The Right Time to Hire a Public Relations Agency

Often in our conversations with brands the question arises of when to hire an agency. While each situation is unique, there are a few times when agency support can be especially helpful.

Launching a Brand New Product

As an agency, we’re able to place our clients in a plethora of marquee media outlets. By giving the media a first look at the product, the brand is positioned to have a string of hard-hitting press coverage publish during the launch. This is a great way to generate buzz and place your new product at the forefront of consumer’s attention.

Holiday Season Buzz

The holiday season is a critical time of year for retail companies, as millions of potential customers are in “buying mode.” One of the most sought after media placements are Holiday Gift Guides, some of which are the only source of product information for shoppers! However, the timeline for this may start earlier than you think. We typically start Gift Guide conversations with reporters in June — yes, June! — in order to maximize coverage. Opportunities and placements will grow as we get closer to the holiday season.

Attending a Trade Show

When it comes to trade shows, our biggest priority for our clients is to make a huge splash. Whether it’s a large show like CES or an industry-specific show like Interbike, we strive to fully maximize the days you’ll be attending. In addition to booth support, we’ll secure meetings with top-tier media outlets during the show, giving you an opportunity to present your product front and center to some of the biggest names in media. On the social side, trade shows can be one of the best times to take advantage of live features and trending opportunities. Our team can be on-the-ground to handle photos, video, and live digital engagement.

Just Looking For More Brand Awareness

Maybe you’ve been selling your product for quite some time and feel like you’ve plateaued. You might feel that if you could just reach fresh eyes, your product would take off. That’s where we come in! We provide you with a PR and social “megaphone” that allows you to spread the word  to millions of potential customers. With sample units available, we’re able to create engaging social content that aligns perfectly with the brand story we’re telling  marquee media outlets. This one-two punch of social and PR will make sure your product is not only being seen, but being seen by the right people.

The Importance of Face-to-Face Meetings

How many times have you sent a text or email and that was later misinterpreted, either by a friend, family member or even a client? Although the world is becoming increasingly digital, the benefits of face-to-face interaction are irreplaceable—despite Skype and Apple’s aggressive efforts at video chatting! The following are a few reasons why you should think twice before scheduling your next call with a client.

1)            Body Language

Digital communication with clients and the media has its perks. It’s quick and straight-forward; however, digital communication can be tricky, especially when the relationship is new or a special project is at stake.

Let’s say you have a scheduled call with a client to propose a new outreach plan that includes pitching a product or aspect of the business through non-traditional angle. Once you finish laying out the strategy, there is a long pause on the line followed by, “Yeah, sure that’s a good idea.” You’d probably wish you wish you were sitting face-to-face to witness their initial reaction and body language? Instead of having to dig through a series of follow-up questions hoping to figure out your client’s actual sentiments, a face-to-face meeting would have allowed you to sense their attitude from the beginning and address the issue accordingly.

2)            Quality Collaboration

When was the last time you woke up without dozens of unread emails? While ubiquitous, shuffling through emails can often suck time and creativity from your work.  Do you think that world’s most creative teams come up with cutting-edge campaigns through an email thread? Unlikely.

Creative collaboration through email can prevent the natural flow of ideating, a vital component of any successful brainstorming session and project management discussion. A face-to-face meeting allows you and your team to bounce ideas off each other on the spot, rather than having to navigate an overflowing inbox.

3)            Establishing Trust

Trust is a critical component of any working relationship. In vendor relationships, which have the added pressure of expected results and the need for effective counsel in order to push a business’ bottom line, this trust needs to be developed especially quickly.  Face-to-face interaction goes miles in establishing this trust.

A study published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology measured the effectiveness of a face-to-face request versus an email request and found that face-to-face requests were 34 times more effective than emailed ones, due to nonverbal cues and perceived trustworthiness. Although technology has done wonders for society’s overall progress, the fact remains that we like facing each other. Technology isn’t going anywhere – we don’t want it to—but it’s important to realize the power of face-to-face communication isn’t backing down either.

Incorporating a Color Palette into Your Brand Marketing

Oreo and Coca-Cola have bright, signature colors that they use in almost all of their collateral

Iconic brands use color to grab audience attention and establish trust.

Picture a box of Oreos. The container’s shade of royal blue is likely one of the first things you were able to conjure. This is, of course, because the package itself is blue. However, that image has been reinforced by multi-million dollar marketing campaigns that consistently incorporate a perfect stack of white and black cookies and a glass of milk on a simple background that includes that iconic box blue. This long-term color branding is one of the reasons AdWeek has named Oreo one of the top 10 brands.

Oreo is far from the only brand with this level of color palette recognition. Take the red picture above, do you know what brand it is?

Coca-Cola instantly came to mind. The company’s “Coca-Cola Red” is so ubiquitous with the brand they were able to trademark it.  The strongest and most memorable brands always use their brand color in marketing: logo, print marketing materials, signage, websites, social media graphics, blog posts and presentation decks.

 

Branding for Growing Businesses

GreenRoom Agency clients Soundcast and Sound of Sleep use color to establish trust in their brand.

Brands large and small can benefit from a strong use of color in marketing materials.

However, the value of a color palette isn’t limited to household names. Growing businesses can start to reap the benefits of a color palette using their brand colors in product photography and digital compositions as a background color. Not only does this help establish brand recognition, but this color selection can heavily impact how viewers feel about your company and its products.

Thinking beyond backgrounds: brands can subtly choose to incorporate brand colors into props and other seemingly small decisions. Notice the color of the napkin on the table beneath the Oreo cookie pancakes. This is not just coincidence—it’s an impactful example of an attentive designer intuitively establishing brand recognition for viewers.

GreenRoom embraces color in the creative work across clients. For Soundcast, a high-end Bluetooth speaker brand, we leveraged the company’s bright orange and charcoal gray in a holiday carousel ad campaign that resulted in the company’s most successful click-through rates to date.

In a subtler approach, GreenRoom edits or skillfully selects light blue and white items—a blanket, shirt, wall, or lamp—for sleep client Sound of Sleep. These colors non-explicitly send a message of peace, calm, and relaxation in images that are used in social media posts, on the website, across digital advertising, and even in the images we send to press that are ultimately incorporated into media reviews and roundups.

For each brand, the goal of a color pallette is to create a consistent brand experience that ultimately leads to stronger brand recognition. When you’ve achieved this, your target audience will intuitively trust trust and enjoy the products more, easing the transition into top-of-mind purchase research and, ultimately, sales.

GreenRoom PR Agency Awarded Prestigious 2017 In2 SABRE Award

Miami-based innovative consumer products public relations agency recognized for an influential campaign in the micro-marketing category  

MIAMI – (February 20, 2017) – GreenRoom Agency, a leading consumer products public relations agency, won a 2017 SABRE Award in the micro-marketing category for its campaign with client Blast Motion and Major League Baseball. The SABRE Awards is run by the Holmes Report, a leading authority in the industry dedicated to providing insightful reports and analysis on public relations. The competition garners more than 5,000 entries annually, and shines a light on the most innovative and successful campaigns that truly make in impact for brands.

 

The agency was tasked with positioning Blast Motion as the technology solution of choice for one of the largest and most valued sports leagues in the country, MLB. Additionally, GreenRoom underscored the significance of the way metrics continue to have a major impact on how the general public is experiencing sports. GreenRoom’s media campaign to officially launch the partnership was a resounding success with secured placements in leading publications, resulting in over 135 million impressions and accomplishing the goal despite a strict timeframe and limited budget.

 

“We were particularly proud of the results of this campaign and honored to have been awarded the In2 SABRE Award for our efforts,” said Brian Metcalf, chief executive officer, GreenRoom PR Agency. “The results of this media campaign embody our mission to deliver outstanding results by providing a personalized and results-oriented approach to every program.”

 

About GreenRoom

Founded in 2012 by Brian Metcalf and Benjamin Burroughs, GreenRoom is a fully integrated public relations and digital marketing firm that works to elevate brands through strategic campaigns, innovative storytelling and relentless execution. Through our innovative approach, GreenRoom executes individualized strategies to ensure bottom-line results for each individual client.

To learn more about GreenRoom and the services offered, please visit the website at GRNRM.com. Additional information can also be found on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn pages or by emailing [email protected].

 

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Media Contact:

Patrick Gevas

Vice President of Public Relations

[email protected]

305-347-1787 x303

Global Client Relations

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In Public Relations, you can easily find yourself working with clients located all over the globe. Whether they are in Europe, Asia, South America or elsewhere, effective communication is essential. Without that, the relationship can get rocky very quickly. Here are a few tips to help build client relations with your client wherever they are in the world:

  1. Knowing how and when they like to communicate: Whether it’s by email, phone, Skype, or text, every client has a preferred method they like to communicate with. Communicating by their preferred method will go a long way to building your relationship. Also, be sure to know the time difference involved with where you are and where your client is. For example, emailing a client in Asia something urgent at 3:00 P.M. in Miami is probably not the best idea considering it is 3:00 A.M. where they are.
  2. Constant Check-Ins: Without the ability to meet face to face, constantly checking in on your clients’ needs is crucial. Relaying the status of projects, media, interviews, briefings and any sensitivities as well as receiving feedback from the client is what makes a great relationship. There’s a saying in life, “happy wife, happy life.” In PR, we truly believe in the saying “happy client, happy life.”
  3. Clearly articulating goals: Clients come from all over the world and all have different goals and dreams for their company. Knowing what media outlets they want to be featured in, what their sales goals are and what messaging they want conveyed to the consumer are all examples of goals that both the client and agency need to be on the same page about. Sharing statistics and analytics with your client also helps to show their return on investment and track progress. It also keeps both the client and agency focused on the clients target goals.

Demos Do It – Keeping it Fresh on the Floor

CES Trade Show Demo

This isn’t your grandma’s “wear comfortable shoes and bring business cards” post about a tradeshow floor! We’ve been logging some miles around the country recently, and have watched two very distinct scenarios unfold. One is an engaging booth that always seems to be full, and the other is the group that puts forth an effort, but can’t hold an audience.

The cause of the breakdown seems simple, but so many often miss it due to siloed thinking, or an inability to listen to their audience. What separates an average booth from a great experience at a tradeshow is the how the demo is done. The exhibitor that has a great booth understands the product just as well as he or she understands the audience and accommodates them accordingly. By asking questions of the attendees and then showing how the product seamlessly fits into their lifestyle or activity will make a fan (and a new customer!) faster than any slick video reel or tradeshow giveaway. Even better, converting a naysayer into a fan by proving how the product can fit into their life is one of the strongest testimonials a brand can get from a show floor.

So, while you’re prepping for your next show, make sure you understand your audience as well as you understand your product and be ready to modify your demo accordingly. And, of course, wear comfortable shoes and bring business cards…

Key Ingredients for Lasting Client Relationships

On a daily basis, PR professionals spend their time cultivating relationships with media members to ensure their clients receive the best possible press for their products or services. Getting wrapped up in core PR activities can, at times, manage to get in the way of strengthening relationships with clients, relationships that go beyond the business. Providing exceptional results for your clients is what every PR professional hopes for, but how can you achieve this without knowing who your clients are outside of his/her email signature?

Sometimes, the smallest gestures can build a personal relationship with your client. These are a couple of ways to start connecting with your client:

1)      Conveying Your Excitement – Whether you are releasing a new product, or kicking off a new partnership with a client, it’s exciting! Some people can get mired in a “professional” mentality that can temper their enthusiasm. Avoid that at all costs! Your passion shows them that you are invested in their brand, and will demonstrate that you’re worthy of representing their brand to the media.

2)      Pick Up The Phone – Building relationships and getting to know someone takes time. Take a break from pecking at the keyboard, and get on the phone with your client to update them and share your latest developments. This is also a great opportunity to dig deeper into their businesses and ask them about their sales, web traffic, and new product ideas. You can also take this time to provide them with media feedback. This gives them a sense of media sentiment and often spurs ideas for improvements on existing products and new products. This will open up the line of communication, make future conversations more fluid, and your client won’t associate a phone call with bad news!

3)      Communication Sync – Another critical aspect is communicating with your client in their preferred way. Although most are accustomed to email and phone, some clients prefer to chat through text or Facebook. Once you’ve determined their preferred method of communication, you should take into consideration how they prefer to receive it. Some clients want concise reports of your progress, while others like to receive detailed accounts of all pertinent information. Everyone has a different communication style and finding which one works best for your client is key!

By taking the time to get to know your client, you and your colleagues can gain a better understanding of who your client is and the best possible way to represent their brand. Not only will you provide better service, but you will solidify your personal relationship, paving the way for a long and fruitful partnership.