The Blaine Group, Inc.

The Blaine Group was selected to generate national exposure through business, lifestyle, ethnic, and trade media for L’Image Graphics, designers and manufacturers of greeting cards and related items for ethnic consumers. As a result of this effort, L’Image increased their business 300% the first year we were on board. L’Image was founded to fill a void in the marketplace. In just a few years, with more than 200 original designs in nine collections, L’Image became the largest and most successful minority-owned greeting card company in the world. For our efforts on behalf of this unique company, we received a PRism Award for Best On-Going Corporate Communications Program from the Public Relations Society of America.

We believe that, in order to progress in a career today, continuing one’s education is essential. Our work in this area reflects this philosophy. Assignments on behalf of educational institutions and associations include a public awareness campaign for the California Association of Community Colleges in which we arranged print and electronic penetration in all major metropolitan markets of the state with the goal of educating the public about the benefits community colleges provide.

Our assignments in the fashion and beauty industries include the creation of a comprehensive communications effort for the more than 70 showrooms in the Cooper Building, a discount center in the heart of Los Angeles’ garment district. We designed and implemented a well-honed marketing plan which incorporated advertising, public relations, and promotions. As a result, the Cooper Building became the most talked about and most shopped discount fashion outlet in Southern California. 

Our efforts on behalf of franchisors and licensors includes creating and implementing a national campaign for the world’s first and largest franchised video dating service, Great Expectations, founded in 1975. In addition to representing Great Expectations Creative Management, the franchisor, we conducted local public relations campaigns on behalf of many of the 22 franchised Great Expectations Centres throughout the country. For this campaign, we received a Merit Award for best Corporate On-Going Program for the Public Relations Society of America (Los Angeles chapter) PRism Awards.

Due to our staff’s extensive expertise in this field, we have strategized and implemented communications programs for numerous companies, organizations, and practitioners, including STAAR Surgical Company, a manufacturer of products used in ophthalmological surgery. This effort was two-fold: to position STAAR based on its technological advancements and to inform the trade and the consumer about its development of the “Elastic Lens.” Our strategy was based on the belief that financial coverage augmented investor relations while satisfying SEC requirements and the trades informed the ophthalmologist without creating a demand for the product which could not yet be filled because it was in FDA clinicals. For this campaign, The Blaine Group received a PRism Award for best Corporate On-Going Program from the Los Angeles chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.

An umbrella organization for eight local optometric societies, the Optometric Care Council of Southern California was founded for the sole purpose of generating positive exposure for the profession of optometry. The Blaine Group was the agency selected to perform this task. Due to this and similar assignments, we are familiar with and know how to overcome the difficulties inherent in coordinating a campaign which unites peers from various locales.

In view of statistics that indicate there are an abundance of service businesses today, there is an increasing need for agencies to address this market niche. With this trend in mind, The Blaine Group created a Professional Services Division in 1986 which responds to the specialized needs of this growing field. This division has been responsible for the strategy behind and execution of public relations efforts for numerous professional service firms, among them The John T. Lynch Company, one of the world’s most respected professional investigations and security companies.

We have created and managed national media efforts for numerous authors as well as for both book and magazine publishers. Our work on behalf of authors includes the planning and coordination of national media tours and the development and implementation of publishing industry trade campaigns. We are proud that four of the books we publicized became bestsellers: Dr. Irene Kassorla’s Nice Girls Do-And Now You Can Too!, On A Clear Day You Can See General Motors, John Z. DeLorean’s look inside the automotive giant, by J. Patrick Wright, Steve Alten’s first novel, Meg, and Kevin Trudeau’s Natural Cures ‘They’ Don’t Want You To Know About.

Throughout the years, we have conceived, coordinated, and promoted special events for a variety of organizations, including the Living History Centre’s annual Renaissance Pleasure Faire, a “living legend” in California. We conducted a multi-faceted promotional campaign for the Faire encompassing national print and electronic media, radio on-air ticket giveaways, and other public relations activities. The Blaine Group received an honorable mention from the Public Relations Society of America at the Los Angeles PRism Awards for its successful efforts in generating Faire coverage.