News / July 2021

Iain Anderson, Executive Chairman - [email protected]

As the much hyped ‘Freedom Day’ approaches we look forward to living with fewer restrictions, though with the summer of sport we’ve enjoyed, with large crowds in particular at Wimbledon and Wembley, you could be forgiven for thinking many restrictions have already gone by the wayside.

Many things have changed during the pandemic, including the way we do PR. I was struck by an article in The Economist which identified three types of people in PR. The first was “Groundhog Day PRs” who send an email to a journalist, then send another email to check they received the first email and so it goes on. The second issues the minimal amount of information as part of a deliberate policy to keep their clients out of the headlines. And the third are the PR people who supply useful facts about the company when asked, give an accurate steer on whether market rumours are true, and help arrange an interview with the chief executive when practical.

At Cicero/amo, I hope and believe we are definitely more in that third category. To find out more about how PR and best practice has changed during the pandemic please do read the article below from Cicero/amo’s Director of Media Relations, Adam Taylor. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the rest of the newsletter and can enjoy a summer break.

Click the links below to navigate:

A post-‘Freedom Day’ splurge? I wouldn’t bank on it. 2 By Ben Hope, Research Director How to sell in a story in a changing media landscape 3 By Adam Taylor, Director of Media Relations

Is ‘Freedom Day’ really the light at the end of the COVID tunnel? 4 By Dan Julian, Account Manager, UK Public Affairs After a tumultuous few months, what’s next for Northern Ireland? 5 By Aideen Ginnell, Director, Dublin office COVID-19 is the digital accelerator of the decade - let’s keep the momentum going! 6 By Megan Harley, Digital Creative Director

Meet the Cicero/amo team 7

Cicero/amo Highlights 8

‘Freedom Day’ - 5 things you can do from 19th July 9 A post-‘Freedom Day’ splurge? I wouldn’t bank on it. By Ben Hope, Research Director Social restrictions over the last year and a half have Longer-term savings behaviour is likely to be ‘sticky’ caused unparalleled disruption to household spending for the many who have developed a newfound and savings behaviour. In economic terms, it has been savings habit during the pandemic. Driven largely by a tale of two pandemics. For some, the pandemic has more permanent changes to working patterns, over a provided a great, albeit unexpected, opportunity to third (36 percent) of savers expect to save more on a save. For others, it has been a time to tighten belts regular basis even as social restrictions are lifted. and keep a keen eye on household outgoings. Our research reveals that younger people in particular Cicero/amo’s new research of 1,000 UK households, have the strongest intentions to uphold these new conducted in partnership with data provider Norstat, and improved savings habits. Half (50 percent) of reveals that 32 percent of Brits have either started 18-34-year-olds expect to save more on a regular basis saving for the first time or are now saving more as a due to changes in work patterns. A generation which result of the pandemic. It is the youngest cohort, those has often been perceived as too frivolous is shifting aged 18-34, who are most likely to have started saving to become more frugal and place increasing focus on for the first time or started saving more since March longer term financial goals. For all the government 2020 – with over two-fifths (43 percent) seeing their saving schemes that have launched over the last savings increase. decade aimed at incentivising saving habits (such as the Lifetime ISA and Help-to-buy ISA), it has been the The uplift in savings behaviour has been staggering. pandemic that has had the greatest impact on changing At the outset of the pandemic, the Office for National the saving habits and horizons of younger people. Statistics (ONS) recorded that the average UK household went from saving less than a tenth of their disposable A silver lining of the pandemic is this sizeable new wave income (9 percent) in Q1 2020, to saving 26 percent by of young savers. While this clearly has implications Q2 2020 – almost tripling in a single quarter. Even as for the local café serving up brunch on Saturday social restrictions eased through the summer and into mornings, it is also an opportunity for many savings the autumn of 2020, the household savings ratio stayed and investments providers to rethink the ‘smashed well above pre-pandemic levels, at 14 percent. avocado’ generation. These individuals are in the infancy of the wealth accumulation stage of their lives, As we pass through the landmark of ‘Freedom and many will be keen to build for the future whilst Day’ on July 19th two key questions arise. Firstly, maximising their returns. will accumulated savings be unleashed as society reopens to give a much-needed economic boost? And For industry, the first movers who can attract this group secondly, will these ‘accidental savings’ habits translate are set to reap the rewards for decades to come. into higher levels of household saving in the future? High profile disruptors in financial services have been saluted for their agility and digital first thinking. But our Our research suggests Brits would far rather sit on their research suggests that younger people will be looking cash than spend it. Among the households who have beyond digital payments and nifty features. Instead, started saving for the first time or are now saving more greater long-term savings habits among 18-34-year- because of the pandemic, 64 percent plan to keep hold olds require a product offering that suits a desire to of additional savings either in cash deposits or fixed accumulate and advise on how best to get their money interest savings accounts. The pandemic has fuelled working for them. This could come in the form of more a desire in UK households to build financial resilience. value-based offerings or communications focused on improving awareness and understanding of wealth In contrast, far fewer expect to splurge lockdown accumulation among this group. savings on trips to the high street, the pub, or on a summer getaway. Just 12 percent intend to use the One thing is for certain: understanding the desires, bumper savings for social spending; buying goods needs and aspirations of young savers has never or products such as clothes, electrical goods, or been such a worthwhile investment. luxury items (14 percent); or spending the money on a holiday (21 percent). For the expectant business For more information about Cicero/amo’s research community, particularly in the retail and hospitality services, please contact: sector this points towards a tepid recovery, rather than an emphatic rebound. Ben Hope, Research Director [email protected] 2 How to sell in a story in a changing media landscape

By Adam Taylor, Director of Media Relations

PR and comms as a career aren’t always easy to better perspective to how news is made compared explain to friends or family. For example, when it to most CEOs that I meet; therefore, they may have comes to placing an opinion piece, my mum has an opinion on the way a story could be positioned never quite understood why I’d go to the trouble of and what they want to get across, but we should drafting something only for someone else’s photo always bear in mind that we’re the ones who and by-line to take the credit. deal with journalists every day and have a better understanding of getting stories over the line. PRs However, I think that the past 16 months have given shouldn’t undersell the good we contribute towards us one of the best opportunities to demonstrate the telling and securing positive news. the value of strategic comms to supporting wider business operations, views on policy or simply Know what’s going on trying to get one’s message out there. I’ve always thought that PR is a little bit of an art and a science. The art is the storytelling and the I recall during those ‘unprecedented times’ in April messaging, the science is knowing when to tell the last year a journalist on a business desk telling me story or having up to date press lists. In the past that Government was really listening to the views year, quite a lot of journalists were furloughed or of industry and that it was really helpful to get out lost their jobs entirely. You cannot expect to pick views in stories. As we shift away from pandemic up the phone and for journalists to write up a story stories, what are the key lessons for PRs and what there and then (there are of course exceptions). should we be focused on going forward? Sometimes executing a media plan can take a few days or indeed weeks, but we should be guided by What’s the story? our understanding of how the media works and how I think we’ve all been guilty at times at thinking journalists operate. internal news is the best thing since sliced bread, when it may not be. A law firm was recently criticised Some of you reading this may be thinking that on social media for putting out a press release this was always the job in the first place. You’re proclaiming proudly they’d just appointed their first right, but I strongly feel like over the past year or female partner – maybe not something to be proud so that relationships I have with journalists have of considering it’s 2021! It’s a PR person’s job to got stronger because there’s been a lot more know that City AM doesn’t cover appointments focus on what we’ve been doing. PR isn’t about anymore, but that perhaps it’ll land in a trade going through the motions, but when focussed can publication at best. But why not think how you can help the bottom line and change policy. I think it’s celebrate it on your own channels as well? If the important to remember that. senior team put their shoulder to the wheel then it will definitely be picked up on social channels. If For more information about Cicero/amo’s media a company milestone isn’t a world first, then can you take a step back and think where it sits in the relations services, please contact: current news agenda or policy world? You never know, even the smallest pieces of narrative can Adam Taylor, Director of Media Relations make a journalist think that is interesting. [email protected]

Don’t be afraid To all intents and purposes, our job is to make the news (or indeed to stay out of it), but we shouldn’t underestimate the fact that PRs look at news differently to clients, buyers or senior stakeholders. Quite often press releases lose their meaning once they’ve gone through marketing and legal. I have a

3 Is ‘Freedom Day’ really the light at the end of the COVID tunnel?

By Dan Julian, Account Manager, UK Public Affairs

On July 5th the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, we need to learn to live with the virus much like we confirmed that Step Four of the Government’s do with the common flu each winter, the pressure on COVID-19 roadmap would go ahead on its revised the NHS – already dealing with backlogs and likely date of 19 July. After 18 months, all legal restrictions to have to deal with the usual winter case rates – imposed to reduce the spread of COVID-19 are set might become intolerable yet again. to be removed in one fell swoop. This includes the removal of the ‘one-metre-plus’ social distancing While none of us want to face another autumn and rule, the cap on events attendance will be lifted, and winter of tight restrictions, the summer of 2020 masks will no longer be a legal requirement in shops should act as a cautionary tale for the Government. and on public transport. Businesses that have been It was after September 2020 that Boris Johnson closed since last March, such as nightclubs, will be suffered a slump in his own personal ratings due to allowed to re-open, and the ‘Rule of Six’ indoors will the perceived poor handling of the pandemic. be dropped. His approval only recovered due to the vaccine roll- Even though the Prime Minster sounded a note of out, which made his opponent, the Labour leader caution, stating that we are “very far from the end Keir Starmer, fall by comparison. The Prime Minister of dealing with this virus”, it is difficult not to see might do well to remember that because the public ‘Freedom Day’ as it has been dubbed as a crucial, is unlikely to be forgiving for a second time if the and hopefully last, milestone in the fight against mistakes already experienced in 2020 are repeated COVID-19 in this country. With the school summer in the winter months of 2021. If he lets his libertarian holidays approaching and announcements on self- instincts dominate now, Boris Johnson may well isolation requirements for the double jabbed and on come to rue them later in the year, and with no international travel also coming last week, the mood ‘vaccine bounce’ to save him this time he may suffer in the country and in Parliament is definitely more politically as a consequence. upbeat – at least on the Conservative benches. For more information about Cicero/amo’s public The Government and the media should be wary, however, of declaring 19 July ‘Victory over COVID affairs services, please contact: Day’. If at the start of the pandemic there was an expectation that the crisis would come to an end with Dan Julian, Account Manager a big bang of restrictions easing all at the same time, [email protected] history tells us that is rarely the case (particularly if we look to 4 July 2020…).

When hospitality reopened this time last year, the feeling was a lot more positive. The 16 weeks of lockdown had finally come to an end and the following week the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, unveiled the now infamous ‘Eat Out to Help Out’, credited by many epidemiologists with having played a part in the resulting second wave in the autumn. While the new Health Secretary, Sajid Javid, has declared that

4 After a tumultuous few months, what’s next for Northern Ireland?

By Aideen Ginnell, Director, Dublin office

As the Northern Ireland Executive rises for summer the DUP actually buck the trend economically in recess, new DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson will be their policies, considering their right wing political thankful for time to review his swelling inbox. High leanings, with the party’s 2019 election manifesto up the list of priorities of the executive will be how advocating for raising the living wage, free TV the assembly team manage the economy through licences for pensioners and an end to the freeze the re-opening of society, all while the country is on benefits. plunged into political uncertainty. The Lagan Valley MP was ratified as party leader at a meeting on On the ground, Donaldson will be hoping Gordon June 30 to cap a tumultuous and dramatic period Lyons will be able to hit the ground running. for the largest party in Northern Ireland - a period Speaking recently, Lyons said his focus will be on which encompassed the brief leadership of Edwin upskilling workers to encourage innovation while Poots and laid bare the divisions at the heart of under the Economic Recovery Action (ERAP), he Unionism and the DUP. will look to support the high street and holiday at home scheme - a clear move that the Minister wants For businesses, the short-term impact in Northern to ride the wave of optimism in the economy, as Ireland of Donaldson’s leadership will most likely seen in the latest Ulster Bank survey which noted be minimal, with only one change to his assembly that lockdown easing in May caused economic team, appointing Gordon Lyons as Minister for the output in Northern Ireland to rise at its fastest rate Economy in place of Paul Frew. Frew had only since 2014. been in the job a short number of weeks before his sacking. For more information about Cicero/amo’s public What is most significant for businesses though will be Donaldson’s public statements in the past on affairs services, please contact: scrapping the Northern Ireland Protocol, agreed during Brexit negotiations to require checks on Aideen Ginnell, Director, Dublin office certain goods entering Northern Ireland from the [email protected] rest of the UK. The belief in the DUP is that for the Northern Irish Economy to flourish it needs unfettered access to the British Isles. Otherwise,

5 COVID-19 is the digital accelerator of the decade - let’s keep the momentum going!

By Megan Harley, Digital Creative Director

There’s no doubt that the importance of having the fundamentals of your digital strategy help you a strong digital presence has catapulted to the navigate your way through, and will also enable you top of the agenda for most organisations, large to make smarter decisions. and small, post-COVID-19. It’s almost like we’ve turned the digital comms clock forward five years It’s important to not let your digital strategy fall and businesses, as well as consumers, have by the wayside and keep the momentum going, dramatically advanced out of pure necessity. As with digital transformation at the forefront of your well as the massive push for businesses to be on agenda. With strong planning, you can create top of their digital game, consumers have quickly your strategic roadmap which shows where your adapted to an accelerated transition to the use of business is today, where you need it to go, and digital channels (including video calls and podcasts) ultimately how to get there and which solutions or and the rapid rise of social channels such as TikTok tools are needed. Here at Cicero/amo we have a amongst millennials. In the new normal, most team of digital specialists who can help you do just organisations will instinctively know that digital that. should be somewhere in their marketing mix but knowing where to start can be daunting. It’s also important to not forget the importance and fundamentals of good creative content. Before you As well as being daunting to most people pre-COVID, can utilise and communicate through your channels businesses and individuals are now being thrown you need to have engaging content. After investing further into the deep end. To ensure that businesses energy and resource into strategy and content, are engaging with their network effectively in this it is vital to ensure you reach the right audience. new landscape at the very least you need an ever- Now that the 19th of July is quickly approaching it’s evolving digital strategy. To ensure the best ROI for vital not to let the approach to digital marketing go your business it is important to understand where backwards and to ensure your business is at the digital fits within your broader marketing strategy: forefront of digital engagement. It’s not an easy what are you offering your clients? Who is your task, but our digital experts at Cicero/amo are here target market? What do you want to be perceived to help navigate the ever-evolving landscape. as? And what messaging do you want to present? For more information about Cicero/amo’s digital It is vital to have clarity in your marketing objectives - once agreed a digital strategy can then work to services, please contact: help you achieve those. It’s important to remember that if navigating the digital landscape becomes Megan Harley, Digital Creative Director overwhelming it’s vital to go back to basics and [email protected] remind yourself of what you want to say and how do I want people to see it? Clear goals also should be kept that focus your intentions. Keeping sight of

6 Meet the Cicero/amo team

Alexandra Dekanyova, Team Manager

Alex joined Cicero/amo in November 2015 as an Associate and is now the Team Manager of the Cicero Pulse team, where she manages the overall deliverables of the team. She works across a wide range of client accounts including the Bank of England, Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), UK Finance, Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) and others.

Policy areas she covers range from financial regulation and cryptocurrencies to sustainable finance, renewable energy and transport.

Outside of work, she enjoys being active, going to the gym and she loves travelling.

Get in touch... Alexandra Dekanyova, Team Manager - [email protected]

Tom Wilkins, Director of Public Affairs

Tom leads the multi-sector public affairs practice at Cicero/amo, delivering lobbying strategies for clients across several sectors with a particular focus on energy and climate change.

Having been at Cicero/amo for over six years, Tom has successfully led client accounts including Wales & West Utilities, MHI Vestas, BAM Nuttall and Legal & General.

In addition, Tom leads on Cicero/amo’s COP26 and energy thought leadership programme and has hosted events with the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee Chair and the CEO of UK energy regulator Ofgem.

Outside of the office, Tom’s main hobby is running.

Get in touch... Tom Wilkins, Director of Public Affairs - [email protected]

7 Cicero/amo Highlights

Website launch

Our big update for the last month is Cicero/amo’s brand new website, which we hope you agree is a sharp and engaging window into our world.

Out with the old, in with the new: Click here to access the new Cicero/amo website!

Women’s Network

Cicero/amo’s Women’s Network goes from strength to strength, and we recently held a ‘speed networking’ event, hosted by leadership coach, Lindsay Paterson. The group is all about inclusion and it was great to see so many of the team turn up and a great way for new joiners to get to properly meet their fellow colleagues.

8 ‘Freedom Day’ - Five things you can do from 19th July

That sweaty upper lip on the tube will be a thing of the past when facemasks will no longer be 1 compulsory. Although this does come with the downside of people being able to see how miserable we are on the morning commute.

You’ll be able to talk to more than just your dog during the working day as we are finally able to move 2 back into the office and can catch up with our colleagues over an in-person coffee.

No more QR code scanning (possibly), as much as we’ve all enjoyed struggling with our phone 3 cameras at the entrance to pubs.

No more limits on social distancing - although you’ll now need to find another reason why you can’t 4 invite the friend’s boring partner along.

The return of spontaneous activities. No longer (hopefully) will you have to plan an evening pub trip a 5 fortnight in advance.

9