Already well-established as an embedded Java vendor, Insignia Solutions wanted to move into the “Firmware Over The Air” (FOTA) market with a technology for updating the Java virtual machine on mobile handsets. But the company was a complete unknown in the mobile space, and required a strong launch and a solid ongoing PR program.
Strategy: Focus on the technology’s affect on the ecosystem
FOTA was then a relatively new concept in the mobile provisioning space, and there was plenty of pioneering thought-leadership potential for Rainier to leverage for Insignia. The agency helped Insignia crystallize its messaging around the prohibitively high cost of managing, repairing, and updating software via point-of-sale depots. Insignia’s FOTA solutions would let wireless carriers deploy over-the-air software fixes and new capabilities like rich-media codecs and support for new industry standards.
Rainier’s PR campaign for Insignia reached beyond the raw technology to focus on handling explosive growth in embedded software on mobile devices. The challenge to telecom service providers, Insignia communicated through Rainier’s PR program, was to economically update software once a mobile handset had shipped. Through analyst and media briefings, contributed articles, and an aggressive executive visibility program, Rainier helped Insignia show the market how FOTA could address bug fixes and enable new services after a phone was sold to a consumer – all done over the air.
Results: Insignia lands as a solid innovator in mobile telecom
“Insignia relied on Rainier as a vital strategic partner for our launch into the mobile provisioning space,” said Peter Bernard, chief product officer at Insignia. “They solidified our positioning, key messages, and presentation materials and executed an exceptional PR campaign that helped transform us from being completely unknown in the mobile industry into a recognized player.”
Insignia coverage that resulted from Rainier’s launch and ongoing PR program appeared in:
| Byte.com |
MSN Money |
| CBS Marketwatch |
MSNBC |
| Chronicle (San Francisco) |
Network Computing |
| CIO |
PC World.com |
| CNET |
PocketPC Magazine |
| CNNmoney |
Portable Design |
| CommVerge |
RCR Wireless News |
| ComputerWorld |
SD Times |
| COTS Journal |
SD Times |
| CRN |
Software Development Times |
| EE Times |
Software Magazine |
| Electronic Design |
Wall Street & Technology |
| eWeek |
Wall Street Journal |
| InfoWorld |
Wireless Business & Technology |
| Java Developer’s Journal |
Wireless Data News |
| Java Solutions |
Wireless Developer Network |
| JavaPro |
Wireless Future Magazine |
| JavaWorld |
Wireless Industry Alert |
| Linux Journal |
Wireless News |
| Mobile Computing |
Wireless Week |
| Mobileguy.com |
ZDNet News |
Tactics: Contributed articles, analyst/media briefings, executive visibility
Rainier’s PR program for Insignia was a classic example of how to create market awareness from virtually nothing. By using PR to effectively connect a technological innovation with its ability to financially impact a market ecosystem, Rainier got the analysts and the media to sit up and take notice of Insignia.
Once the messaging and positioning were well defined, the tactical execution leveraged Rainier’s PR skills and editorial connections.
Insignia was acquired by Smith Micro Software for $18.6 million.
