17 things we’ve loved in 2017

by December 15, 2017

Aaaaaaaaand…. that’s a wrap. Our cosy office in the heart of Frankton is all locked up and ready for some peace and quiet this silly season! With 2018 just around the corner, we thought it was timely to summarise what we loved most about 2017. It’s been a big year – a year of change,…

17 things we’ve loved in 2017:

1 > Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern 

For her stringent citizen test and love of pineapple lumps. Oh and girl power. The fact she loves cats. For inspiring our daughters. For showing Gareth Morgan that voters can, indeed, “be that thick”. And look what happened to him, eh? (Image: ZM Online)

Jacinda-Arden-ZM-interview

 

2 > Rebranding Southern PR 

Our clients rely on us to protect their reputations and build their brands, and 2017 was our year for the brand revamp. Practice what you preach!

So we took the leap, and what came next was truly spectacular, thanks to the creative team at Whitelaw Mitchell.

We said hello to our new bright Pantone colours (mixed with a healthy balance of black), geometric shapes, and fonts to match. We love it. Hope you do too.

3 > Launching our savvy new website

With our cool new look, the next step was a website to match. We came out of the dark ages and transitioned into the digital imperatives of a responsive and mobile-friendly website, with visitor experience top of mind.

Missed it? Here’s 6 ‘must-know’ facts about our website launch.

Southern-PR-new-launch

4 > Coffee

It simply gets our creative juices flowing. Thanks to our new KeepCups we’re saving the planet one coffee at a time.

We feel good, anyway.

5 > Kiwi golfer Michael Hendry – king of the course

Hendry was the first New Zealander in 14 years to win the Brodie Breeze trophy, and what a celebration it was!

He’s back to defend his crown for the 99th ISPS Handa New Zealand Open at Millbrook Resort and The Hills on 1 to 4 March 2018. See you there! (Image: New Zealand Open)

New-Zealand-Open-Michael-Hendry

 

6 > Planet Earth

A tribute to Sir David Attenborough.

He’s taken us closer to nature than we’ve ever been before and if the Hans Zimmer sound track isn’t enough to keep you on the edge of your seat, the penguins jumping off the cliff will tug at your heart strings…

7 > Award-winning us

Back in August, we were named top public relations agency in Australasia at the Australasian Leisure Management Communications and Marketing Awards.

It was incredibly exciting to be recognised for the work we do throughout Australasia in the tourism and leisure sectors.

Southern-PR-Sarah-Fiona-Laura

 

8 > Our family of clients making a world of difference

Our clients? They’re awesome. Do we need to say anything else? Highlights of the year, as always.

9 > Rabbit Ranch Pinot Noir Rosé and peonies!

Pass the pink stuff! This heavenly pink is our favourite rosé for 2017, and spring is our favourite season for the simple fact that extravagantly beautiful peonies become a must-have in our office.

10 > Hello Christchurch

Our savvy little company branched out into Christchurch this year. Starting with a bang, we worked on the PR launch for the new Crowne Plaza Christchurch. (Image: Designworks)

Crowne-Plaza-Christchurch-grand-staircase-Designworks

 

11 > Moving Mountains

Back in March we secured a 12-page spread for our client Southern Landmarx in NZ House and Garden. Yes, 12 pages. A fantastic result off the back of a double medal trifecta award win.

12 > Brain Food

With an unstoppable energy for delivering morning to night experiences, the Yonder team is rightfully winning the hearts of locals by offering something new in Queenstown.

Our favourite on the menu – the Kimchi Bowl. (Image: Whitelaw Mitchell)

Yonder-Queenstown-Kimchi-Bowl

 

13 > Networking

There’s nothing we love more than connecting with Queenstown’s vibrant business community. We’re lucky to have so many inspiring people and entrepreneurial masterminds on our doorstep.

Every event or breakfast meeting is an opportunity to ‘wow’ people with our snazzy square business cards. Who said print was dead? Make an impact.

14 > Upskilling

Don’t get left behind. Invest in your business and your people.

We’re delighted to be working with Public Relations Institute of New Zealand (PRINZ) to help bring more communications-based courses to Queenstown.

Our little resort town can sometimes be ‘off the radar’ due to our ‘remote’ location, so join us for a two-day course early next year to learn how to master communication and gain skills for the digital era. View course details here.

15 > Supporting culture in Queenstown

Yes we love all our clients. But we love LUMA differently because they don’t pay us. That’s because they put all the money they DO get into this awesome event that’s growing bigger by the year. We’re OK with that. (Image: Esther Small)

Luma-2017-Light-Walk-Esther-Small

 

16 > Reputation management

Reputation is key. Knowing what to do when things go wrong (and they do) is all about having a plan. We sincerely hope you never have to use your plan. But when the s**t hits the proverbial you better have one. Talk to us.

17 > Clay Target Shooting

There’s something really, really satisfying about shooting stuff (bad day at the office, anyone?). That’s shooting clays and rabbits (clay discs of course)! We just channelled our inner sharpshooter thanks to the wonderful team at Break One Clay Target Shooting.

Amidst the stunning landscape on the private Queenstown Hill Station, Fiona revealed her ‘wild side’ and took home top score at our office Christmas party! (Image: Break One)

Southern-PR-Laura-Fiona-Amy

 

And there you have it, happy holidays and see you in 2018.

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Crisis Communications: What to do when your business reputation is on the line

by August 09, 2017

Accidents happen. Incidents happen. Sometimes to the biggest and ‘best’ businesses out there. But it shouldn’t really matter whether you and your business are ‘big’ or ‘small’. If you’ve spent years of your hard-earned cash and sacrificed so-called work/life balance to build your business. If your personal reputation and brand is on the line if…

Sadly, it seems a fair few businesses adopt the head-in-the-sand approach to crisis communications.

WHY?

Being honest enough to admit that you and your business are not perfect (that business really, truly doesn’t exist) and being prepared before the crisis happens is not that hard.

Yes it costs to call on a communication company for training and in the event of a crisis. But what’s at stake here? The most important thing in your business is your reputation; what you’ve built up over the years is something you should be prepared to protect.

SO, HAVE A CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS PLAN.

If you’re in any kind of business you’ll no doubt have operational plans, rules and regulations coming out of your ears. In, for example, aviation, adventure tourism, or events, the levels of compliance are probably driving you nuts, as you’re constantly having to refresh or re-do the mounds of *online* paperwork or show that you meet the latest standards.

But what’s the point in having all that documentation if it can all be unravelled in a matter of two or three days if you don’t respond appropriately to a crisis?

CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS 101

Southern PR’s Director Fiona Woodham shares her ‘Crisis Comms 101’ top tips to help get you started:

  • Consider all the scenarios (from death, to injury, to your workplace burning down or a staff member going rogue)
  • Think about how, when and why you will communicate clearly and effectively with media, stakeholders, staff and customers
  • Think about how you will communicate with all relevant agencies involved in your incident – these might be police, your industry representatives, Victim Support or even the likes of your local RTO or Tourism New Zealand
  • Consider what your key messages would be around any of the potential incidents that might afflict your business and how and when you would communicate those to ultimately protect your business and achieve a ‘business as usual’ status
  • Review your operational plans in the light of the above scenarios and ask yourself whether you’re comfortable with successfully delivering timely, accurate and targeted crisis communications to all the channels above while you’re in the middle of dealing with the incident itself
  • Contact your PR agency so they can review your plans and assess what levels of training might be required BEFORE you need to put them into action

Accidents happen. Incidents happen. They’re going to happen because no matter how well you think you know your business and the people that work in or on it, human nature comes to the fore. People make mistakes. Things go wrong.

“Say sorry,” says Fiona.

“The company is sorry, the staff are devastated, saying sorry isn’t an admission of guilt. It’s all about reputation and trust, not about pulling the wool over anyone’s eyes.”

Businesses that deal with incidents best, big or small, are inevitably the ones that have planned for the unthinkable and are confident that their systems, processes and training are in place.

Hear more from the Southern PR team on what it takes to prepare for a crisis in our upcoming workshop – Southern PR Presents…Crisis Management 101.

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The Power of Public Relations

by May 02, 2017

What’s the real value of PR? PR can work for any and every industry, from tourism jet boat companies, to wineries to commercial developments. A company with a message to deliver or a goal to achieve can benefit from PR. All you need is a creative idea that’s newsworthy and communicates your marketing message.

Why do PR? It’s a question that a lot of people ask, and it’s the least understood of all marketing tools. But while it’s possible to operate a business with little or no PR spend, it’s unlikely that your company will gain traction in your industry.

PR is about building strong relationships, media exposure and maintaining a good reputation.

 

Here’s our four ‘savvy’ reasons to do PR

1. You’re a little fish in a big pond

Beating someone else’s ad campaign with your own paid advertising can be difficult if your competitor can afford to outspend you. PR levels the playing field.

In advertising, money buys you more media space. In PR, creative thinking wins you media space. As a small to mid-sized business you often have the advantage here as you can often move quickly on creative ideas, while bigger businesses can run into a hamstring of sign off processes.

If you’re creative, most PR ideas can be done on a shoestring budget. If you craft a good pitch and media release for your desired outlets, your return can result in a primetime TV interview, a front cover feature on your local paper, or a national business story.

2. Effectively deliver your key messages

Communicating with your target audience is not always an easy task, particularly if your inexperienced in talking to the media.

Key messages are the core messages you want your target audience to hear and remember. They allow you to control communications, enhance relationships with your target audiences and are an important feature of a PR campaign.

A carefully crafted public relations strategy produces clarity about your company’s key messages and brand identity. Make sure it’s in sync across all of your marketing communications channels.

3. PR builds credibility

As Jean-Louis Gassée once said – “Advertising is saying you’re good. PR is getting someone else to say you’re good.”

People are often sceptical of advertising however as PR is promotion in the form of news, editorial or a feature people so your audience believes it. PR professionals build relationships with the media and liaise with editors to publish and distribute news that promotes clients’ goals.

3. Prepare for a PR Crisis

When things go wrong, you need to manage the media storm and protect your well-earned reputation. A crisis can strike any company at any time, so planning for possible crises helps employees know what to do should a crisis hit.

Handled incorrectly, a crisis can cause far-reaching damage. We’re experts in guiding you through the dark days and helping you get back on your feet so get in touch if you’d like to be proactive about crisis planning.

 

At Southern PR, we help your business shine whether you’re a start-up or established business.

We do that by developing a tailored and relevant PR and marketing strategy that delivers on your business goals. We’ll help develop that content or fine-tune that story so you talk to your audience at the right time, with the right message, through the right channels.

To find out more about the services we offer, head to our services.

 

PR terminology glossary – the basics

Boilerplate – a short company description used at the end of a media release

Embargo – the sharing of unannounced, relevant information from a PR to the media that cannot be published before an agreed time and date

Exclusive – Offering first-look information to your desired media outlet. In offering a media outlet an exclusive the information can’t be shared between other outlets until the story is published

Hook/angle – a specific emphasis you choose for a story that you’ll pitch to the media

Launch – The official announcement of your new product or service. This is usually crafted in a media release

Lead time – The amount of time needed by reporters to gather information for their story. An online story is instant while most magazines have a long lead time (sometimes even three months!)

Pitch – A crafted note to a particular editor to gauge their interest in your client, in addition to a media release

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TESTIMONIALS

what our clients say

“Southern PR were great to work with, and they got some great results during the launch of our Cardrona Cabin. We’ve found using local representatives very successful, and Southern PR are one of the best.”

Founder Daniel Gudsell – Abodo Wood Ltd 

“The team at Southern PR is absolutely top notch. For general PR, social media expertise or crisis management, you want Fiona and her professional team in your corner.  Working with them is always a pleasure and I cannot recommend them highly enough.”

Director Gavin Taylor – GFORCE Paragliding

what our clients say

“I am very proud to have worked with Southern PR for nearly a decade. I love working with them, not only for their creative and thorough briefs and clear communication on shot requirements but also their enthusiasm on the shoot days.  If you want a positive, focused and creative team to get your brand out to your target market – Southern PR are your team!”

Photographer & Director Jackie Gay – Still Vision Photography