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PR THAT CONNECTS IN THIS ISSUE
INDUSTRY HOT TOPIC
‘Food for Thought’ – the power of online marketing Today’s Internet-connected community is so bombarded with online marketing messages that people quickly become blasé. How can marketers really reach these people and provide something they haven’t seen a hundred times before? With the power no longer completely in the hands of the marketers, consumers know what they want, when they want it and how to use the resources available to get the best price. How can the marketing industry respond to this, while avoiding the much talked about pitfalls of spam, poor web design and a lack of robust e-commerce capabilities? These are just some of the issues that Six Degrees encounters on a daily basis, as a result of the work we do for a number of clients involved in digital marketing. We decided to provide a platform for discussion about online marketing and what might be in store for the future. This took the form of our first Six Degrees ‘Food for Thought’ roundtable event. We gathered together a selection of experienced, qualified practioners and media in digital marketing at The
Journalists, clients and Six Degrees debate the future of online marketing at The Groucho Club, London.
Groucho Club London. Matt Poepsel, VP of Application Management at Gomez – providers of website performance testing – led the discussion into the focus on the customer experience, and how this requires deep insight into customer behaviour. Consumers are smarter, and want to be treated as such. Irrelevant, overpowering and constant online bombardment will alienate customers
and ruin their online experience, he said. The need to treat customers as intelligent individuals – instead of a collective group – was highlighted by Jacques van Niekerk, CEO and cofounder of Acceleration, an eMarketing services and solutions company. Although online marketing channels are now becoming more integrated, campaigns still need to be considered
individually – particularly when considering the bigger marketing picture, of which digital is still only a small part. The group, which included journalists from New Media Age, Contagious, IT Week, Marketing Direct and Red Herring, went on to discuss the power of consumer experience online, and how the disconnect between IT and marketing teams leads to online chaos. This in turn can damage the perception of offline brands. For all its benefits, new technology has given marketers the power to destroy their brands quicker than ever. As for measuring the true effectiveness of online marketing, click-through rates cannot be taken as the be all and end all, and can't be relied upon alone to measure online advertising effectiveness. As Suzanne Moorey-Denham, Managing Director at Dynamic Logic – a Millward Brown market research company – commented, the mind needs to be measured, not just the mouse. The next Six Degees ‘Food for Thought’ roundtable will take place later in the year and will discuss sustainable energy in business.
RUNNING WATER Raising awareness of lack of safe drinking water
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SEEINGEYEPHONE Innovision’s Topaz tag helps visually impaired
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STRATEGIC MEDIA RELATIONS
Showcasing Convergys in India
Six Degrees’s client, ETen has launched its glofiish X500 phone to critical acclaim. The phone has already been given good reviews by Mobile Choice, Stuff, T3, Total Mobile, What Mobile, and others. Grazia, the highest circulation women’s weekly in the UK, has also fallen for the phone, giving it away as part of a reader competition.
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Outsourcing in India is a hot media topic, as proved by a continuous flow of articles about India as a world leader in outsourced call centres. Convergys is one of the world’s top three providers of call centre outsourcing, with more than 75 facilities and 55,000 agents worldwide. It was one of the first outsourcing companies to start up in India in 2001 and is now one of the biggest employers in the country. Over 12,000 agents in nine facilities throughout India provide customer service for major global brands in finance, technology and retail. To highlight Convergys’s industry leadership in outsourcing, Six Degrees arranged a media trip to one of the largest sites, in Gurgaon near New Delhi (as pictured). Participating were journalists writing for The Economist, BBC News Online, European CEO, Il Sole 24 Ore (Italy), Call Centre Focus and VDI Nachrichten (Germany). Convergys had fantastic feedback from the participating journalists, who truly valued the chance to experience an Indian call centre. The trip has
ANALYSE THIS Industry analysts are increasingly important influencers
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resulted in five feature-length articles in leading European media to date. Nanette Bentley, national media relations manager for Convergys, commented: “Although they came from different backgrounds and had different agendas, all journalists found the trip immensely useful. Many found an informal meeting with our call centre agents helped change their perceptions about call centres.” “Convergys’s community programmes and extensive language training particularly captured the journalists’ imagination and have dominated the coverage,” said Andrea Willige, senior consultant, Six Degrees, who accompanied the journalists on the trip.
UPSTREAM ASIA How our Asian partner agency is winning in China
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PR THAT CONNECTS
promoting technology
CHARITY MEDIA RELATIONS
Did you know that 1.1 billion people live without access to safe drinking water and 2.2 million die every year from water-borne diseases? The Blue Planet Run, the first round the world non-stop relay, was launched earlier this year to help raise funds and awareness of this terrible plight. Six Degrees was one of 10 global PR agencies chosen to co-ordinate the Run’s media campaign as it travelled round the Northern Hemisphere. The Blue Planet Run began on 1 June and ended on 4 September. Twenty runners from around the world completed the awareness-raising event, covering 15,200 miles and 16 countries in just 95 days. After the initial kick-off at the UN building in New York, Ireland and the UK were the first ports of call. Six Degrees organised photo shoots and interviews with spokespeople ‘on the run’ - literally - as they passed through Shannon, Limerick, Dublin, Oxford and London. The team agreed that they needed a ‘human face’ to help create interest – this came in the form of Paul Rogan, the only British runner. Originally from the North-East of England, but a Scottish resident for 20 years, Paul had left the UK only twice – providing a ‘local hero goes global’ angle for media.
In-depth coverage appeared in Scotland’s The Herald weekend magazine, The Daily Record, The Sunday Post and The Sun (Scottish edition), as well as The Chronicle and Journal in Newcastle. As the only UK runner, Paul was very proud to take part: “Doing these types of events can bring up lots of different emotions, knowing that in some cases you are making the difference between life and death.” CBBC Newsround, the BBC’s flagship children’s news programme, filmed the main UK leg into London’s Trafalgar Square, and BBC World Service, BBC Radio 5, LBC , RTE2, ClareFM and Dublin Country Mix all covered the event. National media coverage included The Sunday Telegraph, The Guardian, Press Association, Irish Times and Reuters. Audience reach for the UK and Ireland was measured at 11.5 million – and the worldwide impact of the Run is still being calculated. While Six Degrees managed the media strategy for Ireland and the UK, we also worked with partners including Shout Communications to ensure that the Blue Planet Run received exceptional media coverage. If you’d like to read more about the Blue Planet Run or make a donation, visit www.blueplanetrun.org
Blue Planet Run Foundation courtesy of C. Emerick
Running water – Blue Planet Run raises awareness
Paul Rogan (pictured above and with his daughter, inset) dedicated three months of his life to run 10 miles a day for 95 days for the Blue Planet Run – that’s the equivalent of 29 marathons.
INNOVATION
PRESS TRIP
Seeing is believing
On track in Europe
Ever made the mistake of picking up denture cream instead of tooth paste in the supermarket? For visually impaired people, this kind of mistake can happen regularly. But this looks to become a thing of the past if the prototype of the ‘Seeingeyephone’ goes mass market. Developed by the Technical Research Center of Finland, VTT, and incorporating Six Degrees’s client, Innovision Research & Technology’s NFC (Near Field Communication) Topaz tag, the mobile device will help visually impaired customers ‘read’ product information in shops. The Topaz tag, which is simply attached to the shelf next to each product, provides a link to productspecific data such as the price, use-by The Seeingeyephone prototype – an innovative and beneficial use of Near Field Communication, date and pack size. When the customer a short range wireless communication technology. holds an NFC-enabled phone up to the tag, the text-based information is Launched to the trade media, the ‘Seeingeyephone’ has retrieved and the phone's text-to-speech synthesiser had great pick-up, including coverage in Ability, Electronics reads the information aloud directly to the user in their Weekly, IT Week and UsingRFID.com. chosen language. Recognised at the first European NFC Competition in April as the ‘Most Innovative NFC Proposal of the Year 2007’ the ‘Seeingeyephone’ is a clever use of NFC. Innovision’s tag, popular among NFC developers for its Innovision has just launched the first British NFC memory size, low-cost and flexibility across a wide range of competition to find new and innovative NFC applications, was used by many of the Competition’s 21 applications using Topaz tags and NFC handsets. For finalists, including France’s MIS MDBS for its application more information, visit www.innovision-group.com HOTELNOVA – which allows business travellers to book hotel rooms, check in, pay for services and check out using their mobile phones.
Press trips to customers’ premises are an invaluable way to show off products and services. Journalists appreciate the chance to see products live in the field. Two key rail journalists recently witnessed first hand the worldwide leader in the cable industry Nexans’s innovative DuoTrack cable system. Normally cables next to railway lines need to be laid in a concrete trough, which is expensive and timeconsuming. DuoTrack is carried on the rail itself and is very efficient to roll out, and vandal-proof. What was unique about this trip was that the journalists attending had the chance to install the cable themselves. “It was a very hands-on trip and one that the journalists appreciated,” said Andy Bartlett, Six Degrees, who accompanied the media. Nick Kingsley, who writes for Railway Gazette International, was particularly impressed with the experience: “I thoroughly enjoyed the
Stop Press
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DuoTrack combines copper and fibre-optic lineside services within a single cable
trip. Everything about it was very good or excellent. The presentation was very informative and the site visit and support materials were excellent – I particularly appreciated the photo CD.” Following the press trip to Frankfurt to see DuoTrack, Railway Gazette International and European Rail Outlook had features on the innovative system. Good photography has also helped to ensure coverage. Further media tours, including one to Halden, Nexans’s main sub-sea power cable plant in Norway, will help to reach key publications and to achieve coverage in magazines that Nexans customers read.
PR THAT CONNECTS
ANALYST RELATIONS
NEWS IN BRIEF
Analyse this Expert commentator, writer, journalist, consultant, advisor …? Today’s industry analyst may be a jack of all trades, but is master of one – influencer.
The role of the industry analyst is varied. Some analyst houses cover the business of technology
of market analysis, both for KEY FINDINGS publication and for individual clients. This When asked to rate the usefulness of various sources of information means that we tend to when examining potential IT suppliers, respondents claimed that: value a combination of background information from companies in our areas of interest, and rapid response to requests for detailed information or interviews. Different analysts prefer information in different formats – some attend many events, others are less visible but analyse large amounts of detailed data. Like journalists, we tend to have limited time … and we value our independence.” “The analyst community is growing in influence and this shows no sign of Source: Six Degrees/Vanson Bourne abating,” says Amanda Hassall, Six Degrees Six Degrees has been working with the Director. “It is an important audience that is industry analyst community for several years, sometimes a little misunderstood, but should and conducts analyst relations campaigns for a never be underestimated. Our role is to help number of clients – including clients connect with the right analyst at the Bluesocket, right time. Once the relationship is formed, it’s Empirix, Ericsson, Gomez, then a matter of keeping it active and fresh.” ScanSafe and Trolltech. Programmes are tailored to each client, but typically include a mix of individual and group briefings, specially-prepared analyst information, targeted newsletters, as well as speaker slots and submissions to reports.
companies and tracking markets. Others like to see themselves as thought leaders, actively shaping and defining markets – the ‘Gartner Quadrant’ is one famous example of this. However, most analysts prefer to see themselves as providing real-world advice, as opposed to making predictions.
“We analysts tend to work under pressures of multiple deadlines for the delivery of different forms of commentary and analysis”, says Danny Dicks, Principal Analyst with telecoms specialist Analysys Research. “We might be preparing anything from concise opinions on trends, technologies and Office Shadow companies, to major pieces
The industry analyst is a relatively new breed – emerging as a force to be reckoned with only in the past decade. But nowadays, few major technology purchases or outsourcing decisions are made without speaking to, or referring to reports from the likes of Analysys, Forrester, Frost & Sullivan, Gartner, IDC and Ovum.
RESEARCH FINDINGS A couple of years ago, Six Degrees conducted research (chart right) into where IT directors get their purchasing information: over half (56 per cent) stated that they saw industry analyst reports as the most influential source of information on IT vendors. With so many more analyst firms having emerged over the past few years – including Canalys, Quocirca and Red Monk – their influence would appear to be growing. The relationship between industry analysts and the media is also symbiotic. Nearly twothirds of key business and IT writers actively seek out an analyst for comment when writing an article – and analysts are only too happy to have their views and findings quoted in news and feature articles. Many industry analysts have their own columns and have started their own blogs.
ROLE CALL
ANALYST PRESSURES
FastForward is sweet sixteen ABB has published its sixteenth issue of FastForward (FFWD), the company’s magazine for power industry customers which has been researched and written by Six Degrees since 2001. Six Degrees also works with ABB on media relations activities, and content produced for journalists is often re-used in the magazine. “FastForward is an integral part of ABB’s Power Systems and Products marketing communications strategy. It continues to evolve; more recently we introduced a web version of the magazine, this has enabled us to include more in-depth articles and continue to grow our readership,” said Karen Strong, Marketing Communications manager ABB Power Systems and Power Products.
What is your ‘VisualDNA™’? Imagini is a true web innovator, providing a completely new way of communicating using images. Visitors to Imagini.net are asked to create personality profiles based on responses to images. Six Degrees worked with bloggers and media as part of its drive to build web traffic. A classic example of viral growth, current figures stand at 4.4 million and counting.
Industry awards success Six Degrees has been shortlisted for the UK’s most high profile PR awards, the PR Week Awards in October, for web security client ScanSafe’s ‘Launching Scandoo – Traffic Lights for the Web’ campaign in the Technology category.
30TH CELEBRATIONS
Partying like it was 1977! Six Degrees is 30 this year and to celebrate our anniversary in style, employees and partners were invited to a birthday bash. Staff and guests did their best to bring back all the style and glamour of the 1970s with big wigs, maxi dresses and glitter, together with seventies food and music. The highlight of the night was the ‘Cocktail Challenge’ judged by chairman Roger Staton, Angela Staton and local Marlow cocktail supremo Jonathan Drouillon, manager of the r:home bar.
Can you guess which Six Degrees consultant does ‘a Travolta’ in the picture below? Answer on back page.
The agency has also been shortlisted in this year’s CIPR Pride Awards in November for Skype’s ‘Talk for Britain’ campaign in Best Consumer Relations and for Six Degrees in the Outstanding PR Consultancy category. The campaigns for Skype and ScanSafe were also shortlisted for the prestigious pan-European SABRE Awards in May in Barcelona, (as pictured), which saw just 250 make the final cut out of a total 1,400 entries.
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promoting technology
PR THAT CONNECTS
WORLDWIDE PARTNERS
WHITE PAPERS
Introducing Upstream
Battery powered Issuing a white paper allows a company to set the agenda in its field, to influence opinion leaders and even to lobby government and regulators. A further benefit is that they are useful tools to really engage journalists and industry analysts in topical and high level debates, rather than focus on products and services. As exercises in thought leadership, white papers can also spin off opinion articles to be placed in trade publications.
The Upstream Asia team.
Six Degrees is the UK member of Eurocom Worldwide, a global network of like-minded independent PR consultancies with specialist business-to-business and technology experience and skills. Many clients tap into this network when planning international campaigns that demand local expertise delivered in a consistent way. Another member of this network is Upstream, a full-service marketing and corporate communications consultancy with offices throughout Asia and Australia. Promoting Technology caught up with Paul Mottram, Chief Operating Officer of Upstream. Upstream and Six Degrees have been working together since 2004. They share Skype as a client and have worked together on new business development. “Our clients range from start-ups to world-famous brands, and what is key to success is really understanding their businesses in order to offer great service. We share similar values with Six Degrees in this respect,” said Paul. Paul, who was born in the UK and has worked in Asia for over 15 years, is keen to continue his links with the UK through working with Six Degrees. One of the most interesting projects that Paul has been working on recently was the launch of the dot Asia domain. “Rather than auction off the dot Asia domains, a regional competition has been launched to ask for creative ideas of how best to use the sport.asia domain for
example. We’re looking forward to reading all the entries in the next few months.” Upstream was PR Week’s ‘new consultancy of the year’ in 2001 and continues to win awards and accolades including being one of the top 10 agencies in China according to Fortune Times (China). The company is listed on the Alternate Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange.
However, they can be time-consuming to produce, requiring intensive research and dedicated writing skills. Some in-house teams do not have the resources or time to create and market white papers and so turn to their PR agency to help with this vital area of influence. Six Degrees works with many of its clients to research and create these influential documents. One example is Saft, a world specialist in the design and manufacture of high-tech batteries for industry, which has recently published a white paper for the UK rail industry called The vital role of batteries in the
modern rail industry. This research was prompted by a growing misconception in the UK rail industry regarding the relative merits of the two leading battery technologies – lead-acid and nickel-cadmium. The objective of the white paper was to educate the industry and to cover the key issues in the necessary depth, with chapters on the role of batteries in the rail industry, the different technologies available, design issues and environmental safety. Raising understanding about the technical issues surrounding battery use in the rail industry is helping Saft to maintain the position of nickel-cadmium batteries as the best option for the sector. Six Degrees researched and drafted the white paper in conjunction with Anthony Green and Michael Hedley at Saft. The white paper was launched at the Railtex Exhibition in London and has already resulted in an educational article in European Rail Outlook magazine. The company is now working with Six Degrees on two further white papers focusing on the international rail industry and the renewable energy market.
Fast facts Saft on-board batteries on a modern train
Location: Hong Kong head office plus Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Taipei, Tokyo regional offices Founded: 2000 Number of consultants: over 60 Clients include: Alcatel-Lucent, Apple, China Telecom, eBay, EDS, Fiat, Linksys, O2, Qantas, Skype, SWIFT Website: www.upstreamasia.com
30TH CELEBRATIONS
MEDIA RELATIONS
Use your camera phone as an MMS-witness Dutch wireless innovation company Waleli has been working with the Dutch police to develop MMSwitness, an initiative to encourage the general public to use their mobile camera phones to capture crimes taking place. Having taken a photograph or video, a member of the public texts
the file to a central, secure police database using a countrywide phone number. The image is reviewed, stored on the database and, if required, sent to the mobile devices of police officers on the streets to help increase the chances of a successful arrest. According to industry analysts Gartner, there are 295 million camera phones in use throughout Europe so the potential for this initiative is huge. Six Degrees secured coverage in many publications including 3G Insight, IT Week, Tech Digest and VNUnet.
Partying like it was 1977! Did you guess right? Yes, it’s James Morley looking superfly on page 3. Nice lapels James.
Six Degrees Limited Old Trinity Church, Trinity Road Marlow, Buckinghamshire SL7 3AN United Kingdom Telephone: +44 (0)1628 480280 editor@sixdegreespr.com www.sixdegreespr.com
PR THAT CONNECTS