Leussink

Identifying a problem

In March 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia began to take a serious turn, advertising and marketing activities for many businesses were immediately reduced, paused or put on hold indefinitely until the impacts became clearer. However, several months in, these businesses realised that the pandemic would be going for a while, and they still needed to market themselves.

Leussink, an Illawarra based engineering firm and one of Icon’s long-term clients, faced this exact situation. Existing and potential customers still needed their engineering problems solved, even in a topsy-turvy world. So how do you raise a brand’s profile without relying on mass media advertising spend?

The solution

Following a successful, long-term content marketing strategy for Leussink that included blog development and case study creation, Icon Visual Marketing recommended expanding Leussink’s content program to focus on building brand awareness through media coverage in key industry publications.

Using a two-stream media relations approach, Icon’s content team concentrated on developing news stories and editorial content around new products and projects and specific industry features, targeting trade publications such as Industry News, Manufacturers’ Monthly, and Australian Manufacturing Technology Magazine.

Trade magazines are known for favouring editorial content from their advertisers, but when no quality editorial is submitted by an advertiser, interesting industry editorial from other organisations is considered. With many years of experience in media creation, Icon’s PR specialist knew that the content created for Leussink needed to be interesting, engaging and newsworthy, rather than sales or product promotion driven.

The results

Over a twelve month period, Icon Visual Marketing secured 13 editorial placements across a range of trade publications. All placements were unpaid, owned media. From articles that focused on supporting Australian manufacturing through a $1M investment in a new lathe, to new product releases featuring Leussink’s Demmeler welding and fixturing product range, Leussink was able to achieve consistent media coverage across their key targeted industries throughout the pandemic.