Spark Coverage Cup

Media relations is at the heart of a successful campaign and our team take great pride in beating their colleagues to win the weekly Spark Coverage Cup vote.

The winning piece of coverage isn’t just about circulation or credibility. A great business national or broadcast piece doesn’t always beat trade coverage – outcomes are key. How effectively was the client’s message communicated? What was the engagement like? Did it result in leads?

While earned coverage is now only part of what we do, the impact of what we deliver is often why clients choose to work with us in the first place. It’s why 80% of our clients come through referral and why some of our clients have stayed with us for over ten years.

Below are some of our previous highlights:

Coverage Cup 21/11/19

The Christmas adverts have started appearing, and at Spark HQ the debate is raging about how soon is too soon to start up the seasonal playlist. But the enthusiasm about the upcoming festivities is nothing compared to the excitement about the stable-load of coverage we’ve secured recently.

Kicking off this week’s coverage is the RSA Security team, who developed a regional media alert on the cyber security skills crisis in the Thames Valley. The news really struck a chord locally and the team secured a radio interview with BBC Radio Berkshire which covered a range of digital risk related topics including a new initiative to help educate young people about cyber security. The MuleSoft team also came in for high praise this week after securing the front page of Computer Weekly’s digital edition. The subsequent three-page spread inside the magazine focused on a panel discussion around APIs and digital initiatives at MuleSoft Connect in London, where the team hosted a journalist from the publication. For the client, this piece ticked all the boxes in terms of technology messages and customer references.

With the upcoming election dominating the news, the teams have been inundated with opportunities to hijack government-focused stories recently. When the Labour Party was on the receiving end of a DDoS attack, the Huntsman team saw the opportunity to discuss the cybersecurity concerns it raised, securing some smashing coverage – with a standout piece in SC Media UK. A little further from home, team Peltarion spotted an announcement from Singapore’s Prime Minister on the nation’s AI strategy. Not only did the team’s quick-thinking secure coverage in Business Chief, the article was also syndicated to Gigabit – giving two hits in one.

The Betterworks team also did a fantastic job, linking performance management with stress awareness day and securing the first piece of feature coverage for the client in HR Review. Not to be outdone, team JDA also had their features hat on, seizing the opportunity to outline some insights about transport management systems and securing coverage in a Logistics Manager piece peppered with client quotes.

Rounding off this edition is a well-deserved tribute to the super job the teams have done recently securing placements for a range of byline articles with some key publications. The Pistoia Alliance team made sure their piece on the need for collaboration in precision medicine reached a key audience when it appeared in Technology Networks. Ivalua also joined in the fun with coverage in CPO Strategy, after drafting and placing a byline based on the client’s recent supply chain risk research.

  • Computer Weekly – Three-page spread summarising the need for API-first software
  • BBC Radio Berkshire – Interview with RSA on the cyber security skills crisis in the Thames Valley
  • Technology Networks – Article on the need for collaboration within precision medicine
  • The Telegraph – Article on how to remain secure with remote employees
  • Direct Commerce – Article on how look-alike retail websites are putting online shoppers at risk
  • Clinical Informatics News – Article on using AI ethically when developing new drugs
  • CPO Strategy – Article on Ivalua’s new Risk Center product
  • Global Defence Technology – Interview discussing how the defence sector can benefit from private sector innovation
  • CBR – Article on how the public sector can secure its use of cloud
  • Net Imperative – Article on how businesses can engage effectively with customers in the GDPR era
  • Business Chief – Article on the new AI strategy announced in Singapore
  • IT Pro Portal – Article on how retail and logistics CIOs can improve their customer experience
  • IT Pro Portal – Article on the importance of updating technology regularly
  • AI Business – Article on how AI can be used to improve customer experience
  • IT Pro Portal – Interview discussing the importance of backups when relying on cloud services
  • SC Media UK – Article on the DDoS attack on the Labour Party website
  • DevOps Online – Article on enterprise IT trends for 2019 and predictions for 2020
  • HR Review – Article on the role HR can play in stress awareness and management
  • Supply Chain Digital – Article on where organisations are when it comes to procurement 4.0
  • CPO Strategy – Article on supply chain risk in the UK
  • IBS Intelligence – Article on the UK Treasury Committee report on IT failures in the finance industry
  • Logistics Manager – Article on the role transport management systems play in logistics