2013!prsa!silver!anvil!awards!€¦ · 2!!!! 2013!prsa!silver!anvil!entry!submission!...

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2013 PRSA Silver Anvil Entry Submission

Microsoft – Marketing Business to Business/Other

2013 PRSA Silver Anvil Awards

Microsoft – Marketing Business to Bussiness/Other

Microsoft takes cloud talk from the server room to the board room with “Cloud Computing’s Role in Job Creation” campaign

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Situation Analysis By January 2012, the trend of cloud computing had been widely reported in the tech press. However, it was still not making a dent in business conversations. Given the complex nature of cloud computing, and a wide misunderstanding of cloud computing outside of the server room, Microsoft charged Airfoil with creating more business demand for and conversation about the cloud in the board room. The need to change the cloud computing conversation from a tech talk to a B2B discussion was crucial. Meanwhile, as the U.S. unemployment rate reached 10 percent, businesses were seeking any advantage to save money, free up resources and innovate. This economic situation, which was widely covered across business press, afforded an opportunity to illustrate how cloud computing could be part of the solution. What Microsoft needed was evidence, as well as local market relevance for business decisions makers. The challenge to Airfoil was to create a Microsoft-‐led conversation geared toward business decision makers about cloud computing as an engine to help to restore economic health through job creation.

Research As part of the campaign, Microsoft commissioned a study through global market intelligence firm International Data Corporation (IDC) to secure statistics and insights that would inform storylines about cloud computing’s role in job creation. Given that the data was global in nature, Airfoil worked with IDC to create U.S. and key market data slices to illustrate local relevance of the campaign, which was critical in generating reporter interest and high-‐value coverage. Also critical to the success of the campaign was third-‐party validation, which is a mandate to achieve what Microsoft considers a Top Story outcome, the highest measure of quality for media outcomes for the company. Once local market data slices were created, Airfoil ranked cities with the most opportunity and created custom storylines aligned to local market employment statistics to illustrate a business challenge and potential long term solution, which put Microsoft in the driver’s seat of the conversation.

Although Microsoft’s initial focus was on a global study, Airfoil’s U.S.-‐focused enterprise program needed to land high-‐value coverage in top dailies and business publications. Therefore it was imperative to have localized information, references and statistics. Airfoil worked with Microsoft/IDC to build a local U.S. component of the study that included research in 13 major metro cities (Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, New York, Detroit, Houston, Washington, D.C., Minneapolis, Denver, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Phoenix). Airfoil also worked with Microsoft partners and customers to source third-‐party references that could validate the study findings.

Planning Airfoil’s job was to disrupt a traditional tech conversation and create a new dialogue among audiences who didn’t quite understand the subject matter or its impact on business. The objectives were to:

• Place Microsoft at the forefront of business conversations around cloud computing and its economic impact in spurring job creation

• Position local Microsoft executives as thought leaders on the topic of cloud computing and its ability to foster growth and innovation among all sectors of the economy

• Showcase Microsoft’s ability to deliver a variety of cloud computing solutions • Land 22 quality pieces of proactive media coverage in key U.S. markets that were a focus of Microsoft

from a sales perspective (Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, New York, Detroit, Houston, Washington, D.C., Minneapolis, Denver, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Phoenix) with an average PRIME score of 115*

• Integrate with global PR teams and business groups to ensure holistic message consistency for Microsoft

*Microsoft’s proprietary PRIME measurement system evaluates media outcomes against advocacy, influence of the outlet and total impact of a media placement. The PRIME score reflects the overall tone and success in landing key messages, as well as third party validation or quotes, and any action communicated in the placement. PRIME is currently used by all Microsoft business and product groups and 40 subsidiaries.

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Although perceived as a global company, Microsoft has deep roots in major U.S. markets across the country. One of the challenges for Airfoil is to create opportunities that illustrate this local business partner philosophy through PR and communications campaigns. Additionally, to reach Microsoft’s targeted customer base, in this case local business decision makers at enterprise companies in priority U.S. sales markets, the “Cloud Computing’s Role in Job Creation” campaign would need to leverage local business media (print, online, broadcast) as primary communication vehicles. Airfoil would also leverage various Microsoft-‐owned channels, including the Microsoft News Center, hyper local blogs in key U.S. markets of focus, and executive blogs, to communicate messages, evidence and research findings to support the claim that cloud computing is a business imperative that drives innovation and creates hiring opportunities for enterprise companies.

Execution Tying the commissioned research to local markets and focusing on job growth positioned local Microsoft executives as thought leaders regarding the benefits of cloud solutions for business operations, efficiencies and growth potential. Airfoil created opportunities for Microsoft spokespeople to discuss how cloud is more than an IT solution; it can make a real difference for businesses: powering productivity, cutting costs and helping to restore economic health.

Airfoil launched the U.S. campaign on March 5, 2012, on the heels of the global study announcement that appeared on Microsoft’s News Center. Airfoil localized the content for hyper local blogs targeting local business decision makers in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles and Minneapolis.

All of these materials supported proactive media engagements targeting local business in 13 of the largest DMAs, which are Microsoft’s priority U.S. sales geographies. Airfoil secured interviews for local spokespeople from Microsoft, and leveraged third-‐party validation from IDC, as well as local customers and partners, with print, online and broadcast reporters. Additionally, Airfoil drafted contributed content and op-‐eds for business publications and daily newspapers, allowing the team to control the message and provide a clear call to action for the audience.

Evaluation The local “Cloud Computing’s Role in Job Creation” campaign resulted in significant B2B media results. The campaign resulted in 41 unique pieces of high-‐value media coverage in Microsoft’s most critical U.S. sales markets, surpassing the original campaign coverage objective.

Among the 41 top-‐tier metro stories secured were features in Boston Globe, Chicago Sun-‐Times, Dallas Morning News, Los Angeles Daily News, Denver Post, Detroit News, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Washington Times, KYW-‐AM (Philadelphia), WSB-‐AM (Atlanta), and WBBM-‐AM (Chicago).

The voice of local thought leaders came through via op-‐eds and contributed content published by Houston Chronicle, Dallas Chamber of Commerce, Mountain View Chamber of Commerce, Corp! Magazine (Detroit) and Oakland Press (Detroit).

This coverage earned an average PRIME score of 149. PRIME uses a scoring system from 0-‐200 that’s based on a combination of both advocacy (tone, message pickup, quotes and proposed action) and influence of publication (circulation and importance). The PRIME score of 149 was both higher than the baseline average measure of success (110) Microsoft sets for coverage and 30 percent higher than the 115 goal the team established for the campaign.

Additionally, Airfoil’s integration with additional Microsoft PR teams and business groups allowed us to amplify created content through digital channels including the Microsoft News Center, Official Microsoft Blog, Microsoft Business Hub, and on Microsoft’s hyper local blogs in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles and Minneapolis as a breadth strategy to reinforce localized content.

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100 Word Description

On behalf of Microsoft Corporation, often seen as a global technology giant, Airfoil launched a targeted media relations campaign in key U.S. cities to position local executives as business partners working to help companies innovate and grow. Through primary research and customer evidence, Airfoil created compelling storylines targeting local business decision makers about how cloud technology helps create job opportunities and spur economic development. The resulting business coverage across key sales territories demystified cloud solutions and positioned local executives as business coaches helping local companies save money, innovate products and services, and free up resources to hire new talent.

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Execution

2013!prsa!silver!anvil!awards!€¦ · 2!!!! 2013!prsa!silver!anvil!entry!submission!...

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