Our client Masternaut is known well among fleet and automotive businesses as the UK’s largest provider of telematics, but in 2015 wanted to expand its reach to other parts of the business which could benefit from telematics. These business disciplines – such as HR and finance – look for support in areas such as cost control, tax and expense, insurance and duty of care to employees, which is something that comfortably fits into the capabilities of a telematics deployment.

To achieve these goals, broadening media awareness and reaching other decision makers in the business, Firefly created a campaign that not only targeted the fleet industry, but also new markets such as HR and business titles.

Firefly needed a theme that would not only appeal to these broader verticals, but a theme that everyone could relate to and take interest in reading about: driving when tired and the importance of driver safety.

Firefly conducted research polling professional drivers in the UK on the frequency of their breaks on long journeys. With these insights, Firefly crafted content revealing that eighteen per cent of business drivers do not stop for a break when driving for extended periods of time. Some business drivers admitted to taking extreme measures to avoid nodding off when driving, such as singing out loud to the radio.

With compelling data and a tenacious sell in, Firefly achieved outstanding coverage results and developed new journalist relationships in the key verticals. The story saw 81 pieces of coverage between late November and early January, in fleet, HR, business and regional press across the UK.

Firefly’s use of media relations and research resulted in a successful campaign that gave Masternaut a foothold in new sectors, resulting in commercial opportunities for Masternaut to pursue. From four research releases and dedicated media sell ins around driver safety in 2015, Firefly achieved over 200 pieces of coverage in five new vertical sectors that Masternaut wanted to expand to, including HR, health and safety, and business. The campaign increased brand awareness to such an extent that a follow-up direct mail campaign gained a 20% higher open rate than previous campaigns and opened the door to new business prospects in new verticals – including new business leads from coverage seen in the media.

Issues hijacking is a crucial tool in any PR’s toolbox, and it’s something that the Firefly team utilised recently to ensure great cut through and an opportunistic sell in.

Our client Masternaut, a leading provider of fleet telematics, this month launched its real world fuel economy database, providing 100% accurate figures based on actual driving. Typically, car manufacturers determine their miles per gallon (MPG) values based on a series of tests, covering just 6.8 miles of driving.

By jumping on the back of news about the VW emissions scandal, Firefly brought the issue of fuel economy into the debate around providing accurate emissions figures, whilst also weaving in important messaging about the absolute accuracy of Masternaut’s technology.

In total, Firefly secured over 15 pieces of coverage on Masternaut’s new fuel economy database, with 13 of those in tier one publications and just over half featuring Masternaut in the headline. Each article contained key messaging and quoted Masternaut’s spokesperson, Steve Towe.

This helped to maintain Masternaut’s position as the leading European telematics provider, in terms of media share of voice. In September 2015, Masternaut had 58% European share of voice, more than all its key European competitors combined.

Firefly has just wrapped up a major project for telematics software provider, Cybit, which recently announced its decision to combine with Masternaut, heretofore, its no. 1 competitor in the market for vehicle tracking and fleet management solutions. The combination of the top two brands creates the industry’s first pan-European telematics stalwart.

Firefly’s remit – which included strategic positioning of the “new Masternaut”, internal and external communications, and pan-regional media relations – was led out of Firefly London and implemented by teams in the UK, France, Germany and Nordics .

The announcement marked an inflection point in both Cybit and Masternaut’s histories as well as the broader industry, which is rapidly consolidating to meet the needs of a geographically distributed customer base. Firefly was appointed for its track record in managing corporate announcements for clients in fast-growth sectors and in delivering the infrastructure to ensure a coordinated, seamless approach across multiple markets.

“We selected Firefly having complete confidence that the team would bring the right level of strategic insight, experience and a no-nonsense approach to this endeavour,” said Bill Henry, group CEO, Masternaut. “It was a very smooth process working with the extended Firefly team across Europe and the results they delivered went above and beyond our expectations.”