PR News / Henson Consulting

Whenever my mom needs a recipe for an upcoming meal or event, she consults her cabinet of cookbooks, recipe cards and loose clippings of recipes that she’s collected over the years. She’ll sort through old papers and scan cookbooks, searching for an old favorite or new inspiration. I may have inherited my mom’s love of food, but not her cooking habits: Whenever I need a new dish idea, I simply consult Pinterest.

Pinterest not only allows me to compile all my old recipe favorites and new dish inspirations in one, paperless location, but it has also opened the door to discovering hundreds of creative food-focused bloggers, each with his or her (mostly her) own unique style and taste. One click on a Pin of well-photographed harvest salad leads me to discover an entirely new food blog filled with hundreds of more ideas, from healthy delights and savory dishes, to chocolate-y indulgences.

At Henson Consulting, one way we build buzz for our food-focused clients is by engaging spokespeople to amplify our message. Often these spokespeople are individuals with whom our audience can relate: real life foodies, busy moms and recipe-lovers, each with a personal space on the web and a loyal following.

With a publishing style and audience already in place, popular bloggers can be excellent brand advocates. Here are some reasons to consider using them on your next campaign or program:

• They’re influential – Established bloggers have built up a loyal following on their blog and social media channels. Their community is engaged in what they’re talking about and are more likely to turn to blogs than other social media networks to make a purchase decision, get product information, seek advice and find out about new products.
• They give personal insight – A blogger can provide a specific perspective on a product or service, giving valuable information and offering a real face that consumers can trust. When you engage a blogger in representing your brand, it should be because they have used your product or they are passionate about your brand. This way, their advocacy feels natural and authentic.
• They take great photos – As images are increasingly important in digital media, many bloggers are particularly skilled in shooting great photos of how their recipes comes to life. If you want your consumers to eat with their eyes, bloggers are a great resource for showcasing recipes.
• They’re accessible – Use conference opportunities such as BlissDom or BlogHer to do some face-to-face networking and relationship building with bloggers. Once starting the relationship there, you can begin learning more about their passion and blog niche, then hone in on the bloggers who are interested in being a mouthpiece for your brand.

So whether you’re searching for tonight’s dinner inspiration or for a trustworthy brand advocate, look to Pinterest “Food & Drink” boards (or Google search) to discover more food blogs and recipes than you can ever imagine – and potentially your next spokesperson!

Victoria Gestner handles several of Henson Consulting’s food-related accounts, including Kraft’s Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Kraft’s Philadelphia Snack Delights, Land O’Frost lunchmeat and The Pampered Chef. She also supports AMLI Residential. Victoria can be reached at victoria@HensonConsulting.com.

PR News / Henson Consulting

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adam Burish, who played for the Chicago Blackhawks when the team won the Stanley Cup in 2010, now plays for the San Jose Sharks. Nevertheless, Burish is still adored in the Windy City. So, late last year—when the 2012-2013 NHL season looked like it was going to be put on ice due to a labor dispute—Burish contacted Ronald McDonald House Charities of Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana (RMHC-CNI).

His goal? Organize an exhibition hockey game that could raise funds for the charity, boost its visibility and provide hockey-starved Chicagoans something to root for during the NHL lockout.

RMHC-CNI immediately recruited its PR agency, Henson Consulting (HC), to turn the idea into a reality. The result was “Champs for Charity,” an exhibition game played at Allstate Arena, with all net proceeds going to families staying at Ronald McDonald House in downtown Chicago, the world’s largest Ronald McDonald House.

The PR campaign had two strategic objectives:

• Use the Champs for Charity hockey players’ celebrity influence to generate media and public interest in the RMHC-CNI organization and the one-day event.

• Leverage Ronald McDonald House Charities’ platform throughout all media outreach to inform the public and encourage attendance and support for the event.

LACING UP

The biggest challenge of the PR campaign was time. HC had just two weeks to organize the whole shooting match, from the press conference to the day of the exhibition game. (If the lockout ended prior to the exhibition game, the event would have to be cancelled; the lockout was eventually settled in early January.)

To drum up media coverage for the press conference, HC featured a couple of (legitimate) superlatives in the headline: “World’s Best Hockey Players Return to Chicago to Raise Funds for World’s Largest Ronald McDonald House.”

Several former and current players for the Blackhawks participated in the press con­ference, which took place at RMHC-CNI. The presser garnered coverage from all the local network affiliates (ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC) as well as CSN Chicago (Comcast Sports Network), Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Tribune.

Julie Hamm, account man­ager at HC, says that it was important that the press confer­ence emphasize the exhibition game and the developments at RMHC-CNI, rather than the NHL lockout.

“We had to make sure [the lockout] didn’t overshadow the cause,” she says. “The players were really good about staying on message and focusing the questions on the charity.”

Following the press confer­ence HC had 10 days to orga­nize the exhibtion game, which took place on Oct. 26, 2012. HC had to move quickly to accomplish the following:

▶ Create a logo design: HC developed a new Champs for Charity logo in hours, meeting the event’s tight printing dead­lines. The logo features the standard Ronald McDonald house logo, but underneath features the new “Champs for Charity” icon, with a hockey puck in the middle of the text.

▶ Develop media mate­rials: HC developed a range of media materials for Champs for Charity, including a press release, several media adviso­ries and multiple pitches to promote the game and raise awarenes of RMHC-CNI.

▶ Cultivate celebrity rela­tions: HC worked closely with Champs for Charity players and agents in order to secure their par­ticipation and ongoing support.

WARM-UPS

In terms of the prepara­tions, it was a challenge to corral the hockey players to participate in the game, which was billed as the Chicago Stars vs. The World (a round-up of other top players). But the effort was made easier once the players knew about the cause.

For example, Bobby Ryan, who plays forward for the Anaheim Ducks and was on The World’s squad, flew in from California for the game.

“Lots of times people lend their names, but don’t show up” to the event, says Kathleen Henson, founder and CEO of HC. “That people showed up from all over the country is a testament to the cause.”

She adds: “We didn’t need to do any heavy lifting. When you have a national connection to a cause it makes athletes more willing to support it.”

To plug the exhibition game, RMHC-CNI fanned the message throughout the social sphere online, including Facebook and Twitter.

IN-GAME FESTIVITIES

The campaign was able to get additional promotion via local sports anchors, sports­writers and the participating players, who got the word out through their social channels.

The campaign also con­tacted bloggers who write about professional hockey. There was no advertising budget for the event, according to Doug Porter, CEO of RMHC-CNI.

In addition to regular seat­ing—with tickets ranging from $10 to $60—VIP tickets were sold for $500 a pop. The VIP tickets included a meet-and-greet with the players before the game; event jerseys that were signed by several of the players and choice seats in the first two rows of Allstate Arena. (A total of 100 VIP tickets were sold.)

During the pre-game warm-up, the players kibitzed with fans and tossed hockey pucks into the crowd.

Indeed, the hockey game turned into a special night for the 28 players and nearly 12,000 fans. The World bested the Chicago Stars 16-15, but that hardly mattered because the event centered on fun and friendly competition.

During the game, fans’ tweets were posted on the arena’s jumbo screen while the Public Address (PA) announcer constantly worked in messages about RMHC-CNI’s mission.

“We refer to it as ‘passion PR,’” Porter says. “Through smart PR, we were able to integrate fans’ passion for hockey [into the campaign] so they could become aware of our efforts.”

Specific results included:

• The game raised $275,000 net for RMHC-CNI.

• Following the game, RMHC-CNI saw a 15% to 20% spike in donations.

• HC garnered more than 176 million media impressions across TV, radio, print and online venues, with placements in major media outlets such as ESPN, Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Tribune and The Washington Post.

Porter stresses that the exhibition game was successful because it possessed an “air of authenticity,” which hockey fans could appreciate.

“When people saw [Blackhawks’ captain] Jonathan Toews involved they said, ‘If it’s good enough for him, then maybe there is something I can do to help,’” Porter says. “It lent the charity a certain level of credibility.” PRN

CONTACT:

Julie Hamm, julie@hensonconsulting.com; Kathleen Henson, kathleen@hensonconsulting.com; Doug Porter, dporter@rmhccni.org.

Sun-Times Splash / Henson Consulting

Kathleen Henson

Dubbing herself a “mompreneur,” public-relations princess Henson juggles five kids and Henson Consulting, the firm she founded in 2001 that now represents local behemoths like Lettuce Entertain You. Hensonconsulting.com