< PreviousOutcome Despite the challenges of attracting and transporting a large number of journalists (and photographers/camera crews), government ministers and key industry stakeholders to a full-day event in such a remote location, the Paralana Ministerial Launch proved to be a major success for Petratherm and the company’s joint venture partners. A greater than expected number of VIPs attended the day to witness the formal commencement of major drilling on-site, including a full media contingent which Hughes Public Relations was able to coordinate and help secure positive and informed coverage of the event. Media outlets attending the launch included The Australian, The Advertiser, The Age and Independent Weekly, plus ABC Radio and TV news crews from the ABC, Channel 7, Channel 9 and Channel 10. Strong coverage was also received through trade publications and online outlets. Overall, the event was judged by the client as an outstanding success which contributed to strengthened ties with key government representatives (Federal and State), industry stakeholders, project partners, the local community and media. Since the Ministerial Launch, Petratherm has continued to develop a positive public image and respected reputation as a viable and strong renewable energy developer among its target audience. Significantly, Hughes Public Relations continues to provide communications assistance to Petratherm today, including ongoing support with shareholder communication, event management and media liaison. CAPITAL RAISING The situation In August 2009, ASX-listed Australian pioneer of geothermal energy development Petratherm o icially commenced major drilling at its flagship Paralana project in South Australia’s Far North. Hughes Public Relations was commissioned to manage a “Ministerial Launch” event for Petratherm and its joint venture partners Beach Energy and TRUenergy Geothermal, including Federal Minister for Resources and Energy Martin Ferguson, SA Premier Mike Rann and SA Minister for Mineral Resources Development Paul Holloway. The consultancy was also asked to invite and coordinate media at the launch with a view to boosting the profile of the Paralana project among Petratherm’s target audience, including the business and investment communities and renewable energy sector. Objectives Petratherm’s Paralana project is remotely located approximately 700km north of Adelaide in SA’s remote northern Flinders Ranges near Arkaroola, which presented a major logistical challenge in organising activities for the Ministerial Launch. Key strategic objectives of the event included: • To o icially commemorate the commencement of major drilling at Petratherm’s flagship Paralana JV project in South Australia’s Far North; • To position Petratherm as the leading geothermal company in Australia with key stakeholders including the Federal and State Government; and • To promote the credentials of Petratherm’s management team, major shareholders and joint venture partners Beach Energy and TRUenergy Geothermal with a view to attracting funds from investors and government grants for the development of clean energy alternatives. Elements Extensive planning and coordination was required in the lead-up to the Ministerial Launch and on the day of the event to ensure Petratherm’s objectives were met. Key activities included: • Coordination of Ministerial Launch through the development and regular update of a comprehensive Event Brief, which was managed in conjunction with Petratherm. Specific activities included organising charter flights for media, government, representatives and VIPs and support media including photographer and videographer; • Invitations distributed to all major media to attend the full-day event, including national press, radio and TV outlets; • Developed and distributed news releases and supporting materials (including fact sheets, corporate brochures) for media; • Coordinated media materials and content with Petratherm’s joint venture partners Beach Energy and TRUenergy Geothermal, as well as Federal and State Government departments involved in the launch; • Hosted media representatives throughout the day and helped facilitate interview and photo opportunities; and • Assisted in the coordination of key government attendees on the day, including Federal Minister for Resources and Energy Martin Ferguson, SA Premier Mike Rann and their respective aides. Petratherm Launch of flagship Paralana project 11 case studies 13 case studies The situation St Patrick’s Technical College provides a trade-focused SACE education for Year 11 and 12 students. Its mission is to have a positive impact on the social, economic and environmental wellbeing of young people and the wider community in the Northern Adelaide region. In Autumn, 2011 St Patrick’s Technical College sought to increase enrolments to achieve its objective of attracting over 340 new students in 2011. A major barrier to achieving this was a lack of awareness among potential students and parents, the local community, local schools and industry about the College and the range of opportunities it has to o er. The College required a communications campaign that could quickly and e ectively engage with these target audiences in order to boost local interest in the College ahead of its Open Day in November, 2010. The priority was to communicate within the catchment of the College, which extends to around a 10 kilometre radius. In response, Hughes PR developed a communications strategy which included a strong digital and social media component. This provided St Patrick’s College with practical support and training on how to maximise communications opportunities e ectively and securely in both the immediate enrolment phase and over the long-term. Objectives The key objectives of the digital and social media strategy were to: • Raise awareness of the College among key stakeholders including current and potential students and their families, local community, industry and local schools; • Position St Patrick’s as the trade training experts; • Encourage discussion of and endorsement for St Patrick’s among key stakeholders, particularly among current students who provide the most new student referrals; • Establish credibility among the families of current and potential students that St Patricks is providing the best pathway to kick start their family member’s career; • Drive enquiries to the College and tra ic to the College’s website and social media channels. Elements To achieve these objectives, Hughes PR provided St Patrick’s College with: • Advice on the design and development of social media channels including a new St Patrick’s YouTube channel and Facebook page; • Redesign of the College’s printed Blueprint newsletter into an e-News bulletin with a sign up page integrated within the Facebook page; • Guidance on Search Engine Optimisation; • Recommendations for a sta policy on the use of social media and online communications; • Training for key sta on social media risk management and record keeping; • A practical tone and style guide governing online communication. Testimonial ‘Since the implementation of our new program, enrolment figures to the middle of this year are up 300% on last year and 135% on our best previous year with most enrolment enquiries noting an interaction at some point prior to lodging an application with at least one element of our online presence or a Social Media channel. As a bonus, our Facebook presence in particular has provided a channel for College graduates to re-engage with our school and in so doing for us to be able to share in and celebrate their post-school successes.’ Patrick Kelly | Business Development Manager Outcome The St Patrick’s College social media channels are now being regularly monitored and updated by sta and demonstrate a high level of interaction between the College and its students, their families and alumni. Its YouTube channel features a variety of videos created by sta and students; the Facebook page is now a major communications channel for the College; the college website features a regular Principal’s blog; and the redesigned Blueprint e-News bulletin is distributed to over 100 supporters of St Patrick’s College. The increased local interest in the College as a result of this campaign is reflected in the high level of media coverage leading up to and following the Open Day which included articles in the Adelaide Advertiser, Bunyip, Guardian, Messenger, News Review Messenger and Southern Cross newspapers. St Patrick’s Technical College Social media for Schools DIGITAL CAMPAIGNOutcome With his new understanding of social media and knowledge of online engagement practices, Mr McNicholas uploaded a ‘home-made’ YouTube clip of The Apostrophe Song which has received more than 62,000 views to date. The link to this clip was retweeted by high-profile comedian Stephen Fry to his 2.5 million Twitter followers. The Apostrophe Song received coverage on the Hu ington Post, the world’s most popular blog. Numerous blog mentions and positive online peer recommendations posted from around the world followed, including the English Department of St Columba’s College in Dublin, Ireland. The innovation of the iPhone app was also recognised by the App Store Reviewer whose video review of The Apostrophe Song has been watched by more than 6,000 viewers. Media coverage of the song and the app from online news providers included articles from AdelaideNow and Crikey.com. DIGITAL CAMPAIGN The situation The Apostrophe Song is a fun and catchy tune designed to guide the correct use of apostrophes. It was first developed more than 10 years ago by Adelaide musician and educator Shaun McNicholas as just one part of an innovative educational concept he called Cool English. Cool English was critically acclaimed, and was a major award winner at the 2000 Australian Interactive Media Industry Awards. Mr McNicholas then partnered with Adelaide-based Enabled Solutions to develop an iPhone app as a new way for parents and teachers around the world to purchase The Apostrophe Song. While the app was in development, Mr McNicholas approached Hughes PR seeking ideas for reaching a wide audience. In response, Hughes PR developed a digital communication and social media strategy to raise consumer awareness of The Apostrophe Song and the Cool Rules concept. Objectives Cool Rules’ primary objective was to raise awareness of The Apostrophe Song iPhone application to help boost sales. To achieve this, the aims of the communications campaign were to trigger interest in and conversations about the product across social media, to drive tra ic to the Apostrophe Song in the Apple iTunes store and the new Cool Rules website and to establish Cool Rules as a resource for innovative educational learning methods. The campaign required a global focus to target parents, students, teachers, adults in ‘writing occupations’ in Australia, UK, US, Canada, Singapore, Korea, China, Vietnam, Hong Kong and India. Elements Once the iPhone app was designed and ready for sale, Hughes PR developed a comprehensive digital communications plan, which began with establishing a new website. Another vital element of the campaign was the establishment of a unified description of The Apostrophe Song and its key messages. A blog authored by Mr McNicholas was incorporated into this website to help establish him as the ‘go to’ person for advice on how to teach English grammar and he was supported and encouraged to interact in relevant online forums. Further social media platforms followed included a Facebook page and a Twitter account – harnessed to drive tra ic to the Apple iTunes store. A digital media release was distributed to key national and international media, as well as relevant app reviewers and bloggers. Cool Rules Product: The Apostrophe Song iPhone app 15 case studiesOutcome • Opening day reports on TV Channels 7, 9 and 10. • Live Channel 10 weather cross from the hotel the week prior to the opening. • Profile of Red Salt Restaurant’s new chef profile in News Ltd ‘Taste’ publication. • Key appointments announced in newspaper business sections. • Hotel opening coverage in travel media and major regional South Australian newspapers. • Capacity bookings in the first two weeks following its opening, with strong bookings also received in advance for April and May 2010. DIGITAL CAMPAIGN The situation In 2010, Crowne Plaza Adelaide was the first newly built, internationally branded hotel to open its doors in South Australia in more than 20 years. Hughes Public Relations worked with the hotel to implement a communications program to raise awareness and generate excitement about its opening. One of the elements of the campaign was an innovative Twitter competition. Objectives Crowne Plaza Adelaide’s objective was to position itself as the leading, upscale hotel in Adelaide. It also sought to drive awareness of the hotel’s accommodation, food and beverage o erings among key markets including Adelaide, regional South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales. Elements Hughes PR developed and implemented a communications calendar of activity in the lead-up to the launch of Crowne Plaza Adelaide, executing a program including hosting hard-hat pre-event media tours and exclusive tours with key “influencers”, including members of the tourism industry. Media releases and images were distributed to long-lead publications, and stories pitched to magazines, newspapers and travel websites. Crowne Plaza Adelaide established a presence on Facebook and Twitter, and Hughes PR assisted the hotel to manage a Twitter-based competition called “Tweet Yourself to a Night at the Crowne Plaza’ to generate interest and attract more “followers” to the hotel. Hughes PR facilitated meetings with key industry organisations such as the South Australian Tourism Commission and South Australian Tourism Industry Council. Contact was made with key Tourism Australia representatives in the lead-up to the Australian Tourism Exchange, to be held in Adelaide in 2010. We developed a bank of editorial and news stories including restaurant reviews, travel editorial, business stories and industry editorial aimed at the travel and conference sectors. A list of key opinion leaders and stakeholders for regular briefings was also created. Crowne plaza Twitter Competition 17 case studiesOutcome The results of the coordinated communication campaign in support of the Community Information and Consultation program included: • Very extensive, prominent and significantly positive coverage of the 88 O’Connell project proposal in local, state and national media; • Positive commentary from key opinion leaders including the CEOs of the Property Council of Australia, the Urban Development Institute of Australia, BusinessSA; Adelaide Lord Mayor Martin Haese and Premier Jay Weatherill – as well as media commentators; • An 85 per cent approval rating from readers of The Advertiser as determined by an AdelaideNow online poll of up to 1000 respondents; • Overwhelmingly positive feedback via the project website; • Positive feedback via the project display in North Adelaide Village; • More than 60 online Registrations of Interest in the residential component of the project via the project website; • Strong interest received from international hotel operators and Sheraton chosen to operate boutique hotel; • Key retail tenancies committed before project approval. The Development Assessment Commission approved the Makris Group’s plans in their entirety and with only minor modifications within six months. 88 O’Connell A New Heart for North Adelaide community engagement The situation The Makris Group is South Australia’s largest privately owned retail property group with extensive property holdings in South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland. In December 2014, the Makris Group sought to put forward a proposal for the development of its long-held and vacant high profile site at 88 O’Connell Street, North Adelaide. The “former Le Cornu site” had been the subject of numerous unsuccessful development proposals over more than 20 years, resulting in high levels of Government, community and media skepticism and frustration. In addition, the site sits within an historic, low-rise residential environment fiercely protected by an active ‘heritage’ lobby. The Makris Group’s $200 million redevelopment plans for the landmark site featured a high-end shopping and restaurant precinct, multi- storey residential apartments from one bedroom through to luxury penthouses; commercial o ices; and a boutique hotel, with the aim of injecting vitality in to one of the city’s most valued precincts. The Makris Group appointed Hughes to develop and implement a communications program to support the planning approval process including community consultation and promotion of the benefits flowing to the region and State – while also encouraging and facilitating the management of registrations of interest from potential tenants and purchasers. OBJECTIVES Communication objectives for the 88 O’Connell project included: • Fostering a community, political and media environment which supported planning and development approval; • Overcoming significant skepticism within the community about development of the site; • Managing sometimes ‘polarised’ debate to ensure balanced public and community views of the project; • Protecting and building Makris Group’s reputation as an Adelaide- based organisation committed to the development of a stronger South Australia; • Supporting demand for leasing and purchase decisions in relation to the project. ELEMENTS The communication strategy comprised: • Developing a video fly-through of the project; • Producing a “contextual” video promoting the benefits of the project through interviews with project planners, designers and third party advocates (including retailers and property owners who were supportive of the project); • Briefing key influencers in Government, business, the community and media prior to public release; • Establishing a Project Information website including contextual video; virtual ‘fly-through’; project facts ; feedback mechanism; and a marketing portal for online Registrations of Interest and database development; • Establishing a Community Consultation Suite in an adjacent shopping centre to complement on-line consultation; • Organising an information meeting for traders, property owners, heritage proponents and the local community; • Individual briefings of key influencers in the property and business communities; • Preparation of collateral to support public awareness of the project including Media Release, Fact Sheet, Key Messages, and Frequently Asked Questions tailored to a number of stakeholder groups; • Timing the public (media) release of information to coincide with the opening of the Community Consultation Suite. 19 case studiesNext >