The American Kennel Club
The American Kennel Club was literally going to the dogs. The organizationdid not have a public relations image problem, it did not have any image atall. Membership had declined since the mid-'90s and nearly all of the AKC'sendeavors on behalf of animals had gone unnoticed. Some marketing had beendone, but it was inconsistent. Therefore, early last year, the AKC decidedfor the first time ever to emphasize communications, including hiring afull-time staff. The result: both pet owners and members are moreacquainted with the Club's activities and pleased with what they have When the organization embarked on its communication plan, itrecognized that the average person who heard of AKC did not know what itdid besides sponsoring dog shows. The AKC's Canine Health Foundation alsoresearches all dog ailments and its recovery department deals with varioustechnologies, especially microchipping, to help recover lost canines. Inaddition, the group regularly offers seminars to assist owners train theirdogs and works toward legislation to protect dog owners' rights. The first step in the plan was to not only raise awareness of theorganization and all it offers, but better explain its role and b
Among those who needed to stay informed were local governmentofficials, airport telephone operators, information booth volunteers,parking lot attendants and airline personnel. The Internet has also been included in the association's strategy. If all continues going according toplan, AKC will be in for a treat over the next several months, since thelast 12 have already shown considerable growth (PR Week) PR people also revved up the media in a public relations campaign forToyota a couple of years ago. -2-In January 2002, approximately 9. The Yaris Media Group, which includedthe 56 Coty judges plus 56 other automotive journalists, actually helped inthe development of the car. In the first six months, corporate contributions exceeded$100,000. This was particularly remarkable, considering that the depressedeconomy had reduced contributions from foundations and corporations to mostnonprofits (Adolescent Counseling Service. Onthe same day, Toyota announced that sales of the Yaris had more thandoubled the company's share of that small-car segment of the market (PublicRelations Case Studies)-3- Public relations is most often used by corporate clients, and muchless by nonprofit organizations because of budget problems. The team made a list of the pet editors at all themajor U. After the PR people received the early-morning news, they gatheredinformation from airport officials and answered reporters' calls by cellphone as they drove to the airport's Emergency Command Center. The team used cell phones plus landlines tohandle as many as 100 calls an hour. This increased the agency'scredibility and improved its chances for funding. Once at the airport, the 16-hour days were divided into getting theinformation, drafting the press releases and fielding media telephone callsout of an emergency pressroom. The race was won when Channel 4 in the UK voted the Yaris Car of theYear six months before the COTY voting, and Yaris was voted the EuropeanCar of the Year.
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