An overview of the latest book, #brandvandals by Steve Earl @mynameisearl and Stephen Waddington @wadds (Bloomsbury, 2013). Internal communication and social media strategist Rachel Miller @AllthingsIC highlights the parts of the book that are relevant and thought-provoking for internal comms pros. Join in the conversation on Twitter using #brandvandals.

2. Q. Why should people who are interested in internal
communication read the book #brandvandals by
Steve Earl and Stephen Waddington?
A. You can’t afford not to!
Here are the bits I liked, that sparked further thoughts and
that I think are relevant for IC
*
I hope you find it useful too…
Rachel Miller @AllthingsIC
* I haven’t included my section of #brandvandals, but there’s lots in there for IC pros too

3. #brandvandals
Brands need early warning systems that
give them eyes in the backs of their heads.
Anything less than full disclosure leaves
blind spots, and blind spots can leave
enemies drooling.

4. #brandvandals
Media has become a two-way
weapon. Nobody can control it.
It's anarchy.

5. #brandvandals
There are still external and internal
audiences, but there is no longer really
external and internal communications,
at least not as we knew it.

6. #brandvandals
Organisations used to operate under the
belief they could control how a message
was communicated to an audience.
Much of the organisational discipline of
corporate comms has been built on this
premise.
In reality, organisations can plan their
public relations activity and carefully
craft messages and content, but control
has never been possible.

7. #brandvandals
Communication between an
organisation and its audiences can no
longer be one-way.
(It never should have been,
but it definitely isn’t now).

8. #brandvandals
A message will only resonate with an
audience if the audience believes it
to be sincere and authentic.

9. #brandvandals
Brand vandals aren’t just members of
your external audience.
Sometimes they’re employees.
A lack of robust processes in an
organisation can endanger it.

10. #brandvandals
Keep your reputational shield
polished.
Make it harder for mud to
stick.

11. #brandvandals
In recent years we've been coming to the
end of the road for the line drawn between
internal and external audiences.
We've also seen lines blur, diminish or
cease to exist between the way external
audiences used to be communicated with
as discrete groups.

12. #brandvandals
Stopping a snowball from turning into an
avalanche has become one of the most
strenuous and most sought-after skills in
communications.

13. #brandvandals
Brand vandals love to exploit not only
weak spots in the brand’s infrastructure,
but also inadvertent or ill-advised pieces
of comms that come out of the rest of the
organisation.

14. #brandvandals
There is no such thing as a digital
crisis versus a regular crisis. Today,
all crises are digital because all
media is potentially digital, just as all
information is potentially digital.
In fact, we should stop thinking of
stuff as digital at all. This is the
modern world and this is modern
media.

15. #brandvandals
Get your communications right first time
• You need a team, but one person has to be
given the responsibility of handling a crisis
• Take the time to get to know your advocates
• Tell authentic stories and generate real
conversations
• Be prepared, and you can stand tall rather
than looking over your shoulder

16. #brandvandals
There are no real boundaries anymore and
brands have to communicate with the
audiences both en masse, as smaller groups
and as individuals. And above all, as human
beings.

17. #brandvandals
Find out more
@wadds
@mynameisearl
@bloomsburybooks
#brandvandals is coming soon
www.bloomsburybooks.com