Case Study: Orkin, Inc. Announces “Don’t Let The Bed Bugs Bite!”

Client:

Orkin, Inc.

Assignment:

Generate positive national media coverage for the century-old Atlanta-based pest control company; provide out-of-the-box thinking on how to capture the media’s attention for a client in an industry with few breaking news stories; yield a positive ROI for every dollar spent.

Strategy/Implementation:

Worked with Orkin’s in-house experts to mine potential news stories. Identified resurgence of the bed bug, a pest considered by many to be simply an imaginative creature in a bedtime rhyme. Implemented measurement tools to quantify resurgence with Orkin’s more than 400 locations and clientele. Worked with a new Orkin customer to film b-roll footage of a bed bug infestation and obtain still photography (before treatment) to share with media. Pitched exclusive to Wall Street Journal and secured coverage on May 30, 2003 (Takeoffs and Landings section). Following the WSJ story, aggressively pitched other print and broadcast media and positioned Orkin’s Technical Director, Frank Meek, as industry’s top subject matter expert.

Results:

Through the end of Q1 2006, generated more than 4,700 media placements with a total circulation of 165,304,494* and ad equivalency of $19,337,717.* Net ROI was $19,207,481. Noteworthy media coverage included positive placements in the following international, national and regional outlets: Wall Street Journal (2003 “Takeoffs and Landings” section; 2005 front-page story), Asian Wall Street Journal, New York Times, USA Today, ABC-TV’s Good Morning America, ABC-TV’s Primetime, NBC-TV’s Dateline, Inside Edition, FOX National TV’s Your World with Neil Cavuto, CNN, Good Housekeeping, BusinessWeek, Newsweek, Reuter’s, Associated Press, The Chicago Tribune, Houston Chronicle, The San Diego Union Tribune, The Chicago Tribune and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

*Figures are raw and do not include a standard industry multiplier.