Economic recovery </br>Northland

Economic recovery
Northland

We call the New Zealand region of Northland home. It's where our heart is.

It’s a place we know well, and we have an extensive network of friends and contacts across the region.

We used the COVID-19 pandemic lock-down period to gather thoughts from business leaders across our region about what needs to happen to pull Northland out of the inevitable COVID-inspired recession. Internal comms</br>Zurich

Internal comms
Zurich

We’ve met the internal communication challenges of organisations of all sizes. It’s not about broadcasting. It’s about listening, responding and engaging meaningfully. Done badly, internal communication can spark derision and create rifts. Done well it can boost morale, create opportunities and boost the bottom line.

When Dow acquired German firm Wolff Walsrode to form Dow Wolff Cellulosics, we helped bridge a significant cultural divide to create a single team committed to a common set of goals and objectives. Stakeholder relations Perth

Stakeholder relations Perth

Successful organisations know that good stakeholder relations is about building trust by listening, and engaging with people on topics and issues of mutual interest.

We produced a comprehensive stakeholder engagement plan for Western Australian banking icon Bankwest. This was integrated with their community engagement and corporate responsibility programmes, and part of a fully-measurable external communication strategy we developed to help them meet the challenges of the rapidly evolving financial sector. Crisis communication Paihia

Crisis communication Paihia

Crises demand special communication expertise. We have a quarter of a century of international experience in this area with clients as diverse as British Airways and the Canadian logging industry.

When an aircraft belonging to charter operator Salt Air crashed after being diverted from fighting a fire to rescue people trapped by the flames, national media interest was intense. The small, close-knit team was struggling to deal with the tragic loss of their colleagues so we were pleased to help. Communication audit Auckland

Communication audit Auckland

We have decades of experience in understanding what it takes to get over the hurdles facing smooth and effective two-way corporate communication. Unless you can get over them quickly the damage to your relationships, and reputation, can be substantial.

We helped the Heart Foundation to streamline the way different parts of the organisation interact with each other, addressing workload choke-points, enhancing compliance with internal procedures, creating efficiencies and improving relationships. Incident comms Marsden Point

Incident comms Marsden Point

Despite all the best planning and precautions things occasionally go wrong. Accidents happen. Its not the incident that will make or break your reputation, its how you respond to it.

Widely held as one of the toughest PR gigs in 2017, the September rupture of Refining New Zealand’s 170km pipeline linking Auckland with its refinery at Marsden Point in Northland threw up some superb affirmations, lessons and observations about crisis and incident communication. Crisis planning Ruakaka

Crisis planning Ruakaka

Effective crisis communication demands effective planning. We’ll develop a step-by-step communication plan to help you deal with the media spotlight and ensure you keep all your stakeholders in the loop when something goes bang.

We’ve developed a crisis communication plan for Northport, New Zealand’s only deepwater port and an important part of the North Island’s strategic infrastructure. This helps the port’s small team communicate effectively during an incident while maintaining its focus on the event itself. Community relations</br>The Far North

Community relations
The Far North

There’s nothing easy or short-term about community relations. But over the years we’ve developed an effective understanding of what it takes to secure community acceptance and to grow the reputation of an organisation as a community hero.

We were fortunate enough to have an opportunity to develop and implement a community relations programme for Far North power generator and electricity lines company Top Energy. This went on to become the best corporate PR campaign of the PRINZ Awards. Perception research Waitangi

Perception research Waitangi

Public relations is about changing or reinforcing what people think about you. So why would you embark on a PR programme without knowing how your organisation is perceived? That’s like starting a journey with no idea about where you want to go.

We’ve got perception research nailed and we use it to inform and shape the work we do for our clients. One of these is the Waitangi National Trust, which also uses the research to benchmark the effectiveness of the work we do for it and to measure ROI. Reputation building Napier

Reputation building Napier

Maintaining a reputation is one thing. Building one is another thing entirely, especially if yours is a small to medium-sized organisation operating in a crowded arena. We understand the difficulties and sensitivities involved and are able to help navigate these.

We worked with Hawke’s Bay-based Forest Lifeforce Restoration Trust to help it establish credibility within the New Zealand conservation sector and to position several of its projects as private-sector conservation best practice. Media training </br>Whangarei

Media training
Whangarei

Our ‘6 of One’ media training courses focus on balance; how to deliver great interviews that achieve your objectives while also ensuring that journalists come back to you time and again because you’re great talent.

We’ve trained senior managers at Refining New Zealand on how to prepare for and get the best from any media interviews they undertake. Because it’s important that they know what it takes. This is New Zealand’s only oil refinery and a vital piece of national infrastructure. Stakeholder comms Rotorua

Stakeholder comms Rotorua

We build relationships between organisations and groups or individuals important to them. We create channels and opportunities for two-way communication on issues that matter to both sides. This builds relationship. And with relationship comes good will, trust and understanding.

We helped New Zealand Crown Research Agency Scion earn social licence for a study into a new industry based on a native New Zealand tree species. This emotive subject needed careful introduction to many stakeholders. Issue management Bay of Islands

Issue management Bay of Islands

Ongoing and effective communication is key to managing the issues that your organisation needs to deal with, in order to do the job expected of it by shareholders, owners, customers and the communities in which it operates.

We helped a Council-owned asset management company, Far North Holdings, persuade the people of Russell that it was in their best interests to approve the transfer of a vital piece of infrastructure - the iconic Russell Wharf - into the company’s ownership.

Smart listening. Straight talking. And your greatest asset.

Your organisation’s reputation can be your greatest asset. Or your greatest liability. Either way it’s shaped by every single contact you have with the outside world. Every call to your help desk. Every piece of marketing material. Every time one of your vehicles takes to the road. Every time somebody uses your product or service. Every response to a complaint. It all influences the way people think and talk about you. We’re a full-service public relations consultancy operating throughout New Zealand. And we know about reputations. How they’re won. How they’re spread. How they’re lost.

 

For over three decades our PR consultants have worked across a wide range of sectors including agriculture, forestry, mining, manufacturing, retail, environmental, travel, technology, pharmaceutical, health and healthcare. Our work ranges from community relations, investor relations, internal communication and any type of corporate writing or scripting, right through to media management, media training, issues management and crisis communication. When you work with us you’ll get smart listening and straight talking. So drop us a line or give us a call. Because it’s your greatest asset we’re talking about.