CASE STUDY Pfizer's PR campaign „Openly about sex“ - PRO.PR

Germany
the park offers a unique blend of exciting entertainment
and educational challenge. The centrepiece
of the LEGOLAND park is MINILAND. Famous
European cities, monuments and landscapes have
been replicated here on a scale of 1:20. From Berlin
and Neuschwanstein Castle to Venice and Munich’s
Allianz Arena stadium - moving cars, ships in the
canals, lit-up houses and stunning attention to detail
breathe life into this miniature world and leave visitors
astonished.
LEGOLAND Deutschland press relations
The press and public relations work of LEGOLAND
Deutschland are aimed at two main target groups.
One focus is on children between three and 13 years
of age, particularly on those in the six to eleven
age bracket. It is, however, also important to address
parents, especially mothers. Communication via
the daily and monthly press, radio, TV and Internet
goes hand in hand with maintaining a presence in
the specialist media in the areas of tourism, caravanning
and amusement parks.
The objective is to profile park-related topics in four
waves throughout the season (which commences
shortly before Easter and ends in early November).
The timing of the communication is closely
linked to that of conventional advertising communication,
namely before each of the four main
holiday periods: Easter, Whitsun, summer and
autumn.
PR communication is kicked off each year with a
major press conference at the park, in which the
new attractions for the year are unveiled. These
might include new areas in MINILAND (such
as Munich Airport, Neuschwanstein Castle or
Munich’s “Allianz Arena” football stadium, all built
of LEGO bricks), a new park attraction (such as
Germany’s first passenger robot that visitors can
programme for themselves) or a whole new theme
area (such as PIRATE LAND in 2007). The press
conferences, attended by an average of 50 journalists
from all over Germany (daily press, magazines,
radio and TV), are meticulously staged and
painstakingly tied in with the theme of the new feature,
from the invitation of celebrity guests and
presenters to the fine details of the programme.
In 2007, for example, journalists were greeted by
a pirate crew and witnessed an exciting chase in
one of the new pirate attractions. The new theme
then serves as a publicity vehicle and as the principal
communication theme of the year. In 2007, the
central theme from February to the end of the season
was pirates - also in traditional advertising
media. In addition to the new attractions, the numerous
events at the park also provide important
opportunities for up-to-the-minute press relations.
Concerts, LEGO building records, the traditional
Late Night Opening events and celebrity visits
to the park are publicised in Germany, Austria and
Switzerland by means of press invitations, press
newsletters, press releases and mailshots containing
photographic material. On top of this come
corporate PR themes, such as charity events with
the hospital clown group Clown Projekt e.V., or the
strategic partnership with the Trägerkreis Erdgasfahrzeuge
(Gas-Powered Vehicle Organisation),
which enables LEGOLAND to convey the image of
a sustainable park. Additionally, packages combining
overnight accommodation with park admission
are regularly offered as prizes in a large number
of monthly magazines for families and children as
well as in the daily press.
Again and again, there are highlights in the press
relations work of the PR team. These have included
a visit from the heir to the Thai throne, with
his two-and-a-half-year-old son and 40 courtiers
in attendance, and the opening of the LEGO model
of Munich’s famous “Allianz Arena” football stadium,
in the presence of Karl-Heinz Rummenigge,
two weeks before the opening of the actual stadium.
A new challenge awaits the PR team in 2008: the
opening of an on-site holiday village at the LEGO-
LAND park is aimed at consolidating the status of
the park as a destination for short breaks and increasing
the numbers of visitors with a journey time of
more than three hours.
The all-female staff at the LEGOLAND Deutschland
press office consists of two full-time PR specialists
(Annette Uhlmann, Press & PR Manager,
and Stefanie Feifel, PR Officer), a freelance colleague
specialising in media promotions and a trainee.
The team is supported by a PR and radio agency
which covers the basic groundwork (preparation
of press kits, sending releases, maintenance
of distribution lists, etc.) in addition to radio promotions.
2 PROPR winter 2007.