Delivering Mouthwatering Media Results for a Premium Chocolate Brand in a Crowded Snacks Category

With innovative, flashy and tasty snacks and chocolate options hitting the marketplace every day, Linhart PR helped Chocolove stand out and apart from the pack by focusing on its high-quality ingredients, diverse mix of flavors and chocolate formats, and incredible, gourmet taste. Daily outreach to target reporters to introduce the brand and build impactful relationships was supported by a robust chocolate sampling program that created genuine reporter fandom – because once you taste Chocolove, you love it! – and delivered earned media success.

Client
Services
Media Relations & Influencer Marketing
Industry
Premium Food & Beverage
Awards
Challenge

CHallenge

As Chocolove’s communications partner, Linhart PR was charged with growing brand awareness, driving trial and increasing media share of voice (SOV) relative to competitors in an increasingly saturated chocolate market via an always-on news engine. The team turned to editors and commerce teams open to covering food products without compensation-generating affiliate links, as well as virtual desk sides that would allow for pivotal introductions between reporters and the brand, in addition to sampling opportunities.

Solution

Linhart PR activated a robust news-making strategy that:

Shared Chocolove’s delicious taste with media via sampling: The team maintained constant proactive outreach offering samples to product reviewers and editorial commerce teams who recommend popular grocery items. Inclusion in product reviews in national consumer outlets like The Kitchn, Chowhound and Prevention not only helped to drive purchase consideration, but ensured Chocolove’s prominent inclusion in key articles next to competitors.

Participated in relationship-forming events to promote new connections and coverage: The team met with ~50 reporters virtually via speed pitching opportunities hosted by the New Product Events group. These digital desk sides took the guess work out of pitching ahead of the busy holiday season as reporters who participate are actively looking for products for upcoming gift guides and seasonal roundups. During the one-on-one meetings with outlets like Woman’s World and Parents, the team shared background on the brand – not all media were familiar with Chocolove – and information on limited-time offerings, while also securing more sampling opportunities with reporters most likely to cover.

Prioritized widespread local market promotion of seasonal and core offerings: To expand Chocolove’s media footprint and help drive shoppers into retail stores in local markets nationwide year-round – including for dark chocolate for healthy new year and flavors perfect for summer s’mores – Linhart PR collaborated with its MAT release partner Brandpoint to issue two editorial story releases for verbatim daily paper pick-up nationwide in outlets like The Miami Herald and Houston Chronicle, reaching a combined online audience of 300M+. The pieces leveraged seasonality for maximum news interest and included key Chocolove products and local retail information.

Results

In total, Linhart PR:

  • Secured 70 sample requests (8 more than the previous year)
  • Garnered coverage from 22.4% of speed pitching attendees, with notable placements in AllRecipes, HuffPost and Shop TODAY
  • Grew media SOV 3.1 percentage points over the course of a year, landing Chocolove a top spot among core competitors with a 43.2% total SOV
  • Secured 27.71% more stories and 87.87% more impressions than the previous year
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