Starstruck

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am one of a hotel chains Senior PR Managers, working across all 11 brands in Europe, Middle East and Africa. My team look after Corporate Communications in this region.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Starstruck?

We worked with them on a campaign we created to promote hospitality and a career at the hotel chain as a leading option for women. The campaign was tied to International Women's Day and followed the team at our Canary Wharf location- a hotel run entirely by women.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goals were to create a shareable video that was picked up by online news outlets and generated significant views on social media.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I have worked with the Starstruck team for more than 7 years now, first working with the CEO Adrian Dickson at News International. I also brought them onboard as our retained content agency at British Airways, where Starstruck are now the retained content agency across PR, Marketing and Social for British Airways worldwide, American Airlines in Europe and IAG, BA's parent company.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

We worked with the Starstruck senior team for conception to launch, they were heavily involved in the ideation and helped us shape the brief for senior leaders across the business. As always Starstruck assembled their expert crew at short notice and were instrumental in helping us bring the idea to life and make the stunt newsworthy and interesting as well as beautifully shot.

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

The crew consisted of two camera ops and one producer/ creative director. There were three rounds of feedback and all our edits were incorporated quickly and the final project was delivered two days ahead of schedule.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The video was one of our most successful campaigns of the last 12 months and was picked up by 15 news outlets. Footage was also included in a segment on Sky News' breakfast show with Kay Burley. Our CEO also shared it on his own channels and feedback and engagement was 20 per cent higher than the benchmark figure.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow was highly effective. I was in regular contact with the Creative Director, bouncing ideas across WhatsApp and then short daily calls from two weeks before the shoot.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

This was the first project I worked with Starstruck on in a new role, and this was their first project for us. The really researched the brand and studied in detail previous video led campaigns we had put out as a business.

I included this in the brief but they had already looked at previous work in detail and came with ideas and feedback to our first session. Starstruck doesn't just take a brief and delivery, they take a brief, make it better, then deliver.

Are there any areas for improvement?

There were learnings on our side in terms of sign off and approval so for next time we will have to make sure as a business we are slightly more agile.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the commissioning editor at a broadcasting channel in the UK. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Starstruck?

We were trying to reach a younger audience, so we needed to find an independent producer to create TV and digital content for our channel. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Starstruck pitched a couple of ideas that we ended up green-lighting as TV shows to air on our platforms, including a parody movie review and a documentary featuring WWE. They then collaborated with me to shape the content and provided full production services. 

What is the team composition? 

James (Creative Director, Starstruck) is our main point of contact, but I've also spoken to a few others on their team as well. 

How did you come to work with Starstruck?

A colleague who had worked with them in the past introduced me to them. They have a great reputation in our industry for producing the kind of content we were after, and we ended up liking the ideas they pitched during the tendering process. 

How much have you invested with them?

For the projects we've commissioned, we've invested in the range of $50,000–$200,000 per show.

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working with them since around August 2016, and they continue to pitch ideas to our team on a regular basis. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Getting their projects green-lit in the first place is a testament to how well their ideas have been received. Overall, we've been very happy with their work over the years. 

How did Starstruck perform from a project management standpoint?

They're great to work with, easy to talk to, and flexible in their approach. During the documentary they produced, for example, they faced a few challenges outside of their control, but they coped extremely well. They kept me in the loop throughout the process and navigated a tricky situation with a lot of professionalism. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have a good relationship with movie studios and, thus, a lot of access to great talent. That includes finding and working with new comedians, which is right of our alley. 

They're also good about adapting to the changing landscape in their industry. Previously, they mostly focused on TV content, but now they're very involved in producing digital content as well. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. All of our projects have gone very well thus far. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take advantage of their relationship with movie studios and their ability to find new comedic talent. It's offered a lot of value to the work they've done for us.