A Fresh Approach to Diversity Public Relations
COMPANY
Established in 2013, Blake’s Hard Cider is an independent, family-owned and operated Michigan craft cidery. Located on an 800-acre orchard in Armada, Mich., Blake’s Hard Cider was founded on the values of its more than 70-year farming roots.
PROJECT
Project: Blake’s Hard Cider, the largest craft hard cider brand in the Midwest, planned an inspired beverage concept launch called Rainbow Seeker that sought to support leading LGBTQ civil rights organization, The Human Rights Campaign® (HRC), via a portion of sales proceeds. The limited-run production included 120,000 12-ounce cans distributed to 19 states. Blake’s turned to Lambert to build awareness and drive engagement with the brand via earned media visibility for the launch.
TACTICS
Over a one-month period, we focused on an earned media program that would drive optics for the product as well as the cause. This included:
- Social media content, videos and other multimedia content was developed in concert with Blake’s to highlight the unique artwork on pack as well as the important work of the HRC
- Lambert team developed fact sheets, talking points a press release and media kit. In addition, we took the lead on media research, pitching, syndicated content, media pitching and interview coordination
- Team Lambert coordinated regional media drops to targeted broadcast media
RESULTS
The media response was overwhelmingly positive with multiple regional and national stories, including:
- More than 125 unique stories were generated for the launch
- The campaign generated 448 total mentions with a total reach of 76 million users
- Nearly 300 social media mentions occurred within the first 24 hours, with 94% of total comments related to the campaign either positive or neutral
- The effort generated a publicity value of more than $200,000, roughly 10x ROI
