I was given the opportunity by Prova PR to attend the launch of the brand-new MG ZS. The launch itself took place at Whittlebury Hall in the Training and Conference Centre, which had a showroom feel displaying the cars and visually pleasing graphics, giving us further information.
Kate Harper
School of Media student
As a PR student, it was an eye-opening experience to attend the launch, as previously I have helped to organise events like this and witnessed the build-up but never got to see the final result. And as I was first to arrive, Aimee from Prova PR gave me a sneak peak of where the presentation was going to take place before all the journalists arrived!
The presentation began with an introduction from Matthew Cheyne, Head of Sales and Marketing and followed with a talk from Carl Gotham, Head of Design at MG Motor. Both of them spoke about how important the design of the ZS was to the brand calling it ‘A new era’ for MG, and “a great drive designed for UK roads and UK drivers”.
The MG ZS is a compact SUV which is a “premium product without the premium price tag”. The car itself has three different driving modes: Urban, Normal, and Dynamic: all of which I got to test out when I took it for a drive!
Whilst at the launch I was introduced to different journalists from around the country, such as Luke Edwards – a freelance journalist, who gave me his opinions and feedback on launches such as this one. It was great to understand different perspectives of launch events and what they believe makes a particular launch stand out from the rest. For example, as the launch for the MG ZS took place in the countryside where the roads were quiet, this meant they got plenty of driving time, compared to a previous launch he’s attended for another car brand where it was based in the city and the driving time was reduced due to traffic.
It was great to meet Aimee and Georgina from Prova PR who told me about how the event was pulled together and their roles in the launch. I also spent time with people from the in-house PR at MG who provided me with advice that will be extremely valuable in my future PR career.
By the end of the launch I was convinced I needed to invest in an MG ZS of my own and walked away with an extremely exciting press pack which included MG merchandise along with a press release and promotional film.
