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Launching Microsoft CRM in the Cloud

In January 2011, Microsoft Corp. announced the global availability of its newest Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software suite – Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online. Although an already established name in the Australian CRM marketplace, this was Microsoft Australia’s first cloud-based version in its Dynamics CRM product portfolio.

To execute a successful local launch, Howorth had to consider a number of factors, including a highly competitive local CRM marketplace and how to make this global launch relevant and interesting to our local media.

In preparation, our efforts focused on two key elements to support the release. Firstly, securing an Australian partner and customer to support the launch to give it a local flavour. And secondly, providing key media with an in-depth briefing and demonstration of the product, to show the benefits of the product and ensure the key messages landed in print.

As well as issuing a local news release to media – including the support of both an Australian customer and partner – Howorth also organised and hosted a CRM Online media workshop at Microsoft Australia’s offices. Six key Australian journalists attended and received a comprehensive overview of the news and product, from both a local and corporate viewpoint. To round off the workshop a Q&A session was hosted with the local customer and partner, providing the journalists with real examples of a customer and partner embracing the new product and an overview of the benefits they had already experienced. Howorth also secured nine break-out media interviews for Microsoft, customer and partner executives.

Almost 20 pieces of local coverage appeared throughout launch week and the news was also pushed out via Microsoft’s social media channels, including Twitter and blog posts.

Key themes picked up by media included the competitive landscape, pricing, customer offers, channel partner opportunity and the new product features. The vast majority of coverage was positive and Microsoft executives, partners and a local customer were all quoted extensively.

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New leadership at Ogilvy PR Australia

Case Study: Australia – Who Do You Think You Really Are?

Issue: As the generation gap widens and the population ages rapidly, Australia is in the midst of an identity crisis. Traditionally, family history has been passed down by our grandparents, however, as they pass away, so does their knowledge and many adults now know surprisingly little about their family history. To assist in closing the gap, Ancestry.com.au has worked over the last four years collating the Australian, Birth, Marriage and Death Indexes.

For the first time ever online, the records of those who were born, married or died in Australia from 1788 through to 1985 have been assembled into one fully searchable database.

Challenge: Researching a family tree has typically been a difficult process, involving long hours poring over microfiche in libraries and requiring a significant financial investment to obtain the necessary records. Additionally, this activity has traditionally been the activity of older generations. The launch of this collection makes it easier to research your family tree, and because of the depth of information included generates  mainstream appeal.

Insight: Through research it became clear that Australians did have a passion to discover where they came from and who their ancestors were. However many did not know much, if anything on their family tree pass their grandparents.

Creative Idea: With the information available in the collection and results from the research, the campaign idea focused on asking Australians to rediscover “who they really are”, in order to drive a renewed interest in genealogy.

To bring this theme to life, we dug through the collection to uncover multiple human interest stories which would resonate with modern day Australians. We also used the allure of ‘celebrity names’ to help Australians understand the depth and breadth of the type of records available.

By asking ‘who you really are’, it encouraged speculation on famous connections. Including the Murdoch Family (Head of News Corp), Sir Donald Bradman (Famous Cricketer), Henry Lawson (Poet) & Edmund Barton (Australia’s First Prime Minister).

Campaign:  The campaign featured a strong overall communications programme which included a digital and online strategy, backed by strong radio and print coverage to help drive discussion about family history and to set the news agenda on launch day.

Under embargo, we negotiated a series of radio, print, online, TV and newswire exclusives with Australia’s most prominent and influential journalists. Additionally, Ancestry.com.au actively used Twitter and Facebook to promote where and when you could hear Ancestry.com.au speaking about family history – either at events or on radio. This included posting coverage and links on when they could listen to live radio interviews.

Outcome: Overall, the campaign generated over 70 pieces of coverage (including 15 radio interviews) and reached over 5 million Australians during the two week campaign.

The collection launch resulted in Ancestry.com.au receiving its highest number of unique browsers to the site in one day. After the campaign, the website continued to receive a high volume of browsers and registrations – with registrations for the free trial membership increasing by 348 per cent from the previous year, and paid membership by 246 per cent.

The campaign has firmly placed family history back at the forefront of conversations  and at the same time established Ancestry.com.au as the leading authority for family history.

Ancestry Gillard/Abbott Family Trees

Challenge: To capitalise on the interest and broad media attention surrounding the 2010 Australian Federal Election, Ancestry.com.au set Ogilvy PR’s business and technology public relations agency, Howorth, the challenge to find an opportunity to get the family history website into the debate.

Idea: Research the family history of the two main candidates to discover their family pedigree and to investigate if there was anything in their family history that may have formed the basis for their political ideologies. This would create an interesting news angle, with human interest, and quite different from the traditional election coverage.

Insight: Research undertaken by Ancestry.com.au unveiled that for the first time in over 87 years, Australia’s elected Prime Minister would not be Australian born, with both Gillard and Abbott both from the UK.

Campaign: Working closely with Ancestry.com.au to research and pitch this unique insight to the media, Howorth negotiated an exclusive opportunity with Channel Nine’s Today Show. This was followed by both print and radio outreach, with many interviews conducted under embargo.

Results: The media outreach resulted in more than 44 ‘on message’ stories, including radio, television, print and online. Highlights included a five minute live-to-air TV interview on Australia’s highest rating morning show, the Today Show. The team also secured a full page feature article in The Daily Telegraph and an 18 minute interview with 2GB radio in Sydney.

In total the public relations campaign reached more than 3.4 million Australians, highlighting the value of taking a topical news issue and finding a related new insight.

Howorth receives Highly Commended award for “Telstra Productivity Indicator” campaign

At last Monday night’s national PRIA Golden Target Awards in Darwin, Howorth received more recognition for its excellent public relations work.

This time, hot on the heels of the its Commended Award in PRIA’s New South Wales state awards, the Telstra Productivity Indicator campaign went one better and received a Highly Commended award in the Business-to-Business marketing category. This campaign, which was in its second year, reinforces Telstra’s Enterprise & Government position as a thought leader in technology, business and productivity. The campaign has successfully positioned the company as a trusted advisor, offering strategic advice, industry insights and world-class technology to enterprise and government.

This campaign has been Howorth’s most awarded, having previously scooped PRIA awards when first launched in early 2009, and going on to get international recognition.

Howorth receives Honourable Mention for Microsoft Windows 7 launch

Howorth has received an Honourable Mention at the 2010 Platinum PR Awards. The award is for Microsoft Australia Windows 7 Launch: “Windows 7 Was My Idea”, in the product launch category. Following the lukewarm response from business users, technology influencers and the general public in Australia toward Microsoft’s Windows Vista in 2006, Howorth was engaged in May 2009 to generate buzz and build excitement for the upcoming launch of Windows 7 in October 2009 in Australia. Howorth’s tactics included negotiating for Windows 7 Review Code to be cover mounted on five of Australia’s top ranking PC magazines to build buzz among technology influencers in the lead-up to launch.

The Platinum PR Awards provide PR professionals the opportunity to showcase their best communications initiatives of the year and salute outstanding performance by individuals. Presented by PR News, the highly competitive program honours the best PR campaigns and smartest communications initiatives of the year.

Congratulations to the team involved.

Telstra Productivity Indicator scoops another award for Howorth

Last night at the Public Relations Institute of Australia’s (PRIA) annual NSW State Awards for Excellence event, Howorth was the proud recipient of another award.

This time, we received a Highly Commended award in the Business-to-Business marketing category for the “Telstra Productivity Indicator” campaign, launched for the second consecutive year in February 2010. The goals of the campaign are to demonstrate Telstra Enterprise & Government as a leader in technology, business and productivity , as well as successfully position the company from a transactional leader to a trusted advisor offering strategic advice, industry insights and world-class technology to the C-Suite across public and private enterprises in Australia.

Highlighting how tough it is to win a PRIA Award, Howorth was the only winner in the Business-to-Business category. As a result of this award, the campaign is now in the running for PRIA’s Golden Target national awards, which will be unveiled at the national conference in Darwin on 25 October.

Congratulations team and fingers crossed for more recognition!

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