Rosetta Stone E-Learning PR Campaign

About the Project

Among the many consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic that began sweeping the globe in early 2020 was the premature shutdown of schools everywhere, on virtually every continent. Worldwide, as many as 800 million students were suddenly idled at home, creating a panicky scramble to devise other ways to continue their education from a distance.

Rosetta Stone, a world leader in language learning and literacy education, instantly recognized how its innovative digital solutions could benefit all those homebound students (and their beleaguered parents or guardians) during this time of dire need. In March, the company magnanimously decided to give three months of free, no-strings-attached language learning to all elementary, middle and high school students throughout the planet, making the lessons accessible through any electronic device.

The bigger challenge then became getting the word out about this exceptional learning opportunity amid all the other breaking news – much of it negative – that the coronavirus was spawning on a daily basis. To connect with American consumers nationwide, especially all those families who unexpectedly found themselves stuck at home together, Rosetta turned to Butin, its U.S. communications partner, to break through the clutter.

Our Approach

Our sensitivity to the news cycle and the extraordinary demands being put on journalists during the virus outbreak was decisive in getting Rosetta Stone’s story into the earned media mix. Timing was everything, and our experience in working with reporters covering various industry segments – education, parenting, technology, business, consumer products, etc. – proved invaluable. Our determination to share this precious bit of positive news during a time of such uncertainty didn’t hurt, either.

Results

Coverage of Rosetta Stone’s “Free for Students” home-schooling subscription offer was more extensive than anything the company had seen for any of its product launches. Among the more-than-three dozen major media outlets reporting on the availability of the generous language resource were U.S. News & World Report, the New York Post, Parade, People, Forbes, Fast Company, USA Today, Reader’s Digest and Condé Nast Traveler. With the PR reach exceeding 270 million readers, the student deal was certainly welcome news to parents with more than one child of school age, since each kid could pick a different language to work on for free.