The brief

GovNet Exhibitions approached Silver Buck to promote its re-launched Healthcare Excellence Through Technology (HETT) show, one of the UK’s leading healthcare technology events which attracts more than 4,000 visitors, 150+ expert speakers and 130+ world leading solution providers. 

Silver Buck were challenged with increasing positive media coverage for the event, expanding its profile within the sector and boosting delegate numbers. Silver Buck were also responsible for running a press office which created an area to facilitate meetings and interviews  between speakers, suppliers and journalists. In addition, Silver Buck supported numerous exhibitors with their PR activities in the lead up to, and during the show.

Our approach

Silver Buck undertook a series of activities in order to spread the word about HETT, engage the trade media, broker press interaction at the event, promote exhibitors pre-event and organise on-site press office activity. Further actions included: 

• Planning a series of announcements related to headline speakers, technology trends and stand-out sessions during the show, which were released in the weeks leading up to the event.
• Liaising with the headline speakers to determine hot topics that would prove interesting for journalists and arranged interviews during the two-day event.
• Providing an on-site press office function, meaning that GovNet Exhibitions could focus on the logistics of the event and leave all press liaison to the Silver Buck team. 
• Offering PR support to the shows’ exhibitors, and creating press releases and  thought leadership pieces to support pre-show PR marketing efforts. This service was provided to five companies identified by the show organisers in order to add value to the exhibition packages offered.   

Our impact

Running up to the event, Silver Buck ran a successful PR campaign for the event, encouraged wide-spread attendance, earned coverage in multiple trade press magazines and ran the press office on the day itself. Significant outputs included: 

• Securing 20+ articles previewing the show, through relationships within the health technology press, in publications such as Healthcare IT News, Hospital Times, and the Journal of mHealth, helping to raise awareness of the HETT and supporting marketing efforts to boost attendance.
• Facilitating more than 30 interviews, scheduled with journalists over the course of the two days, resulting in more than 15 items of coverage in the days and weeks immediately following the show, with further features published in the longer term. 
• Accommodating journalist interview requests, building beneficial  working relationships between the show organisers and the attending journalists. 
• Supporting the event in beating its delegate target by 30%

Corby Ganesh, Portfolio Director – HETT at GovNet Exhibitions, said: “Our objective was to create a standout event, where the broader digital health community, from digital leaders through to those at the frontline, could come together to be part of a genuine transformation conversation. We turned to Silver Buck, with its extensive PR experience in the healthcare IT sector, to help us to communicate the merits of the show and to reach the widest audience of healthcare and technology professionals both before, during and after – and they certainly delivered.”