As the year is coming to an end, many retailers are planning for next year’s CES (Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas (January 9th-12th) and public relations should be part of your strategy to maximize your awareness for your product brand.
The following are some quick and easy tips to make your CES experience optimal in terms of Public Relations:
Start Planning Now!
Now is the time; download the (free) media list from CES website; start a media list of the reporters and editors you want to meet in person and schedule to demo your product; planning early is the key to success!
Lean into CES’ reputation as a new product show.
After all these years, CES is still very much a new product show. So, what’s new within the walls of your company? While it’s best to announce products that will, at some point, be made available for purchase, don’t be afraid to pull the curtain back a bit and share some under-development product innovation that may still be a bit further away. CES is an opportunity to showcase innovation—both in the here and now, as well as what may yet come.
Create a Special Demo for Media.
CES averages over 2,000 exhibits and companies, if you can attract people to your booth with your product alone, you don’t need any stunts. Know what makes your product unique and attention-grabbing and prepare a demo that plays to the media’s desire for photos and video.
Attend Events!
Even if you don’t have a booth or doing formal media demos you can still leverage media at CES, including three major media events that draw solid media attendance: CES Unveiled; Pepcom Digital Experience; and Show Stoppers. Unveiled is held two days prior to CES, Pepcom runs the night before show opening, and Show Stoppers is on the first night of CES. These events are so popular with press that many companies who are solely interested in media coverage are choosing to attend one of these events, instead of having a booth. Reporters at these events are there to meet and greet, ask questions and try out products, while learning about your company.
This guest blog post was provided by Jonathan Abramson at Bluetone, a boutique communications and PR agency. If you’re interested in a PR campaign of your own, please contact Jonathan directly at jonathan@bluetonepr.com where their agency specializes in national PR and Media Relations campaigns for retain, tech and consumer-based industries.
