Key Communications Out-takes from RWC2011

Some of the team recently attended a PRINZ Event, ‘Inside the RWC 2011 Communications Plan’. I gained some great insight into the communications planning, lessons and legacies behind New Zealand’s most colossal event, Rugby World Cup 2011.

Auckland's RWC 2011 communications manager (at AucklandTourism Events & Economic Development), Simon Roche co-ordinated and lead Auckland's integrated communications programme leading up to and throughout RWC 2011. His team worked closely alongside stakeholders - rugby unions, venues, Auckland Council, CCOs, Rugby New Zealand 2011 and Central Government, to name a few.

As RWC 2011 was such an enormous event, Simon only had time to scratch the surface of his experiences during his talk with us but he still covered plenty of interesting ground. Read on for my key out-takes of his astute learnings from the role.

From the first discussion the RWC was up against a multitude of challenges. Aucklanders are notoriously apathetic, but without local support the event was destined to be a flop. One of the major challenges was inciting passion amongst Auckland residents - a tough crowd to please!

The RWC Overall Communications Strategy:

Main Goals
1. Development of Auckland waterfront

2. Auckland’s reputation as well as the overall reputation of New Zealand

3. Pride and community engagement I.e. Tidying up towns and suburbs

4. Transport – Bricks and mortar upgrades, as well as people actually using the transport system

5. RWC 2011 to work as launching pad to establish Auckland as an event destination, stabilising event logistics and processes simultaneously.

There were two major risks of real concern. First and foremost were the facility upgrades (I.e. ‘The Cloud’ and stadium renovations). How would they be funded and how could they ensure their readiness in time for the tournament?

The other main issue to deal with was too few or too many coming. If they went to lightly on promotional PR tactics, the event would be lacklustre and considered a flop, not to mention the monetary ramifications. Too many and facilities wouldn’t be able to cope, as well as crowd control issues.

Early on, surveys were done to gauge attendance numbers for opening night events. The resulting conclusion was the very great likelihood of a small turnout to the opening night. The recommendation to remedy this was a large marketing/promotional campaign aimed to boost Opening Night attendance numbers at both Eden Park and the waterfront.

Opening Night:
Part I: Media & promotion

Part II: Transport, event spaces in CBD

We are all very familiar with what happened on Opening Night. After what was clearly a very successful marketing and promotional campaign, the Auckland waterfront (including Fan Zones, The Cloud, Wynyard Quarter etc) was overwhelmed by huge numbers of ‘revellers’. Adding to that were severe transportation shortages.

When the first indication of overcrowding came to light, an emergency comms plan involving strong messaging to warn punters of large crowds was implemented. However, a combination of circumstances such as warm weather, it being a Friday night and the alcohol factor caused the issue to be greater than what could be managed.

Whether or not you are a fan of Len Brown, it was heartening for Simon to see Len prepared to bear the brunt of the opening night mis-haps. At an impromptu meeting at 1.30am on opening night, Len was asking the RWC Comms team what they needed him to do and how they needed him to respond. This is a refreshing reaction as figureheads are often seen trying to relinquish any blame in those types of circumstances.

After this incident, PR on the more popular events was reduced (i.e. popular music events at The Cloud) during game time to avoid further crowd control issues.

Success of the Fan Trail:

This was an innovative move and innovation tends to be met with either adulation at one end or cynicism at the other. The idea for the Fan Trail was initially born as a solution to transport issues. However, it was not intended to be a necessary evil, but a fun and integral part of the event that nobody would want to miss.

By placing performers along the Fan Trail before every game, it became an entertainment factor in itself that generated buzz and drew bigger and bigger crowds. By the final game, it drew 41,000 punters! Clearly, most of these were not attending the game, but the success of the fan trail was such that people seized their last chance to join in the atmosphere of the pre-game wander to the stadium.

From day 1, many people came to see Queens Wharf. Either all the bad publicity was good publicity as people came out of curiosity to check it out, or they were simply overseas visitors who were unaware of the flack the initiatives had received.

The Final Night:

The pressure was on. RWC Comms and many members of the public felt that the media had blown the Opening Night issues out of proportion. This time they were determined to manage the issues, including media, more effectively.

Social Media played a crucial role throughout, communicating the same key message to all the different components of the events, ensuring the message remained consistent and unscrambled when it finally reached the punters.

Announcement boards, loudspeakers, Social Media and staff on site were the key communicators, constantly updating with the same message. The tactic was to fill up Queens Wharf first, and so on, until Aotea Square was filled 10minutes before the game started - the optimum result! The experience learned from this is that it is easier to manage in multiple venues for celebrations than cramming into one.

Finally, how do you plan a victory parade, without anyone knowing you are counting your chickens or jinxing the team? Very carefully, it would seem. All media were warned beforehand, and all bar The Herald manage to keep it under wraps.

Lessons Learned:

A great lesson learned was how to handle proactive media. As long as you provide a friendly environment and encourage them to approach for stories off their own bat, plus some media liaison, guidelines & regulation will generally be adhered to.

Cultural differences must be respected. A variety of team welcomes were required, so a well-researched plan was put in place to accommodate all different cultural needs and aspects.  Also, there is no better ambassador for Auckland than a visitor who has been here and had a good time.

In hindsight, Simon stresses the importance of and international tourism program (in this case run by Tourism New Zealand); the importance of international media and creating strong relationships in this area; and just how instrumental the rugby players themselves were in getting international coverage.

Communications is a temperamental industry. All in all you need to be prepared for anything and to learn from your mistakes!

By Bridget Bisset