Case Study - Part 1

The students of my Advanced Communications class were asked to research and write about PR case studies whcih demonstrated a company or organizations' successful communication strategy. My case study is below. I gathered the information from the following link: http://www.prweek.com/uk/search/article/644930/CAMPAIGN-Hay-Group-gets-UK-firms-thinking-China/ I will discuss my interpretations of the case study in a later post.

CASE STUDY ON HAY GROUP FOR “WAKING UP TO CHINA” CAMPAIGN


Campaign: Waking up to China
Client: Hay Group
PR team: Man Bites Dog
Timescale: May-December 2006

Background:

Hay Group is a global consulting firm with offices in 47 countries serving over 7,000 clients. The company has been in business for over 60 years, and enlisted the help of a public relations firm in order to improve its business strategy advisory services profile. The PR firm, Man Bites Dog, was told to create a campaign to provide “both a business development tool and a platform for thought leadership.”


Objectives:

-To raise awareness of business strategy in the media, and position Hay Group as experts in the field.

-To boost adoption of the service.


Strategy and Plan:

Man Bites Dog proposed that Hay Group link the campaign to China’s modern-day rise as a global economic power. They did research on international companies to find out what attitudes leaders have on China as well as what implications that Chinese economic development may have for business in the United Kingdom.

Hay Group then based a report, ‘Waking up to China’, on these results. In the report, countries were ranked “by their ability to trade and compete with China, and by the number of national businesses with a ‘China strategy’.” Countries that faced the greatest opportunities and threats from China were highlighted.

In order to secure credibility of the report, the foreword came from trade experts that talk about the trade between China and Britain. In addition to that, Man Bites Dog prepared an executive summary for “each region and artwork to accompany the report.” Spokespeople for those regions were made available to the media for interview.

Common themes from the research results included the following – 1.) United Kingdom business leaders saw China as an opportunity instead of a threat 2.) They (the business leaders) predicted that china would be worth 200 billion pounds a year for British firms by 2009, and 3.) That almost 12.5% of all global organizations have no ‘China strategy’.

Man Bites Dog unveiled the report at a dinner hosted by Fenby and Hay Group China managing director Wayne Chen. Financial Times was given an exclusive preview before other media were notified. The PR team continues with this research on seasonal business issues and recommended that Mandarin be taught in British schools as recommended by Hay Group.


Measurement and Evaluation:

Mantra International, a reputational measurement group, valued the media coverage to be worth approximately 260,000 pounds. Media outlets that gave coverage include the following: The Times; The Sunday Times; The Daily Telegraph; The Guardian; The Independent; Evening Standard; Daily Express; and the Times Educational Supplement. Other international publications included: Holland’s De Telegraaf and Het Financieele Dagblad; CNN; the Singtao Daily; and the US Daily Standard.

Results:

Hay Group claims that it has been positioned as a thought leader on emerging economies. It also claims to have received more than 100 business enquiries to date as a direct result of the campaign.