How Epoch PR put pressure on the government, and encouraged consumers, to stop depending on cheap oil

In February this year, the UK Industry Taskforce on Peak Oil and Energy Security (ITPOES) launched its second report, The Oil Crunch – a Wake-up Call for the UK Economy, which warned that oil shortages, insecurity of supply and price volatility will destabilise economic, political and social activity within five years. The taskforce’s report looked at the issue of peak oil and predicts that within the next five years or so, we will reach a point where extraction rates cannot keep pace with demand, especially from the emerging markets. The knock-on effects of this will mean higher prices across transport, food, consumer goods and heating. To address the threat of peak oil – which has the potential to be as damaging as the credit crunch – the taskforce called for government action as well as changes in business and consumer behaviour to help wean the UK economy off cheap oil.

The launch of the report brought together British business leaders including Richard Branson of Virgin, Brian Souter of Stagecoach, Philip Dilley of Arup, Jeremy Leggett of Solarcentury, Ian Marchant of Scottish & Southern Energy and Will Whitehorn of Virgin Galactic. It was the first time that the industry spoke with a united voice on this issue.

Objectives

Epoch PR's goals were to build awareness about the impending danger of peak oil among politicians, businesses and consumers. Other aims were to:

• Encourage the government to help wean the UK economy off peak oil
  

• Send clear messages to the media explaining what action could be taken to reduce the UK’s dependency on cheap oil
  

• Demonstrate a united voice for British business on the issue of peak oil.

Strategy

Epoch developed and implemented an integrated communications programme to target a high-level audience of policy makers, business decision makers as well as the general public.This consisted of three elements: a launch event at the Royal Society, a media outreach programme and an online buzz campaign.

To build a sense of anticipation about the report, the agency secured an exclusive in the Sunday Times, the weekend before launch. This helped to drive interest from key newswires, such as the Press Association, and online outlets as well drive attendance to the launch event at the Royal Society. This strategy also ensured heightened interest in the story among the broadcasters CNN, Sky, Channel 4 and national media. By also seeding the story online, with key industry blogs such as The Oil Drum, the story also began to have a life of its own and this extended interest in the story significantly beyond launch day.

Results

There was intense media interest and because of all the coverage of the report, a representative from the Department of Energy and Climate Change made an eleventh-hour request to provide an official response to the report at the launch. Over 120 delegates including policy-makers, industry leaders and media attended the launch of the report at the Royal Society.

Coverage included:

• 82 pieces of international, national, business and broadcast coverage in two days
  

• 91 social media mentions across industry blogs, twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube
  

• Media highlights included Radio 4 Today, Wall Street Journal Europe, Financial Times, Daily Telegraph, Sunday Times, The Independent, The Guardian, CNN, BBC and Forbes.