All posts tagged PR

Top 3 trends in energy PR

By blogger on

Energy PR trend 1:

Integration of conference, social media, and traditional media. To illustrate this trend, let me tell a story around one of our clients–MyCelx, a company that removes oil from water streams to 99.9% purity, and works globally. This year for Offshore Technology Conference, we submitted an application for their consideration as New Technology Spotlight. As a first time OTC attendee, the company was thrilled to be selected by the Society of Petroleum Engineers for this honor–which given the competition level, USED to be enough to drive booth traffic and create a terrific event. But in today’s more integrated age, close coordination with the on-site newspaper, with the pre-show weekly enewsletter, and Twitter outreach on site is what created an outstanding presence. No one thing can be identified as a “game changer” in today’s energy public relations successes–given a great product or service offering, the game-changer tends to be “integration.”

Energy PR trend 2:

Social Isn’t Stupid. To put it bluntly, while you can hear that the decision makers in energy aren’t on social “yet” and so it’s a waste of effort, two key groups ARE on social media–major business and trade journalists, and energy consumers. Enough said. Not all publicity is designed to reach only a c-level executive at a multi-billion dollar company. One of Write2Market’s energy PR clients was recently interviewed for an hour during Energy Week on MSNBC–terrific placement for investors and building the firm’s value. One of the anchor’s last questions was, what’s your Twitter handle. He created one right after the segment.

Energy PR trend 3:

Weave Awards. Often overlooked, as different media properties such as Forbes, Inc Magazine, Crain’s, and Platt’s are pressured to distinguish themselves and develop deeper reader followings, one of the avenues is by creating a signature award. Winning these awards takes a terrific application, but our energy public relations clients like Mansfield Oil have found awards to be a key component of building better relationships across the industry. For example, by winning both the top energy award from Information Week 500 and one of the top 10 CIO awards, the downstream distribution giant has hard evidence to help convince the Fortune 250 that their IT infrastructure is second to none in the sector. Not only that, but they get “in the room” with other CIOs and industry leaders with whom relationships can be forged.

What’s your favorite trend? We’d love to find out! Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, or email.

Energy PR:

As the leading Atlanta PR firm, we at Write2Market evolve and constantly monitor the progressions of numerous industries. With energy PR, we have offered some insight in how we observe the industry to be headed in a direction of increasingly integrated media platforms. Contact us today to learn how we create industry leaders.

Article optimization services provided by Atlanta SEO Company VayuMedia. VayuMedia offers customized search engine optimization strategies to domestic and international companies.

Are Energy Companies and Brand Marketing Strategy Like Oil and Water

By blogger on

Every so often, an oil company experiences an environmental catastrophe of disastrous proportions. As evidenced by the recent Gulf oil spill, the Exxon Valdez oil spill and countless other eco-disasters, these occurrences are a tragic occupational hazard of the energy industry. In theory, they should not be a surprise — anymore than an earthquake in California would be a shocker. Of course, a big enough tremor in Los Angeles will generate nationwide news coverage. The question from a brand marketing standpoint is simple: is there anything oil companies can do, given the probability of an oil spill?

In order to answer this question, it is helpful to back up and look at the consumers’ view of the industry. When it comes to the consumer, oil companies have a unique advantage over, say, a perfume company. This is that the oil companies offer a necessity. Everyone needs oil; perfume is a luxury.

From a branding and marketing standpoint, this advantage actually has negative connotations. The oil companies are really big and really profitable — even when the economy is in the proverbial toilet. In the deep recession year of 2009, when almost everyone was suffering financially, the oil companies made billions of dollars in profits. A 2006 FTC study of gas price manipulation found that the record increases in gasoline prices were “not substantially attributable to higher costs.” It seems the oil companies always take advantage of their financial opportunities with no regard to consumer goodwill. These companies are often viewed as monopolistic, money-grubbing, price-gouging, predatory goliaths. In a 2008 Harris poll of 20 major industries, only the tobacco industry had a lower rating than the oil companies on the topic of how good or bad a job they perform in serving the needs of consumers.

You could say, from a branding perspective, energy companies are already starting off on the wrong foot. After all, what is there to love about an oil company? Do you trust them? Do you have any affinity to any oil company? Do they do anything for you as a person? Do they make you feel good in any way? This makes it all the more difficult for an oil company to perform branding and marketing tactics that prepare for the worst. The energy industry has to rank among the worst PR and branding industries. We know all about the 1989 Exxon Valdez nightmare which was widely considered the worst corporate PR fiasco of all time. But what has the industry done to counter its image since then?

One could argue they actually have made some positive strides. Let’s take the current Gulf oil spill. BP has a real disaster on its hands, and they have clearly learned a lesson from Exxon’s PR disaster. The CEO of Exxon was nowhere to be found until six days after the Valdez disaster. When he finally did appear, it was only to hold a press conference to deny responsibility to disclose the plan to clean up the mess. He also blamed the media for turning the spill into a big deal. His refusal of media interviews and complete lack of remorse highlighted one of the worst PR gaffes in history. It conveyed an “ivory tower-esque” tone of arrogance. To his credit, the CEO of BP, Tony Hayward, has learned from Exxon’s PR mistakes and has been on air and is taking full financial responsibility for the spill cleanup.