Cut Through!

The central argument of Cut Through! is that our information environment has changed more quickly than our communications practice. To catch up, we need to understand what has changed and why. In this series I have argued that our information environment has become more: Democratised, Fragmented, Abundant, Corroded, and Concentrated. Episode 3 looks at a change that was hardly noticed by social me...

The central argument of Cut Through! is that our information environment has changed more quickly than our communications practice. To catch up, we need to understand what has changed and why. Our information environment has become more democratised, fragmented, abundant, corroded and concentrated. In this episode we look at two product launches from the 2000s - Facebook and the iPhone - and the c...

Why does communication feel so difficult today? Our information environment has changed more quickly than our communications practice. To catch up, we need to explore what has changed and why. Over the next four weeks, Cut Through! explores how communications has changed through the stories of four technological breakthroughs that reshaped our world: Google Search; the iPhone; the Facebook News Fe...

Christmas isn’t Christmas until you’ve listened to at least one version of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Here is my humble contribution to the genre…and a cautionary tale for communicators. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonbaugh.substack.com

In my final months leading UK Government Communications, people often asked me whether Keir Starmer’s communication should be more like Donald Trump’s. So what are the lessons for government and communicators from how Donald Trump deals with the media and communicates with the American public? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus...

An important skill for any communications leader is presenting ideas with confidence. Yet most of us feel nervous when doing so. Maybe we even have a voice in our head telling us the audience is going to see through us. In this episode of Cut Through!, I explore what a Spanish chicken farmer who fooled the Nazi High Command can teach us about presenting with confidence and I explain why you should...

The number one rule of great communications is: know your audience. Yet most communicators still design messages for how they wish people thought, not how they actually do. Decades of behavioural science research reveal that most human decisions are fast, emotional and unconscious - so why are so many communications campaigns still written for the slow, logical brain? Here are ten behavioural scie...

We like to think of ourselves as rational beings. Being "emotional" can even be a term of abuse, but the truth is human beings do not make decisions by weighing up the pros and cons of each option. We rely on mental shortcuts known as heuristics which let us make decisions quickly but also introduce predictable biases.   In a high-speed media market, the competition for attention is being won by c...

How prepared are you for a crisis? I have led the communications response to plane crashes, terrorist attacks, bankruptcies, riots and wars. Yet every time a crisis hits, I still get a sinking feeling in my stomach and a taste of adrenaline in my mouth. However prepared you think you are, you know that this is the moment when communication matters most and your skills are going to be tested to the...

In today's episode I reveal five common communication strategy mistakes to avoid: 1. The everything, everywhere, all at once strategy. 2. The self-justification strategy 3. The platitudinous truisms strategy 4. The shooting for the moon without a rocket strategy. 5. The Christmas tree strategy. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonu...

My new blog, Cut Through!, aims to define a new model for modern communications leadership. In other words, to identify the essential skills needed to deliver great communications today. Before I dive into the detail, I want to share some early thoughts on what we might cover. I have identified seven thematic areas that I think matter most in a world of disruption and change. In fact, the faster t...

Hello and welcome to Cut Through! How to communicate with clarity in a noisy world. I’m Simon Baugh. I used to be the Chief Executive of UK Government Communications and now I write, speak, and advise companies on communications leadership, strategy and capability. Cut Through is a new blog and podcast for anyone who relies on communications to drive performance and build trust. It is focussed on...