About Higher Colleges of Technology

My contribution to the project is classified into three categories considering the timelines:We will work together as the Green Step movement campaign team to successfully carry out a corporate communication plan. To organize the event and help the firm or corporation reach its corporate goals as a client and as a campaign team, we will each play a particular role as team members.

In my capacity as a Media Relations Executive, I will support the campaign by promoting the event and securing as much publicity as possible in both conventional media and contemporary social media. My contribution to the project is classified into three categories considering the timelines: before the event, on the day of the event and after the event. Nonetheless, some activities go throughout the lifespan of the event.

Before the event, my profession involves the following activities:

Choose the most useful social media platforms based on the goals of the campaign and the target audience.

Create social media accounts to represent the event.

Create social media messages in line with the campaign’s goals and objectives.

Utilize social media to publicize the event and create awareness about students’ accomplishments.

Use social media to drive interest in the event.

Create a list of mainstream media to invite to the event.

Create press kit.

Create press invitation to the event

On the day of the event, my profession involves the following activities:

Update social media audience with news and progress of event.

Be available to communicate with social media audience most of the time.

Receive members of the media on the day and facilitate interviews.

After the event, my profession involves the following activities:

Posting pictures, videos and reviews on social media platforms.

Distributing the campaign materials to other schools and companies to maintain the communication chain.

Some of the activities that stretch the lifespan of the event include:

Make sure you don’t break the communication cycle for a long time.

Communicate with ADMC’s media relations coordinator.

Write press releases in English and Arabic.

Arrange for student interviews with magazines/newspapers/broadcast.

The Client/corporation:

Name: Zone Media Group

Website: http://zonegroup.ae

About the corporation:

Zone Media Group (ZMG) is an integrated media, marketing and design group. It was established in the year 2006. It is an integration of several sister companies and other strategic alliances that is tailor made to deliver the highest quality standards in the industry. Zone Media Group is focused on providing integrated and multifaceted Advertising, Media and Public Relations campaigns, interior, exterior venue design together with Conference and Exhibition management. This choice was informed by the

Define the issue?

5 Green Steps is a campaign towards environmental awareness and conservation. The main objective of the campaign is to enhance the target audience’s awareness and knowledge on the issue of conserving the environment. Environmental campaign aims to raise awareness, create understanding and encourage behavior change among key stakeholders in the target client setting. The most significant issues the campaign aims at addressing include:

Insufficient opportunities to predispose employees towards environmentally friendly behavior.

Few opportunities for recognition and reward for environmentally friendly behavior y employees.

Insufficient reasons to believe that adopting new environmentally-friendly behavior will result in a better quality of life /work.

Cultural differences, apathy, support or resistance to environmentally friendly messages ‘green messages’

Green initiatives are either low priority or sporadic.

Little accountability or responsibility when it comes to environmental awareness and conservation.

Infrequent reporting or lack of transparency around the benefits of environmental conservation.

5 Green Steps aims at steering companies towards reducing bad habits that employees do on routine basis including spending too much papers, keeping the PC on while not using it and leaving lights on for long hours even during daylight.

Target audience?

Primary Audience

The 5 Green Steps campaign is primarily targeted at the employees and other stakeholders of the Zone Media Group Employees. Special focus is put on the day to day office users of the company. Demographically, both male and female audiences between 20 to 45 years are targeted. This group was targeted since they have complete access to the office setting thus they are in total control of most of the office facilities which are crucial and play a part in the environmental friendliness campaign.

Secondary Audience

The secondary audience of this campaign shall be the customers of the Zone Media Group. By visiting the company premises, they will get access to the campaign paraphernalia including the stickers, banners and fliers. They will also receive the green message and help to spread it outside the Zone Media Group offices and in the society at large.

My role

The main purpose of a Media Relation Executive is to maximize and increase a positive coverage of the event, and bring the campaign to the real target group so that it has the desired effect. A Media Relations Executive contributes to the campaign by doing promotion of the event and getting as much coverage for the event as possible on the media platforms both traditional media and modern social media. As a Media Relations Executive for the 5 Green Steps Campaign my role includes:

Performing research about the media presence of the client (Zone Media Group). This includes a detailed outline of the social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) and portfolios (websites) that the client company has. It also entails their articles and advertisements in newspapers, magazines and journals.

Researching and finding out what the client company lacks in terms of media presence as per the online marketing outlines. This helps the campaign team focus on such aspects in order to reach out to a wider audience thus attract more people to the event.

I also propose solutions to the campaign team and the clients regarding their media presence and what should be done in order to improve and enhance the outreach of the company in order to attract more audience to the event and the green campaign.

Traditional media:

The last updates of the company on traditional media was on December 22, 2013 (Gulf News ) and on March 7, 2014 ( The National ). Specifically, my plans for the traditional media presence are:

To plan an effective communication process among interested media to cover the event.

To plan an effective communication process among various stakeholders including community members.

To prepare a press kit containing materials and information of media members, press publications and articles, as well as previous press releases

To prepare press releases in English and Arabic about the event

To create a list of media to invite for the coverage.

To prepare event invitation for the media, stakeholder and target audience.

To arrange interviews with the media regarding the event

Social media:

Specific plans for the social media presence are:

To use both current social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter and old media such as newspapers, magazines and journals to promote the concept and the event.

To study social media activity and presence of the company and the campaign agenda in order to make it tailor made for platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

To create new social media messages for interactions and communication before, during and after the event.

To avail periodic updates on the progress of the event and the campaign on social media platforms.

To formulate a special hashtag on Twitter and other social media applications for communication and marketing of the campaign and event.

To communicate with social media audience and spread the agenda of the campaign online for the online audience.

To create a massive group of followers on twitter and other social media platforms for purposes of marketing and audience outreach.

To prepare messages for following and followers

Goals

The overall or broader purpose of the campaign and the event are:

To create awareness on environmental conservation.

To evangelize various ways in which employees can change their behavior in order to save the environment in their day to day activities in and outside the office setting.

To create more opportunities to predispose employees towards environmentally friendly behavior.

To create more opportunities for recognition and reward for environmentally friendly behavior among employees.

To evangelize the reasons why adopting new environmentally-friendly behavior will result in a better quality of life /work.

To avert cultural differences, apathy, support or resistance to environmentally friendly messages ‘green messages’

To prioritize green initiatives and enhance accountability and responsibility when it comes to environmental awareness and conservation.

To steer companies towards reducing bad habits that employees do on routine basis including spending too much papers, keeping the PC on while not using it and leaving lights on for long hours even during daylight among others.

Objectives:

As a Media Relations Executive, some of the activities planned to achieve the goals are:

To create a specific twitter hashtag

To create a Facebook, Instagram and Twitter portfolio for the event

To create a website for customer support and promotion.

To publish posters, fliers, and banners

Pre-promotion, Event day promotion, Post event promotion activities

Timeline:

Week

Activity planned

Details of the activity

Others

Week 4

Brainstorming media activities Searching media tools

Identifying media tools

Week 5

Testing media messages

Formulating media messages templates and samples

Week 6

Analyzing media messages and tools

Finalizing and drafting final media messages

Week 7

Starting media activities

Press kit, press releases, launch hashtag etc….

Week 8

Organize activities on the event day

Receiving invited media coverage parties.

Organizing and overseeing live interviews.

Live updates on social media platforms.

Week 9

Post event media activities

Post videos on YouTube/websites.

SWOT Analysis:

Strength:

Increased social media following thus more attendees

More attendees will lead to greater environmental awareness.

Ease of sending invites to potential attendees and audiences

Promotion of easy communication and updates during the event.

Weakness:

Not all Zone Media Group employees are frequent social media users.

Risk of exposing too much of important company information to the public.

Risk of exposing the company and other attendees of the event to cyber threats.

Risk of cyber bulling and stigmatization and possible law suits.

Opportunities:

Social media presence and following may attract investors and sponsors.

Creates a chance to generate revenue through social media marketing.

Wider outreach creates opportunities through sale of other auxiliary products such as promotional T-shirts, mugs among others

Ease of advertisements about the event activities and expected outcomes

Threats:

Insufficient social media presence by most target audiences.

Need for organizational privacy

Threat of further action such as law suits

Risk of public reprieve such as stigmatization and cyber bullying

Conclusion:

In summary, the purpose of the media relations executive is to ensure a comprehensive media coverage of the 5 Green Steps Campaign. It encompasses both traditional media and modern social media. It is suitable in creating awareness about the event and attracting audiences for the actual event. It also creates materials such as stickers, flyers and banners for creating promotional presence and pushing the green campaign agenda. The effects of all this is an increased viewership and thus enhanced awareness which results into a successful implementation of the objectives of the green movement. The outcome is a behavioral change among employees of Zone Media Group and improved environmental awareness thus conservation of the environment in the employees day to day office activities.

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