JUNE 7, 2011

FIONA LESLIE

INTERNATIONAL PR CAMPAIGNS IN PRACTICE

AGENDA

• Background and experience

• Your experience

• Examples of International PR campaigns in practice

• Any Questions?

WHY INTERNATIONAL PR?

• What you say + what you do = how you are perceived

• PR is about managing favourable perceptions among those you know and those you need to reach and influence in order to be successful

• Need to widen student pool = increase overseas profile

• To attract international students you need to boost your reputation overseas

WHAT IS REPUTATION?

“Reputation makes us feel comfortable with people and things, it attracts, reassures and inspires us to put our faith and often our hard earned cash into supporting a person, product, business or cause.”

Winning Reputations

by Chris Genasi

FT audience determines reputation through rankings, accrediting bodies, faculty, media coverage and marketing

How do you find out about the reputation of a business school or programme?

2%

22%

22%

23%

25%

28%

30%

41%

50%

50%

57%

72%

Other

Meeting with business schools

Media coverage about alumni

Events/ Conferences held by Business Schools

University/ Career fairs/ events

Meeting alumni

Other word of mouth (not from alumni)

Biz school/ programme advertising/ marketing

Media coverage about schools/ programmes

Faculty reputation

Accrediting bodies

Rankings

Respondents interested in Business Education for themselves AND likely to undertake Business Education in future (N=522)

International newspapers, School websites, Search engines and word of mouth

Which of the following sources do / would you consult for information on business education?

3%6%

8%

18%57%

17%19%

7%19%

8%27%

38%60%

81%

26%39%

41%39%

81%

1%5%

11%

24%43%

20%27%

12%21%

25%24%

39%54%

75%

15%36%

38%30%

70%

OtherRadio

TV

Career officeWord of mouth

On campus eventsEducational recruitment fairs (e.g. QS fair)

Online audio/video content (e.g. YouTube, iTunesU)Other websites

Social networks (e.g. Facebook or Twitter)News media websites

Professional social networks (e.g. LinkedIn)Search engines

University/ Business school websites

Alumni magazinesMagazines

University brochuresNational/ regional/ local Newspapers

International Newspapers

Business people

HR professionals

All respondents Business people (N=938) and HR professionals (N=277)

DEVISING AN INTERNATIONAL PR CAMPAIGN

• Define your target market

• What do you have to offer there? What’s the story?

• Who has expertise in country?

• Do you have an event? Can you create an event?

• Current students? Alumni? Corporate clients?

• Relevant research?

• Create the story

DEVISING AN INTERNATIONAL PR CAMPAIGN

• People – leaders + star faculty

• Customers – alumni + clients

• Delivery (new thinking/novel programmes)

• Peer ratings and rankings

• Environment – location and facilities

• International capability

• Research

• Events/lectures/visits

INTERNATIONAL PR CAMPAIGN - CULTURE

SOUTH AFRICA

Edinburgh Business School:

• Launching largest scholarship scheme from a university in sub-saharan Africa

• Tactics

• Media outputs

• Examples of coverage – international, in-country and UK

• Think local, national and global

SOUTH AFRICA

 The campaign involved:

• generating student and alumni case studies

• producing press packs and press releases for both the UK and South African media

• Sourcing quotes and arranging media interviews with representatives of the Canon Collins Trust and EBS

• Liaising with journalists both in the UK and South Africa to sell in the story

SOUTH AFRICA

• Arranging interviews and photography

• Attending the launch event

• Setting up interviews after the event on South African radio and television.

• Post event media follow-ups

RESULTS

In total 45 pieces of media coverage were achieved:

• Solus feature in the Financial Times

• Solus feature in the International Herald Tribune/NYT

• Solus feature in the Independent’s MBA supplement

• Feature coverage in the Wall Street Journal, The Times and The Guardian

• South Africa: features in Business Day and The Sowetan and interviews on radio and on Cape TV.

•  

IMPACT

• Mass media coverage = raising profile

• Immediate surge in interest in the scholarship programme, and an on-going increase in applications

• On-going media pick-ups of scholarships programmes and activities in Africa

COVERAGE

COVERAGE

COVERAGE

INDIA and CHINA– Bournemouth University

• Partnership approach with Bournemouth University’s PR team and International office and Communications Management’s ‘on-the-ground’ teams in India and China.

• Aim: the maximise PR opportunities created by the visit to India and China of Vice-Chancellor and International recruitment officers.

• Materials: info on BU activities in India and China, including research activities

INDIA - Results

• Five face-to-face meetings with journalists

• 12 pieces of media coverage to date

• Plus two in-depth features

• Combined audience of 2.1million in India

• 100% of coverage = positive

• Achieved by personal pitches, not a press release

Coverage

CHINA

A variety of stories were pitched in China including:

• VC’s visit

• 30-day expedition by academic to study Chinese fish

• Chinese academic’s software for training medics

• Academic’s work in Chinese on Danxia landscapes

• BU partnership with Beijing International Studies University on e-tourism.

CHINA - results

• 28 pieces of media coverage

• 4 face to face interviews

• 1 telephone interview

• Combined audience of 160million in China

• 100% positive

• 27 out of 28 articles = solus coverage

CHINA - coverage

LANCASTER UNIVERSITY - INDIA

• Visit by Chancellor to Lancaster University’s partner in India – Goenka

• First time Sir Chris Bonington had visited Goenka

• Lancaster is only university to deliver degree programmes at the education city

• First graduates presented to Chancellor

• Three new degrees launched

INDIA - results

Event was on Friday June 3, 2011 (evening):

• 15 pieces of media coverage

• 3 journalists attended event

• 1 phone interview

• 2 profile articles of Chancellor forthcoming

• Goenka are already reporting an increase in calls and web hits about programmes

LUMS - India

MIDDLE EAST

• Times Business Education Supplement published and distributed throughout the UAE states

• In country media coverage in ‘local media’ to support MBA fairs

MIDDLE EAST

MIDDLE EAST

MIDDLE EAST

UTILISING RESEARCH

Hydrogen research: Professionals on the Move 2011

Target markets:

• UK/international

• Australia

• Hong Kong and Singapore

Localised research data, case studies and corporate spokespeople

HONG KONG and SINGAPORE

AUSTRALIA

GERMANY – HENLEY BUSINESS SCHOOL

Aim:

Build reputation and profile

Tactics

• Press pack

• Student and alumni case studies

• One-to-one briefing for faculty with key journalists

• Targeting relevant supplements

DON’T FORGET....

• Cultural differences

• UK-based overseas journalists

• Foreign and Commonwealth Office Press Team

Any questions?

CONTACT DETAILS

FIONA LESLIE

Principal Consultant

Communications Management

fiona@communicationsmanagement.co.uk

01727 733884