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The 'next big thing' in telecoms
When Airvana commenced its relationship with Babel at the end of 2007, it was doing so having never had a UK PR agency and as such was starting from a base of limited recognition amongst European press and analysts. A leading player in the femtocell space – the telecoms industry’s ‘next big thing’ – Airvana needed to gain mind share against its better known rivals (at least as far as European press and analysts were concerned). To achieve this it engaged Babel to devise a European press and analyst strategy which would see it kick off in earnest in January 2008. This would then carry through Mobile World Congress and form an ongoing campaign to educate the market as to the uniqueness of Airvana’s approach and the benefits that femtocell technology will bring, not least ‘5 bars’ mobile coverage within the home and very fast data download and upload speeds. Babel’s approach consisted of a significant journalist and analyst outreach programme, briefings at Mobile World Congress and a London ‘demo day’ where media were invited to see the femtocell in action. As of July 08 the campaign had yielded over 50 press and analyst briefings and significant coverage wins including The Economist, The Financial Times, The Guardian and The International Herald Tribune. Globally, at the end of the second quarter of 2008, Airvana enjoyed a 34% share of coverage in femtocell articles with its nearest rival at 18%.
