After a bad experience with a PR agency, children’s sunglasses maker Babiators needed to stand out in a crowded market, but was wary of teaming up with an agency. With executives not convinced that PR could actually translate into more business, yet still aiming for a 200% year-over-year growth in sales, the company buckled and decided to give PR one last try.
After teaming up with Konnect PR, the partners collaborated to create a set of measurable objectives in order to ensure that Babiators would see a positive return on their investment.
One of Konnect’s chief goals was to generate media coverage in some of the top national print and broadcast outlets in America. The niche children’s sunglasses market is hotly contested and incredibly crowded, so securing these placements would give the brand a huge advantage over the competition.
By developing a series of insights into Babiator’s target demographic, Konnect was able to generate a snapshot of the key attributes of their audience. One of the major insights generated by the research was that their target group of mothers was highly active on social media. With this information in hand, the partners also set out to grow the brand’s social media presence and fan base through interaction and engagement.
By using a combination of fervent media pitching, celebrity seeding and social media interaction, Konnect was able to surpass every goal the partners laid out at the beginning of the campaign. Babiator’s products appeared in The Ellen DeGeneres Show, People Magazine, The Wall Street Journal and US Weekly. Even more media coverage was secured as celebrity outreach by Konnect resulted in the children of stars such as Jordana Brewster, Vanessa Lachey, Sarah Jessica Parker, Hillary Duff and Neil Patrick Harris all sported Babiator shades. As a result of the collaboration between Babiators and Konnect PR, the brand's sales rose by 800% when compared to the previous year and the brand’s website saw 10 times more traffic. The partners were also awarded a 2015 Platinum PR Award for their work on a shoestring budget.
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