Our Work / Public Relations / Events PR

The Cornwall Food & Drink Festival 2012

Brief
Organisers of the ninth Cornwall Food & Drink Festival wanted to build the festival’s profile and establish it as a key event in the UK food and festivals calendar. 

They also wanted to attract new visitors to the annual event as well as retaining their existing ones and increase the overall spend at the three day event.

Strategy
We proposed a news-driven campaign appealing to regional, national and trade media, blending a staged press release campaign as well as producing a detailed press pack to use when pitching to journalists.

We also planned to arrange competitions in conjunction with high-profile publications and organise a press trip to maximise festival coverage.

Implementation
Press releases were distributed to relevant publications as additional features were added to the festival. We put together a press trip for the editor of Delicious to meet Nathan Outlaw and attend his masterclass prior to the festival.

Competitions were arranged and published on the Times+, Guardian Extra and BBC Good Food websites. 

Press call
We arranged a press call, which combined the start of the festival with the launch of the ‘Choose Cornish’ campaign, and invited press to indulge in a cream tea at Truro Cathedral.

Press from regional media attended the event including ITV Westcountry, BBC Spotlight and The Western Morning News.

Results
The campaign generated 195 individual pieces of coverage including The Observer, The Independent and The Telegraph as well as regional publications.
There were over 83.4 million opportunities to view, with an Advertising Value Equivalent (AVE) of over £192,000.

The festival attracted a record number of visitors and 100% of exhibitors rated the marketing as good or excellent.