Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation

Media Relations Campaign

Summary

Maroon PR (MPR) was tapped by the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation to handle their major announcement of a $65 million dollar gift received from FedEx founder & Marine Corps veteran Fred Smith. The organization’s mission is to honor Marines by providing scholarships for their children attending post-high school, undergraduate, and career and technical education programs in all 50 states. This life-changing gift will touch the lives of thousands of military families and their children, both now and in the future, the impact immediately enabling the organization to significantly increase the number of scholarships they award yearly.

Strategy

MPR developed a comprehensive public relations campaign with the goal of securing impactful, national media coverage. Our strategy included:

– A carefully crafted press release on the extraordinary gift, detailing what it means for the organization, & how the gift is tied to the release of a new motion picture titled Devotion.

– Strategic outreach to key media outlets using proven pitching tactics and our relationships with national media outlets.

– Published the release to PR Newswire in an effort to generate online mentions & enhance SEO results.

– A Satellite Broadcast Media Tour & Radio Media Tour with Ted Probert, MCSF’s President and CEO to reach key markets on the same day.

– An Audio News Release that produced a 60-second news read to reach millions in key markets throughout the country.

– An integrated approach to the announcement that included NMCS’s social media and other owned channels, and recommendations for MCSF’s Board Members to celebrate the news in a coordinated way.

Results

969 online articles/mentions nationally

24 local television interviews in markets across the country

Daily Buzz aired in 58 markets across the country with an audience of 4 million

The National Desk aired on 64 stations in 60 markets nationwide

Associated Press exclusive interview with Fred Smith resulted in 724 stories throughout the U.S. in top outlets such as ABC News, USA Today, The Washington Post, SF Examiner, Houston Chronicle, and many more.

16 radio interviews in local markets across the country, airing on 261 stations

Audio News Release distributed to a total audience of 25 million

America in the Morning national radio hit on 350 stations coast to coast