Newsletter : A Global Public Relations Strategy Aligned with Yamaha Motor's 90%+ Overseas Sales --Sharing Brand Value with the World: Journalists from Eight Countries Attend Yamaha Motor's 70th Anniversary Media Tour--

In mid-October last year, a large-scale, five-day, four-night media tour was jointly organized by Yamaha Motor's Corporate Communication Division and PR representatives from overseas subsidiaries, starting from the company's headquarters in Iwata, Shizuoka Prefecture. The tour was planned to mark Yamaha Motor's 70th anniversary this year and welcomed a total of fifteen journalists from eight countries across Asia, Oceania, and North and South America.
　Journalists from leading Indian web media outlets walked alongside the ELOVE self-balancing electric scooter as they filmed it with their smartphones, speaking passionately about Yamaha Motor's latest technologies: "Thanks to its electric steering technologies, the scooter is able to maintain its own balance while riding. While it is still a concept model, the widespread adoption of vehicles like this could help reduce fatal accidents caused by crashes in the future."
　Under the theme of "Yamaha Motor's History and Future," the tour's agenda included presentations by developers of several concept models, a tour of the company's new carbon-neutral paint line that began operations in February, as well as the Historic Vehicle Demonstration Run held for the first time at Sportsland SUGO, Yamaha Motor's motorsports facility in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. Through these experiences, the journalists were able to explore and experience Yamaha Motor's cutting-edge technologies and rich product heritage from a variety of perspectives.

■Collaborating with Subsidiaries to Generate Widespread Exposure


HONMA, Naoko from Yamaha Motor's Corporate Communication Division planned the media tour and explained its objectives as follows: "Yamaha Motor offers a wide range of products in more than 180 countries and territories around the world, headlined by our motorcycles and marine products. To amplify our presence in so many markets, forging good relationships with local media is one key part of our PR strategy." From a revenue perspective as well, overseas markets account for more than 90% of Yamaha Motor's consolidated sales numbers. The content the tour provided resulted in some 200 confirmed pieces from leading media outlets in the journalists' respective countries, including articles and videos published mainly on websites and social media.


　Beyond the numerical results, Honma noted that conducting this media tour also provided valuable insights for shaping future global PR strategies. "In putting together this tour, we shared with the PR representatives at our major subsidiaries our desire to invite media with high influence in local markets," she explains."Interestingly, most of the journalists put forward by our colleagues throughout Asia were based entirely online. I felt this reflected regional characteristics, particularly in areas with large young populations. These journalists worked in their own explanations and shot things in a more passionate, influencer-like style, injecting dynamism into their content." Honma explained that when organizing similar tours in the future, she would like to incorporate PR initiatives that carefully take into account the unique characteristics of each country's mediascape.






The media tour gave journalists opportunities to shoot our concept models in actual operation and directly ask questions of the employees pouring their passion into their development. I also assisted with putting on the tour and felt that doing this allowed them to gain a deeper understanding of our Monozukuri and other less visible aspects of our company.

Today, information can be easily broadcast worldwide via the internet, so allowing people to actually see things in person goes beyond simply "sharing knowledge." Doing this provides additional sensory and emotional stimulation that makes it an experience that stays with you, and I believe that is an important part of an effective public relations strategy.

MATSUO, Kaoru