Consumer electronics - a rich area for PR to play a role

published 2003

With such a plethora of new consumer electronic products hitting the market consumers rely on media reviews in daily newspapers, magazines, on radio and TV- and web sites -to guide them in making purchasing decisions.

This makes a crucial target in any marketing effort. And it is PR that provides the means to reach and influence these media. 

The media has an interest in the whole spectrum of consumer electronic products -  phones, cameras, computers, household appliances, audio and sound.  And more!

Consumers have an insatiable appetite for information on the latest and greatest.  And as technology has become genuinely significant and indispensable to everyday life most consumer media, from daily papers through to women’s magazine, the burgeoning ‘lifestyle’ sector, and even electronic media, are scrambling to cover it.

It’s a classic case where PR through editorial can support advertising to give a very powerful brand message.  But it’s also an area where there are lots of traps for the unwary; as a consequence some marketers are using PR very effectively while some are missing the bus.

 The keys to being successful are:

1.      Timing is everything.

      There is a short ‘news shelf- life’ for consumer technology products - they are to the media like milk/bread is to the retailer. Only release material when the product is new, unique and newsworthy -preferably just as it hits retailers. Your window of opportunity/relevance is short.

      You need to:

• know the deadlines and publication dates of all the media
• be able to persuade your sales people that media release comes first
• preferably give the product to the media before your advertising begins

2.      Be selective about what products you ‘PR’. 

      Not every product is news.  Choose your product ‘heroes’ and concentrate on getting these featured in the media.  They become the flagship for the brand and send consumers into retailers.  It’s the retailers job to then advise which product (in your range) is right for them.

      You need to:

• determine which are ‘A’ products and which are ‘B’ and ‘C’!
• develop a PR support strategy for each
• inter-relate the product category, end consumer target and media which supports these
• ensure that your sales and marketing people understand the reasons for the approach

3.      Be rigorous about your messaging. 

      The common fault is saying too much - trying to turn the product brochure into a media release.  Media only want to focus on one or two key features - they don’t want a list of 18 functions the product can fulfil. 

      You need to:

• convince marketing and sales people that shorter is better 
• ensure the release highlights consumer benefits not product features
• take care that all your messaging supports the overall brand position
• remove the jargon and adjectives - that’s the journalists perogative!

4.      Pay attention to presentation.   

      This a ‘sexy’ area - so how a consumer electronics marketer presents itself to the media is important.  It’s one area where how you present says a lot about the product and brand positioning. 

      You need to:     

• invest in first class lifestyle photography.  Use models to convey how the products are used. Put them in a lifestyle context.  Make the photos so compelling media will want to use them.
• deliver your products to the media in a distinctive manner.  Lime green zippy plastic holders and adventure raft buoys as media kits often help generate coverage.   
• ensure your product launches are events to remember.  Choose venues that are different.  Provides packages (and gifts) that make you stand out.

5         Build multi-level contacts with media. 

      You should be inter-acting with the media at several levels. 

      You need to:

• have the PR person (and/or agency) as the prime and day-to-day contact
• back this up with technical or product manager about to talk about product features
• use the Marketing Director or General Manager when the message is more important

6        Know your media. 

      It’s vital to know the media landscape intimately and have a well resourced capability. 

      You need to:

• have priority and secondary media lists with full details (and be able to constantly keep them up-to-date)
• understand, and work with, trade as well as consumer and lifestyle media
• target your media with precision. Don’t’ send releases about like confetti in the hope one might be picked up - it may mean you build a reputation for irrelevancy with the media which means your important releases are overlooked.

7        Ensure your PR is well planned. 

      Consumer electronics is one area where its vital to run PR on a fully planned basis. 

      You need to:

• have a forward rolling plan encompassing the role PR will play for every  product release for at least 6 months ahead (product release dates constantly change within this sector so anything further than that - unless it’s really a major product - will probably not be productive)
• ensure you have key brand messages that are core to everything you do
• institute a measurement/evaluation process that shows whether your PR is working (click here to see a range of output measurement options)
• ensure PR is fully integrated with the advertising schedule.

This is a fast-moving market.  Today’s release is quickly overtaken. The challenge is to stand apart in a crowded marketplace.

Marketers which aren’t actively using PR are seriously handicapping their whole marketing effort - and not giving their advertising the support it needs.

Companies looking to gain dividends in the digital decade require a well-constructed public relations program to make a positive impression.

Note: The author of this article -Grant Common - is a Sydney-based independent advisor to PR Directors and Managers on how to get the best out of their PR Department or their PR agency. He regularly blogs on these and related topics.