Category: Design & Construction

Building Brand Awareness for a National Architecture Firm

  • Industry

    • Design & Construction
    • Real Estate

  • Services

    • Brand Awareness & Enhancement
    • Content Generation
    • Media Training
    • Thought Leadership
    • Strategic Communications & Media Relations

A well-known architectural firm wanted to enhance their presence in not only their local markets and industry specialties, but the national arena as well. They turned to THO with its strategic PR expertise to expand their digital footprint while raising the overall brand recognition of the firm.

The Challenge

While the firm was extremely well known in its immediate circles of influence, the goal was to push the firm’s reputation into the next tier. To accomplish this goal, THO developed an intense thought leadership campaign focused on enhancing their national visibility, as well as within their two key regional markets, Kansas City and Dallas. Crucial to the program was raising the visibility of target principals for the firm, and highlighting some of the firm’s key projects.

The Solution

A hand selected group of company leaders were chosen as the initial team. All were media trained and introduced to the overarching program before they were able to participate. A full-scale public relations effort, which centered on an intense media relations campaign, was developed. A thought leadership program was created which highlighted truly insightful and different opinions which were, in turn, presented to each of the firm’s primary markets.

Results

With strategic pitching and a carefully executed media plan, THO successfully secured coverage in some of the biggest regional and national media outlets and highly revered industry trade publications including USA Today, Healthcare Design, Architectural Record, and the Kansas City Business Journal. In the first six months of the campaign, more than 60 media placements were achieved, all of which strengthened their digital footprint and supported social media outreach. The goal of the program, which was to push the firm’s visibility into the next level of influence, was achieved with flying colors.

With the more than 60 placements in major digital outlets totaling an estimated value of more than $700,000, we were able to raise their digital footprint and expand their social media outreach in the most cost-effective way.

Takeaways

As in most cases, for a successful and strategic media relations plan to reach all facets of industry and geographical locations, a well-planned, well thought out timeline and focus is key. Ensuring key company spokespersons receive actual media training on dealing with the press corps is a key element to presenting them as insightful thought leaders.

The Hoyt Organization

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Boosting Recruitment by Promoting Company Culture

  • Industry

    • Commercial & Residential Real Estate
    • Design & Construction
    • Consumer Lifestyle

  • Services

    • Strategic public & media relations
    • Social & digital media
    • Content generation
    • Brand enhancement & awareness
    • Internal Media training

Today, recruiting and retaining top talent in the architecture, construction and engineering industries is a major challenge given the highly competitive job market. One company, Las Vegas-based Forté Specialty Contractors (Forté), decided to focus on their company culture to position their company as a great place to work. This fundamental value is what allows Forté, a specialty general contractor, to deliver the highest quality projects to some of the biggest names in entertainment and hospitality.

The Challenge

The firm turned to THO to create a program designed to attract talented employees and secure their loyalty to promote unique aspects of company culture and employee benefits, in addition to the work itself. The program used traditional media channels as well as social media tools to not only raise their overall visibility but to reach current and prospective employees.

The Solution
To support Forté’s recruitment and employee retention efforts, THO created a two-pronged external communications program, involving both media relations and social media campaigns.

The media relations program was aimed at securing profile features highlighting the CEO’s unique leadership style and company structure. The social media program consisted of generating content for dissemination across the company’s social media platforms, leveraging the credibility of earned media placements to directly reach the organization’s target audiences and include a call to action.

This two-pronged approach was designed to meet the following objectives:

  • Increase awareness of Forté’s unique company culture and structure
  • Communicate to current and potential employees that Forté values its team members
  • Demonstrate that Forté works on cutting-edge projects and is a leader in the industry, making it an exciting place to work

Results

As the number of media outlets covering the ACE industries is limited, THO crafted pitches highlighting Forté’s many areas of in-house expertise to source additional opportunities in publications of diverse subject matters.

The campaign resulted in several profile features highlighting the CEO, his unique management style, the company itself and its many groundbreaking projects. Earned media placements appeared in key regional and national outlets, including those focused on business and finance, construction, hospitality, design, theme parks and more, positioning the company as a leading expert and effectively widening its reach into the pool of qualified and talented industry professionals.

The social media program resulted in a 42 percent increase in LinkedIn followers and a 35 percent increase in Facebook followers. Additionally, the program resulted in multiple employment inquiries and increased positive social engagement among existing employees.

Takeaways

When leveraging content for dissemination via social media, ensure that the tone and information offered are appropriate to each individual outlet. When seeking to boost recruitment efforts, determine what differentiates a company and its leadership from competitors and highlight that. Finally, to expand the reach of a company to its target audiences, find ways to appeal to a variety of audiences outside the “usual suspects.”

The Hoyt Organization

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Corporate change: positioning new company leadership

The Hoyt Organization

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Unveiling a New Housing Model for the Millennial Generation

A new 208-unit multifamily project designed specifically to meet the needs of the Millennial generation was under construction. After conducting in-depth research, the developer embarked on a project branded Elevé, a complex designed specifically to meet the needs of Millennials. But what does that mean? The focus was on creating a development that speaks to how Gen Y lives, not just where.

The complex consisted of micro-units with a focus on amenities such as a 26,000-square-foot sky-deck that housed a full-service dog park, an outdoor movie theatre, a rooftop sports bar with barbeque, two spas, and a number of sustainable features such as electric car charging stations, space for organic gardens, on-site recycling center and parking for 75 bicycles. The developer turned to THO to create a program to unveil this exciting new product.

THE CHALLENGE
At the time of the opening, multifamily development was at an all-time high in Los Angeles. Additionally, Millennials generally prefer living in dense, diverse urban areas over suburban environments. With Elevé located in Glendale, California — a city known for its tranquility ‒ the outreach needed to include key messages regarding the more artistic, vibrant and creative side of Glendale.

THO’S SOLUTION
THO developed a public relations campaign which focused on the impact that Millennials had on the market, as well as the lack of housing for young professionals. It highlighted the complex not only as the place to be for the Millennial generation, but also the surrounding area which included a wide variety of restaurants, nearby shops and a myriad of other amenities within walking distance. In addition, the developer was positioned as the market expert in meeting the needs of the current rental market. The goal was, of course, to get it leased as quickly as possible.

RESULTS
The results were astounding. The open house included a full-scale tour of the project with extensive electronic coverage on several major news stations including KTTV and KABC. The initial launch resulted in feature coverage in the business section of the Los Angeles Times, CurbedLA, Globest.com, The Industry Insider, HousingWire, Bisnow.com, and more, with major pick up in all verticals. In the following six months, over 80 articles were secured in addition to the broadcast coverage.

The project was more than 75% leased within months of the pre-grand opening, and fully leased shortly thereafter.

TAKEAWAYS

  • Highlight a variety of benefits and amenities to appeal to a greater number of potential renters
  • Leverage recent surveys, statistics, market reports, etc. to provide third-party credibility and supporting points to your launch
  • Make sure the visuals are compelling and interesting

The Hoyt Organization

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