Tag: awards

What does a PR agency do? A Royal Media Event

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During fall 2018 High Point Furniture Market, furniture manufacturer Theodore Alexander in collaboration with Charles, 9th Earl Spencer – the brother of Princess Diana – unveiled the newest masterpieces in the Althorp Living History furniture collection.

This collection encapsulates reproductions from the Althorp Estate, the Spencer family’s ancestral home of 19 generations of British nobility. After the unveiling, Theodore Alexander hosted a dinner and silent auction supporting Whole Child International (WCI),a nonprofit founded by Countess Karen Spencer, Lord Spencer’s wife, to increase quality childcare around the world. Clairemont Communications was selected to help plan and execute a successful furniture unveiling and fundraiser gala during Market.

STRATEGY

Clairemont established an event strategy targeting two main audiences: local and industry media, and market guests who would attend the ticketed fundraising dinner. Clairemont’s objective was to secure exposure for the Althorp Living History line as well as to raise support for WCI, with the goals of securing at least 10 news stories featuring the furniture collection and securing gala attendance to assist with raising at least $50,000 on-site at the event to support WCI.

Clairemont crafted a campaign with pillars including media relations, social media, email marketing and experiential marketing. Since email and social media offered targeting options, we utilized Instagram and Facebook to provide sneak previews of the collection to curated guest lists, High Point Market attendees and specific demographics likely to attend. Guests and media received a VIP on-site experience as well, one brimming with a high-end dinner, gifts, champagne toasts and photo opportunities – adding to the allure to attend and support the fundraiser.

EXECUTION

Hefty primary and secondary research guided our process, including market demographics, market challenges and successes, and product sales as well as the protocol for addressing Lord Spencer. Clairemont devised a timeline and managed on-site logistics.

Clairemont’s creativity added a “royal touch” to the evening, securing record coverage and top attendance by implementing these creative elements.

  • A Royal Affair: Clairemont and Theodore Alexander created a “royal wing” of the showroom and offered reporters one-on-one interviews with Lord Spencer. Our tailored pitches invited media on a personal tour of the Althorp showroom as Lord Spencer shared tales of his and Diana’s memories of each piece.
  • The Gallant Gala: The tour with Lord Spencer culminated in an evening dinner in the Theodore Alexander dining room, and Clairemont ensured that the Whole Child International story filled every nook and cranny. During the event, Lady Spencer issued a personal invitation for guests to donate, sharing her vision to reach orphanages across the globe with the funds.
  • Social Media Sneak Peaks: Ahead of the event, Clairemont worked with Theodore Alexander’s social media team to create teasing tidbits about both the Althorp Furniture collection and the Whole Child International dinner. Stunning videos, for example, unveiled a small detail or design of the coming Althorp pieces. Stories of children benefiting from Whole Child International piqued the interest of followers on social media, and of course, targeted social ads invited Market-goers to purchase a ticket to the dinner.
  • More at Market: Clairemont maximized reporters’ time at the Theodore Alexander showroom by curating the top picks from its other leading collections. Clear information and assets were neatly packaged for on-site reporters to collect after their appointment with Lord Spencer.

RESULTS

As its “crowning achievement,” Clairemont successfully implemented the unveiling and gala, exceeding all objectives. We secured 19 news stories and helped raise a total of $75,685 to support Whole Child International by the end of the evening’s event.

To read more about successful unveilings and events for other clients, visit the case study section of our blog.

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What does a PR agency do? Journelle Talks Lingerie

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When New York-based lingerie company Journelle wanted to change the conversation about lingerie by rolling out a major campaign, it turned to Clairemont Communications to help with a 360-degree brand refresh ahead of the launch. The Who Says campaign was Journelle’s rebuff to the two seemingly polarizing trains of thought when it comes to lingerie: slim and sexy, or boring and basic.

STRATEGY

Clairemont’s work included strategy, developing media materials and identification of desirable influencers. We began by evaluating previous influencer partnerships and coverage of Journelle and compiled a list of who to engage during this project as well as who to consider for an exclusive. Journelle came to the table with a handful of media and influencer relationships already in place and needed Clairemont to fill in the gaps by strengthening the relationships with existing contacts and reaching new editors at print publications, outlets that continue to hold clout amongst the fashion community.

Image by Journelle.

EXECUTION

Journelle wanted to seek the support of influencers, and Clairemont had previous success in negotiating with micro and macro influencers (at least 1,000 and 100,000 followers, respectively). Due to this experience, Clairemont compiled a diverse list of these types of influencers whose styles organically aligned with Journelle. Our team looked at follower numbers, as well as at post engagement and follower feedback/influencer interaction. Clairemont successfully secured interest from top influencers in a variety of markets across the country, including New York City, Los Angeles and Houston, TX.

RESULTS

With the goal of securing at least 10 influencers to generate buzz for Journelle around Valentine’s Day, Clairemont successfully engaged 12 micro-influencers. With the goal of securing one exclusive story on the Who Says campaign in a top-tier fashion industry publication with a circulation of at least 50,000, Clairemont exceeded its goal by securing three placements: one prominent inclusion of Journelle on Who What Wear ahead of the launch and two separate placements in “the fashion bible,” Women’s Wear Daily (circulation of more than 59,000) at the time of launch. WWD stories included an exclusive feature on Who Says, including an interview with Journelle’s VP of marketing and brand; and an inclusion in a trend piece with quotes from Journelle. The brand was able to share these successes on social media and with shareholders.

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? A Fiery Campaign

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The North Carolina Association of Fire Chiefs (NCAFC) and the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) banded together to address a critical volunteer firefighter shortage in North Carolina. Research showed that nearly 70 percent of North Carolina firefighters were volunteers, and this number was plummeting by approximately 12 percent annually. In 2018, these organizations secured a federal SAFER Grant from the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) targeting 15 high-risk counties in North Carolina needing volunteers. The NCAFC turned to Clairemont Communications and The Felice Agency to launch a community relations campaign to recruit volunteer firefighters across the state.

STRATEGY

The agency team established a strategy targeting two main audiences: 1) North Carolina media, especially those covering the rural counties in the grant, and 2) potential volunteers ages 16-60 located in the 15 rural counties in the grant.

The IAFC and NCAFC conducted a Geographical Information Study (GIS) to create the persona of the candidate most likely to volunteer, including details like location, career, education, political affiliation and even radio station choices. Based on this and other research, we crafted a comprehensive campaign leveraging a combination of traditional recruitment methods. Media pitches targeted reporters with stories on how this shortage would affect their immediate neighborhood, economy and lifestyle. Our partners launched a website, and social and digital marketing coupled with a texting campaign creatively reaching a younger generation.

RESULTS

Our campaign spread the call for volunteer firefighters across the state like wildfire, increasing visibility and securing new recruits to revitalize the North Carolina fire station system.

  • With the goal to secure 20,000 annual page views and 6,500 new users on our website, the agency team secured 26,113 page views with 8,337 new users by May 2019.
  • With a goal of 200 applications and 150 volunteers, our campaign secured approximately 600 applications with 280 new volunteers since launching the campaign in 2018.

CREATIVITY

Clairemont and The Felice Agency faced the challenge of reaching a broad, diverse audience with a limited nonprofit budget. Creative depictions of the need proved to help laser-target our demographics. These included:

  • Our Everyday Hero: The agency team crafted a hero for the NC public, a face to personify the nebulous “volunteer firefighter.” This creative served as the cornerstone for collateral, online promotions and advertisements.
  • “This Is Our State” PSA: The agency team worked with the NCAFC to film a public service announcement – one designed to imbue each viewer with a sense of ownership and pride as part of the North Carolina “family.”
  • Winning Websites: The agency team delivered the campaign messages through a new URL that included easy navigation and effective SEO, peppering the site with fresh content, stories and the PSA.
  • Texting … Saves Lives: We established a texting campaign, providing potential volunteers or concerned neighbors easy access to information. By texting the word “firefighter” to 88799, subscribers were kept up to date on events, invitations, news stories and calls to action.
  • Lighting Up the Media: Clairemont crafted fiery, individualized pitches to major outlets across the state as well as hyperlocal media in the campaign’s 15 rural counties. Clairemont secured 49 stories across print, television and online in less than a year.
  • Getting Social: The agency team developed a strong social media presence. We leveraged the Facebook pages of individual fire departments to post volunteer opportunities on the Facebook jobs board, highlight fire safety tips and post visuals, such as graphics of volunteer positions.

The work Clairemont Communications conducted in partnership with the North Carolina Association of Fire Chiefs (NCAFC) and the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) earned both an Award of Excellence and Best in Category by the North Carolina Chapter of Public Relations Society of America. We are proud that this campaign is represented in the 219 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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NC Sweeps 2019 James Beard Nominations

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On February 27, 2019, the James Beard Foundation announced its coveted list of Restaurant and Chef Awards semifinalists for 2019. 

…and boy, did North Carolina talent make an appearance!

Occasionally dubbed the “Oscars” of the culinary realm, the James Beard Award program recognizes the outstanding achievements of food and beverage professionals throughout the United States. The awards present a cornerstone in the foundation’s mission to “celebrate, nurture and honor chefs and other leaders making America’s food culture more delicious, diverse and sustainable for everyone.”

Here in North Carolina, we’re privileged, thrilled, jazzed, pumped, sha-zammed (you name it!) to enjoy a rich culinary scene — from fine dining to craft breweries to original concepts that blend ethnic fusions.

So we want to give a huge shout out to the shining list of North Carolina food and beverage stars who were named 2019 James Beard semifinalists!

Best Chef: Southeast

Best New Restaurant

Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Producer

Outstanding Pastry Chef

From beer to BBQ, from fine dining to fish and seafood, the powerhouses run the gamut of mouthwatering cuisine. Congratulations to all of you! (And we’re already planning our next trips to your establishments!)

Written by Clairemont Intern Ru Wolle, a senior at NCSU. 
Photos from Canva.

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What does a PR agency do? Newland Saves Residents A Million Dollars

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Newland Communities, the country’s largest privately held residential real estate developer, touts two master-planned green communities in central North Carolina: Briar Chapel and Wendell Falls. From inception, Newland built these communities on principles of sustainable design through energy efficient land planning and comprehensive, NGBS-certified home construction – standing as the two largest green communities in the Triangle. Newland sought to showcase its industry leadership with research and data proving the tangible value of building green. Clairemont set the objective to reach media outlets with a circulation of more than 100,000. Therefore, our goal was to secure a feature story in Builder Magazine within the 2017 calendar year that highlighted Newland’s delivery of demonstrable results.

STRATEGY

Clairemont and client Newland developed five personas to define our diverse target market, homebuyers between ages 21 and 65 actively seeking homes in North Carolina and designed an innovative pitch angle tailored to the publications’ needs. Clairemont framed the 10-year study’s centerpiece finding – that Briar Chapel and Wendell Falls saved residents more than $1 million in energy bills – with attention-grabbing, light-hearted depictions of the equivalent annual savings. For example, homeowners could have purchased 14,015 movie nights, 9,110 family cookouts or 60,733 fresh apple pies with their savings. We accompanied our pitch with content that editors could repurpose, such as visually appealing charts and images of the homes. To further ensure a good editorial fit, we met Builder Magazine’s need for data-driven insights by offering supplementary reports, an interview with Newland’s marketing director and the top three quantifiable ways Newland saves energy.

EXECUTION

The Clairemont team completed a media audit to determine which outlets provided maximum visibility within the target demographic. We also thoroughly researched the green building market to identify homebuyers’ biggest questions about green building and how Newland allays these concerns. To ensure quality from start to finish, we held regular internal planning meetings and client calls and completed multiple rounds of editing and proofing.

RESULTS

Clairemont met the stated objective and far exceeded expectations within our budget by the end of 2017. The feature story in Builder Magazine spotlighted Newland’s sustainable nature while positioning the community as a thought leader in the green home industry to its circulation of approximately 120,000.

This feature story fed into a larger campaign that skyrocketed traffic at Wendell Falls by approximately 32 percent, landed Briar Chapel two Best Neighborhood awards in Chapel Hill and earned Newland the Developer of the Year award from the Home Builders Association of the Triangle.

The work Clairemont Communications conducted in partnership with Newland Communities earned Awards of Excellence, Best in Category and Best in Show awards by the North Carolina Public Relations Society of America (NCPRSA) and a Platinum Award from the Raleigh Public Relations Society. We are proud that this campaign represents one of the 198 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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