Embedded Files
January 2014
Contents
1. Brief 1
2. Objectives and strategies 1
3. Recommended approach and tactics 3
4. Suggested timings 5
5. Costs 5
1. Brief
Top Energy and the Far North District Council have committed to fund or to help source and provide goods and services to enable the installation of competition-standard lighting at the Lindvart Park hockey grounds in Kaikohe.
The $200,000 project will benefit not only the region’s hockey players but also touch rugby and other codes who will benefit from the opportunity to train and play under lights during winter months.
FNDC is contributing $100k towards the project. Top Energy has negotiated favourable rates with a consortium of suppliers and contractors to minimise the material and subcontractor costs, while Top Energy staff have volunteered the time needed to undertake the technical aspects of the work. Top Energy itself will then contribute the balance of the cost with a community contribution.
Suppliers and contractors in the Top Energy consortium are Corys Electrical (supply of lights), Te Aratika Drilling (installation of high voltage cable), Siteworx (digging machinery) and Mahalo (transportation of poles).
All the organisations involved, along with business, community and sport leaders in Kaikohe and elsewhere across the Mid North, would like to see the development publicised to the greatest extent possible. This document outlines our ideas on how this might be achieved.
2. Objectives and strategies
Top Energy
Reinforce ongoing contribution to projects of value to Far North communities, by citing this project as an example.
Demonstrate ongoing commitment to Kaikohe, by incorporating other examples of investment in the town in all news and publicity material / activity.
Ensure staff and suppliers are given due credit, by building them into news and publicity material / activity.
Launch the Business Development Fund, by positioning this as the pilot project.
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Far North District Council
Generate community support for the project, by focussing on human interest aspects through case studies, personal stories, etc.
Demonstrate ongoing investment in Kaikohe, by using this project as a news hook on which to hang other examples and plans.
Demonstrate progress with the Kaikohe and District Sportsville concept, by using this project as the news hook on which to hang these wider discussions.
Acknowledge involvement and efforts of Kaikohe and regional business and community leaders in bringing this project to fruition, by involving them in activity and by building them into publicity activity as far as practicable.
Manage potential risk (eg; wider community criticism of investment in infrastructure in this part of the region), by:
identifying and pre-empting potential points of criticism
explaining rationale, using numbers-based proof-points
communicating specific and measurable objectives (social and sporting)
outlining social benefits, using statistics and supportive comment from NZ Police
securing involvement/supportive comment from regional and local sporting bodies such as Sport Northland and the Bay of Islands Hockey Association
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3. Recommended approach and tactics
We propose a two-phase approach based on:
3.1 Initial announcement covering all the details of the project
Local media focus.
Joint Top Energy / FNDC news release backed by statistics and supportive comment from Sport Northland, Bay of Islands Hockey Association, hockey clubs, NZ Police.
FNDC-led briefings for key local media (Peter Jackson, Peter de Graaf and Keri Molloy/Jan Salmon) outlining genesis, rationale and objectives of this project.
Commentators from supporting third-party organisations to be identified, briefed and details given to media for independent comment.
Full pre-emptive Q&A document with focus on potential criticisms / concerns and responses to these. To be shared with representatives from supporting organisations who are likely to be approached for comment.
FNDC’s regular full-page advertorial in the Bay Chronicle, Northern News and the Northland Age will be dedicated to this topic. Briefing activity and news release will be timed to ensure news coverage occurs beforehand.
Sport Northland and Bay of Islands Hockey Association to be approached about issuing letters of support to local media. Due North to draft these if required.
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3.2 Commissioning and ‘Grand Illumination’
Potential national media focus.
Formal ‘switch on’ by His Worship the Mayor John Carter, Top Energy CEO Russell Shaw and representatives from Top Energy staff volunteers, Corys Electrical , Te Aratika Drilling, Siteworx and Mahalo.
Inaugural evening hockey game – work with Bill Fenton, Sport Northland and Bay of Islands Hockey Association to arrange a match between a national side (Blacksticks?) and a local team.
‘Human interest’ case studies and personal stories, supported by professional photography, for distribution on an exclusive basis to local/regional print media.
Due North to work with Keri Molloy and Peter de Graaf/Craig Cooper to coordinate maximum coverage in relevant Fairfax and APN national print media (eg; NZ Herald and Dom Post).
Due North to investigate interest from among relevant sporting mags and other publications.
Identify and develop suitable social and sporting angles for pitching to national broadcast media; eg, ‘self help: provincial community making things happen for itself’ and ‘playing our way out of trouble – one community’s focus on betterment and opportunity through sport’.
Identify and prepare suitable interviewees for any story-angles of interest to national media.
If TV news pitching is unsuccessful we propose commissioning ONE News Whangarei cameraman Dean Whitehead to film the event and package it as a news report for use:
by news networks (they will frequently use this type of material if offered FOC if they have previously declined to cover the story for cost/logistical reasons)
by local print media on their websites (print media are always keen for fresh video content for their online news pages)
by FNDC, Top Energy, consortium companies and other interested organisations (eg; Sport Northland) on their websites and through their social media channels
through independent regional social media channels such as local Twitter groups and the Northland Grapevine on Facebook.
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4. Suggested timings
w/c 10 February Project announcement and initial publicity
February/March Construction / finalisation
End March/Early April Opening, launch and main tranche of publicity
5. Costs
Co-ordination will be managed by Due North as part of its ongoing retainer arrangement with Top Energy. We will be supported by FNDC’s Richard Edmondson as required.
Apart from the commissioning event and inaugural hockey match, the only bought-in costs envisaged at this point are:
Photography $750 (estimated)
TV cameraman / video $5,000 (estimated)
The commissioning event and inaugural hockey match will incur significant costs which are difficult to estimate accurately at this stage. We suggest that Kaikohe and Districts Sportsville Inc, the Kaikohe Business Association, Sport Northland and the Bay of Islands Hockey Association are asked to arrange the event and to shoulder the costs, while Top Energy and the FNDC provide the media support and co-ordination.
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