Imagine a world where free speech is impossible and graffiti is the only means of self-expression. Sega imagined just such a world and brought it to life in its "Jet Grind
Radio" video game. But the company left imagining a way to launch that game in civic-minded San Francisco - coincidentally on the day designated as the city's clean-up-graffiti
day - to the creative minds at Access Communications.
Prior to the scheduled launch, a Milwaukee congresswoman already had criticized the game for encouraging vandalism. Plus, the mayor of San Francisco was up in arms over
graffiti after U2 lead singer Bono spray-painted one of the city's permanent artworks. The mayor proceeded to denounce Sega's game in a front-page story in a leading local
newspaper.
"We had to find a way to do this so that we would not look like bad corporate citizens. We had to do it without coming across as being pro-vandalism," explains Chase (yes,
that's his full name), an Access media-relations specialist.
The Event
The planned launch was to be preceded by a national competition asking graffiti artists to send in preliminary designs. Five finalists would be flown to San Francisco, where
they would get the chance to compete in a paint-off using large canvases on a stage at Justin Herman Plaza. The winner would get $5,000 - and, naturally, a copy of "Jet Grind
Radio."
Given the unexpected media attention sprouting from the controversy, Access decided to go ahead with the event, which would surely help draw attention to its client and the
product. But the PR team needed a strategy to overcome the building opposition to the game.
That effort was made somewhat easier by the fact that Sega had tried from the very start to incorporate a message of social responsibility into its "Jet Grind Radio" branding
efforts.
"From the beginning we recognized what the controversial aspects of the game were, and we took proactive steps to manage those," says Gwen Marker, corporate communications
manager at Sega. "We placed an in-game warning at the beginning of the game to remind gamers that graffiti is an art form, but that graffiti as an act of vandalism is a crime. We
also placed warning stickers on the packaging for the game."
The Access team decided to follow up on those same themes. To broadcast that message, the PR staff took pains to brief every Sega representative who would be attending the
event - those who would speak to the press officially, as well as other staff members and even artists themselves. "You as the PR person may know the messaging, but you still need
to make sure the client knows it," Chase says. Access therefore put everyone involved through on-camera practice interviews as a way to ensure that the message stayed
consistent.
The team prepared b-roll that highlighted the message of responsibility and created written statements to be included in media kits that were handed out to all reporters at the
event.
To further demonstrate Sega's stance, Access lined up a spokesperson from a neighborhood beautification program to speak against graffiti vandalism at the event. Further,
Access advised Sega to make a donation to a neighborhood cleanup charity, which it did.
On the day of the event the Access team relied on the personal touch. "As soon as [reporters] got anywhere near the perimeter of the event, we made sure we had someone there"
to guide them through and provide appropriate materials, says Chase.
The Pay-Off
In terms of coverage, the event exceeded planners' expectations. All local broadcast affiliates covered the event, and more than 50 related TV and radio broadcasts aired in key
cities nationwide. The Associated Press wrote up the event after the fact, and the three largest newspapers in the San Francisco Bay area also covered the launch.
Moreover, each local TV news story "showed a balanced newscast. They were all objective and all showcased our side of what we were doing," says Chase. In fact, every news
report related to the event presented Sega's perspective in some fashion, which Chase believes helped boost the overall public acceptance of the game.
Perhaps the best indication of success is the fact that the recently-released sequel to the game has met with positive reviews - and no public opposition.
(Contact: Chase, [email protected], 415/844-6289; Marker: [email protected],
415/701-3814)
Agency Stats
Access Communications
Founded: 1991
HQ: San Francisco
Clients: Intuit, Sega of America, Siebel, Toysrus.com, Sony Online
Entertainment, Autotrader.com, VA Linux
Billings: $10.5 million
Employees: 51
Staff on this campaign: Margaret Mathis (SVP), Jennifer Simonsen (VP), Chase (Media Relations Specialist), Kristin Calcagno (Account Executive), Alicia Kim (Account
Coordinator)
URL: http://www.accesspr.com
Campaign Stats
- Timeframe: September-October, 2000
- Budget: $25,000-$35,000
Pounding The Pavement
Criticism had been building for a month prior to the event, and as the big day neared, Access did not wait for the media to come around asking questions. The PR team worked
aggressively to spread Sega's message of graffiti-as-art, both before and during the event.
"The shortest line between a PR firm and coverage is persistence, so we made sure when we were calling around in advance, that we got the actual people on the phone, rather
than just sending a release," says Chase. "You can send out faxes and then when you call, [journalists] have never seen your release. So we got to people personally, which was a
major undertaking."