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History Provides Insights That Can Help Shape Successful Strategies

George Bernard Shaw famously wrote, “We learn from history that we learn nothing from history.” Even the most cursory review of our society’s recent history would prove his sentiment. However, smart business people know that historical perspective is key to achieving success.

The start of a new year provides the perfect excuse for the busiest of us to pause and reflect on the year we’ve just left behind.  This simple exercise allows us to better understand what worked, what didn’t work and what have we yet to try—and if you’re in the business of PR, you know there’s always something new to try!

Last month we spent time looking back at work we conducted in 2014 on behalf of our client Mobidia.  Mobidia is a mobile analytics provider with the largest global sample of smartphone and tablet users. The company provides unique insights into mobile trends. Its data is highly valued because it is based on real usage from real mobile users on both cellular and Wi-Fi networks, providing a comprehensive understanding of what people do and value in the mobile world.

Upon reflection, we learned that trustworthy research and timely data were the most successful drivers of awareness about the company and its offerings—especially when combined with targeted media outreach. We also learned that a steady stream of news continued to drive awareness with journalists about Mobidia’s data and that we could be more effective by proactively providing data around hot news cycles rather than reaching out with general messages about the availability of mobile usage data or to gauge a particular writer’s interest in receiving data.

Over the year, we worked with Mobidia to develop and distribute 10 press releases, many of which were based on solid industry research developed in collaboration with trusted partners such as Yankee Group, IHS and ABI Research. Building off of learnings from 2013, Mobidia’s research and insights were focused on mobile usage research that would appeal to journalists and analysts covering markets including telecom, retail, mobile gaming, and social messaging.

In addition to securing coverage through press releases, we placed Mobidia’s data in articles associated with hot news cycles by providing journalists with charts that could easily be dropped into a story to prove or disprove a particular theory or provide visual support for a topic. We used this strategy successfully to secure inclusion of Mobidia’s insights in articles covering Facebook’s purchase of WhatsApp, Wi-Fi usage trends in the U.K., and the competition between Uber and Lyft, among other topics.

Using what we learned from 2013 to help guide our strategy for 2014, we achieved more than 180 articles and mentions for Mobidia, not including article reposts. In addition, we secured more than 10 briefings with journalists and analysts—independent of a news release or cycle—many of which have contributed to the company’s bottom line by driving sales of the company’s data.

Here are just a few coverage highlights from the year:

Looking forward to 2015, we will build on the successes of 2014, providing targeted and relevant data and research to an audience hungry for data that can help businesses—and media—better understand the people they are trying to reach. In addition, we plan to capitalize on Mobidia’s new app leaderboard and data infographics which have only recently been made available on the company’s web site. Finally, we look forward to incorporating new, consumer-facing strategies into the mix, such as the development of a consumer survey or social media campaign to generate awareness about the company’s data management app My Data Manager.