Ingenious digital PR and social media campaign revived ailing competition

Direct Savings Media Coverage

Energy efficiency experts salvaged results at short notice, thanks to digital PR agency

digital PR success case study in Scotland

 

ENERGY efficiency experts Direct Savings thought they’d played a blinder when they linked up with a glossy magazine to run a competition, offering readers  the chance to win a hi-tech, £3000 Infranomic heating system.

That saw glamorous TV property expert Sarah Beeny, who was also the magazine’s celebrity editor, giving her seal of approval to the heaters, which use the same technology that gently and safely warms premature babies in hospital incubators.

Meanwhile, readers of the glossy title, at home, were treated to two pages on the many benefits of Infranomic heating, especially for cost-conscious home owners – with the chance to win a set of stylish heaters in black or white frames.

However, there was a problem. The Direct Savings team hadn’t consulted our PR experts before setting up the deal with the magazine, so quickly realised that they couldn’t measure the exposure, didn’t see the entries submitted and were not benefitting from any increase in web traffic.

Frustrated, they turned to the digital PR and social media experts at Holyrood PR and asked if we could help rescue the situation. Despite the incredibly tight timescales we conceived and delivered a short digital and social media campaign to help Direct Savings see a measurable positive impact which included:

  • The firm saw its most successful period of web traffic period– with almost 4000 page views in just 18 days
  • 76% of the traffic was from all important new visitors – potential new customers
  • Around 300 of those visitors checking out a dedicated competition landing page
  • A similar number of visitors following Call to Action links for a free home health check
  • Creation of a series of keyword-packed blog posts, delivering long term SEO value
  • Generating a reach of well over 43,000 on Twitter
  • Delivering positive messages to more than 4000 potential customers via Facebook.

PR photogrpahy of an infranomic heating panel

Brilliant results for an offer which up to that point had yielded no real value except to the magazine publishers – and all the more remarkable considering the offer had been running for almost two weeks by the time we got involved. So exactly how did we do it?

First, we wasted no time in setting up a dedicated competition landing page on the Direct Savings website, offering a short and simple explanation of the prize and a clear and trackable link to the entry page on the magazine’s website. This gave the company insights into public appetite for the offer.

More than that, the landing page also included highly visible calls to action, for visitors to check out the company’s other products and services, particularly a free Home Health Check. That provided provided Direct Savings with vital early insights on an offer which was to become the firm’s staple offer in the coming months.

We also swiftly crafted a series of eye catching blog posts, focusing on Sarah Beeny’s TV and property credentials, as well as the multiple financial, health and environmental benefits offered by the stylish heaters. Armed with that content, we delivered a short and punchy social media campaign across 18 days until the closing date of the magazine competition. All of the activity was organic, sharing interesting links that were specifically tailored for the different audiences across Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

Digital PR campaign for Direct Savings - Facebook montage

All of that activity was geared toward driving members of public to the Direct Savings website – and the various posts and pages were among the most visited on the website during and after the campaign.

Bosses at Direct Savings were delighted with the results, which helped they score a digital PR success when it had looked like their tie-up with a magazine was going to yield them absolutely no useful or actionable information.

Find out how our digital PR experts could help with your social media or online public relations

As Directs Savings discovered, using public relations experts for your digital PR campaigns means the difference between meaningless magazine giveaways – or insightful campaigns that bring genuine value to your business.

We’d love the chance to help your business successfully navigate the pitfall of digital PR and social media. For a free consultation and a no-strings chat about what is possible, call us on 0131 561 2244 or take a few seconds to fill and submit the simple form below and we’ll get straight back to you:

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