Incisive Media PLC

Incisive Media PLC is a fast growing specialist business information provider operating in eight core markets, including financial risk management, retail investment, insurance, mortgage, capital markets/financial IT, marketing, photography, and private equity. The group delivers key information to defined target audiences across a variety of platforms, including magazines, conferences and exhibitions, websites, newsletters, contract publishing, and databases. Incisive Media Plc, the parent company of premier event series Search Engine Strategies (www.searchenginestrategies.com), was seeking a public relations firm that could effectively manage and oversee one of the most important search industry events of the year.

The Challenge

Search Engine Strategies 2006 Conference & Expo in New York brought together some 6,000 marketers to discuss the latest techniques in search marketing and optimization. However, PAN-engaged to handle this important PR project-had less than a month to prepare and orchestrate the event. The team knew it was paramount to target client-side marketers that SES' exhibitors were seeking to attract.

The Approach

To expand coverage of the SES show, the PAN team targeted a broad list of business reports from top-level targets-moving SES out of the niche of marketing and search and bringing the conversation into the business arena. PAN leveraged its search expertise to explain the latest search challenges and technologies in a manner that would best resonate with business reporters and bring much needed context to the search discussion. The team highlighted conference session on the hottest topics, including click fraud and privacy concerns, to attract media attention.

The Result

PAN was successful in encouraging top-tier media outlets to cover various aspects of the SES show-further reinforcing the company's standing as a major player in the search industry. Between February 27 and March 10, 2006, alone, PAN generated more than 85 media hits for SES. CNN Money, the Washington Post, and Financial Times covered media mogul Barry Diller's keynote address, while Forbes Magazine covered the controversial issue of click fraud, which was a key issue at the conference.

Based on these impressive results, Incisive Media PLC has engaged PAN to promote additional SES shows, as well as its ClickZ Network including online properties ClickZ (www.clickz.com) and Search Engine Watch (www.searchenginewatch.com).