, you must utilize trends, in this case tagging the trend will make it easier for the exposure of your communications because this topic is on everyone’s timeline or newsfeed and on every social media platform. This issue is quite frustrating for the citizens of South Africa because it affects their daily lives and limits their internet use. They turn to social media, they find it filled with load shedding this and load shedding that, it is certainly draining.


(South Africans fed up with load shedding)

Corporate Public relations is all about authenticity and being positive even when times do not agree as much, so as a public relations practitioner in South Africa who is also affected by this issue on a personal level it is difficult to perform your duties in the office, the cloud and everywhere you could imagine if load shedding is involved. It is already hard having limited corporate resources, gets overwhelming when lights go off the whole day. You can imagine how weak the network is during load shedding making it hard to publish relevant information and when you get to publish it, your deadline has already been crossed. 

(Effects of load shedding)

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

  1. Thulile Buhle Mbatha21 March 2023 at 19:04

    Very informative, public relations practitioners are also affected by #Eskomloadshedding, I agree with you that is a valid point. This #Eskomloadshedding has become our daily talk forcing us to adapt in the new arrangements.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Rina_Writes21 March 2023 at 19:35

    I see what you did there with the word 'shine'...loving the humor! I must say this is a great piece of writing, really motivated me to write a good piece too.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Mbali Maselesele22 March 2023 at 00:00

    I completely understand how frustrating and difficult it must be to work in public relations during load shedding. It's hard enough to juggle limited resources and tight deadlines, but having to deal with power outages on top of it all can make things feel overwhelming.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Through the Glare of mentorship: How Mandlakazi Mpahlwa illuminates the path for future PR leaders.

-
Image
In an industry where   innovation , creativity and influence   are paramount, Mandlakazi Mpahlwa not only stands out as a leading figure in public relations but also shines as a   mentor,   dedicated to   guiding the next generation of PR professionals through her visionary leadership and unwavering   of her team . Mandlakazi Mpahlwa: Joe Public Engage Managing director      It’s fascinating   for me   to   have experienced Joe   P ublic, a   360 communication agency .   A s a n integrated brand , marketing   and communication group ,   Joe Public is where you w ill   find enthusiastic creatives, tacticians and polymaths of which Mandlakazi Mpahlwa is a part of. She heads the public relations   business   of Joe public as an MD of Joe   P ublic Engage .   It   provides exceptional PR services   to   clients across all   industries , including   Joe Publi...
Read more

HOW DOES #CANCELCULTURE AFFECT PUBLIC RELATIONS?

-
Image
    Cancel culture and public relations? Of course, one will wonder what these two things have to do with one another. Well sit tight as you might find what you are about to read interesting. The logic behind cancel culture is in the name itself, it is a new approach for poking and criticizing popular people or celebrities for  the unusual things they might be doing or behaviors they might be conducting themselves in.                                                 (Read more - justice or intimidation))  Without any doubt, this is a pressing issue, and it has an influence on the public relations industry as well as social media. The society and the media are already flooded with the negative influence generated by cancel culture hence public relations professionals find themselves in the crossfire because they are dependent on the society and ...
Read more

THE MEANING CENTERED APPROACH AS A THEORY OF COMMUNICATION.

-
  The meaning centered approach as a theory of communication refers to an approach that focuses on communication between people or groups and it is centered on understanding and producing shared meaning, for example ESKOM is trying to share a message to its clients and customers so customers can fully understand where the organization stand on the issue of alternative energy.   It is concerned with what communication is rather than how and why it works and describes communication through human contact. By examining how human interaction creates organizational reality, the meaning-centered communication method offers a framework for understanding organizational communication.  The  method focuses on how people interact within an organization to produce and interpret meaning, emphasizing the importance of meaning-making in communication. This approach views communication as a social structure through which people collectively create and interpr...
Read more