Chinet has a long history of making high quality plates; however, consumers were highly unaware of the “green” aspects of their favorite disposable tableware. Two Chinet lines, Classic White and Casuals, are made from 100 percent pre-consumer recycled materials, components that would otherwise be thrown into a landfill. In addition to the environmentally-friendly aspect of the production, both of these lines are biodegradable … meaning: you can throw them in your compost bin and in 60 days or less, those same plates can be used as nutrient-rich soil in your garden.

After our team familiarized itself with the features and benefits of the green products offered under the Chinet brand, we began to frame up the story we would tell and who would be most interested. Our carefully researched media outreach lists focused on national and local media, but we didn’t stop there. We looked at every person on the list and personalized each pitch to their beat and recent coverage. With a goal of reaching as many consumers as possible, placements in major daily newspapers (i.e. USA Today) and women’s interest magazines (i.e. Better Homes & Gardens) were key to our success in this first year.

In year one, media impressions for placements secured total more than 250 million and the amount of positive Chinet stories equaled nearly 2,000 column inches or about 20 full pages in USA Today (approximately 100 column inches per page). Key placements to date include: Better Homes & Gardens, McClatchy News Service, Progressive Grocer, Kansas City Star and Chicago Sun-Times.