PR Story of the Week: Fifty Shades of… B&Q

A film has been released today called Fifty Shades of Grey. You might not have heard of it, it hasn’t been overhyped *at all*.

I’m probably going to watch it this weekend, but I don’t have high expectations. I found the book a struggle. I read it to see what all the fuss was about, but it wasn't my cuppa tea. However, I do respect E.L. James for finding a gap in a crowded market. She must’ve done something right because now she’s laughing all the way to the bank!

I have picked the following stunt as my favourite PR story because it’s a great example of a brand piggybacking onto a current trend.

Earlier this week, a supposed memo was leaked from the B&Q head office. It warned staff of a possible surge of customers buying rope, cable ties and duct tape, following the release of Fifty Shades of Grey. Managers and staff were advised to “anticipate the need for extra stock,” “familiarise themselves with the contents” of the film and “assist customers in a polite, helpful and respectful manner.”

The memo generated coverage in a range of different outlets, including the Metro, ITV, Mirror, MailOnline, The Guardian and many others.

B&Q later admitted that it was a stunt and released a light-hearted statement, stating they “would have confessed to this sooner, but our hands were tied.”

Not only has the hardware store achieved vast publicity, it has also demonstrated a sense of humour. Something a lot of brands forget to do these days.

Are you going to watch Fifty Shades of Grey this weekend? Did you enjoy the books? x

PR Story of the Week: A pop-up restaurant is the right ingredient for PR stunt success

Two brands have announced they will be opening pop-up restaurants this month. McVitie’s will let customers pay for their order with a hug in its ‘Cuddle Café,' while Game of Thrones fans have the chance to sample the finest Westeros delicacies in a specially themed banquet event.

A tried and tested method of securing excellent media coverage, pop-up restaurants tick four boxes that are vital for successful PR stunts:

1. Photo opportunities – think happy guests getting stuck into the activities, strong food/drink images (ideal for Instagram) and staff members dressed according to the theme, as well as celebrity guests or endorsements. A picture speaks a thousand words and you are much more likely to secure coverage if you send an eye-catching image alongside a press release.
2. Word of mouth – both online and offline. The goal is to get people actually talking to each other, as well as spreading the word online via platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. As above, attention-grabbing photo opportunities are likely to encourage consumers to show a picture to their friends, or post it online.
3. Multimedia potential – instead of firing off a bog-standard press release, a pop-up restaurant has the potential to achieve vast coverage in a variety of different mediums. For example, you could create a timelapse video demonstrating how the pop-up restaurant was created, or a vlog featuring an interview with the CEO of the company, visitor experiences, or even a chef demonstrating recipes for the food that was served at the restaurant. 
4. Measurable results – results can be measured online, for example, by monitoring how many people have ‘mentioned’ a hashtag, or the number of ‘retweets’ and ‘likes.’ In terms of offline measurement, the number of sales, visitors, registrations or enquiries (depending on the nature of the business) can be tracked.

Which pop-up restaurant would you rather go to? I love a good hug, but I’m also a huge Game of Thrones fan (although the poached veal tongue on the menu doesn’t sound overly enticing…)

PR Story of the Week: The power of social media

This week, I have two joint favourite PR stories and I believe they both reinforce the power of social media.

The first was Taylor Herring’s plan to wake up sleepy commuters going about their usual morning routine by placing a life-sized polar bear on the Tube! The stunt was an eye-catching way to promote Fortitude, a new series on Sky Atlantic. Commuters were presented with an unbelievable and picture-perfect moment to tweet, share on Instagram, post on Facebook or send to friends. Social media is a fantastic tool for spreading the right messages and this stunt was a great way to encourage the public to do just that.

Image: London Evening Standard

The second is the Marc Jacobs Spring 2015 campaign, in which all 11 of the ‘models’ from around the world were cast directly from social media sites such as Instagram. It is the second time the fashion designer has done this, with the first #CastMeMarc campaign attracting 70,000 entries. What an excellent way to encourage brand promotion through word-of-mouth (both online and offline) and increase audience engagement. It’s also hugely refreshing to see ‘real’ people in a fashion campaign who, I'm sure, will benefit massively from the exposure – as opposed to the usual choice of models and celebrities who don’t usually need the boost to their career or bank balance.

PR Story of the Week: There's something about Taylor

I remember hearing Taylor Swift's music a couple of years ago, but I wrote her off almost immediately as country tunes aren’t really my cuppa tea. She then crept back onto my radar when she started going out with Harry Styles (I’m not a 1D fan, honest…) and they ventured up north to the Lake District for a weekend away (good choice guys, good choice). 

Then, after the demise of Sty-lor, I didn’t really take much notice of her again until, say, last summer. Over the last six months, however, I’ve grown to really like Ms Swift, admire her even (I'm actually listening to her new album while writing this blog).

In a world where young girls are growing up with saucepots like Miley Cyrus and Rihanna as supposed role models, there’s something hugely refreshing about Taylor Swift… partly because she refrains from twerking, boasting of drug-taking and posting semi-naked selfies (whatever floats your boat, but is there REALLY any need to flash the entire Instagram-using population??) 

Despite her global domination of the pop charts and mind-boggling fame and fortune, she still seems completely and utterly down-to-earth. Yes, I can hear you cynics in the back muttering ‘Well isn’t that all down to her squeaky clean image that has been carefully crafted by her PR team?’ And yes, it might well be. It probably is, in fact. But even with all the help in the world, I very much doubt you can keep up a completely fake persona for long (you only have to watch Celebrity Big Brother for proof of that!) 

PR Week recently featured an article entitled ‘Is Taylor Swift the best person at PR, like, ever?’ And yes, I reckon she might well be. In the piece, author Gavin Devine wrote that those of us in the PR industry would do well to study the Taylor Swift masterclass. I agree, I think we certainly would on a professional level, but so would any other young woman (or man) who is in the public eye. For her popularity can be partly attributed to the fact that she appears to genuinely adore, appreciate and respect her fans. After all, they are the reason why she is where she is and Ms Swift seems to recognise that... unlike a certain popstar brat who was pictured a few years ago appearing to actually spit on a waiting crowd from the roof of his hotel. 

I chose this as my favourite PR story of the week because it highlights three key elements of PR success (engagement, media coverage and consistency) and it puts them into an interesting context, that is, a pop star’s reputation. Read the PR Week article here.

What do you think of Taylor Swift? Is she a good role model for young girls? Or is her image simply PR spin? Let me know your thoughts x