CASE HISTORY AND SAMPLE CLIPS
Alienware founders were winning the praise of gamers, but that represented a limited market for their PCs. No one outside had heard of an Alienware. The company had hot graphics, hot response times and great performance, but received no coverage outside of core game media. After we sent the marketing chief a poster showing the press we had won for our consumer tech clients, he gave us a call.
PR OBJECTIVES
• Build Alienware’s brand name in the mainstream market
• Get Alienware PCs seen as performance systems for applications beyond gaming
• Make Alienware the PC to own for the affluent buyer who wanted to have “the best”
STRATEGIES:
• Target new media categories
• Emphasize the aesthetics as well as the performance of Alienware systems
• Associate Alienware with celebrities, important people
TACTICS:
• Our initial task was shoring up coverage in the power user and men’s interest publications. Clips included PC World, PC, Maximum PC, Computer User, Pop Science, FM, Playboy,
• With our first budget increase, we added personal newspapers. Hits included USA Today, NY Times, Washington Post, Dallas Morning News, etc.
• Then we expanded into specialty publications targeting niche audiences, generating clips in music, rap, college and luxury magazines
• We continued to add tougher outlets: ESPN magazine, TV Guide, Business Week, Forbes, Forbes Life, Wall Street Journal, TV shows
RESULTS:
• Our efforts we credited with increased sales. Alienware’s new positioning brought the company to the attention of Dell. The company was acquired.
