Objectives:
Sanmina-SCI is a $13 billion global contract manufacturer and an existing client of Incendio’s.  They partnered with Findaway to create the Playaway, the first self-playing digital audio book.  Sanmina-SCI was involved from the beginning – working with IDEO on design and managing exclusively the engineering and manufacturing components of the Playaway.  Sanmina-SCI wanted to highlight its superior speed-to-market capabilities and the fact that it took a product from concept to delivery of over 75,000 units in just under 13 months.  It also wanted to accentuate its ability to work with small companies, and overcome the industry image that it only manufactures electronic components for the major players.

Recommendation:
The nature of contract manufacturing and its relationship with customers is such that we are often given only a very small window of time in which we can develop any type of PR activity and make recommendations.  Because of these constraints and the fact that the Playaway was a brand new, unknown product, we recommended to Sanmina-SCI and Findaway that we target a top tier publication and pitch the story as an exclusive.  We chose Kerry Dolan at Forbes because of her quality coverage of technology and business-related issues.  We felt a strategic, quality placement in Forbes would offer both companies the most bang for their buck, and lead times for the publication were in line with the sales timeline.

Results:
With relatively short turnaround time, Incendio was able to secure a feature story in Forbes magazine regarding speed-to-market and the manufacturing prowess needed to introduce a brand new product to market in under a year’s time.  The Forbes article launched additional in-depth trade articles on manufacturing in Mexico, and led to a Newsweek International story on Sanmina-SCI’s considerable manufacturing footprint in the state of Jalisco.  In addition, the Forbes article directly resulted in several customer leads for Sanmina-SCI, including a $12M contract that is in final negotiations.  The Forbes story ran in early December, just in time for the consumer holiday rush and satisfying Findaway’s desire to get their product in front of holiday shoppers.  Finally, the relationship built with Sanmina-SCI and Findaway has become mutually beneficial, as customer and manufacturer have worked together to secure ongoing press coverage and industry interest in the product.  Currently, we are working on securing a “year in review” story with a top tier business publication that reflects on what Sanmina-SCI and Findaway have been able to accomplish one year into the product cycle.