Part 1 ran yesterday at:

http://ronntorossian.wpengine.com/pr-agency-for-kids-products-book-excerpt

This is part 2 of a book excerpt from “For Immediate Release: Shape Minds, Build Brands and Deliver Results with Game-Changing Public Relations” by Ronn Torossian of 5WPR.

The corporate headquarters of BornFree received piles of letters from various competitors asking it to stop its efforts promoting the dangers of BPA. The complaints had no effect; the company had no intention of stopping its PR educational efforts. Yet this amazing response from the ACC and competitors is a testament to the power PR has to shake up an industry. The company enjoyed the attention the product was getting and it ramped up its education efforts by talking more about BPA and the logic of not taking any chances with it, especially in terms of newborns and infants.

It’s no secret that several baby bottle manufacturers had to change their products completely, not to mention spend millions on crisis communications campaigns to ensure a feeling of confidence and safety among their customers. This was and still is a headache for many companies, and some couldn’t act fast enough. (One firm, Sigg, lied about its bottles not containing BPA when, in fact, they did, and the company suffered a decline in sales and customer trust.)

In April 2008, BPA made headlines after the Canadian government called it a “toxic” chemical and banned its use in plastics for baby bottles and beverage and food containers. That same week the National Toxicology Program, an office of the National Institutes of Health, said there was a potential link between BPA and breast cancer, prostate cancer, and early puberty in females.

Second, along with the exponential increase in the use of BPA in products during the last 30 years has come a dramatic increase in the incidence of obesity and Type 2 diabetes in North American children. In 2010, British scientists called for a ban on the chemical, and Denmark became the first European Union country to ban the chemical in food and drink containers for children under three years old.

BornFree received a lot of free, continuous recognition from these news stories. Vigdor and the doctor experts the brand hired stepped up to the plate as experts on BPA and BPA-free products and, as a result, were often quoted in newspapers and other media, including “mommy” blogs and health-oriented websites.

When concern grew and chains like Walmart and Target started pulling bottles containing BPA from shelves, BornFree was able to very quickly fill in the vacuum with its bottles—it was one of the few companies producing a safe alternative.

The BPA debate today no longer really exists; it is universally accepted that baby products should not have BPA. BornFree, by being first to raise the issue of BPA toxins for babies, and putting its expertise on the subject out front, has won the fight.

Get my book today:

 

SHARE
Previous articlePR Agency for Kids Products: (Book Excerpt)
Next articleBook excerpt from PR book by Ronn Torossian of 5WPR
Ronn Torossian is the Founder & Chairman of 5W Public Relations, one of the largest independently owned PR firms in the United States. Since founding 5WPR in 2003, he has led the company's growth and vision, with the agency earning accolades including being named a Top 50 Global PR Agency by PRovoke Media, a top three NYC PR agency by O'Dwyers, one of Inc. Magazine's Best Workplaces and being awarded multiple American Business Awards, including a Stevie Award for PR Agency of the Year. With over 25 years of experience crafting and executing powerful narratives, Torossian is one of America's most prolific and well-respected public relations executives. Throughout his career he has advised leading and high-growth businesses, organizations, leaders and boards across corporate, technology and consumer industries. Torossian is known as one of the country's foremost experts on crisis communications. He has lectured on crisis PR at Harvard Business School, appears regularly in the media and has authored two editions of his book, "For Immediate Release: Shape Minds, Build Brands, and Deliver Results With Game-Changing Public Relations," which is an industry best-seller. Torossian's strategic, resourceful approach has been recognized with numerous awards including being named the Stevie American Business Awards Entrepreneur of the Year, the American Business Awards PR Executive of the Year, twice over, an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year semi-finalist, a Top Crisis Communications Professional by Business Insider, Metropolitan Magazine's Most Influential New Yorker, and a recipient of Crain's New York Most Notable in Marketing & PR. Outside of 5W, Torossian serves as a business advisor to and investor in multiple early stage businesses across the media, B2B and B2C landscape. Torossian is the proud father of two daughters. He is an active member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and a board member of multiple not for profit organizations.