the shape of global communications

The FSC engaged us as a strategic reputation partner to amplify its work to tackle illegal logging. The goal was to achieve global media attention for the issue and solutions, generating continued and further investment to expand FSC’s prevention strategy.

We achieved global reach with limited resource, prioritising the international news agencies, broadcasters and news outlets. To gain maximum traction, we linked the illegal logging issue with climate change. We created a hands-on demonstration so that media could easily follow the steps and “discover” whether wood was from a certified FSC forest.

The story appeared in over 100 publications in 29 countries including 3 original films. The BBC, Observer, Daily Telegraph, Agence France Presse, Nature and France 2 took part in the hands-on experience. More than 1 billion online/print views were generated. The project won praise from key funders too.

To bring the brand to multiple markets, create consumer and retailer appeal, a positive media and influencer environment, and build harmony with stakeholders and potential critics in the organic food movement.

We developed digital content, telling the unique stories of the farmers. We provided hands-on experiences for the journalists & influencers, learning how to select and pick lemons from the trees and seeing first-hand how the organic methods were benefiting biodiversity and conserving water in one of the driest regions of Europe.

We developed a sourcing credo “buy from local farmers” wherever possible, to reduce food miles. Ingredients such as coffee, tea and cocoa should always be FairTrade certified. Two major shifts have occurred: all lemons are now sourced from Murcia, Spain, and the shift from cane to organic beet sugar, from northern Europe.

We partnered with one of the largest global apparel companies to develop and execute a global strategy to advance its reputation for sustainability.

The initial phase required deep dive insights into stakeholder opinion and shaping a strategy that would match external expectations and be deliverable within the resources and plans of the company. This required a series of workshops with senior leaders to integrate the sustainability initiatives firmly in the operational and business plans of the brands and functions.

We produced a robust sustainability report for the company which documents progress across supply chain and their own estate and brings to life powerful stories from across the globe. Alongside, we developed messaging, high-impact content and engagement initiatives both for employees and to diverse external stakeholders. Finally, we established strategic partnerships with key external stakeholders and supported the team on the roll-out of tactics.

While the company intensely monitors shopping preferences, they had not previously sought to establish a comprehensive reputation baseline.

The result is a finely tuned strategic tool that measures reputation trends among shoppers and key stakeholders and informs long range opportunity and risk planning. The comprehensive audit identified strengths and weaknesses and formed the basis for the robust reputation strategy that is now being implemented and is underpinning growth.

We advanced the benchmark further by designing a risk-resilience model that provides a clear view of current and emerging issues, informing business decisions and risk management practices. We also provide a thorough European review of the company’s media coverage and a synopsis of industry or stakeholder movements on the key issues, as well as media and stakeholder engagement support on breaking issues

Create an inspiring campaign to engage with a list of targeted senior business leaders in different geographical locations to showcase Sodexo’s forward-looking approach.

We created a content strategy with themes and key pain points, produced an inspiring corporate film, a thought leadership report and launched a micro-targeted LinkedIn paid campaign to reach Sodexo’s stakeholders and industry influencers.

Built strong relationship with stakeholders and increased awareness of the brand among key industry influencers. Link to the video: https://www.sodexo.com/your-industry/energy--resources.html