Green Beacon Solutions

A tight budget didn't get in the way of radio, print, and executive speaking opportunities for this new leader in CRM.

Green Beacon Solutions, a Watertown, Mass.-based CRM consultant and systems integrator, needed to kick-start its marketing activities to help its young business expand in a difficult market environment. The company turned to PAN Communications to launch a public relations program that quickly gave the company extensive visibility in the marketplace.

The Challenge

"PAN Communications put in place an aggressive strategy on a modest budget and the results have gone well beyond our initial expectations. We've really been thrilled with the work our team at PAN has done and they have quickly become a trusted partner as we build the Green Beacon name in the CRM industry."

Benjamin Holtz
CEO, Green Beacon Solutions

As a company that had recently celebrated its first year anniversary, Green Beacon Solutions had received virtually no media exposure when the company announced in November 2002 that it had signed on as a Microsoft Business Solutions partner and would be a reseller of Microsoft's inaugural CRM product. Making the decision to work with Microsoft and its untested CRM solutions was a calculated risk, but one that Green Beacon believed would work because of Microsoft's reputation and its own CRM expertise. Green Beacon turned to PAN Communications to help establish the company as an expert on mid-market CRM and Microsoft's solutions, and to help generate new customer leads.

The Approach

PAN Communications developed an aggressive strategy that would capitalize on the media's interest in Microsoft's first CRM product to increase exposure for Green Beacon. PAN Communications leveraged Green Beacon's role as a certified Microsoft Business Solutions partner and one of the few companies that had been utilizing the beta version of the CRM product. By positioning Green Beacon's CEO Benjamin Holtz as a third-party expert who could speak about the product, Green Beacon gained instant credibility with the media and quickly became the Microsoft Business Solutions partner most quoted in the press. Additionally, this strategy provided the company with opportunities to speak with media and gain coverage around four key enhancements that it developed for the product and other aspects of Green Beacon's business.

The Results

As a result of this strategy, PAN Communications secured 21 pieces of combined print and online coverage in less than a three-month period in leading technology and CRM publications such as eWEEK, CRN and CNET and CRM industry publications such as CRM Magazine, CRMDaily, and searchCRM.
PAN further strengthened the company's position as a local expert by securing a five-minute company spotlight on "The Boston Business Journal Morning Edition" on Business 1060 WBIX radio.
PAN also helped secure a speaking opportunity for Green Beacon President and CEO Benjamin Holtz at Call Center Magazine's Call Center and Demo Conference in Dallas.
Having been established as experts on the topic, the media is now proactively contacting Green Beacon to get the company's thoughts on Microsoft's move into the CRM market.
During this time, Green Beacon signed its first MS CRM customer and saw significant increases in lead-generation and Web traffic.