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Product Reviews: Using Industry Publications to Drive Sales
Like every other business function, public relations needs to deliver a measurable return-on-investment. One of the ways to determine ROI is to correlate PR activities with additional sales leads and closed sales.
Product reviews can be a powerful tool to achieve this goal. These reviews have significant influence with network administrators and other IT decision makers. Reviews are an especially cost-effective way for an early stage company to position itself against entrenched competitors.
In March 2002, Principor Communications announced Lightspeed Systems’ Total Traffic Control 3.0 network management software. The launch campaign’s activities were built around product reviews in leading technology publications. Lightspeed’s software has received favorable reviews in eWeek, Network Computing and the current issue of Microsoft Certified Professional (click here to read this review).
Lightspeed makes extensive use of product review reprints in its marketing and sales efforts. More important, the reviews directly drive sales leads. Each review increases Lightspeed’s site traffic an average of 800% over a two week period. From this increased traffic comes dozens of incremental sales leads. The leads are converted into additional sales, including a strategic sale in the California education market that could potentially result in significant 2003 revenue gains.
Reviews also position Lightspeed Systems within the top tier of network management software companies. This is critical to achieving the company’s partnership and other long-term goals.
Strategic, aggressive, results-oriented PR works.
If you’d like to learn more about how PR can work for your organization, contact Principor Communications at 202-595-9008 or info@principor.com.
© 2002–2005 Principor Communications