How We Turned Event Media Coverage Into a Statewide Message Multiplier
OVERVIEW
Golden Apple has honored Illinois teachers for more than 40 years. As the statewide teacher shortage grew to nearly 4,000 unfilled positions, its annual awards attracted significant attention to educators doing extraordinary work.
We saw an opportunity to use that attention to carry more of Golden Apple’s story. In a media environment where shrinking newsrooms had less time and fewer resources to develop stories, we created media packages that made Golden Apple’s broader messages easier to understand and incorporate into coverage. We then extended the resulting stories through social media, email and Golden Apple’s website.
Each recognition moment communicated the value of teaching, Golden Apple’s role in strengthening the profession and the pathways its programs provide for future educators. The strategy generated 385 earned media stories, 650,000 social media engagements and 70 media links directing audiences back to Golden Apple’s website.
THE REPORT CARD
385 earned media stories, a 114% YOY increase and 60% above Golden Apple’s goal
650,000 social media engagements
68,100 social media shares of media stories
47% year-over-year increase in social engagement during the two-week awards period
20% year-over-year social media follower growth
70 media links directing audiences back to Golden Apple’s website
THE CLIENT
Alongside honoring, supporting and developing educator excellence, Golden Apple is a nonprofit that recruits, prepares and mentors the next generation of teachers. Two programs serve this mission: the Scholars program, which supports high school seniors and early college students with tuition assistance, classroom experience and mentoring, and the Accelerators program, which helps college seniors and non-educators find a path to teaching licensure without an education degree. Golden Apple teachers stay in the classroom longer, are more likely to teach at in-need schools, and contribute to a stronger education system statewide.
THE PROBLEM
Illinois schools needed more qualified educators, while prospective teachers and current educators needed reasons to see teaching as a rewarding and worthwhile profession. Golden Apple’s awards provided powerful examples of the difference educators make and attracted media interest across the state.
Shrinking newsrooms created another challenge. Reporters and producers had limited time to develop the context, visuals and background needed to connect a local award story to the statewide teacher shortage and Golden Apple’s work to prepare and support educators.
Nearly 400,000
Teaching positions nationwide are unfilled or filled by underqualified hires—about 1 in 8 classrooms.
4,000
Teaching positions go unfilled in Illinois each year, leaving critical school districts without enough educators.
The Communications Challenge
Give reporters the context and usable materials needed to connect each educator’s story to the teacher shortage, the value of teaching and Golden Apple’s mission.
THE STRATEGY
Use Recognition to Tell a Larger Golden Apple Story
Our strategy was to use the attention surrounding the awards as an entry point for Golden Apple’s broader messages. Every recognition story had three roles within the communications strategy.
01 — Recognize
Lead with the local impact, achievements and personal story of an award nominee, finalist or recipient.
02 — Connect
Show what the educator’s work demonstrated about the value of teaching and the needs facing Illinois schools.
03 — Position
Explain Golden Apple’s role in preparing, supporting and honoring educators throughout their careers.
Applied across the awards cycle, this framework gave Golden Apple repeated opportunities to communicate the same priorities through different educator stories. It also established a clear purpose for every media opportunity: build respect for the profession, increase understanding of Golden Apple and connect more people with its programs and resources.
HOW WE DID IT
Making the Broader Story Easier to Cover
For awards outreach, we created media packages that included broadcast-ready voice-over/sound-on-tape scripts, on-screen graphics, Golden Apple program fact sheets, and a visual explaining how its educator preparation programs and awards reinforce one another in Golden Apple’s mission to prepare and support future educators.
The packages gave reporters the background and production materials needed to connect an individual recognition story to the larger issues facing Illinois schools. Reporters could quickly understand how Golden Apple prepares future educators, supports them throughout their careers and honors the excellence they bring to their classrooms.
Providing that context in a clear, usable format reduced the amount of additional research and production required from newsrooms. It also increased opportunities for coverage to include Golden Apple’s messages about the teacher shortage, the value of teaching and the pathways its programs provide into the profession.
Extending the Reach of Every Placement
We shared earned media coverage through Golden Apple’s email, social media and website channels. This brought the stories to prospective educators, current teachers, students and families, school communities, education leaders and Golden Apple supporters.
Sharing the coverage also allowed Golden Apple to benefit from each placement after its initial publication or broadcast. The stories generated additional engagement, expanded Golden Apple’s social audience and directed people back to its website.
Extending Surprise Visits Beyond the School
Golden Apple’s surprise visits gave teachers and principals the news that they had received an award in front of their students and colleagues. We used professional videography to capture those reactions and make the moments available for media coverage and social media distribution.
The videos showed educator recognition in action, demonstrated Golden Apple’s commitment to teachers and gave people across the state a reason to watch, engage and share.
What Should Your Next Media Opportunity Communicate?
Strong coverage starts with a clear story and the right resources for reporters. The Harbinger Group works with education nonprofits, workforce programs and other organizations to get more value from high-profile moments. We identify the messages audiences need to hear, give newsrooms the resources to communicate them and extend the resulting coverage across social media, email and website content. Book a meeting to discuss how we can support your next media initiative.