The Case
When Energyguide.com launched, it offered a useful proposition, but the site wasn't exactly glowing bright in the marketplace. The site allows consumers to compare the rates
offered by different power providers in states where energy utilities have been deregulated. What it needed was media coverage - both to generate consumer awareness and to spark
the interest of venture capital firms. The problem was, people generally think deregulation is boring. And confusing. And vaguely scary. Plus, this was February 1999, a time when
every other dotcom was clamoring for attention.
"Any good campaign looks at what is out there already, what people know about and what they care about," says Dan Delurey, chief marketing officer for the site, owned by Nexus
Energy Software of Wellesley, Mass. With this mantra in mind, Delurey tapped his agency of record, Collaborative Communications Inc., to weave Energyguide.com's message into
existing media coverage surrounding deregulation. This strategy resulted in 84 million media impressions and a significant jump in site traffic.
Conserving Energy
To sell the message, Collaborative set out to position Energyguide.com's leaders as neutral experts on energy efficiency. The effort would have to be highly targeted, however,
as the site's 1999 PR budget was only about $175,000. Collaborative's PR plan would serve as the sole communications initiative in the first six months following the site's
launch.
The message to the media was concise: Energyguide.com would make deregulation easy and painless by offering a neutral source that consumers could use to lower their energy
bills.
Lighting the Way
In its flashiest effort, Collaborative tried to generate excitement by packaging energy-efficient light bulbs in a clever little six-pack, dubbed "BULBlite." The bulbs went out
to about 100 journalists, including financial/investment writers, consumer reporters in business pubs and general consumer media.
Although the bulbs constituted the largest single material expenditure in the campaign, the bulk of the budget covered staff time - that is, the time needed to generate two
press releases, plus customized story pitches to 50 or more reporters each month. All press releases were posted to the site's online press room in tandem with newswire
distribution.
Collaborative also devoted considerable attention to generating coverage in the online media. "Our thinking was that it was much easier to get a human being to click onto the
site if they read about Energyguide.com online,"says Collaborative VP Ellenann Haughey.
Most importantly, Collaborative was successful in positioning the founders of Energyguide.com as true experts. When site president Harvey Michaels became the only non-utility-
industry business leader invited to speak on deregulation issues before Congress, Collaborative used the hook to pique journalists' interest, issuing a press release the day
before the event, followed by hundreds of one-on-one follow-up pitches.
"We needed to show that the people behind this site truly are experts on this issue," says Haughey. That expertise helped convince editors they "were not just doing this
coverage for us, that this was something their consumers needed and wanted."
Lessons Learned
Despite the overall success of the effort, the team did learn an important lesson here. When dealing with a product that depends on governmental machinations, it is sometimes
possible to move too early.
"We wanted to be in early," Haughey says. Trouble was deregulation laws weren't permeating the online world as fast as expected (and still aren't). "What has been frustrating
for us is that the law is taking a long time. We are ready to go, and some eight or nine states already are deregulated, but there are other states that have not passed the laws
yet, so to pitch this as a national story has been a little more difficult."As such, the agency continues to plug away at the issue on a state-by-state basis, focusing attention
on locales where deregulation already exists. Collaborative is now leveraging public concerns about rising fuel costs as a way to stay in the news while waiting for the
legislative wheels to turn.
The Payoff
The 1999 effort, which has continued through 2000, has generated some 84 million media impressions to date, including coverage in more than 50 newspapers , 20 magazines, 20
broadcast markets and national venues such as CNN and the Kiplinger's Personal Finance TV program. But did all that coverage generate the desired result?
Six months into the campaign, site traffic had increased 30-fold. The site secured partnerships with 15 of the leading energy providers in the nation and - perhaps most telling
- in March 2000 the site secured its first round of venture capital financing.
-Adam Katz-Stone
(Haughey, Collaborative, 617/520-9103)
Recent Media Plugs
Infoworld
Newsweek
EnergyE-Comm.com
Boston Globe
Mass High Tech
Reuters
McGraw-Hill Energy's Next Markets
Washington Times
Kiplinger.com
dBusiness.com
ZDNet.com
Bright Idea
In its flashiest effort, Collaborative tried to generate excitement by packaging energy-efficient light bulbs in a clever little six-pack, dubbed "BULBlite." The bulbs went out
to about 100 journalists, including financial/investment writers, consumer reporters in business pubs and general consumer media.
Collaborative Communications Inc.
Founded: 1996
HQ: Cambridge, Mass.
Clients: C-Bridge, Cayman, Clearway, CorporateGifts.com, Eversave
Employees: 50
Key Staff on Account: VP Ellenann Haughey, Senior AE Karen McGrath, Assistant
AE Paula Charest, and a fourth who is no longer with the firm.
Campaign Time Frame: Feb. 1999 to present
Budget: $175,000
On the Web: http://www.collaborative.com