Services

All businesses have issues needing effective communications management, and all suffer periodic crises that threaten their brands and their reputations.

Corporate Communications

Certus Communications Consultants helps you define your strategy, audit your resources and create the right messages for you to tell your story to the audiences you want to engage with.

Whether you are a broker taking your first steps into the media marketplace, a corporate looking to enhance value before a sale, or an established player with a focus on building your leadership profile, we have a track record of success.

Our expertise covers:

Strategy and planning
Corporate positioning
Communications management consultancy
Corporate PR and media relations
Social media consultancy
Issue and crisis management
Internal communications
Contact building and networking
Media audits

We apply the same sense of discipline and professionalism that clients expect from their other business functions, such as finance, HR and regulation.

Corporate Responsibility

A corporate responsibility policy is no longer just a ‘nice to have.’ Customers and stakeholders routinely research Corporate Responsibility credentials for businesses before committing; indeed, a transparent and active Corporate Responsibility policy is a pre-requisite for many companies hoping to win contracts.

Creating and implementing a Corporate Responsibility strategy
Making Corporate Responsibility core to communications
Stakeholder engagement
Reporting

Graduates and other would-be recruits want to work for companies that take a responsibility for the communities in which they work. Certus Communications Consultants can help you understand how Corporate Responsibility can benefit your business. We have developed strategies that ensure our clients respond to increased scrutiny of their business practices by external stakeholders.

Public Affairs

The financial services sector has been hit by a blizzard of regulation. In fact, many investment bankers are retraining as compliance and regulation specialists to meet growing demand from businesses for these roles.

The advent of the FCA – with a brief to help the industry help customers – is just one of a number of changes sweeping through the sector. The Competition Commission is looking at the motor insurance market, the EU plans to regulate the loss adjusting sector. Insurance is high on the Westminster agenda, thanks to flooding, tort reform, and the advent of ABS.

Building a case to catch the ear of Government
UK Parliamentary lobbying and relationship building
EU affairs
Political strategy and campaigning
Monitoring
Audits

Certus Communications Consultants has experience of dealing with regional and central government in the UK, as well as the institutions of the EU in Brussels and Strasbourg. We understand how to talk to Government – from backbenchers to ministers and officials – and address how Government’s needs affect the profitability of our clients.

We understand how other communications levers (including media relations, corporate responsibility, speech writing and campaigning) can be used to ensure Government listens to clients. We also know how to engage on clients’ behalf with third party organisations that shape policy, including think tanks, consumer groups and business representative bodies.

Social Media

Many financial services business avoid social media, or simply use it as a distribution mechanism for corporate propaganda.

We do not recommend bouncing our clients into social media; regulated businesses have to proceed with caution. What we do know is that our clients need to understand how social media has changed the way the media and other audiences do their job, and to adopt best practice for managing those changes.

We also know that the company website is the single most important external communications tool for our client’s business. The website is the first port of call for potential customers, journalists, recruits and policyholders. The first question we ask our clients is: does your website fairly reflect how you wish to be perceived as a business? We can help you with:

LinkedIn, Google+ and Twitter company pages
Online news communications
Use of video
Online community building – journalists, customers and fans

Internal Communications

Internal communications is no longer a case of megaphone diplomacy from the top down. Progressive companies adopt a circular approach focused on visibility and dialogue.

Internal communications strategy
Managing corporate change announcements
Applying internal communications to the external environment
Print and production
Speeches, presentations and event management

Internal communications has also benefited enormously from intranets and e-communications, yet ironically, this has often created a working environment where senior leaders are more remote from their own people than ever before. Certus Communications Consultants advises on the most appropriate internal communications strategies for clients who want their staff to be engaged and connected with their company, also ensuring what happens ‘inside’ is joined up with the external world.

Bespoke Packages

In today’s market businesses of all shapes and sizes need to be able to communicate their message and expertise to their target market. However, the traditional communications consultancy business model is not suited to the needs and budgets of smaller operations.

In response to this, Certus Communications Consultants has created a small business proposition giving operations that do not have the budget for full agency support the necessary training, expertise and help to make their mark and communicate their message effectively.

This proposition can be tailored to suit business requirements and budgets but a typical programme would include:

Half day consultation and construction of bespoke communications strategy
Media training for senior spokespeople
Press release training and delivery of media templates
Key journalist introductions and relationship development
Monthly support from Certus Communications Consultants
An introduction to social media

All our packages are tailored to deliver the level of support required. Any business using this approach will find themselves furnished with the key tools and skill-sets required to embark on a communications strategy backed up by regular support from Certus Communications Consultants, but in a cost effective manner.

Other Services

Many of our clients require marketing and web support, but do not have their own in-house facilities.

Certus Communications Consultants can provide those services via a small number of professionals who have worked with us in the past, and who provide the best in creative marketing and design.

In working with our clients to design corporate and other communications strategies, we often find that they also need marketing assistance and creative support at reasonable cost. We recommend:

Digital Dots

Digital Dots helps businesses, large and small, make the most of online – creating joined up, intelligent digital experiences.

Whether you’re seeking ideas to make quick wins and improvements to an existing website, or you’re looking for outstanding innovation and creativity to deliver a whole new venture – we’ll support you in achieving and exceeding your goals.

Please visit our website http://digitaldots.co.uk for more information.