Don’t get left behind: the race to influence starts now 

Business seems slow for everyone. Politics in every sense of the word is the hold-up, as we wait for the election outcome. 

 

Patience doesn’t have to equal inertia, though it is tempting in this hot weather.

 

The reality is that whoever wins the election, the new government will have a post-election pause. It won’t be until late September at the earliest that businesses and organisations can meaningfully interact with those in Whitehall.

 

If you want to influence the new government on behalf of your community, stakeholders, or industry, what is the best way to plan and prepare this Summer?

 

Here is a plan of action. While new MPs’ offices and staff laptops are sourced, logins and passwords sorted, and ministerial teams settle in, you can get ready to make an early impact when October rolls around, party conference season begins, and business as usual resumes.

 

  1. Take this seriously: This is the time to bring together your best minds, develop your best strategic thinking, and create compelling content that evidences it. You want to end up with a ‘fish where the fishes are’ thought leadership plan that covers the rest of 2024. This might be a refined version, or you might need to start from scratch. Either way, get started. 

 

  1. Make ideas tangible: You need content ready to go at the start of September. You need materials that prompt conversations with different audiences at different points throughout September, October, and beyond. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Think about the best way to present your ideas and how to measure impact. Create a content plan. Know what your version of success looks like.


  1. Test and refine: Don’t develop content in an echo chamber. Speak with trusted sources, stakeholders and partners, and experts. Get feedback, test, and iterate. Get people ready to support you publicly because your thought leadership content is so good. 


  1. Work with the media: When the content and advocates are in place, start speaking to the media. Take a slow boil approach, and work with a small number of journalists to craft different story angles that support your overall messaging. Don’t worry if coverage doesn’t land until late September/October. It’s about quality in the right media.


  1. Get talking: Ideally, you want a drip feed of coverage running from September through October and November. This creates a lasting digital footprint of your thought leadership that others will notice and you can reference. You can use this to great effect during the October party conference season; securing closed conversations and media interviews on-site at the conferences and offsite afterward.

 

If all this seems a bit much when the sun is shining and England is fighting to stay in the Euros, remember something is always better than nothing. 

 

In this process, we start clients off with a short, fun ideation session, drawing out their best ideas and talking points, which we research to source internal and external evidence and proof points. If there is more time (and appetite among senior leaders and experts), we host a half-day workshop or deliver a series of 1-2-1 interviews. 


We mine your talent to unearth golden thought leadership nuggets that boost brand awareness, get conversations started, and increase your influence. 

Will you be ready for the dawn of a new government? September comes around quickly and hopefully it’s not just tan lines that make you stand out.

 

If you would like to find out more about Allegory, please get in touch via bizdev@allegoryagency.co.uk

Building trust and authenticity through thought leadership

Half of C-Suite executives say high-quality thought leadership has more impact on their purchase decision-making during economic downturns than when times are good. But there is often confusion about what thought leadership is, what good looks like, how it should be used, and even who is the right ‘voice’ for it. 


Thought leadership is a formidable weapon in any organisation’s trust armoury. When it is authentic and credible, thought leadership content reinforces clients’, customers’ and employees’ positive perceptions of a company. It reinforces the ‘trusted partner’ image. Research reveals that 75% of decision-makers say that thought leadership content has prompted them to research products or services they had not previously considered. It is much more trusted by this audience, which includes the C-suite, than marketing materials or product sheets.


Thought leadership is critical not only to attracting and retaining new customers but also to helping competitors steal one another’s existing business. Thought leadership can also help to cross-sell or upsell existing customers, particularly for lesser-known offerings.



So what is thought leadership?


Effective thought leadership has three key attributes: it cites strong research and data, helps audiences to better understand their organisational challenges, and offers concrete guidance. 


At Allegory, we demystify the thought leadership process by working closely with senior management teams to identify exactly what their target audience wants to hear about, what a business wants to say, and where the best voices for thought leadership can be found within it.  


70% of C-suite executives said that thought leadership had led them to reconsider their current supplier relationship. About half (54%) said thought leadership made them realise other suppliers might better understand their challenges and needs. 


Put simply, thought leadership usually comes in the form of editorials, which might appear in mainstream newspapers, specialist media, selected blog sites or B2B publications. As the name suggests, the main purpose of these articles is to establish an organisation, or an individual within it, as at the forefront of ideas, innovation and leadership.


Thought leadership offers a very different opportunity than a news story or press release, as it is part of an ongoing strategy to grow brand recognition alongside that of the personalities within an organisation. The more you use thought leadership, the more your profile is raised, which leads to yet more opportunities. It truly is something that can snowball when done right. That editorial in a trade publication can be used to leverage a similar article in a national newspaper, which in turn can lead to an appearance on Sky News or BBC radio. 



How Allegory works to develop thought leadership


Thought leadership is, of course, all about pushing ideas forward and (hopefully) changing minds, whether those are of those you wish to influence, from customers, funders and investors to government ministers. But it also creates a footprint of an organisation’s philosophy and ideas, increasing Google profile and visibility with decision-makers nationally and globally. Some leaders don’t want to put themselves out there in this way, but we believe that this is a mistake. To dismiss this relatively new way of speaking to your audiences is to waste a channel that can bring great rewards. 


At Allegory, we work closely with organisations to hone and develop their thought leadership profile. This means identifying which ideas need to come to the fore, who should be expressing them and who the business needs to speak to. We research audiences and publications, using our extensive media contacts to find the right home for opinion pieces, profiles and commentary. 


We also speak the language of the press. Just because you are a strong leader it does not follow that you already have the skills for this kind of work. We can have as much or as little input as works for you, whether that is ghost-writing editorials, collaborating or simply tidying them up before submission.


The interpersonal relationship with thought leaders is an important one, but also one we handle with expertise and sensitivity. We recognise that those we are working with are the experts in their field, so we use our own experience to bring that out while keeping the elements of individuality that make leaders who they are. 


If you can be bold, controversial or break new ground with ideas then so much the better. After all, a national newspaper editor won’t want to simply give you a platform to talk about your new widget, new educational programme or report unless you can offer something that readers will read, digest and discuss. 


For example, in our work with the Open Data Institute, we would not dream of claiming the kind of practical and academic expertise that the founder of the world-wide-web, one of the UK’s pre-eminent experts on AI or any other members of the extensive senior team have in data infrastructure. But we can hone the way that they put those ideas across, edit to the house style of a national newspaper and speak to top editors about what topics they would most like to hear about.


Tell me about the value of thought leadership


One-off thought leadership can generate new business enquiries but it is unlikely to shift perceptions on a large scale – it takes time and effort and needs to be a well-resourced programme, with organisations prepared to invest in a topic and themes over the long term.


The people and organisations who create thought leadership do so to increase positive sentiment among potential clients (55%), get leads to reach out for more information (48%) and get potential clients to consider their services (40%).


As with all earned media, we believe that this will always have a more powerful impact than advertisements or advertorials. When you are being reported in the news or, more importantly, expressing your opinions in the opinion columns of the Financial Times, Guardian or Daily Telegraph then people notice and they pay attention. 


It is impossible to put a financial value on an editorial, but even that real estate on the page would be into the £1,000s. Never mind the value of being able to speak directly to policy-makers, the public and other media. Thought leadership shows potential employees, investors and customers that your organisation is active, influential and opinion-leading. It is part business development, part publicity, part influencing and part brand building. 


Thought leadership is also an economical way to exploit changes in the way that the media works. Journalists are often overworked, underpaid and trying to hit targets for clicks, conversions and content. Gone are the days when they could spend days on one story, as they chase the page views with often onerous targets. So, providing readymade thought leadership, be that as whole editorials or prepared quotes, saves a lot of time for writers and editors. 


Finding the right voice for your thought leadership


Who delivers the thought leadership matters. The key is to focus on this particular topic, who within your organisation would be viewed as the most credible expert – credibility matters more than the job title. And yet many businesses automatically assume it should always be the CEO.


The more shares and discussion that you can inspire the happier the editor will be and the more likely that they will ask you to write for them again. At Allegory, we recognise that this can often be a difficult path to walk, but we are experts in offering counsel on just how to do that, balancing the strength of opinion within the bounds that individuals or organisations are comfortable with. We know that shareholders and stakeholders matter far more to a business than media coverage for a manufactured controversy. 


In short, we believe that thought leadership is something that every business, charity, university or organisation needs in their arsenal. There are far too many advantages for it to be ignored or something that you can leave to rivals. It is a way to speak directly, forthrightly and in your voice. And there can be few ways of communicating that are more satisfying or more valuable. 


If you would like to hear more about how Allegory Communications has worked with clients to help them become thought leaders and how we could do that for you, please get in touch via bizdev@allegoryagency.co.uk

Earned media: the power of thought leadership

By Charlotte McLeod, CEO, Allegory Communications

Thought leadership has become a buzz phrase over the last few years, as business leaders look to get their voices heard above the constant hum of social media and a full news agenda. But there is often confusion about just what thought leadership is and how it should be used. Is it a chance for the CEO to pontificate about their pet projects, one more trend that will be forgotten alongside the Snapchat account, or a genuine chance to engage with audiences and put ideas across in a new way?

What is thought leadership?

At Allegory, we have become adept at identifying when clients stand to benefit from using thought leadership, as well as how and where to place it. We also demystify the process, working closely with senior management teams to identify where the best voices for thought leadership can be found, as well as exactly what it is a business wants to say. 

Put simply, thought leadership usually comes in the form of editorials, which might appear in mainstream newspapers, specialist media, selected blog sites or B2B publications. As the name suggests, the main purpose of these articles is to establish an organisation, or an individual within it, as at the forefront of ideas, innovation and leadership.

Thought leadership offers a very different opportunity than a news story or press release, as it is part of an ongoing strategy to grow brand recognition alongside that of the personalities within an organisation. The more you use thought leadership, the more your profile is raised, which leads to yet more opportunities. It truly is something that can snowball when done right. That editorial in a trade publication can be used to leverage a similar article in a national newspaper, which in turn can lead to an appearance on Sky News or BBC radio. 

How Allegory works to develop thought leadership

Thought leadership is, of course, all about pushing ideas forward and (hopefully) changing minds, whether those are of those you wish to influence, from funders and investors to government ministers. But it also creates a footprint of an organisation’s philosophy and ideas, increasing Google profile along with visibility with decision-makers nationally and globally. Some leaders don’t want to put themselves out there in this way, but we believe that this is a mistake. To dismiss this relatively new way of speaking to your audiences is to waste a channel that can bring great rewards. 

At Allegory, we work closely with organisations to hone and develop their thought leadership profile. This means identifying which ideas need to come to the fore, who should be expressing them and who the business needs to speak to. We research audiences and publications, using our extensive media contacts to find the right home for opinion pieces, profiles and commentary. 

We also speak the language of the press. Just because you are a strong leader it does not follow that you already have the skills for this kind of work. We can have as much or as little input as works for you, whether that is ghost-writing editorials, collaborating or simply tidying them up before submission. 

The interpersonal relationship with thought leaders is an important one, but also one we handle with expertise and sensitivity. We recognise that those we are working with are the experts in their field, so we use our own experience to bring that out, while keeping the elements of individuality that make leaders who they are. 

If you can be bold, controversial or break new ground with ideas then so much the better. After all, a national newspaper editor won’t want to simply give you a platform to talk about your new widget, new educational programme or report unless you can offer something that readers will read, digest and discuss. 
For example, in our work with the Open Data Institute we would not dream of claiming the kind of practical and academic expertise that the founder of the world-wide web, one of the UK’s pre-eminent experts on AI or any other members of the extensive senior team have in data infrastructure. But we can hone the way that they put those ideas across, edit to the house style of a national newspaper and speak to top editors about what topics they would most like to hear about.

Tell me about the value of thought leadership

As with all earned media, we believe that this will always have a more powerful impact than advertisements or advertorials. When you are being reported in the news or, perhaps more importantly, expressing your opinions in the opinion columns of the Financial Times, Guardian or Daily Telegraph then people notice and they pay attention. 

It is impossible to put a financial value on an editorial, but even that real estate on the page would be into the £1,000s. Never mind the value of being able to speak directly to policy-makers, the public and to other media. Thought leadership shows potential employees, investors and customers that your organisation is active, influential and opinion-leading. It is part business development, part publicity, part influencing and part brand building. 

Thought leadership is also an economical way to exploit changes in the way that the media works. Journalists are often overworked, underpaid and trying to hit targets for clicks, conversions and content. Gone are the days when they could spend days on one story, as they chase the page views with often onerous targets. So, providing readymade thought leadership, be that as whole editorials or prepared quotes, saves a lot of time for writers and editors.

Finding the right voice for your thought leadership

The more shares and discussion that you can inspire the happier the editor will be and the more likely that they will ask you to write for them again. At Allegory, we recognise that this can often be a difficult path to walk, but we are expert in offering counsel on just how to do that, balancing strength of opinion within the bounds that individuals or organisations are comfortable with. We know that shareholders and stakeholders matter far more to a business than media coverage for a manufactured controversy. 

In short, we believe that thought leadership is something that every business, charity, university or organisation needs in their arsenal. There are far too many advantages for it to be ignored as this year’s trend or something that you can leave to rivals. It is a way to speak directly, forthrightly and in your own voice. And there can be few ways of communicating that are more satisfying or more valuable.

If you would like to hear more about how Allegory Communications have worked with clients to help them become thought leaders and how we could do that for you, please get in touch via bizdev@allegoryagency.co.uk.

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Creating compelling content with data

by Sian Freestone-Walker, Associate Director of Client Services

As an agency that was founded and has grown in the age of data, our first decade has seen a gradual awakening by clients to the importance of data in how they tell their story. A good deal of the public may still only consider data in terms of their mobile device usage, but from businesses to charities and government departments to universities, we always ensure that clients know the value of data in gaining media traction. 

In an age where data is a regular topic of discussion in both Parliament and rolling news bulletins, it is no longer an option for organisations to dismiss its importance as ‘something for the tech sector’. Data should be a part of every business’s brand arsenal, especially as there are two useful ways to approach its use. 

Firstly, there are almost always stories to be found within the data of an organisation, be they in the commercial, charity or any other sector. These stories are found in the day-to-day data that the company needs to operate, which could be anything from customer demographics to sales figures. A sudden influx of members, drop in sales of particular products or a boom in sign-ups to certain university courses could all point towards a story that could be exploited in the media. Are these signs of economic or societal shockwaves, changing tastes or of new trends to come? 

Even asking the question ‘why?’ about such data may be enough to pique the interest of journalists. Consumer media has long been held in thrall by the simple survey, which, with the right polling company or academic institution behind it, can give your client the leading story in anything from The Sun to Today on Radio 4. These stories work in the same way and need not always be the most in-depth, or indeed serious. 

These internal data stories can be a quick win for businesses looking to begin to see what data might do for them, but the larger stories require more thinking and a lot more work. Asking questions and collecting or collating new data offers the opportunity to lead the conversation and establish your brand as being at the forefront of new thinking, new discoveries and innovation. 

With one of our longest-standing clients being the Open Data Institute (ODI), you would expect Allegory to have a firm grip of how these more in-depth data stories can work. We worked with the ODI for several years on what we term their ‘flagship stories’, which are new pieces of original research. These usually lead to a report and the creation of a data visualisation or a data tool that journalists or members of the public can use to explore the data and create their own narratives. The report and supporting tools are published on the ODI’s website, creating rich content and the chance to attract new visitors, highlight other work and attract new members, newsletter sign-ups and events attendees. 

For the most recent of these flagship stories, we worked closely with the ODI to commission new research around data relating to food poverty. This was an area we identified as being one where there may be both interesting data and a story to tell about what data was not there, or was being under-reported. 

Working with our research partners and the ODI, we identified potential stakeholders, both to ascertain their own access to relevant data and to seek their backing later in the process. This saw us establish links with food banks, campaigning charities and organisations that spoke to or for those impacted by food insecurity. 
It also allowed us to tell the story of how the ODI might intervene to improve the collection and use of such data, thus contextualising the story and fulfilling the brief to increase visibility of the importance of data infrastructure. A story about data infrastructure is not something that would interest the mainstream news media per se, but the use of new data to establish our story led to coverage of the report’s findings on ITV flagship news show Good Morning Britain, as well on the James O’Brien show on LBC radio. Both shows’ production teams shared details on the story to their extensive social media followings, leading to an exponential increase in traffic to our client’s Twitter account and website.

The story featured in further broadcast and print media including Metro, Mumsnet, Research Live and Computer Weekly as well as attracting enquiries from target media wanting to use our work for researching later stories, which illustrates the long tail that can be achieved with data stories. The online content is evergreen and, when done well, can be referenced everywhere from consumer media to academic papers. 

If you would like to hear more about how we’ve used data to create compelling content or find out how we could do it for you, please get in touch via bizdev@allegoryagency.co.uk.

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Valuing data

Why businesses need to invest in data infrastructure, by Louise Burke, Managing Director, the Open Data Institute

It is easy for us to see how data is almost everything to a company like Meta, Twitter or Amazon, and we all saw how ‘the data’ dictated the government’s response during the pandemic. Yet it can be hard for many smaller or more traditional companies to appreciate its value, not least as data doesn’t appear on the balance sheet in the same way that a piece of machinery or a property might. 

This sense of data being something important-yet-intangible can lead to an unwillingness to invest – when it’s not clear how an investment in data infrastructure can be returned both in financial and reputational terms. It’s a bit like recognising the value of the invention of the train and then failing to build any tracks. 

Hiring right and skilling up

For me, this problem with recognition of value can often be reflected in staffing policy. Most businesses acknowledge the need for staff responsible for tech and some of the compliance issues that surround the use of data, yet those roles are often wrapped up in other functions, or are recruited at too junior a level.

This is a risk for businesses, as ethical, secure and, above all, serious care for and use of data has the potential to allow businesses to forge a competitive edge. If businesses fail to realise the value and importance of the data they hold then they really do risk wasting an opportunity, as well as risking their reputation. It only takes one serious data breach to damage brand image with shareholders and customers alike. 

This is just one of the reasons that I believe recruitment for the role of chief data officer (CDO), especially in larger companies, should be treated every bit as seriously as the C-suite roles occupied by HR, finance or marketing. After all, the staff member in that role has the potential to generate (or cost) the business every bit as much as any other senior staff member in the executive leadership team.

They can keep abreast of legislation, ensure that security is maintained and assist just about any other part of the business, from rationalising accounting to making strategic business decisions or providing evidence for media stories. The next decade may see data regulated and audited in the same way that company finances are today, with individuals accredited for their professional expertise and companies certified for data stewardship, in the same way that financial statements are audited. Only those who plan ahead can avoid the kind of missteps we saw ahead of the implementation of GDPR legislation.

Data ethics

Data ethics – which concerns how data is gathered, stored, used and shared – is also becoming an important issue for those who work with data in their business. It is set to become as significant a consideration as diversity, equality and inclusion in HR practice. The more we understand trust in data and data ethics the more it will inform our decisions about anything from who we work for to where we shop. Moreover, some recent research by Frontier Economics for the ODI showed that increasing trust in data has the potential to raise GDP in the UK by 2.5%.

Data literacy plays a part in this, but as we become a more data-aware society the expectation around these issues will become raised. This knowledge  will also allow people to be inquisitive about what your business is doing with data about them and what your company’s data says about you. And this is where being proactive about data and what it reveals comes into its own. After all, it is one thing to publish information about gender pay gaps in your organisation and quite another to show how you have made improvements in business practice to close those gaps the following year.

Data can allow you (perhaps with the help of communications professionals) to weave great narratives around your ethical and business practices, but it also leaves you as a hostage to fortune should you fail to follow through on promises made or truths revealed. Social media thrives on data and you can be sure that there will be someone out there more than willing to point out any errors or omissions on your part. 

Looking back over ten years of data, as we are doing at the ODI with our Data Decade campaign, also prompts thoughts about the future and how the next ten years will look. I think that one of the big opportunities – which may also offer PR opportunities – will be in showing how data can actually solve the big future challenges to address our climate crisis, as well as how it could help people with well being and health issues. In our work with Allegory over the last ten years we have learnt a lot about how illustrating the potential of data to improve society is a great means of getting our voice across to new audiences. 

I see a lot happening around how data, data practices and organisations who generate, use or handle data are assured (that is – how they inspire trust and build reputations for being trustworthy). For this to happen, we need effective mechanisms that allow data to flow in the right way and to be shared safely. 

I think we will also see organisations within sectors getting together to realise the power of data for the greater good. So, you may have businesses combining their health and safety data in the construction sector, for example, in order to highlight common risks or eliminate accidents. It’s a non-competitive use of data, which has benefits across industry and society. 

Government has a part to play too, of course, and they may well shape some of the changes around how we use and share data – in the UK, the National Data Strategy is a useful starting point that we should see generating  positive effects over the next couple of years. In the meantime, the ODI will continue to progress its mission to work with organisations to build an open and trustworthy data ecosystem, believing as we do that data is for everyone!

Louise Burke is the Open Data Institute’s Managing Director.

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Allegory marks 10th anniversary and explores why data will drive corporate reputation in the next decade

Allegory opened its doors in 2012. Since then we’ve helped universities, government organisations, technology and innovation companies to tell their story to a vast range of audiences around the world. And we’ve won some awards in the process.

As our clients have grown and evolved, we have become the UK’s specialist data communications agency, with unrivalled experience, relationships and knowledge. Indeed, 2021 saw Allegory publish a report setting out the urgent need for organisations to establish and grow their Corporate Digital Responsibility (CDR), an emerging field of corporate governance and ethics

In 2022, we’re celebrating a decade of great clients, great results, a great team, and hard work, with a campaign of our own: Why data drives reputation. At the centre of the campaign will be six thought-provoking articles, written by company leaders and opinion formers, each exploring how data and ethical business processes will continue to change our communications world in the decade to come. Our six topic areas and authors are below.

We’ll be publishing these articles at regular intervals throughout 2022, and we’d love to hear what you think about them. Make sure you get to read them all by subscribing to receive them directly in your inbox and following us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

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Chapter 1: Valuing data

Author: Louise Burke, Managing Director, The Open Data Institute

From online shopping suggestions to recommended shows on Netflix, data now shapes many aspects of our lives. Over the past decade, organisations have accumulated and acquired huge amounts of data and have spent billions on managing it and using it to their advantage. Whilst society has benefited from these data-targeted services, people have become increasingly sensitive about how their personal data is used.

This article will look at how good data governance should be front and centre for all businesses: an essential element of the brand promise made to customers, shareholders and stakeholders. When done well, the data story told to these groups can add huge value to a brand’s equity, its loyalty and to its bottom line. But poorly managed, data is an incendiary asset. Lose it, abuse it, or ignore it and the cost goes well beyond any financial penalty.

Chapter 2: Understanding changing audience behaviour

Author: Mark Chambers, Head of Corporate Communications, Department for Education

Whether it’s Apple trying to lure millennials to buy the latest iphone, or the NHS encouraging hard-to-reach-groups to get vaccinated, effecting change and action relies on understanding behavioural triggers, and that requires organisations to collect and analyse the right data. 

This piece will address how behavioural science and the data that drives it is starting to take root in strategic communications, guiding the direction of campaigns, steering the creative process and providing the benchmark for evaluation.

Chapter 3: Countering misinformation and building trust

Author: Sana Bég, Director of Communications, Médecins Sans Frontières South Asia

The past five years have seen an exponential rise in the dark art of online influencing and the spread of misinformation. Hostile actors – whether sovereign states, groups or individuals – have used the proliferation of online social channels to target society with factual ambiguity, political spin and blatant untruths. 

So how do organisations cut through this blanket of mistrust? This article will examine how ethically responsible businesses can communicate to their audiences in a manner that is seen as authentic and trustworthy.

Chapter 4: Creating compelling content with data

Author: Sian Freestone-Walker, Associate Director of Client Services, Allegory

As competition for column inches intensifies against a backdrop of editorial cutbacks, how can organisations develop content that really lands with its audiences? Data is key. When packaged in an authentic way, data can illustrate and provide independent evidence for the story being told. 

This piece will examine how data-rich organisations can maximise their competitive advantage by using their data to create high-quality, action-focused content that aligns with the beliefs and emotions of their audiences, and has the greatest chance of effecting change.

Chapter 5: Building thought leadership in a digital age

Author: Charlotte McLeod, CEO, Allegory

I’ve chosen to write about thought leadership. This is a type of content that seeks to provide the best answers to the biggest questions on the minds of target audiences on particular topics, in formats the audience likes to consume. Quality thought leadership is increasingly important if an organisation is to build its reputation, influence key stakeholders, and drive change. But gaining cut-through has never been more challenging thanks to the rise of ‘click-bait’ and the ongoing decline of editorial media space. There is also increasing evidence that the younger demographics turn away from brands that fail to take a stand on the global issues they are concerned about. 

This piece will look at how business leaders can stand out in a competitive media landscape by making known their commitment and position on key issues, such as diversity, equity and inclusion; sustainability and ethical supply chains, backed up by the data they hold.

Chapter 6: Measuring impact

Author: Richard Bagnall, Chairman, AMEC (International Association for Measurement and Evaluation of Communication)

As communicators, we start most campaigns by thinking about the end: the impacts we want to achieve, how we will evaluate them and the data we need to evidence change. However measuring impact has a myriad of challenges, especially for smaller organisations who struggle to access expensive proprietary tools, and for communicators delivering clever campaigns whose impact is often not seen for many weeks, months or even years.

So how do we prove we’re delivering on our objectives for our clients, our boards and others in our companies? This article will look at the new tools and techniques for analysing and pinpointing impact, and how data-rich organisations hold the evaluation advantage.

Here at Allegory, we hope you enjoy these articles and find value in them. Please share your views – we’d love to get some conversations started. Do you think data drives reputation? 

Goodbye for now, we will be publishing our first article soon!

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10 years of data and communications. What’s changed? Everything.

It’s been a decade since Allegory – then Thwaites Communications – opened its doors. The past 10 years have been a whirlwind of excitement, challenges, achievements, hard work and lots of learning – about business, about human nature, and about something which drives much of modern life in 2022 – data.  

Allegory is marking its 10-year anniversary with a new campaign: Why Data Drives Reputation, exploring the inextricable link between data and communication. Before that happens, I want to take a look at some of the changes, challenges and realities that have defined a decade for me, for Allegory, and for everyone.   

Back in 2012, as I watched the opening ceremony of the London Olympics on the TV and saw Sir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the world wide web, live tweet ‘THIS IS FOR EVERYONE’, I had little idea that data would find its way into the heart of the agency I’d just founded, and into, well, pretty much every aspect of my life. 

I also couldn’t have predicted that within a few weeks I’d be working with Sir Tim himself at the Open Data Institute, where he is co-Founder of one of Allegory’s foundational clients, along with UK AI expert Sir Nigel Shadbolt (who is also Principal of Jesus College, Oxford). In September 2012, I and my fledgling business became immersed in the world of data, AI and innovation. And so it has stayed for the past 10 years. 

Data is everywhere, and increasingly visible 

In 2012, I certainly wasn’t using any of the on-demand, algorithm-led, data-driven services I use now. Deliveroo was not delivering my groceries within 10 minutes of an order; Zipcar was not loaning me a car to visit friends; and Netflix was not recommending its latest big hit show (in fact in 2012 Netflix’s first original TV series was released: Lilyhammer).  

Unless you happened to be down the pub with a bunch of computer or data scientists, it’s unlikely that data was on your radar at all in 2012 – except perhaps how much ‘data’ you had left on your mobile phone.

The pandemic has bought data into plain sight 

Fast forward ten years, and data is now part of a public conversation that was inconceivable in 2012. For the past two years, data has dictated whether we go out or stay inside; see friends and family, or (video) call them; go into the office, or stick to Zoom. Zoning into the latest Coronavirus statistics has become a habit for many – enabling us all to understand the current situation and have an opinion on what should come next. The pandemic, and, sadly, the current conflict in Ukraine, has also shown us how data can be used in misinformation and disinformation campaigns by individuals and groups with either ill-informed or dangerous agendas, and disseminated to millions via social media. 

There are so many things to learn from the pandemic, but I hope one of them is that data is relevant to all our lives – we can and should engage with it, but we should also understand its provenance. Whilst data was previously a hidden commodity, it is now recognised as a part of our national infrastructure, like roads and utilities, and we need to manage and engineer it in the same way.  

The pandemic has also shown us how powerful it can be when data is shared across borders. The World Health Organisation is able to quickly identify new Coronavirus variants because the global scientific community is continually reporting patterns and trends. The response from the best epidemiologists in the world is immediate. 

Communication never stands still

Just as data has irrevocably changed our lives over the past 10 years, so communication has evolved into a very different beast. In a media landscape which is dominated by 24/7 social media engagement and always-on channels, gaining cut-through is challenging for everyone working in our field. And of course it’s a much more crowded, competitive environment now. Everything has to be better all the time. Better stories (backed up by data!), better targeting and better impacts. 

As an agency, Allegory has responded by hugely diversifying its skills set: from a team of PR and strategic communications specialists in 2012, to a flexible, multi-faceted group of professionals able to run large-scale, multi-channel, multi-disciplinary campaigns in 2022. 

Plus ça change 

Whilst the world of data races on, some things closer to home remain constant: values, mission and work ethic. When I launched the agency I wanted to work with interesting people making a difference in the world. Sure, there was more money to be made in the corporate world, but that wasn’t and isn’t for me and those I work with.  We want to work with organisations that have a social purpose – across all sectors.

After a career advising UK government ministers, and reporting the news, I was used to applying intellectual rigour to every aspect of my work, and when I started the agency, I sought out clients where I was able to exercise that. I found it in (to name just a few) the Open Data Institute where we have worked to bring the value of data to public and private sector audiences over the past 10 years and in the Open University where we launched FutureLearn – the first UK MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) platform and in the visionary rebrand of the Energy Systems Catapult.  

But, without doubt, the greatest joy of the whole adventure has been the team – because any business is really about its people. I realised early on that to recruit dedicated, passionate, loyal staff is incredibly difficult and that we needed to ‘grow our own’, harnessing early talent and developing the strategic communicators of the future. Our internship programme has launched the careers of some truly excellent communications operators. They have rewarded us ten-fold with their dedication and energy. 

Charlotte McLeod, Allegory CEO

Now that I have stepped away from a day-to-day role at Allegory and onto pastures new, I feel very fortunate to have Charlotte McLeod as Allegory’s CEO, safeguarding and expanding my legacy, taking Allegory into its second decade and next iteration. Surrounding oneself with people who align with one’s values is always a great way to bring out the best in every situation. 

Onwards!

Why Data Drives Reputation will celebrate Allegory’s decade in business by looking to the future. We’ll be joining forces with six opinion formers from business and communications to explore how organisations can meet their goals by mobilising two huge drivers for change: data and communications. From responsible data governance and understanding audience behaviour, to countering misinformation and building thought leadership. Make sure you get to read all the articles by subscribing to receive them directly in your inbox and following us on Twitter and LinkedIn. 

10 years is a milestone for any business. Many don’t make it, and I’m extremely proud that Allegory has. 2032 – here we come! 

Emma Thwaites is Founder and Executive Chair of Allegory, and Director of Communications & Marketing at the Open Data Institute

Good data governance is fundamental for reputation

Emma Thwaites, founder of Allegory Communications, talks data and the way it influences our behaviour and business.

Data headlines are here to stay

Every aspect of modern life is defined or quantified by data. The Global Datasphere measures how much data is created and consumed every year. I find the scale mind-blowing – the total amount of new data predicted to be made in 2025 is 175ZB, up from an estimated 59ZB in 2020.

If you are struggling with visualising this (I did), I Googled it and, using my rudimentary maths, calculated that it’s the equivalent of 3.5 billion 4-door filing cabinets full of text. It’s unsurprising that we all somehow feel the presence of this invisible but massive force even if we only consciously think about it occasionally or never.

Data underpins the way we understand the world

Like water, electricity and roads, data is woven through the infrastructure of modern life. It influences our behaviour, our lifestyles and the choices we make. Data is increasingly the story – making front-page news and raising big political questions about transparency, privacy, and ownership. In March, research for the Centre for Data and Innovation showed an unprecedented increase in the use of data-driven technologies in the pandemic. This contributed to a 54% rise in UK media coverage of data-driven technologies in the first 12 months of Covid-19.

Things are moving so fast that the explosion of data often outpaces our ability to manage our response or understanding of it. As individuals, unpicking the truth from exaggerated claims and conspiracy theories woven with data is almost impossible. The issue is further exacerbated when data is taken out of context and manipulated to suit false narratives.

For leaders of complex organisations, keeping a grip on how data is being gathered, stored and processed is a mind-boggling task. According to a poll of 250+ business leaders, insight, marketing and communications professionals attending the recent DataComms 2021 conference, only 12% feel ‘very prepared’ to respond to a major crisis involving data, (e.g. a data breach), and almost a third (32%) stated that they would be ‘unprepared’.

There is work to be done. How we manage and communicate about data – something that was once primarily internal and often confined to ICT departments – is now very much an outward-facing concern. Whether we do it well or poorly can influence how trustworthy people consider our organisations to be. Data protection penalties are on the rise, climbing 40% in the past year (FT.com), and organisations are increasingly being held accountable for their use of data by regulators and consumers alike.

Corporate Digital Responsibility moving up the business agenda

Data is becoming a new battleground for those concerned with building and protecting corporate reputations. Consumers are data-aware as never before. While they may be happy to share personal data with organisations they trust, they are also ready to punish them for any misuse of data or perceived lack of transparency. Organisations that can master data, using it ethically and in an open and trustworthy manner, will win. Company reputations will be built on the strength of how seriously they take their Corporate Digital Responsibilities, at least in part.

So how can communicators master data? How can we make sure that we know and understand enough to advise our organisations confidently at the most senior levels? We must embrace it in its full capacity, understanding both the power it holds and the risks it may expose. Here is the basic process that we have developed at Allegory for achieving this:

Deep Dive:

  • Carry out a comprehensive data audit. What data does your organisation hold? Where is it stored? Who has access to it? What is it used for? Is it shared? How long is it kept for, and how is it protected?
  • Evaluate your data policies and procedures against your wider organisational mission, vision and values.

Analyse:

  • Identify weak points and ensure that all data is being gathered, stored and used ethically and transparently.
  • Ensure that the risks of data mis-management are fully understood and mitigated across your organisation (ie. captured and considered in your organisation’s risk register)

Transform:

  • Make sure that the data you need to do your job is readily available and can be accessed quickly in the event of a crisis.
  • Consider publishing public-facing, data-driven dashboards – showing your organisation’s performance across key metrics.
  • Make data protection an integral part of your risk register and your crisis management response.
  • Ensure that people in the business understand the company’s responsibilities, processes and commitments concerning data.
  • Address any skills gaps.

Advocate:

  • Provide a strategy to communicate to your audience why your company takes CDR seriously and the measures to ensure these principles are upheld.
  • Be transparent about company policy concerning data, especially what your organisation is/ is not prepared to share and how it will do so safely.

With the requisite infrastructure, skills and plans in place, you can be confident in your ability to communicate your organisation’s use of data openly and positively, both for growth and in times of crisis. As a communication strategist, being an expert in your organisation’s data policy and practice will enable you to protect and enhance its reputation.

Allegory has been working in this field for nearly ten years and is passionate about best practice in communicating about and with data. Please get in touch if you would like to find out more about our data governance workshops for communication and marketing professionals. Our mission is to use our expertise and our network to help organisations embrace data for positive change and the greater good.