Challenge
To launch the new California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park as a 21st century museum, the only building in the world to feature an aquarium, planetarium, natural history museum, 4 story glass-domed rainforest and scientific research center, all under one “living” roof. Opening in September of 2008 after 4 years of construction, the Academy’s goal was no less than to become the world’s greenest museum.
Strategy
With a look to the future, the Academy hired Landis in August of 2006 to help design and execute a long-term media relations strategy that would promote the noteworthy events at a temporary venue while the new building was under construction – and launch a campaign for the new $484 million dollar building designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Renzo Piano.
The opening of the new California Academy of Sciences on September 27, 2008 was the culmination of a 2-year public relations campaign designed to build momentum and excitement locally, while earning significant attention from top-tier media outlets on a national and international scale. Landis developed and executed a multi-faceted campaign to provide maximum outreach to the press and new media, but was also a strategic player in regard to media and visitor events, speaking opportunities for Academy leaders and scientists and visibility for green/sustainability issues.
Tactics
Landis identified the need to earn the attention of influential New York media and executed a press tour in February of 2008, a full eight months in advance of the Academy’s opening. Included among the events was a luncheon at the Morgan Library (re-designed by Renzo Piano) that introduced major media outlets including Time, Newsweek, and the Wall Street Journal to renowned architect Renzo Piano, the Academy’s executive director, Greg Farrington, artist Maya Lin and top Academy scientists. Landis also coordinated a series of desk side meetings with Piano, Farrington and Chris Andrews, director of Academy exhibits, to introduce the Academy with story angles that ran the gamut from architecture and design to science and sustainability. By raising visibility among national publications, the Academy was not only positioned as a San Francisco landmark, but as a world-class destination.
A second and equally important tactic in the campaign was to identify and provide outreach to print, broadcast and online outlets that covered green issues and/or sustainable building. From traditional magazines, such as Travel and Leisure, which included the Academy in a 2008 list of Ten American Green Landmarks, to high-profile online outlets such as Wired.com and ZDNet, the key messages about commitment to green practices became one of the most newsworthy elements of the campaign.
Academy team members were less familiar with how to work with the blogger and online communities. Landis’ understanding of the important influence bloggers have has proven to be one of Landis’ secret weapons. We incorporated the online community throughout our journey of promoting the Academy, even going as far as to provide them with their own events, so they would be allowed free reign of the museum and its inhabitants. This proved to be very beneficial in that reviews for the Academy came quickly and positively.
Lastly, Landis recommended strong local and national media sponsorships that would provide not only advertising support but would invest top outlets in an ongoing relationship with the Academy. We identified local/national targets and initiated the conversations that resulted in positive partnerships with WIRED Magazine, San Francisco’s ABC affiliate, KGO-TV as well as KGO Radio, 7×7 Magazine (which targeted a young urban demographic) and San Francisco Chronicle.
Results
Despite the challenging economy, attendance at the new California Academy of Sciences has far exceeded visitor projections and continues to draw record-breaking crowds to Golden Gate Park. More than 600,000 have attended the new museum since its opening in September 2008. Working with the Academy’s communications team over the course of 2+ years, Landis garnered significant coverage from almost 100 top U.S. print, broadcast and online outlets. Good Morning America broadcast live from the Academy during opening week, featuring four segments from various locations of the building, including the South African penguin tank, the coral reef tank and the rainforest. Among the notable publications that offered positive reviews were the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine and the Los Angeles Times. Pre-and post-opening coverage included such top outlets as Associated Press, USA Today, Newsweek, Travel and Leisure, Conde Nast Traveler, Sunset Magazine, Metropolis, Popular Science, Spirit Magazine, Smithsonian, National Geographic, San Francisco Magazine and 7×7 Magazine, among many others. National Geographic Channel also produced a documentary program about the Academy’s living roof as well the “great migration” of animals to their new home in Golden Gate Park.
Landis’ communication with editors at Vanity Fair in regard to their annual Green Issue proved to be one of the campaign’s biggest success stories. We suggested story angles that ran the gamut from architecture and design to science and sustainability. By raising visibility among national publications that reached key opinion makers, Landis hoped to position the Academy as both a San Francisco landmark, and a world-class destination.
Coincidentally, Landis helped interest a prominent San Francisco events planner who touted the new Academy to Todd Eberle, one of Vanity Fair’s top photographers. He then shared the ideas with editors at Vanity Fair who had originally been pitched by Landis. The editors saw the visual potential for Renzo Piano’s spectacular architecture and assigned a photo essay for the May issue. The end result was a five-page feature entitled “Natural Phenomenon” in Vanity Fair Magazine’s May, 2008 issue.
Nine months in advance of the Academy’s opening, Landis pitched Good Morning America (GMA) producers in New York. Landis also pitched local ABC TV affiliate representatives, who reinforced the story to the
network. This led to a live broadcast from the Academy during the opening week. Four different segments that highlighted diverse Academy exhibitions aired, for a total airtime of 8 minutes.
Locally, the San Francisco Chronicle coverage was unparalleled, with substantial features on the construction phase, as well as ongoing reporting about the ambitious and challenging move of live animals and scientific specimens throughout the year. Significant advance coverage led up to Opening Day. Additionally, media partner KGO-TV produced a one-hour documentary that took viewers behind the scenes to experience both the history and evolution of the new museum.