Author: Sarah Hattman

What Does a PR Agency Do? Gratitude Video

Sarah HattmanAwards, Blog, Case Studies, , , , , ,

It’s a well-known fact that the five-year anniversary is a critical milestone for any business, and it’s one that Clairemont Communications achieved in 2015. Looking ahead to our sixth anniversary in 2016, we took our love of dancing to a whole new level and created a gratitude video to celebrate our success in a fun, creative way.

Strategy

Clairemont opted to celebrate with a virtual dance party set to the tune of Andy Grammer’s “Good to be Alive.” We felt it was the perfect match because its positive lyrics expressed our sentiment that we were happy and grateful to be in business doing work that we love, and that our hard work had paid off with wonderful clients for six amazing years.

Execution

  • Stepping out of our Comfort Zone: It’s something we often ask our clients to do for us in the way of media interviews, public speaking and being in the spotlight. Therefore, we felt that it was important for us to demonstrate that we don’t ask them to do anything we wouldn’t do ourselves. Instead of using Andy Grammer’s voice, we opted to sing the lyrics in our own voices, something that was entirely out of our comfort zone as a group.
  • Clients: As a way to thank our clients, we wanted to celebrate our success together. We went into multiple kitchens and community centers, a restaurant, bar and produce warehouse. We even captured one client dancing on the roof of his business!
  • Families: Clairemont also wanted to thank our families in the video, so we invited them to join us on the front porch of the Clairemont House for dancing.
  • Mentors: To honor Mike Herman, a PR mentor who passed away in 2015, we opted to include information about the Michael Lee Herman Memorial Award Fund at the end of the video. We also recognized other mentors who have helped us in our PR journeys.

Results

At the completion of the project, we met every goal, exceeded expectations and produced the following results:

  • Clairemont surpassed its goal of 10,000 views in the first year by receiving 10,000 views within the first four months of the video’s release, and the number continues to climb.
  • Much to our surprise and delight, clients enthusiastically said yes to our request to dance with us on camera. The video featured nine clients in the video.

Clairemont’s “Good to be Alive” video earned a Best in Division for Digital Communications at the Raleigh Public Relation from the Raleigh Public Relations Society. We are proud that this is one of the 137 awards we’ve received since starting Clairemont in 2010. To read more about the work we do with clients, please visit the case study section of our blog.

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What Does a PR Agency Do? Wendell Falls

Sarah HattmanAwards, Blog, Case Studies, , , , ,

Newland Communities, the country’s most prominent privately held residential developer, prepared to launch its newest master-planned community, Wendell Falls, on May 16, 2015. Wendell Falls is situated in a relatively undeveloped section of Wake County with the perception of being far away from other towns in the county. Newland Communities turned to Clairemont Communications to position the community as a popular living destination and craft a successful grand opening event that would generate buyer traffic and dispel the myth that Wendell Falls was a distantly located neighborhood.

Strategy

Clairemont crafted a grand opening event strategy that targeted home buyers who valued a sense of community. Clairemont highlighted the fun, relational atmosphere at Wendell Falls and provided opportunities for potential guests to personally interact with the brand.

Execution

Clairemont and the Newland team modeled the grand opening after a classic barn raising, an event designed to highlight the community’s innovative offerings while honoring its urbane way of life, agrarian heritage and strong sense of community.

Clairemont created a barn raising atmosphere through entertainment reminiscent of a family carnival. Guests enjoyed southern fare, pony rides and rickshaw tours while being serenading by two top bluegrass bands. Attendees could document the event at a fun photo booth and then sign an old-fashioned commemorative barn quilt. The Barn Raising culminated with the announcement of the winner of the “$50k on the House” – a contest that invited homebuyers a chance to win $50,000 toward a new house in Wendell Falls by writing a short entry and taking selfies at the model homes prior to grand opening.

Results

Clairemont met every goal, exceeded expectations and produced the following results:

  • 11 news stories within one month of opening, including a Sunday paper front page spread and two television segments.
  • Five bloggers and approximately 250 community influencers visited Wendell Falls prior to its grand opening.
  • Clairemont and Wendell Falls hosted 2,000 attendees at the grand opening, a 100-percent increase above the original goal.

Clairemont successfully positioned Wendell Falls as one of the top places to live in Wake County, efforts that have helped Wendell Falls meet its annual sales goal and earn the community the title as Best Master Planned Community in East Wake County by The News & Observer.

The work Clairemont Communications conducted in partnership with Wendell Falls earned a Gold Excellence Award for Total Campaign from the Raleigh Public Relations Society as well as Best in Category for Events & Observances from the North Carolina Public Relations Society of America. We are proud that this campaign represents two of the 137 awards we’ve received since starting Clairemont in 2010. To read more about the work we do with clients, please visit the case study section of our blog.

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What Does A PR Agency Do? Papa Spud’s

Sarah HattmanAwards, Blog, Case Studies, , , , , , ,

The Triangle Business Journal captured this shot at the behind-the-scenes media breakfast and featured it as the Photo of the Week.

At a time when people have become more interested in knowing where their food comes from, community supported agriculture (CSA) delivery services have become increasingly popular. Papa Spud’s is a farm to fork delivery service based in Cary, N.C. that has been serving Triangle families since 2008. Each week, the team works with more than 50 local farmers and artisans to fill the CSA boxes.

While interest in this type of service did seem to be on the rise in 2014, the vast majority of Triangle residents had never heard of Papa Spud’s, and were not aware of the service it provided. To combat this issue, Papa Spud’s engaged Clairemont Communications to help raise awareness of the service and ultimately increase signups.

Strategy

We determined that the best approach to differentiate Papa Spud’s from its competitors was to highlight the fact that the service was completely customizable and offered a much broader offering than other CSAs in the area. Additionally, we wanted to feature the local farmers and food artisans to share an inside look at how the food makes it from the farm to customers’ front doors.

Execution

Clairemont Communications crafted and implemented a comprehensive strategy to increase brand awareness for Papa Spud’s.

  • We planned and executed an event targeting local mommy and food bloggers that allowed them to see a typical weekly box and gave them ideas on how to use it. Guests also had the chance to meet the Papa Spud’s team and hear from the company’s founder, Rob Meyer, who shared why he started the business and how it works.
  • A select group of media were invited to a breakfast and behind-the-scenes tour to see firsthand how the boxes are pulled together before delivery.
  • We formed grassroots partnerships with restaurants, gyms, schools and organizations –  including the Junior League of Raleigh that led to an ongoing sponsorship where Papa Spud’s supplied fruit for the Backpack Buddies program.
  • Creative and individualized pitches were used to maximize engagement from reporters and bloggers. We also invited mom bloggers to try the service for a month and blog about their experiences.

Results

Clairemont exceeded expectations and met all established objectives, along with increasing general awareness and customer registrations. As a result of our efforts, we secured the following:

  • 10 community partnerships
  • Four traditional media placements
  • Three blogger trials
  • More than 30 social media posts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter
  • 10 blog posts that featured in-depth information about Papa Spud’s

The work Clairemont Communications conducted in partnership with Papa Spud’s earned an Honorable Mention Award in the Total Campaign category from the Raleigh Public Relations Society and an Honorable Mention Award from the North Carolina Public Relations Society of America. We are proud that this campaign represents two of the 137 awards we’ve received since starting Clairemont in 2010. To read more about the work we do with clients, please visit the case study section of our blog.

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Dhruv’s New Bike

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With only one look at Dhruv’s face in the photo, you can tell he is ecstatic to debut his new bike to his classmates at Green Hope Elementary School. Seven-year-old Dhruv suffers from cerebral palsy, a condition which causes spastic muscle movements and makes it nearly impossible for him to ride a bike … that is until he won the Duet Bike from the Great Bike Giveaway.

Earlier this year, Dhruv thought he was simply riding his new bike to school, but when he arrived he realized he was in for a huge surprise.

Video Player

This scene might not have happened if not for Andrew Valkanoff, owner and operator of Triangle Dairy Queen and a Clairemont client.

Back in March, Andrew agreed to hang fliers encouraging people to vote for Dhruv in all three Triangle Dairy Queen locations on one of the busiest days of the year – Free Cone Day. That was just the beginning. When Andrew met Dhruv in person, Dhruv’s big smile and positive attitude stole Andrew’s heart, and Andrew committed to making sure Dhruv won the adaptive bike. With the help of Facebook, Twitter and media stories, Dhruv secured the most votes … and a new bike!

To make sure the school celebration was complete. Andrew even donated ice cream to Dhruv and all of his classmates. It doesn’t get much sweeter than that!

Want to see a few other fun events we’ve done with Dairy Queen? Check out our special DQ Frozen gig!

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Do you Dread the Difficult Talks?

Sarah HattmanBlog, Professional Development, The Clairemont Team, , , ,

When you think about the personality of a PR professional, you probably envision an extrovert who isn’t afraid to speak their mind. While this is often the case, Alan Cohen says they can also be “some of the most non-confrontational people on earth.” I don’t know about you, but on a personal level I completely agree with this statement. Yes, I am a people pleaser and love getting results for my clients, but when it comes to confrontation there’s nothing I dread more and look to avoid.

It’s for this very reason that I was eager to read Alan Cohen’s book, Those Difficult Talks for PR Pros. Not only is it an easy read, but Cohen offers some great advice on how to tackle the tough talks and explains that they don’t have to be conflict ridden or uncomfortable.

Self Evaluation                                                                                                                                   Before embarking on any important or potentially uncomfortable conversation, Cohen suggests we take a closer look at ourselves and determine how well prepared we are to have the tough talks. The book features a list of questions to help guide you through the thought process and reveal areas you might need to address internally before you sit down to discuss issues with another person.

Two-Way Communication                                                                                                              One of the underlying themes in the book is two-way communication. Cohen first quotes Truman Capote who said, “A conversation is a dialogue, not a monologue,” and later references Canadian writer Margaret Millar who once said, “most conversations are simply monologues delivered in the presence of a witness.”

It’s important to approach the difficult talks as a conversation because both parties need to openly discuss and address an important gap in expectation, behavior or performance. This will allow both parties the opportunity to find a solution to the issue and work together to develop a plan that is a win for everyone involved.

Preparation is Key                                                                                                                             This may seem obvious – especially when it comes to folks in PR who typically love to develop a plan – but when it comes to the tough talks, planning is often overlooked according to Cohen.

To make sure readers are prepared for their next difficult talk, Cohen offers up a prep checklist. He suggests reflecting upon the current situation and thinking through nine steps, including how you are experiencing the situation, how is it impacting your core values and what are some possible solutions and next steps.

One step I found to be particularly helpful is reflecting on what you could do to take greater personal responsibility. This forces you to view the issue from both perspectives and explore areas where you might need to take more responsibility for your actions. Think about it. All too often when conflict arises the finger pointing begins. Cohen’s checklist will help you reframe your thinking.

I recommend this book to anyone, no matter how comfortable or uncomfortable you are when it comes to the difficult talks. Whether you purposely dodge these conversations or consider yourself to be a seasoned pro, I am willing to bet that you will find a tip or two that you can put to use the next time you face a difficult talk.

Looking for more suggestions for your summer reading list? Check out Clairemont’s other book reviews.

 

 

 

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