What can public relations really do for you?
turns out, a whole lot
Public relations (PR) is an essential tool for brands. But it’s also often misunderstood. So we thought it would be best to describe a real-life example of the strategy that goes into it — and the results.
TURNING HEADS IN A CROWDED MEDIA LANDSCAPE
If you’re looking for a real challenge, try to make your company’s new product line launch stand out at a trade show. If that sounds too easy, try it at CONEXPO-CON/AGG. You know, the largest construction trade show in North America where all your competitors are also making big announcements to grab media attention. (By the numbers, this show has 139,000 attendees, 2,400 exhibitors and 3 million square feet of exhibit space).
That was the challenge for Hitachi Construction Machinery Americas, a leading provider of construction and mining machinery services and solutions. As the 2023 show approached, their team turned to Lessing-Flynn (LF) for help landing at the top of editor inboxes.
A PERSONAL INVITATION GOES A LONG WAY
Our PR team has more than 53 collective years of experience in industry media. That means we know how editors think — and we had some strong relationships we could leverage to drum up interest.
We started our efforts months in advance with personal invitations to a pre-show press conference. In our invites, we offered those key editors the chance to experience the new lineup of Hitachi Construction Machinery Americas excavators firsthand. We also promised some one-on-one time with product experts in the company’s CONEXPO booth.
The combination of an early invitation and valuable experiences ensured we had a solid place on their busy schedules when the show finally came. (The attendance record proves it).
1-ON-1 PERSONALIZED COMMUNICATIONS
GETTING THE WORD OUT
While we were targeting key editors, we were also building buzz for a more general audience. We sent out two pre-show press releases — one highlighting the upcoming launch of 27 machines and another detailing everything there was to see at the Hitachi Construction Machinery Americas CONEXPO booth.
PRESS RELEASE
THE EARLY BIRD EARNS THE MEDIA COVERAGE
The day before CONEXPO opened, the Hitachi Construction Machinery Americas press conference drew nearly 40 editors from industry media. That gave us a leg up on the competition — and some serious traction with industry media, virtually assuring coverage in the first-day show reports.
We kicked off the event with a countdown video, with 60 seconds of a mix of high-intensity working footage and at-show creative. The branded presentation followed suit, and both drove home the event theme: SEE WHAT’S NEXT.
EVENT PRESENTATION
MAKING EDITORS’ JOBS EASY
We knew the editors at our press conference had a lot on their plate during CONEXPO. That’s why we did our part to make it easy to write about the new Hitachi Construction Machinery Americas equipment. We gave out branded business cards with a QR code that led to an online resource with everything they needed — including press releases, images, company bios, and a recording and transcript of the press conference.
We also fielded individual editor inquiries to ensure they got the information they needed to finish up stories.
MEDIA PRESS KIT
1-ON-1 EDITOR REQUEST ASSET FULFILLMENT
LF earned the Construction Media Alliance’s 2023 Editorial and Marketing Awards for best PR campaign for our efforts at CONEXPO. These peer-judged awards highlight excellence in construction industry journalism, communications, content and storytelling.
STRATEGY PAYS OFF
So, did all that effort make an impact? Here’s a detailed look.
39 Trade media outlets attended the press conference
50+ Editor connections made
4 Same-day media placements earned
