The Silver Anvil Award:Iams Home 4 the Holidays

The Icon of Best Public Relations Practices The Silver Anvil, symbolizing the forging of

public opinion, is awarded annually to organizations that have successfully addressed a contemporary issue with exemplary professional skill, creativity and resourcefulness.

The public relations profession’s most prestigious honor, the Silver Anvil Award acknowledges the very highest level of achievement and is the established icon of the “best of the best” public relations practices.

Silver Anvil Awards Are:

Respected. Representative. Rigorous. Rewarding.

http://www.prsa.org/Awards/SilverAnvil

Iams Pet Food Company

Iams produces dog and cat food and prides itself in healthy, prebiotic pet food to ensure premium protection for a healthy diet

http://www.iams.com/iams/premium-pet-food.jsp

PainePR This Public Relations firm has four core

values: › Cooperation› Openness› Fairness› Excellence

These principles are part of the fabric of the company and are reflected in all PainePR’s operating practices.

Iams Home 4 the Holidays

Iams’ goal for 2008 was to find one million homeless pets a home in three short months› The campaign was a major success, finding

1.2 million pets a home in the three month time span

Research

Before preliminary research, PainePR had to address many challenges along the way:› Enlist support from national broadcast media

to let the public know about the pet adoption program

› Alter the public’s negative opinion on pets from shelters to give it a positive spin

› Deflect animal activists that tried to place Iams Pet Food Company in a negative light

› Stay within the budget and find creative ways to give the program publicity on such a tight budget.

Research

To gain national broadcast media coverage of the program, PainePR had to first research multiple pet adoption programs, celebrity spokespeople, and advertising costs to determine the best route to take to reach the goal. The firm also researched the already-existing partnerships and the past successes of similar programs.

Research

PainePR also mapped out the public’s feeling toward Iams, pet adoption, and the Iams Home for the Holidays campaign. In doing so, this allowed the firm to assess the needs and wants of their target audience. The more a firm knows their audience, the better the firm can provide for them.

Research

PainePR also implemented research on the animal activist groups working against Iams. To deflect the actions against the program and Iams Pet Food Company, PainePR had to determine why these groups wanted to work against the campaign. Just as a company must know their customers and supporters, they must also understand their adversaries.

Action

Objectives: Ensure at least 1 million pets are

adopted during three-month campaign Reach consumers through national

media placements featuring a celebrity spokesperson

Leverage online influencers through editorial coverage and conversations

Objectives

Bring traffic to www.IH4TH.com

Increase number of participating animal shelter and rescue organizations

Reach consumers with Iams pet food sample, along with health an wellness education materials

Strategies

Secure an A-list celebrity to share personal pet adoption story

Book celebrity on a major broadcast show to kick off the program

Follow up with national press conference, media junket, and two-day media tour

Strategies

Create an engaging online campaign

Produce Template materials to reinforce awareness for the market of participating shelters

Crisis Management

Budget: $650,000 excluding celebrity fees

Communication

Celebrity Spokesperson: Felicity Huffman

Adopted her dog, Tucker

Spoke for the IH4TH, on The Oprah Winfrey Show

Radio messages

Communication

Print ads: US Weekly, USA Today

Blogging for IH4TH

Iam’s Online Website

Press Kit

Evaluation

Media Impressions Goal- 250 million Total- 400 million

Hits on website IH4TH.com 78% increase during Oprah 66% increase during Rachael Ray

Evaluation

Audience Awareness 100 positive reviews on blogs

Audience Attitudes 83% positive sentiment

http://petcarebev.com/2009/10/15/iams-home-4-the-holidays-week-2-totals/

Evaluation

Audience Action 1,202,751 pets were adopted

500 animal organizations joined in the effort

More than one million Iams Care Packages were distributed

Analysis

We didn’t like: blogging aspect We did like: the plethora of media

outlets

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrAwjZdSdnE

The End