Since the very beginning we have been involved with Talking News Islington charity. It has been set up by a group of volunteers who wanted to provide a valuable service to the blind and partially-sighted in London Boroughs of Islington and Camden. There are Talking News in many parts of the UK, produced similarly by volunteers. The News are recorded and posted to anyone registered to receive it on a CD or tape, the users listen to the news and send back to the charity. The service is free and relies on donations and funding. continue

Guest post by Barry James, Angel Revolutions.

Are newsletters a waste of time? Yes and no!

But if they take too much time to write and too much time to read then they do just waste everyone’s time.

The pace of life is such these days that it’s difficult to find the time to read a full newsletter – even if most of it is interesting. (Let’s face it the ‘filler’ articles that make up the bulk rarely are).

How much more difficult to find the time to write the stuff – especially if hardly anyone’s going to read it! continue

When you are talking to someone face-to-face, you have a lot of visual cues to help you – your tone of voice, gestures, movement, eye-contact. But with none of these visual cues present in our written communication, how do we earn trust and confidence when we write letters, reports or e-mails? In written communication, especially e-mail, we have to find other ways to evaluate the person who is ‘speaking’.

Style in written communication means attention to proper spelling and punctuation, proper sentence construction and full spellings instead of abbreviations suitable only for SMS messages. Style includes being creative in what you write and how you write. It also means making your communication look visually attractive. Finally, considering appropriate tone and structuring your message logically forms part of the business writing style.

Benefits of good writing style:

• Relevant, precise communication appropriate to the reader’s level.
• Logically structured.
• Easy to see what action is required and when.
• More approachable because our language is less formal and more friendly (unless you are writing a legal letter!).
• Saves your and your readers’ time and increases business efficiency.
• Enhances understanding and increases your professional image.
• Creates better rapport with customers and business partners.

Effective writing gives a professional impression of you and your company. It is perhaps the most demanding work we do on a daily basis. If you learn to pay attention to all the various aspects of style in your writing, you will increase the value of what you write, achieve better results, and gain a distinct advantage in today’s online world.

Guest post by Sandra Shevey.

What you see isn`t always what you get.  There are heaps going on beneath the surface in London`s ancient markets; but if you don`t look, you won`t see.

Deptford market is a shabby old dame of a market, until you realise there`s a fishmongers who sells snails the size of baseballs and a collectibles stall where a £100 vintage bike was sold to another dealer who got £600 for it.

Even at Billingsgate I haven`t seen `snails1 this weight and/or size, and the only explanation is, inasmuch as Deptford (Lewisham) has become multi-cultural, there is a demand from Nigerians for this variety of snail.

And  vintage bikes at £100 – probably only in Boston or one of the other East Midlands markets will I have seen vintage bikes for 100 quid.

Established in 1883 as a daily market selling perishables and non-perishables, its principal trading day on Saturday, Deptford market catered for the increased working-class which had settled in Deptford to cater for the Foreign Cattle market that opened in 1871 following the Contagious Disease Act 1869.  (The cattle market closed in 1914 and never re-opened again after the war)

It is worth noting originally that stalls and barrows were excluded from the High Street which was the exclusive domain of the shops.

Deptford was a thriving market until the demise of the old cattle market inasmuch as the market, 28 acres, employed 15,000 people in 63 sheds.  Employees included `shochetim` who were the only people trained to check the meats fitness for consumption.

A wander around market precincts suggests a Fifties time warp.  Most of the pubs still host billiards and darts (unusual to find) and the cafes are working class (plenty of pie and mash shops)  There`s one old dear which was used by Tony Richardson in that wonderful tea room scene with Richard Burton and Claire Blooms from `Look Back in Anger` and every time I pass by I pause and sigh.

So what do the traders make of the Deptford Regeneration Project?

`A lot of old twaddle`, says one.  `A total waste of money`, adds another.  `What we need is a car park`  `What regeneration`, asks a third.  `Oh, that letter….I tore it up and tossed it in the bin`.

Fact is there`s only one trader left on Giffin Square, whilst the builders knock down everything on the side of and around him.  He has a fabrics stall; he`s been there for 16 years and can`t see what difference a dandified garden square is going to make to the market.  `What we need is a parking lot`, he says, querying, `You going to write this up?…Good on you`.

Terry is one of 92 stalls in a market which used to boast hundreds.  And on a rainy day there are probably half that number.  Why? `Alot of the traders are Asians`, says the market inspector.  `When the weather is bleak, they make for Thailand for a few months`.

Still, the Deptford fishmongers are  the best I`ve seen; as I say including the great buys and choice at Billingsgate.  At Deptford you can haggle.  You`re in cockney land.  These guys understand what it means to `pinch pennies`.  A whole carp was selling for £7 and I was told I could have a 12 lb bag of mussels for a tenner.  Merry Christmas to you too.

Who can beat that?  So let`s celebrate what we`ve got; let`s defeat regeneration plans; let`s get behind the traders and help them to get what they need.  If the council is using the traders to make a bit, let`s see they give something back to the traders.  Let`s demand a revised planning application for regeneration of Deptford market?.

From  Deptford market, I make for the old Greenwich Hospital market as I wanted to see if the traders have been relocated on the Cutty Sark in consequence of a trustee proposal to redevelop the market as a hotel.

Joy!  Jubliliation!  Success!  The trustee proposal has been defeated by town planners who argue that Greenwich has enough hotels and wine bars.

Well said too.  I know that I couldn`t find one local cafe and had my tea in a Yuppie place where the scone was so crusty it was barely edible.  And it was pricey too.  I can remember the days when the English owned the cafes and where they couldn`t feed you enough.  I used to exit shouting, `Enough.  Enough.  I`m stuffed`.

Of course the trustees have been doing the dirt and fudging the covenant since they abolished the traditional fruit and veg market in the Seventies.  The market now runs four days a week Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday)  dealing primarily in antiques and collectibles and with a  smaller market on Wednesday.  Still, we should be reassured that it`s surviving and hasn`t been supplanted by chain shops or top of the range designer boutiques which is a current development at the old Covent Garden market.

But Greenwich markets are dying like markets all over London.  The Middle Market off Stockwell Street was closed in 2009 to make way for an extension to the university (a school of architecture) and  the Clock Tower flea market, having eclipsed the Hospital arts and crafts by just a few years, has been diminished on account of redevelopment of  hotel, cinema, offices and flats.

So, the next time you have a wander, look and look hard.  See what is going on beneath the surface.  You won`t see it if you don`t look.

Looking with Sandra Shevey. Sandra Shevey leads regular walking tours around London`s ancient markets.  She has also produced a documentary about 4 ancient London markets.  And she`s increased her remit to include  a countryside markets walk.

Guest blog by Simon Wittenberg, V12 PR.

It’s not all about the spin or cashing in on the celebrity divorces, public relations, also referred to as PR or media relations, it’s a great way to promote your business at a time when the UK is feeling a little sensitive, and recovering from negative growth. There is no one true definition of PR, but it is essentially communicating key corporate messages using the media as the channel to do so. It also spans from a single press release to a product launch or awards ceremony, and from a regional newspaper to a national TV or radio campaign.

Before seeking any PR assistance, it is worth defining your objectives, key messages, and the target audience which you would like your business to reach, as this will play a large role in determining the direction of your PR programme, and the most effective media channels. This includes the use of social networking, which is now being used as a source of factual information by journalists. Twitter (www.twitter.com) is useful as a website traffic driver and for making connections with businesses in the same industry, or with the members of the media themselves. It is a peer to peer networking site, whereas Facebook (www.facebook.com) is divided into interest groups, but relies on members approving others before seeing their profile, which is not the case with Twitter where anyone is free to follow any other member.

Relative to the fee, a good and experienced PR consultancy should be able to achieve a higher equivalent advertising spend if the same amount of column inches had been purchased by the client. PR is an essential part of any marketing strategy, but it is an animal that can soon get out of control if not handled correctly. This is where expert advice and assistance can prove invaluable before anything goes ‘public’.

Simon Wittenberg is Managing Director of V12 PR Ltd, a freelance media relations consultancy. Simon can be contacted at simon@v12pr.com.