Nigerian chef, Hilda Effiong Bassey aka “Hilda Baci,” and her cook-a-thon trended all weekend. Whilst the chef set out to break a Guinness World Record of the “longest cooking marathon by an individual,” the #HildaBaciCookathon is a PR event that was carefully planned.
Here are seven things to note from the record-breaking event.
- Hilda Baci held a press conference to announce plans for the cock-a-thon.
- Everything she cooks has to be given out for free so the event requires a huge budget – there is some Gino branding in the kitchen so it is likely that she got sponsorship from Gino.
- She engaged media partners; Olorisupergal seemed to be leading the social media engagement before other online and mainstream media jumped on the trend.
- Whilst the rules allow the chef to have a medical team on the ground, a yoga instructor was also at the venue to keep her energised.
- Influencers took turns in keeping the buzz going.
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- There have been guest and celebrity appearances either by design or association; e.g. the Lagos State Governor, Tiwa Savage and Banky W amongst others. This kicked in the bandwagon effect that drove the virality of the cook-a-thon further.
- The result of these PR activities is earned media. Though the cook-a-thon had a handful of news stories after the press conference in the last 72 hours, the event has generated significantly more media coverage whilst also trending on Twitter and Instagram. The earned media has led to increased brand awareness (many Nigerians hadn’t heard of her before Saturday) and ultimately good outcomes. Apart from achieving her goal, as she has displaced the former record holder Chef Lata Tondon, Hilda Baci has begun to receive gifts including a trip to the Maldives from neobank, Vesti and a health insurance plan from AXAMansard. This PR stunt is also bound to boost her business sales in the long term.
When most people think about PR, they think about publicity but publicity does not generate itself. It’s the result of an action. Good PR involves planning, strategy and execution. Hilda Baci achieved this by staging a newsworthy event that integrated the use of media and influencers phenomenally.
