GolinHarris in China recently launched ZESPRI kiwifruit in the China market, generating overwhelming customer demand and much-needed awareness.

Although kiwifruit originated in China, where they are known as mihoutao (monkey fruit), the market has proved to be the most difficult one for ZESPRI to penetrate. The major challenges for the GH team included: justifying ZESPRI’s premium price (up to 10 times higher than the local produce), combating low brand awareness and establishing product differentiation compared with mihoutao.

GH’s strategic campaign was to separate the China market into smaller markets and then use a tailor-made approach for each one to attract local media attention.

In Beijing, the focus was on introducing ZESPRI’s brand-new Chinese name, "Jia Pei" (words that convey "juicy" and "abundant").

To create a unique name-unveiling ceremony, GolinHarris arranged for the two characters to be constructed into cubes made of transparent glass. On the day of the event, kiwifruit juice was then poured into the "Jia Pei" cubes, creating a significant photo opportunity for media. The event also featured a demonstration of innovative kiwi recipes by a famous chef.

In Shanghai, to satisfy the fashion-savvy media, GH linked ZESPRI to lifestyle and fashion. Famous stylists were called upon to design handbags, earrings and dresses that incorporated the kiwifruit into their design. Celebrities and models showed off the kiwifruit masterpieces, generating overwhelming media coverage.

In Guangzhou, GH created a new ZESPRI summer treat for media and consumers. The GH team organized for ZESPRI to hold an event at popular dessert chain "Fruit Mix." The celebrity spokesperson for ZESPRI, singer Alex Fong, traveled from nearby Hong Kong to endorse the product. The event also featured a chef’s demonstration of ZESPRI recipes.

Within four months of the start of the campaign, ZESPRI saw an impressive 360 percent sales increase. There were also 300 media placements covering 97 percent of the targeted major media outlets. Ultimately, GH generated US$3,747,448 of equivalent advertising value for ZESPRI with a 25 percent return on investment.

To promote the "cool and fun" brand image of Unilever’s Mod’s Hair line, the Taipei office of GolinHarris conducted a full-scale media and consumer campaign, reaching out to young fashionistas across Taiwan.

GH broke the campaign into four segments to communicate the new product features to consumers. First, GH held a media gathering to announce the creation of a "Bomb Squad" that would represent the youth of Taiwan. Next, the GH team arranged for three locations in Taipei city and the surrounding county where consumers could have their bikes graffitied. GH then conducted a graffiti motor bike parade with over 100 bikers, demonstrating the impact of Mod’s "graffiti culture." The event concluded with three weeks of eight GH-organized Bomb Squad Street Performances, leading up to a 1,400-person-strong Graffiti Bikini Party at Taipei’s hottest dance club, Ministry of Sound, Taipei.

Throughout October, the event has generated more than 99 clippings in top-tier media, and an ROI of 17 times the PR fee.

The Bank of East Asia recently appointed GolinHarris in Hong Kong to be the events partner for the grand opening of their new headquarters, BEA Tower.

The event took place in three separate locations with over 1,000 guests and featured some of Hong Kong’s most prominent businesspeople.

The GH team coordinated logistics such as guest tours of the building; parking; escorting people from the reception area to eliminate bottlenecks; and appointing security for VIPs. The team also replaced the too-traditional lion dance typically used for grand openings with a vibrant drum performance. This delighted the crowds in the lobby as well as those who were watching via live feed in the auditorium and the bank’s new branch office. The client was thrilled with this creative approach.

Media coverage delivered all the key messages the client wished to convey—namely the cost that would be saved and the efficiency that would be gained by centralizing the bank’s operations under the one new state-of-the-art roof.

Yahoo! Kimo, the largest web portal
in Taiwan, was looking to maintain its market share while increasing business advertising through the launch of its newest service – Yahoo! Kimo Lifestyle+ Search. The new service would provide the phone numbers, maps, reviews and other information on leisure-related businesses in Taiwan.

The Taipei office of GolinHarris organized a media gathering to announce the launch and functions of the new search service. To ensure maximum media coverage, GH arranged a workshop prior to the official launch in order to communicate the new service to computer and lifestyle monthly magazines.

For the official launch, GH created four banners based on real web pages in order to demonstrate to attending media the features of the service. GH also set up a demonstration computer to show attending media the new functions of the service.

In a period of two months, GH secured a total of 62 media placements in first-tier media.

In 2004, the GolinHarris office in Hong Kong helped longtime client DHL organize the grand opening of the Central Asia Hub, the largest express cargo facility of its kind in Asia.

One year on, DHL is expanding the Central Asia Hub to meet booming business and growing cargo demand in the Pearl River Delta, China, and the region. For the announcement, GolinHarris arranged an event centered on the signing of a ceremonial agreement between DHL Asia Pacific head Scott Price and Hong Kong Airport Authority chief David Pang, a photo opportunity that was well carried in the Hong Kong media. GolinHarris was also able to convey DHL’s key messages regarding their infrastructure investments in response to regional business growth.

The event was flawlessly executed, despite the number of guests (over one hundred people, including 30 media) and the fact that the press conference and signing ceremony were handled in two separate locations within the Central Asia Hub.