Insights for Leaders Navigating
Visibility, Credibility, and Growth.
From media strategy to reputation management, we explore the trends shaping public perception and share the approaches that drive measurable results for growing brands.
This week, Target plans to open a pop-up store in downtown Chicago, the first time the company has used one of its pop-up stores in the Midwest.
For the uninitiated, a pop-up store is a temporary store that is open for a limited time – typically in a major city or mall – to create buzz around particular brand or product. Currently, one of the latest trends in retailing, pop-up stores give retailers an opportunity to quickly connect with consumers and give them a sense of urgency to purchase their products.
According to the Milwaukee Business Journal, Target will open the Bullseye Bazaar in the Tribune Tower to showcase items that are usually only sold on the retailer’s Website, Target.com. The bazaar will feature more than a dozen Target designers including Sonia Kashuk, Mossimo, Thomas O’Brien and Michael Graves as well as some limited-time collaborations from other up and coming designers.
In 2006, Gap also implemented a 60s themed pop-up store campaign. The company used a school bus as a traveling pop-up store in Los Angeles and New York and stopped at beaches on both coasts. Instead of seats, the bus was stocked with t-shirts, flip-flops, and beach hats that people bought and paid for at a cash register near the driver’s seat. Other brands using these “act now” techniques to get customers into their stores include Nike, Wal-Mart and the now-defunct airline Song.
Blair McCaw, president of the Constellation Management Group, a brand management firm in Chicago, said in a 2008 Brandweek interview that, “pop-up stores are an effective channel for turning short-term marketing promotions into long-term “brand-building vehicles” by actively engaging consumers.”
In addition to providing a quick and effective way to interact with consumers, pop-up stores are a cost effective way to get the pulse on a retailer’s customer base. Pop-up stores are relatively inexpensive to launch when compared to the costs for producing and distributing print and broadcast advertisements. From a PR perspective, pop-up stores can provide an ideal vehicle for generating buzz and garnering high profile media coverage on a shoestring budget. In 2007, The U.S. Potato Board launched a pop-up store in New York to promote the fact that potatoes contain more potassium than bananas as well as nutrients like folic acid and vitamin C. The campaign was featured in the New York Times and all of the national network morning shows.
While I’m a self-professed shopaholic (particularly at Target), I have never had the opportunity to shop at a pop-up store. However, I can see the appeal of being able to purchase Michael Kors’ (just an example) new discount line at Target or H&M for a limited time at a store in downtown Seattle or San Francisco. It would certainly encourage me to quickly get into the store and check out the collection – and maybe even increase my brand loyalty to a particular store.
Have you ever shopped at a pop-up store? Tell us about your experience by leaving a comment.
There’s been a lot of discussion about the popularity of Twitter and its growth over the past year. Twitter’s popularity has extended into the media with many high profile and prolific journalists (think CNN’s Larry King, NBC News’ David Gregory and Wall Street Journal‘s Walt Mossberg) using the micro-blogging site to interact with their readers and colleagues. Given this, we thought it would be helpful to share some insights on how to leverage Twitter to reach key influencers and reporters.
Here are a couple tips on how to pitch reporters on Twitter and forge relationships with key influencers, such as industry analysts or bloggers:
- To find key influencers and reporters, you can use Twitter directories like twellow.com or search for relevant keywords on search.twitter.com. Muck Rack is also a great resource that allows you to follow online, real time reporting by journalists.
- Follow targets and monitor their conversations. In order to build a successful relationship, it’s important to continuously monitor Twitter conversations, share information through tweets and comment on general posts or questions. This will also present a great opportunity to share information with a reporter about your organization or product that is relevant and may be of interest to them.
For example, if a reporter posts a question regarding an article he/she is working on and you have built a relationship with him/her, you could send a tweet offering some data or statistics or offer to put him/her in touch with your client to offer their perspective. You can look for specific topics that people are tweeting about by searching for Twitter hashtags.
Visit our previous blog about hashtags by clicking here to learn more about how you can leverage relevant topics to pitch reporters.
As with any media relations initiative, building relationships before pitching is crucial. It’s also important to remember to follow Twitter guidelines and practice proper etiquette, or “Twittequette”. Read our past blog about Twitter etiquette by clicking here.
Last month, PR Week included a guest article from Laura Gross, in which she reviewed the first 100 days of the Obama administration from a PR perspective. Ms. Gross takes the position that the Obama-Biden team is showing leadership through its transparent, open, and frequent communication. While she identifies areas for improvement overall, she concludes by stating, “The first 100 days of the Obama administration have been a definite PR success.”
I agree with Ms. Gross’ PR review of Obama’s first 100 days, and believe the administration’s PR success is a result of several key elements.
From our experience, effective strategic communications requires:
A focused approach with clear objectives.
A smart, focused team.
Support for the communications at the highest levels within the organization.
A clear understanding of the target audience and how to reach that audience.
An open information flow.
In the case of the Obama administration, these fundamental principles seem to radiate from the top.
Obama has recruited a stellar team. He has demonstrates his support for PR by ensuring White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs is included in key meetings, and according to PRWeek, “is a part of the inner circle of advisors.” This is critical to the success of the administration’s communication strategy and enables Robert Gibbs to develop effective relationships with media as they know him to be well-informed and knowledgeable.
In the first 100 days, the Obama administration has illustrated its understanding of the American people and has stayed consistently focused on addressing their concerns. The administration has also communicated authentically by being honest about its mistakes. They are not operating from a position of secrecy or manipulation and are building trust with Americans who may be skeptical based on past administrations.
This administration has offered a refreshing change to White House communications. We applaud Obama and his team for taking a strategic approach to public relations.
A high volume of media inquiries is, for most PR agencies and their clients, a dream come true. But managing an onslaught of inquires can be tricky and requires a strategic approach to ensure consistency and overall success.
One of our clients, Veratect Corporation, a biosurveillance company that tracks disease outbreaks and civil unrest globally is receiving worldwide media interest in conjunction with the current swine influenza epidemic.
On Sunday April 26, Veratect announced data from its 24-hour tracking service, which first detected the current swine influenza outbreak, would be made public via Twitter. This generated a substantial amount of media interest from journalists in numerous countries. We want to share a few tips that have helped us respond to these inquiries smoothly and effectively:
1. Set up a response system – Designate one person or a team to handle the incoming request, and make it clear to everyone who is authorized to respond and what to do if the media contacts them.
2. Track your calls – Make sure you track all media inquiries on a spreadsheet with the date, outlet, inquiry, who handled the request and when it was responded to.
3. Develop talking points – Create talking points to help your company effectively and consistently respond quickly to multiple requests for the same information. This has been particularly helpful as we respond to media inquiries about Veratect.
4. Respond promptly – With a story as sensitive and rapidly-changing as the swine flu, timing is everything. Journalists are on tight deadlines and it’s important to respond to their questions and schedule interviews quickly to maximize the opportunity.
5. Focus your efforts – when you’re receiving a high volume of calls, it’s impossible to grant every reporter an interview with the CEO of your organization. Make sure to prioritize and offer a written interview if you can’t schedule a call or meeting.
By following these tips and approaching the situation strategically, Veratect has been included in more than 80 original articles in publications ranging from the Associated Press and Washington Post to USA Today and the BBC.
Below are a few more links to articles and broadcast coverage about Veratect’s tracking of the swine flu:
ABC National Radio
CBS News
Financial Times
KING 5 News
KOMO 4 News
MSNBC
The Associated Press
The Daily Mail
The Globe and Mail
The Guardian
The Houston Chronicle
The Independent
The News Tribune
The Wall Street Journal
Wired
It’s an age-old question: Why do some countries flourish while others flounder? Even in an economic downturn, we live amongst staggering wealth in America while many countries are mired in poverty. MIT Professor Daron Acemoglu has said, “Economic inequality has detrimental effects on economic growth in general.”
“Recognizing the role of institutions and why societies choose or accept institutions that stifle growth are crucial steps toward understanding why much of the world is still poor, and also in developing a better perspective for dealing with the current crisis,” says Jacques Lawarree, Professor, Associate Chair, Robert and Larina Davis Distinguished Scholar at the University of Washington.
Now more than ever, understanding the underlying economic factors that contribute to the wealth of nations is crucial. Which is why we’re excited about a new free, public lecture series being held at the University of Washington.
The First Annual Milliman Lecture in Economics will be held on May 20 at the University of Washington Waterfront Activity Center. Daron Acemoglu, an MIT professor of applied economics, will argue that we need to reconsider the factors that foster economic growth and success.
He will also explore the answers to some pressing questions about the global economy, such as:
How can a society ensure its continued growth and success?
Why do some societies succeed in growing rapidly for several decades, while others stagnate, unable to generate economic growth and a decent living standard for their citizens?
What is the role of institutions in economic growth, and why do some societies choose or accept institutions that potentially stifle growth?
This is a tremendous opportunity to learn about some of the factors that shape our global economy and gather information that may be helpful as you work toward growing your business. We look forward to hearing Professor Acemoglu speak. Will you be attending the lecture? We’d love to hear your thoughts.
Normally I am not a fan of publicity stunts. Often stunts seem too gimmicky, costly and offensive. And if they’re not well orchestrated they can be a disaster.
Consider Snapple’s attempt to build the world’s largest popsicle. It flooded Union Square in downtown Manhattan and the fire fighters had to be called in to block off the streets.
Another example of a stunt gone wrong is when newly launched Yahoo Tech went on the Today Show touting that digital photography is so easy, even a chimp can do it. Katie Couric went up against Codie the chimp who was supposed to take a photo, remove the memory card and print his photo. Nothing worked and it is an example of how risky it is to execute a publicity stunt on live TV. In fact, during the segment Couric said, “So much for Yahoo’s great marketing techniques” and “this was a complete disaster, but it was fun.”
Nonetheless, the publicity stunt clearly has its place. I recently read an article in PRWeek about a start-up company that secured some high-level press by dressing the founder up in a costume to run a marathon.
In case you missed the article, here is the gist of what happened: On April 20, Jason Jacobs, founder of FitnessKeeper, ran the Boston Marathon in an iPhone costume that featured his company’s RunKeeper application on the phone’s screen.
Leading up to the event he and a group of college students leveraged social mediums by posting video and photos of the training activity and costume creation on Facebook, YouTube and the company Web site. They established a Twitter presence and cultivated a fan base.
All of the activity paid off. On April 19, Stephanie Clifford, a reporter covering advertising and marketing for the New York Times media desk, wrote an article titled “An iPhone With Legs Plans to Run” and included a photo of Jason Jacobs in his special marathon suit.
And that was not the only coverage. From our cursory search, it appears that several TV news stations covered the stunt as well as Web sites, such as Phones Review, Into Mobile, and Geek.com.
So why did this work? The stunt was original, creative, relevant to the company’s product, visual and cost-effective. It sparked interest with journalists working for both print and broadcast – they had access to photos, videos and compelling sound bites.
If you have examples of a successful or not so successful stunt, we’d love to hear them. Please share your stories with us!