Dear Readers,
Looking back at yet another year, we can’t help but notice one thing: everything keeps getting faster and faster! Not necessarily better or farther ahead – as the continuously recurring aftershocks from the recent economic and banking crisis keep reminding us. Nevertheless, it is evident to us that the past few months have brought a generally improved and more optimistic mood to many companies. We in our capacity as consultants attribute this fact to the growing number of new and exciting projects we were able to realize over the past few weeks with our customers. And far from howling with the usual pack and resorting to the usual bag of social-media tricks, we recently decided to return to a classic medium for a specific project: radio broadcasting! Let this issue of Fleishman-Hillard Technology News take you away to this fascinating world and read all about how we, in cooperation with Xerox, successfully positioned their “innovations” issue to a soaring radio audience of more than one million.
It is just the right mix of old and new information channels which make success happen. For that reason, trade shows will always remain an important staple of corporate communications. For quite a few years now, we have been accompanying our customer e2v to several trade fairs. To demonstrate the huge influence of PR activities during trade shows on corporate communications during the rest of the year, we have included a brief abstract of e2v’s 2010 presences at the Vision and electronica trade shows.
I and the entire team of Fleishman-Hilliard’s German Technology Practice Group wish you and your family peaceful and serene Christmas Holidays and a successful, exciting and – most importantly– a healthy and prosperous New Year 2011. Looking forward to counting you among our readers in the year to come!
Cordially,
Markus Hermsen
Fleishman-Hillard to sharpen Hanvon‘s profile in Germany
Swiss distributor my eware solutions AG has just commissioned Fleishman-Hillard with a PR campaign for Hanvon, a supplier of ebook readers, graphics tablets, and touchpads. Fleishman-Hillard’s tasks under this campaign will be to develop and implement Hanvon‘s communication strategy for the German market. In addition, Fleishman-Hillard will also be handling the product tests.
In cooperation with Fleishman-Hillard, my eware wants to promote Hanvon’s brand and product portfolio on the fiercely competitive German market while increasing the brand awareness of this Chinese manufacturer. Hanvon’s products offer undisturbed reading pleasure and technically mature graphics and are perfect for at-home and professional applications.
Xerox radio spot reaches more than 1 million listeners
In the face of all the excitement about the new media, we from the world of PR would be well advised not to forget that every single day, millions of people are still using traditional information channels like the radio. And yet, many companies cling to the conventional wisdom that technological issues are difficult to impart via radio broadcasting. However, watching out for only a few important issues can turn radio spots into a successful tool of corporate communications for the sustainable dissemination of messages to a huge public:
- Radio stations reach a very wide target audience. That’s why issues should not be too highly specialized, but should be easy to understand and of general interest to the public.
- Radio messages tend to be brief. That’s why issues should be selected for easy compilation into a two- or three-minute segment.
- The attention span of listeners is limited. Different speakers, music, or other audio elements will liven up a contribution and engage listener attention.
- Private radio stations are companies. If you want to produce advertising contributions, you should talk to your marketing department about commercials. Advertising contents are simply out of place in serious contributions.
Especially, the editorial radio feature that Xerox and Fleishman-Hillard recently produced was a huge success. During this year’s annual Xerox Innovation Session in Neuss, we had the opportunity to talk to Dr. Sophie Vandebroek, Chief Technology Officer of Xerox and in charge of the company’s research facilities. We interviewed her about the importance of continued investment in R&D even in the face of increasingly difficult economic times. Based on this interview, we developed the feature’s storyboard and produced the English-language interview in different lengths with German voice-over for offering to German radio stations.
Within only a few weeks, this interview with Sophie Vandebroek was broadcast by more than 30 national and local stations - giving Xerox a platform for reaching more than a million listeners. Xerox will additionally use the feature for a website podcast and for other marketing activities.
To hear the entire feature (English with German voice-over), please visit our Xerox press website: http://xerox.fleishmaneurope.de/audio-video/innovation-session/
Do you have any questions about radio PR or want to find out more about how to use audio material? Julia Richter will be happy to assist you!
“Me and my LIFEBOOK”: Fleishman-Hillard Enhances Brand Awareness for the Fujitsu Notebooks
The new Fujitsu LIFEBOOK series offers just the right product for every user’s need or application. The LIFEBOOK range covers the entire spectrum - from ultra-portable solutions for beginners all the way to sophisticated high-end notebooks for professionals. To increase user awareness of this new brand and bring promise of the series‘ performance to the forefront of consumer consciousness, Fleishman-Hillard designed the “Me and my LIFEBOOK” campaign. At the heart of this campaign is a “word-of-mouth” approach. That’s why Fleishman-Hillard decided to give users a forum to talk about their personal experiences with their daily use of the product. Fujitsu offered bloggers from eight different countries a LIFEBOOK for testing, on the sole condition that they would be willing to report on their experiences with the notebook in their own blog. The target objectives of this campaign are interactive cooperation with the end users and simultaneous strengthening of the LIFEBOOK series’ brand values within the individual target groups. It is also expected that the application scenarios gathered from the users’ day-to-day experiences will serve to emphasize the incredible versatility of this new product series.
Nearly 1,500 applications were received via the website specifically established for the campaign, among which a total of 53 testers were selected. The first series of blogger reviews is already available for online perusal at http://www.lifebook4life.com/blog.
Fleishman-Hillard initiated the campaign and accompanied it with PR activities – in co-operation with Fujitsu’s Word-of-Mouth-agency – all through the central blogger event in Germany, a forum which gives testers a place for exchanging information and finding out more about the LIFEBOOK products.
Do you have any questions about the Fujitsu LIFEBOOK or are you generally interested in a digital campaign? Please feel free to contact Robert Belle or Julia Richter.
Vision 2010: trade show with a perspective
Vision, the leading international trade show for industrial image processing in Stuttgart, is one of the most important dates in our customer e2v’s diary. This specialist for high-sensitivity sensors and line-scan cameras for production monitoring has been traditionally presenting his latest innovations in November of every year. This was the third time we actively supported our customer at Vision since the launch of our PR work for e2v in Germany in 2008. With at least ten press conferences held at every trade show, we have successfully established numerous new contacts for e2v while refreshing and strengthening existing customer relationships.
This year, e2v actually entered into competition with itself since Vision was paralleled by electronica, attended by e2v’s high-power semiconductor segment, for which we had also scheduled press conference dates.
As Sylvie Mattei, Communications Manager for e2v France, comments: “Thanks to Fleishman-Hillard’s support, our trade show presence was outstandingly successful and we were able to profit from these initial contacts for the entire rest of the year“.
During the trade show, e2v and the relevant specialized journalists were engaged in an intensive dialog to discuss numerous issues and approaches for technical contributions which will translate into continuous reporting on e2v until the next trade show. A success which is reflected throughout the entire event: this trade show has been increasingly becoming a focus of interest for journalists from all over Europe, making Vision an important platform for media dialog.
http://cms.messe-stuttgart.de/cms/vision10_aussteller_messe1.0.html
Do you have questions on Vision in Stuttgart or are you planning to attend as an exhibitor in 2011? Ortrud Wenzel will be happy to assist you.
Trade show reviews from electronica 2010
Every two years, Munich becomes the hub of the electronics industry. An industry which, although usually flourishing behind the scenes, is nevertheless powerfully omnipresent: without electronics, today’s cars or rail vehicles wouldn’t move a single inch. But apart from the obvious, electronics are also the secret behind the more efficient use of resources or the reduction of CO2 emissions. Fleishman-Hillard was beating the PR drum for four different customers at electronica and has captured a bit of the show’s atmosphere for our readers’ perusal.
Location tip: A stylish yet traditional Bavarian restaurant is hard to find? We’ve got one for you - in Munich’s Au district!
Many of Munich‘s traditional inns are too noisy, too crowded and somehow too uncomfortable for taking customers, business partners or journalists there for dinner. Not so the “Wirtshaus in der Au”, situated between Deutsches Museum and Gasteig, which effortlessly blends tradition with state-of-the-art facilities and service, and Bavarian atmosphere and hospitality with contemporary stylish design. It is precisely these qualities which have made “Wirtshaus in der Au” a huge hit with the younger crowd. From the Art Nouveau entrance to the lovingly and elaborately decorated picture windows which are redesigned several times a year to the historic bar: there is so much to look at and enjoy.
Since 1901, dumplings (called Knödel in Munich!) served with a pint of beer have been one of the staples in the traditional Au district. One of Munich’s famous sons, the late, great comedian Karl Valentin used to be a frequent guest. The inn’s management, at establishment’s helm in its current “incarnation” since 1993, has honored Karl Valentin’s memory by putting his portrait on the labels of the Auer Kraftbier stout. The romantic hall on the second floor, which can be booked for private events, has also been dedicated to the name of this famous Munich original.
The inn has acquired quite a reputation all over town both for its Sunday morning Jazz & Beer Brunches and especially for its dazzling variety of dumplings, its pork and duck roasts, and its sumptuous dessert platters. In addition, the seasonal menus also offer tasty tidbits and creations of the house like home-made lemonade.
Breakfasts, dinners for larger groups or private events in a historic setting: “Wirtshaus in der Au”, a breath of fresh air among downtown Munich’s brew house monotony, offers the perfect venue for every need or requirement.
Reservations are strongly recommended. “Wirtshaus in der Au” is open daily. Contact data and a map on how to get there are available on the following website (available in English): http://www.wirtshausinderau.de/home_en.php
Looking for the perfect location for your event? Julia Richter will be happy to assist you.
Contact
Fleishman-Hillard Germany GmbH
Markus Hermsen
Herzog-Wilhelm-Straße 26
80331 München
Tel.: +49-(0)89-23 03 16-62
Fax: +49-(0)89-23 03 16-66
markus.hermsen@fleishmaneurope.com
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— Multimedia
electronica 2010
Dr. Sophie Vandebroek, CTO Xerox, on the relevance of innovations
