Conference 2012 - Communications workshop
-
Upload
naaonb-landscapesforlife -
Category
Business
-
view
479 -
download
3
description
Transcript of Conference 2012 - Communications workshop
Communications on a landscape scale
Shane HarrisTourism & Communications Manager
• “People will protect nature because they want to, not because they have to.”
– ‘branding biodiversity’, Futerra
• If people don’t know about our special animals and plants…
• If people don’t value our special landscapes…
• Will they care when they’re threatened?
Communications – why bother?
• Branding – on a shoestring
• Newsletters – print vs electronic… a case study
• Social media – conversations with new audiences
• Crystal ball – challenges we face
• Final words
Outline
• Pre-2007 – confused identity– lack of consistency– levels of conflicting identity
– Geopark/AONB status– = dog’s breakfast!
• Jan 2007 launched Logo and Branding Guidelines– consistent approach
adopted– family of communications– belonging
Branding… history
• Changes in Geopark logos
• End of landscape scale projects
• ‘Landscapes for life’ branding guidelines– AONB Family push– Framework to work
together– Need to support &
integrate
• Time for a refresh!
Branding… developing story
• The challenge:– implement ‘Landscapes
for life’ brand guidelines– highlight Geopark status– retain a ‘local’ North
Pennines feel– Consistent approach
across all Partnership communications – print, posters, letterhead, website, email signatures…
– very limited budget
Branding… the refresh
• The solution:– Landscapes for life logo
on front– retain ‘landscape rip’– single ‘hero’ image– title/sub-title colour block– local area logo on back
cover
• Issues:– loss of local identity?– partial implementation?– team resistance
Branding… the refresh
• 2011/12– opportunistic refresh– CMS change– full implementation of
‘Landscape for life’ brand guidelines
Branding… website
• Branding refresh included:– Letterhead– Compliments slip– PowerPoint slides– Email signatures– Poster template
• Consistent ‘look and feel’ across all communications
Branding… letterhead etc.
• Necessary evil…– consistent look and feel– unified identity– reinforces messages– Landscapes for life –
‘together we’re stronger’
• Used local designer…– realistic costs (£1,290!)– lots of ‘hand holding’– needed clear vision– time to develop: 6-8mths
Branding… thoughts
• Two paper editions of North Pennines News a year
• Design, print & distribution costs
• c£5K per edition (26p each)• Advantages:
– Reach 14,000 households– No opt-in– Profile/prominence
• Disadvantages:– Cost– Carbon– Time consuming
Newsletters… case study
• First done Jan 2011• £500 set up – thereafter £20
flat fee + 2p per email • Per year
– 4 enewsletters (1,304)– 4 Sustainable Tourism Enews (513)– 2 Volunteer Ebulletins (292)
• Costs per year £356.72• Advantages:
– Cost savings– More immediate/adaptable– SEO– More engaged
audience/subscribers
• Disadvantages:– Reduced reach – More ephemeral
Enewsletters
• Transition from traditional to new media…
• Print being gradually replaced by electronic
• Currently - One edition of North Pennines News per year and a variety of enewsletters
• Cost savings of c£4K per annum
• Ultimately…
Enewsletters vs Printed newsletters
• “Content isn’t king, Conversation is King. Content is just something to talk about.” Source: HitRiddle
• facebook – More than 901 million (1bn by end 2012, 14% of world population)
• twitter – 555 million (10 million in UK)
• Google+ – 170 million
• Pinterest – 11.7 million
• Linkedin – 150 million
Social media… overview
• Microblogging– tweet content – care required!
• About what you are doing• Joined Aug 2010
– 2,060 ‘followers’ currently
• Themed campaigns– Bike Week 2012 – 12K+
– Green Tourism Week 2012:• 39RTs, 19k/118K reach
• Potential– Yorkshire Dales 8K, ANPA 15K,
RSPB – 29K
Social media - twitter
• Building loyalty/ informal conversations
• Joined February 2011– 320 ‘likes’ currently
• Images/video clips popular
• Potential: – Yorkshire Dales 3K,
ANPA 2.5K, RSPB 23K
Social media - facebook
• Here to stay!• Free but consumes time…
– willingness to engage
• Challenge is to integrate effort across platforms
• Responding to new kids on the block?– Pinterest
• Third of all traffic to www.greentraveller.co.uk arrives via their blog (500K unique vis per mth)– SEO – increasingly
important?
Social media – the future?
• Mobile technology – apps, mobile-friendly websites
• Social media – conversation rather than broadcasting…
• Reducing resource– time and money
• Transition from traditional media to new media– When will print die?
The future…
Alongside this…
• Ever more important to:– engage and win support– crowded market place
• ‘We are family’– must speak with one voice across the AONB Family
– desirable to work with other Protected Landscape
categories…
The future
• Communications must:– reflect our QUALITY
landscapes – encourage people to
VALUE them – and INSPIRE everyone
to care about and take action…
– … to CONSERVE and ENHANCE them
Final words