Challenge

Hope & Main, Rhode Island’s first food business incubator, came to us for help on two levels. First, many of the nascent local food companies they nurtured had their recipes down pat, but lacked a strong brand identity, needed marketing guidance, and would benefit from media coaching.

Additionally, as a parent company, Hope & Main itself needed a boost with communications, an online marketing strategy, and member coordination in order to present their efforts cohesively to the public and prospective small businesses.

Solution

In 1-on-1 interviews, we worked directly with the bakers and makers to identify their most compelling story elements and define brand messaging. We created a media cheat sheet that summarized each member’s talking points and brand strengths. We helped members identify “pain points,” and the resources they need to grow past them.

We held intense media workshops to equip members with the tools needed to seek out media coverage and to stir up brand awareness on social media channels. In a private boot camp, we taught and facilitated a peer-to-peer model of collaboration that helped members identify and solve common branding problems.

For Hope & Main itself, we guided their media strategy, including writing professional press releases, forming media lists of relevant local print and broadcast outlets, and pushing out news by submitting releases and executing personalized pitching and follow-up.

Results

Earned media coverage for Hope & Main’s brand and mission in numerous prominent local media outlets, including Channel 10, the Providence Journal, Providence Business Journal, The Bay, Eat Drink RI, East Bay RI newspapers, and many others.

More than 34 earned media mentions for client’s Centennial Celebration on October 11, 2015, including a 3-minute story on Channel 10, two cover stories in the Providence Journal, a live radio interview on WPRO, and two stories in the Providence Business News.

Conducted marketing assessments of more than 30 members. Resulting marketing and media reports solidified each member’s story, identified the unique elements of their brand, and provided accessible solutions to growth barriers.

We prepared more than 30 members for media coverage; many received media coverage we coordinated.

Participating members developed a concrete list of steps to take to move their brand forward.

Related Projects
marketing & public relations and social media for Jo’s American Bistro