Public relations is increasingly about online visibility. That’s why PR firms today must know how to combine the disciplines of public relations, social media, SEO and web design in a single offering to better serve their clients. That’s how we do it at the Idea Grove.
ADVICE: Public Relations in a Changing World
It used to be so simple. Public relations was all about getting the news media to take notice of what our companies were doing; so we delivered press kits, arranged interviews, and doled out exclusives in effort to get our messages heard.
Then along came the Internet. And web design. And Google, Facebook and Twitter. And blogging, analytics and metadata. As soon as we get our heads around one idea, another one comes along. And doesn’t it seem like the boss wants to try them all — right now?
The boss is right about one thing: Today’s increasingly borderless and transparent information environment demands that customers and potential customers have full, whenever/wherever access to compelling content about our companies and their offerings. Still, though, sometimes there’s a new-product launch, a new CEO, or a funding announcement that really calls out for some traditional, For Immediate Release PR. Continue Reading
IDEA GROVE NEWS: Thank You and Happy Holidays
Amid the celebrations of the season, we want to take time to thank everyone involved during 2011 in bringing so much good fortune to the Idea Grove.
With unprecedented support from our clients, the Idea Grove had a truly transformative year. We added five new faces to the roster and moved to larger quarters — not once, but twice! Continue Reading
CLIENT NEWS: ShopSavvy a Magnet for Holiday Shopping News Coverage
The media buzz just keeps growing for ShopSavvy, which has been featured in hundreds of television newscasts all over the country covering the holiday shopping blitz.
ShopSavvy is an amazing story any time of the year. The leading mobile shopping assistant has been downloaded more than 20 million times by people looking for unparalleled access to products at the lowest-available prices.
In 2011, the smartphone app got even better, with new features including one-tap purchasing and social shopping, which lets users share their buying successes. ShopSavvy also got $7 million in funding from several sources, including venture investor Eduardo Saverin, who helped start Facebook. All that comes amid the steep growth in the popularity of mobile shopping.
Television stations around the country pounced on the ShopSavvy story, using b-roll footage, a digital newsroom and a promotional video, all produced under the direction of the Idea Grove. ShopSavvy executives at both of the company’s offices were interviewed by network affiliates — Alexander Muse by KTVT in Dallas and John Boyd by KNTV in San Francisco.
And the coverage just keeps on coming:
- CBS, The Early Show
- ABC News, Money Matters
- NY1, New York
- WCBS, New York
- WFLD, Chicago
- WGN, Chicago
- KTVT, Dallas
- KDAF, Dallas
- KNTV, San Francisco
- KGO, San Francisco
- KRON, San Francisco
- WAGA, Atlanta
- WXIA, Atlanta
- KHOU, Houston
- KONG, Seattle
- KING, Seattle
- KNXV, Phoenix
- KPHO, Phoenix
- WFLA, Tampa, Fla.
- WFTS, Tampa
- KSTP, Minneapolis
- KMSP, Minneapolis
- KARE, Minneapolis
- WEWS, Cleveland
- WKMG, Orlando, Fla.
- KXTV, Sacramento, Calif.
- KTVI, St. Louis
- N14N, Raleigh, N.C.
- WBTV, Charlotte, N.C.
- WISH, Indianapolis
- KNSD, San Diego
- KMBC, Kansas City, Mo.
- WDAF, Kansas City
- KSHB, Kansas City
- WSYX, Columbus, Ohio
- WBNS, Columbus
- WITI, Milwaukee, Wis.
- WCPO, Cincinnati
- KENS, San Antonio, Texas
- KABB, San Antonio
- WPTV, West Palm Beach, Fla.
- WCFT, Birmingham, Ala.
- WPMT, Harrisburg, Pa.
- WXMI, Grand Rapids, Mich.
- WZZM, Grand Rapids
- KFOR, Oklahoma City
- KAUT, Oklahoma City
- KASA, Albuquerque, N.M.
- KNVA, Austin, Texas
- KXAN, Austin
- KEYE, Austin
- WPRI, Providence, R.I.
- WNAC, Providence
- KOKI, Tulsa, Okla.
- KOTV, Tulsa
- KJRH, Tulsa
- WKRG, Mobile, Ala.
- WFTX, Fort Myers, Fla.
- KREN, Spokane, Wash.
- WTOL, Toledo, Ohio
- WNWO, Toledo
- WPFO, Portland, Maine
- KBSI, Paducah, Ky.
- WISC, Madison, Wis.
- KWTX, Waco, Texas
- KBTX, Waco
- WSBT, South Bend, Ind.
- WNDU, South Bend
- WBTW, Florence, S.C.
- KHAS, Lincoln, Neb.
- WRDW, Augusta, Ga.
- WDAY, Fargo, N.D.
- WMGT, Macon, Ga.,
- WSFA, Montgomery, Ala.
- KBAK, Bakersfield, Calif.
- KBFX, Bakersfield
- KSNT, Topeka, Kan.
- KPSP, Palm Springs, Calif.
- KOSA, Odessa, Texas
- KMIT, Rochester, Minn.
- KSWY, Casper, Wyo.
- KLST, San Angelo, Texas
- WLIO, Lima, Ohio
CLIENT NEWS: ShopSavvy Shines in High-Profile Media Coverage
Media outlets across the country jumped on the news that ShopSavvy, the leading mobile shopping assistant, has secured $7 million in funding from several investors.
Among them is venture investor Eduardo Saverin, who helped start Facebook. Not surprisingly, he talked about the product with his nearly 900,000 Facebook subscribers:
“Have you tried Shopsavvy yet? If not, please do and let me know what you think! Excited to see how technology can make us more efficient consumers going forward.”
The news media got excited as well. Dozens of stories soon appeared in traditional media such as Forbes, The Dallas Morning News and San Francisco Chronicle, as well as on online heavyweights like TechCrunch, CNet, AllThingsD and Digital Media Wire.
That national exposure comes after recent stories about ShopSavvy by three high-profile broadcast and technology outlets.
- On Anderson Cooper’s new daytime talk show, the highly watched host presented “How To Save A Buck,” with money coach Clark Howard. Howard introduced Cooper to ShopSavvy, “One of the ones I love, … it’s so cool.”
- On Mashable, Forrester Research’s J.P. Gownder highlights ShopSavvy in his article, How Brands Can Maintain Loyalty Among Fickle Digital Consumers. Gownder describes ShopSavvy as a smartphone app that “literally expands buyers’ choices on the spot.”
- On GigaOm, mobile apps analyst Dr. Phil Hendrix prominently mentioned ShopSavvy in his post, Location 2.0: making dollars and sense of SoLoMo (a portmanteau of SOcial, LOcal and MObile media). Hendrix observes that ShopSavvy is “changing the way consumers shop.”
