Prohibition

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the brand marketing manager at a specialist printing company. We provide personalized photo products such as photo books, one-off-calendars, and that sort of thing.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Prohibition?

For the year before I joined, the company had actually made the marketing team into a digital marketing team, so there wasn’t really any in-house PR campaign support. We brought prohibition in to fill that skill gap on our own team.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped us to conduct a brand campaign, which started out with a thorough ideation process based on a brief that we gave them. They did research from there, working with a photographer and videographer, and then guided us through using paid social and provided content for our website, landing pages, email, and blog.

What is the team composition?

I’m not completely sure how many people they have on the project across their different teams, but I would guess between 5–6 teammates based on who I’ve interacted with.

How did you come to work with Prohibition?

They were brought on before I joined the team, but it’s my impression that they just gave a really compelling presentation about the value that they could offer our company and we were convinced to at least give their services a try from there.

How much have you invested with them?

In total, we spent somewhere between $25,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

I believe the project ran from about August–December 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

From a PR point of view, we had 57 pieces of press coverage during the time we were working with them. Seven of those pieces were national coverage, and six of those were high-quality coverage including photography media and backing from high authority media websites. We were thrilled with that result because it got us in front of over 120 million people.

In terms of a more specific part of the campaign, we were encouraging people to enter into our European photo competition, and as a result of that, we gained an additional 640 entries, which for the UK is quite a successful number. It actually positioned as one of the largest, fastest-growing countries within the European group for that contest.

It was a little bit hard to compare the results because we had almost done nothing prior to this campaign, but the biggest sign of the success the campaign had was that our brand search increased by around 4000 searches between October and November, which was really telling in terms of the payout this kind of work could have.

How did Prohibition perform from a project management standpoint?

There wasn’t a lot of time for us to get to know their agency, but despite that, they did a really good job of communicating with us and making sure that we were always informed about what was going on. Whenever any challenges arose, they made sure they got all the information from us that they needed in order to tackle that successfully as well. Everything was very organized and professional throughout the process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are so much more than just a PR agency. Their whole team has a really sound understanding of content and how content works, which for us was really key because it was exactly the particular expertise we were missing in our team.

That knowledge base allowed them to not only complete the work but to educate myself and my team by showing us examples of how different elements of the campaign worked and how they had used them in the past.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing sticks out to me as something they need to improve.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t be afraid to admit that you don’t know everything. Stay open-minded, because these agencies tend to have way more experience in these operations than you do and they can usually bring up ideas that you wouldn’t have been able to come up with yourself otherwise.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the digital and communications manager for British Wool. We grade, sort, and auction to market British wool from British sheep farmers. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Prohibition?

We hired them to provide paid social advertising over Facebook.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Prohibition manages our ad campaigns. They set up custom audiences and versions of different adverts, optimizing the ones that perform the best for us. We’re considering hiring their PR services as well.

What is the team composition?

We work with three people: an account executive who looks after the day to day, an account director who makes sure that we’re achieving what we set out to achieve, and another director who set up our relationships.

How did you come to work with Prohibition?

They were recommended to us by another agency that we work with.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about £6,000 (approximately $7,800 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

The partnership started in September 2019 and is ongoing We just started a second campaign.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We tracked their progress in real-time and detail. They also provide regular reporting for us. 

How did Prohibition perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve been fantastic. We get regular updates so that we always know how things are progressing and if we’re achieving our KPIs. Whenever there are any issues, Prohibition either identifies them themselves or fixes them really quickly.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their ability to deliver what they say has really stood out. It’s really easy to work with Prohibition, too. I never have to chase them for a deadline or an action because it’s already been done.

Are there any areas they could improve?

For the work we’ve done so far, I don’t think anything could be done differently.

Any advice for potential customers?

Give Prohibition an effective, detailed brief and let them run with it. They’re experts in the field and know their stuff.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior channel marketing coordinator for a mattress company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Prohibition?

We needed help from a PR agency.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We work cooperatively with Prohibition to create global campaigns for brand exposure, product placement, and other kinds of activations. We bounce ideas off of one another. We have a lot of creative sessions, and we formulate plans for each quarter based on those.

Prohibition also does day-to-day tasks, such as managing our social media channels and writing blog posts and press releases.

What is the team composition?

We’ve had five people regularly working on our account. It’s a well-oiled machine; everybody has their individual roles, and we all work really well together.

How did you come to work with Prohibition?

My company started the partnership with them just before I came on board.

How much have you invested with them?

My company has spent between $200,000–$999,999.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 2014, and it’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Prohibition sends us monthly, quarterly, and yearly reviews and reports. These reports detail any activity that we agreed upon or that’s sporadic.

How did Prohibition perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re very organized and efficient. The communication is very strong. They’re more of an extension of our marketing team as opposed to an external agency. The process of starting new projects and managing ongoing projects is quite slick. They’re very responsive to us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Prohibition is always one step ahead of the game. They often come to us with new ideas, trends, and things we should be doing. This isn’t just in terms of people’s behavior, but also asset-related trends. They’re quite innovative and forward-thinking.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We have the type of relationship where if there are any issues, it’s well-received. It’s a collaborative approach.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Prohibition covers all bases. They’re great people to work with. They always have the client at the forefront of their mind. I definitely recommend using them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing manager of ProGARM, a protective clothing manufacturer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Prohibition?

We needed help with PR and digital marketing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Prohibition has been helping us get coverage in the regional press and the industry-specific press here in the UK, getting more of our content out in front of our end users and potential customers. We encourage Prohibition's team to get into new publications with specific audiences. They manage the general press schedule for us. They communicate with publications and see when certain topics are coming up and place content as part of that. When we do broader campaigns, we sometimes give them the brief, and they manage that campaign themselves from a timeline perspective.

They also manage our social PPC and account-based marketing, some of which overflows into PR. They put different lead magnets in place so that our paid social ads reach our target audience.

Their main work has been to get more press and brand mentions, as well as doing a bit of link building to help us with our SEO. They also work with us on campaigns that are on interesting content. We do a bit of research with them to gather industry reports, and then we apply that research to data-driven campaigns that help us get more conversion and local industry press coverage.

What is the team composition?

There are 3–4 people from their team that work with us on a regular basis, including account execs, account managers, and an account director.

How did you come to work with Prohibition?

They were already my company’s PR agency when I joined the business. If I remember correctly, the company pitched 3–4 different agencies in our area. Prohibition impressed my company the most.

How much have you invested with them?

My company has spent £62,000 (approximately $81,400 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 2017, and it’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We measure the amount of coverage we get in different publications each month through a scoring system that we have set up. With publications, we measure the audience size over the course of the year and the respective advertising value of the placements we get. We also track the traffic that we get through referrals and the links through the link building efforts we do on those sites.

The brand scores well on the metrics we put in place; these metrics have started to grow a lot. Existing customers are more aware of us, and the market is generally more receptive to us and views us in a different way than before we started working with Prohibition. We’re now probably the most mentioned brand in terms of our niche product.

How did Prohibition perform from a project management standpoint?

Projects are mainly driven by us; Prohibition’s team is more support. We drive the strategy in the projects, and we outsource bits to them. In terms of project management, they’re pretty good. We normally do one big project each quarter, and, for the most part, it’s been on track and good.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have been very good at getting a grasp on our technical products and understanding how to put them into simple terms to get publications on board and aware of what we do. They make our products simple and easy to understand. 

They’ve also been really strong in terms of helping us build our educational content and getting that into a number of publications. They’re quite creative with the ideas that they bring to the table. Prohibition has been our longest standing agency, and we haven’t had any particular issues with them. They’re very good at demonstrating their value when we do annual and quarterly reviews. It’s been the best agency experience I’ve had here. They offer a better value-added service than we have had with other agencies.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We have a very limited budget in terms of what we can do with them. We feel we do get a lot of value out of the budget we have. There’s nothing I’d have them improve. I’ve always recommended them and said that we had a good experience with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The most success we’ve had with them is when we’ve worked closely with them. The stronger the relationship you can have, the better. Get them involved in early-stage projects and bounce ideas off them. Be confident enough to challenge them on their thoughts and to understand what the thinking process behind what they’re doing is. Have a close relationship with them, and be willing to ask the tough questions.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the trade & online marketing manager of a shower pump manufacturer that provides products for boosting water performance in homes.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Prohibition?

We hired Prohibition to assist with social media marketing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, we looked at social media to see what was working and what we could improve upon. From there, we moved into a full relationship with their team that includes traditional press release creation, and then they also support us with digital marketing.

The team at Prohibition completes a monthly content plan for our social media. They monitor our social media channel and populate content through the schedule in advance. Their team also assists with Facebook advertising, boosting our posts, and works with our Instagram advertising as well.

How did you come to work with Prohibition?

We went to one of the digital marketing seminars that they hold several times a year. We were quite impressed with what they had to say. From there, we brought them on board for a project to start with, before moving onto a monthly retailer when we could use their support regularly.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement with Prohibition started in 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Each monthly report allows us to see the success of our social media growth. It allows us to see the coverage we’re receiving in trade magazines and our business uptick as well. We can look back over the years and see what their team has done for us. Google Analytics is what we use for tracking success and goals.

How did Prohibition perform from a project management standpoint?

We have monthly meetings with them. After those, they provide a content report summarizing our discussions and next steps. Their team responds to our briefs with an outline plan that we’ll talk through.

Their account management abilities are quite high. They’re quick with responses and are proactive in moving things forward.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The results distinguish Prohibition from other providers. In the past, we’ve worked with several different PR agencies and haven’t had much success with content generation. Prohibition can successfully perform traditional PR services along with digital marketing services.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing they need to improve.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Give them a clear brief and outlined budget of what you’d spend in advance. They can prepare a proposal around that. Engage with Prohibition as much as you can. The more we engage with them, we tend to get better results.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the digital coordinator at a university in Northeast England. Some of my responsibilities are website management, digital marketing, and social media strategy (which often includes content generation).

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Prohibition?

The university lacked a concrete social media strategy, so we wanted to work with an agency to help us flesh that out.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

In the first stage of work with Prohibition, they conducted a channel audit: an examination of how the university was being represented through various channels. They distinguished and set out to prioritize the most important outlets.

Then, they implemented social media training for our employees so that they could more confidently leverage our social media. They explored influencer strategies and how our business could utilize certain individuals to promote our business. They continued providing specialist training for our employees so that they could become influencers in their own right.

Finally, they helped us develop a content strategy by outlining what materials would be most effective for our promotional efforts. They examined our social media sphere and assisted in developing a detailed plan of our future output.

What is the team composition?

We worked with the owners and directors, who were our main contacts. We also had contact with an additional three members of their team.

How did you come to work with Prohibition?

We were looking at social media agencies that had experience working with higher education. We were particularly attracted to agencies that had won awards for their social media expertise. Prohibition is one of these companies that travels across the country to give talks about their work; ultimately, they were recommended to me by a colleague who had attended one. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in 2017, and the work is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Their work was thorough and effective, and they delivered everything we asked them to. Some of the deliverables—like the content plan—were a pleasant surprise. They endowed us with a deeper understanding of social media navigation, and their training allowed us to be able to stand on our own with it.

Their initial pitch to us entailed detailed KPIs, which we’ve been using as benchmarks. In our debriefing meetings, they’ve outlined how they’ve successfully hit those goals.

How did Prohibition perform from a project management standpoint?

They were excellent from a project management standpoint. When our internal team had a lot on our plate and were behind, they did a great job of chasing us down. They were proactive; instead of just waiting for us, they’d reach out to ask for the materials they needed. They ensured the project was on track, which we really appreciated.

What did you find most impressive about them?        

The dedication of their senior members was very impressive. They were the ones who delivered the pitch, and they continued to be heavily involved in all aspects of the project. They’re well-respected, and one of the directors has a background in education, so he understood our industry very well.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’ve always met their KPIs, and we’ve always gotten what we were looking for. There was a very slight learning curve at the beginning, where we requested to meet more frequently in person. They’re not exactly a local company (they’re a couple of hours away). They quickly accomodated this request, which was definitively implemented by the second stage of our project.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would have regular touchpoints and in-person meetings to build the relationship. Our teams have a comfortable and integrated workflow because of that.