Plan

Our client, a regional, progressive telecommunications company that provided local telephone and high-speed Internet services within a 1,100 square mile area of northwest Phoenix – was faced with a “David vs. Goliath” battle when the tiny company squared off against a much larger telecommunications company in a battle over service territories. At the time, our client counted fewer than 100 customers in the territory – where coyotes outnumber people – compared to the competitor’s anticipated 17,000 customers in the new residential communities being developed.

Off Madison Ave lead a laser-focused media relations strategy and influencer letter writing campaign to increase our client’s brand awareness and deliver its key messages to target audiences, namely the state commission, as a means to positively influence the verdict rendered by the commission.

Create

In March 2005, the state commission awarded our client with a CC&N (Certificate of Convenience and Necessity) to bring much-needed telecommunications services to an estimated 400,000 new homes in the particular market. Despite our client being awarded the service territory, the developer and another telecommunications company had reached an agreement to position the company as the “preferred provider” to homeowners with telephone, television and high-speed Internet services; therefore, not giving consumers a choice in selecting their service provider.

With the competing telecommunications company serving as the preferred provider, it received exclusive rights to market its products inside the model homes as well as on community Web sites and in development newsletters. This competitive advantage was so great that our client was pushed out of the picture despite the fact the state commission granted it the service territory two years prior.

The arrangement that was made by the major home developer and the competing telecommunications company came to light after our client filed a lawsuit at the county superior court, and a complaint with the state commission stating the deal made it impossible for other phone companies to sign up homeowners in the new residential communities.

Off Madison Ave developed an influencer letter writing campaign to solicit support on behalf of the client with local officials and business leaders in the affected markets. The objective of the letter writing campaign was to garner support for the company by securing personal signatures from high-profile influencers and business leaders in the market, e.g. public safety officers, elected officials, chambers of commerce, homeowner associations, etc. Additionally, Off Madison Ave proactively communicated our client’s service offerings and the value the company was providing by bringing much-needed service to the rapidly expanding marketplace with target news outlets.

Achieve

More than 15 personalized letters with signatures from local influencers and public officials supporting our client’s new service territory were forwarded to the state commission. Additionally, media pitching generated four feature stories in target daily and weekly news outlets.

Our client continued to make media headlines over the subsequent months after the state commission levied a $2 million fine against the major telecommunications company for helping to arrange a special deal with the private home developer that shut out our client from providing telecommunications in the service territory. The commission said that the pact between the competing company and the developer was "discriminatory and anti-competitive" and violated federal and state laws that promote open competition for voice, video and data services. The fine represented the second-largest ever imposed by the commission against a telecommunications company.

As a result, the company paid our client $1 million to settle the lawsuit and also granted them access to the new housing communities, so they could provide telecommunications services to homeowners and businesses alike.

Want more information? Take a moment to fill out our contact form.