What's been happening at Tohu Whenua? July 2023

Visitor survey - the results are in!

Our visitor survey project has come to an end. We will be distributing a formal report on the survey soon as well as individual reports with results specific to your site but we thought we would start with a sneak peek reveal of some of the high level results.

Many thanks to everyone who supported this important project, especially for your patience and flexibility as we had to take a couple of breaks due to COVID and severe weather events around the motu - it’s a relief to have made it to the finish line and with some great results to share.

What was this all about?
We set out to learn a number of things from visitors to Tohu Whenua sites, based on our monitoring and evaluation goals - exceptional experiences, a compelling brand and a credible and connected network. We are all passionate about heritage and the results will help all of us communicate the value of heritage and of Tohu Whenua to wider audiences. At place, we hope the results help you in future decision making.

Who participated?
We had a target of 1500 completed surveys across the 23 sites surveyed and using a mixed method approach we got close to that with 1440 surveys in by the end - 1003 through face to face interviewing, 63 from emails followed up from visitors who didn’t have time on the day and 374 from people who scanned the QR code on the posters. 67% of those who completed the survey were NZ based with the other 33% living overseas. Most of those surveyed were aged between 25 and 59 years.

What did they say?
Here’s a quick snapshot of some of the great results…

88% of people were very or extremely satisfied with their experience at your place

70% say they have a greater understanding of New Zealand after their visit

74% value heritage more as a result of their visit

Visitors also overwhelmingly agreed they felt safe at Tohu Whenua sites and that they were suitable for kids.

In their own words, here are a few comments from visitors asked about what they most enjoyed or learned at site:

“The history of what happened here and how it is unresolved”

“Being able to tell the history to my kids”

“Like travelling back in time and seeing history face-to-face”

“The reality of being in this place brought the story to life”

“Beautiful scenery and the feel of the place”

Where to next?
There is also a lot of good learning in the data and the Tohu Whenua team will be using some of the lessons to shape the programme and marketing in future. We are looking forward to doing this in partnership with you so we can all make the most of all the great work happening to bring Aotearoa New Zealand’s heritage to life. Watch your email for more data, reporting and opportunities for discussion.  And as always, let Caroline know if you have any questions.

Marketing update

The stars finally aligned for us to complete our Otago photo shoot, providing fresh images of historic Ōamaru. Josh Jenkins of Reframed Media captured over 200 ‘I wish I was there’ moments that showcase the town’s many heritage-themed visitor experiences. A special shout out to Sonia Martinez, communication team lead at Waitaki City Council who was our talent scout, and Carolyn Lewis of Whitestone City who helped with logistics. We are grateful for the two enthusiastic families and young couple who took on the role as ‘visitors’ for the day, as well as the business owners who were willing to be showcased. We’ve already added some of the images to our Tohu Whenua images library.

We have a feature about Te Kopikopiko o te Waka in OurNZ travel guide and an article about Denniston in NZMCA’s The Motor Caravanner. We’ve also just completed one-page editorials that will feature in this summer’s Walking and Cycling guides (now run by Trans Tasman Media rather than the Automobile Association).

To keep up momentum with encouraging families and school groups to visit Tohu Whenua places, we have an article in the June issue of Christchurch-based Family Times magazine (30,000 hard copies delivered quarterly to families in Canterbury via schools, preschools and public areas). We will also star in the Education Gazette in August; this is the main hub used by New Zealand education professionals for education news, articles and career development opportunities. 

Also - our winter advert is out! Let us know if you want a copy of the email banner or social media tile.

News in brief

We’ve made some changes to the Tohu Whenua website. This includes snazzing up the layout of individual Tohu Whenua site pages, and creating dedicated pages for ‘news’, ‘stories’ and ‘travel tips’.

Thank you to Nicky Busst from the Arrowtown Promotion Association and Roy Bagley from Bagley Builders for their help with the recent installation of a second Tohu Whenua site marker. Arrowtown’s two posts reflect that this Tohu Whenua tells the story of two very different gold rush communities. Look out for the new marker next time you’re passing by Arrowtown’s gorgeous wee library.

Rail Tales, the new education site that showcases the Otago Central Rail Trail, is up and running. While it’s been especially written as a teaching resource from primary through to NCEA Level 3, we highly recommend it to anyone wanting to know more about the history of Central Otago. It’s a joy to use - with an interactive map, lesson plans and a wealth of historical facts in one handy location.

Clendon Papers. The Clendon family who diligently preserved over 3000 papers documenting the life of England-born James Reddy Clendon (an early Northland trader, merchant, settler, farmer, government official and the first US consul in New Zealand) have received special acknowledgement. On 29 April, Associate Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Willow-Jean Prime joined descendants, community and visitors gathered at Clendon House in Rāwene to mark the addition of the Clendon Papers to the UNESCO Memory of the World Aotearoa New Zealand Register. Click here for the full story.

Farewell to Claudia

We’re sad to say that, after being an integral Tohu Whenua team member for more than five years, our marketing and communications manager Claudia Babirat is moving on to new adventures. We’ve asked her to share a few thoughts about her experiences.

“Kia ora, it’s Claudia. If you’re reading this, I’ve likely had the privilege of working with you - thank you! 

I can’t believe it’s been 5 ½ years. I joined Tohu Whenua at the end of 2017. The pilot in Te Tai Tokerau Northland had just been declared a success, Otago was about to be launched as the second Tohu Whenua region, and the West Coast was to follow a year later. The programme was young and trying to find its voice. It was an exciting time to come on board.

My role was initially 10 hours a week and involved producing written content, photos and video for social media. When the fabulous Caroline Toplis became programme manager a few months later, she soon saw the value in expanding my job into a more ambitious communication and marketing position. 

Together we focussed on fine-tuning and consolidating Tohu Whenua’s unique identity, snazzing up the brand, completely redesigning the website which now includes marketing tools and an image library, and creating our first brand adverts. Our work has been creative, fun - but also strategic, guided by a marketing and communications plan that I put together, with the goal of making Tohu Whenua a household name across Aotearoa New Zealand. 

I’ve reveled in regularly pitching story ideas to newspapers, travel guides and lifestyle magazines, some of them written by their journalists and some by me. We now have an impressively thick portfolio of Tohu Whenua stories in publications such as Kia Ora magazine, OurNZ, Family Times, NZMCA Motor Caravanner and NZ Herald Travel to name a few. I’ve also been lucky enough to work with four super-talented photographers, whose fresh images beautifully capture the diversity of visitor experiences at each Tohu Whenua landmark and have been at the centre of several marketing campaigns I developed from scratch - including the successful ‘Our Heritage Is -’ campaign. 

I’m thankful for the productive relationships I have with marketing and communication experts based at our partner agencies - it’s been wonderful to have such a talented network to draw inspiration from. A special shout-out goes to Bec Collie, former marketing guru at Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga with whom I shared several boundary-pushing creative journeys. Thank you also to the regional tourism organisation marketing teams who see the value of the Tohu Whenua brand and promote it on a regular basis - you’re all stars.

I also have to acknowledge the freedom that my role with Tohu Whenua has always provided me. Working as a contractor from home (and sometimes from our housetruck - including writing an article about Waiuta while we were actually camped at Waiuta!), with the ability to make my weekly 20 hours fit around everything else happening in my life - a second job, building a house, spending quality time with family, travel, a pandemic.  

Tohu Whenua introduced me to places that I now care deeply about. I’ve spent time at all 26 locations. I’ve experienced the unique stories of each Tohu Whenua, met the dedicated individuals and communities who look after them, sought them out to explore in my own time, and on an almost daily basis encourage others to visit. These special heritage places, which we can proudly call our own, are forever woven into my own story.

Thank you all for sharing this journey with me.” 

News in brief

Our engagement with partners in Kā Pākihi Whakatekateka o Waitaha Canterbury is going well. Nigel has been enjoying getting out and about around the region, meeting with Ngāi Tahu representatives from various rūnanga and talking with them about the programme and the opportunities for sharing stories…watch this space!

A big shout-out to all of you celebrating your Tohu Whenua status! If you haven’t got yours already - Tohu Whenua flags are available to display on site, as well as T-shirts and badges for your staff to wear (this includes staff at i-sites and DOC visitor centres). If any of your Tohu Whenua branded collateral is getting a bit tatty please let us know and we’ll provide replacements. And please also tell us if any of the Tohu Whenua wooden site markers get damaged or need attention.

Have you taken a look at the new Southern Way website? Southern Way is a collaboration between 8 southern regional tourism organisations, who collectively celebrate and share the large diversity of visitor experiences in the scenic southern regions of Te Wai Pounamu. Designed to inform and inspire visitors to slow down, explore further, stay longer and ultimately return, the content features places of interest, suggested itineraries and a wide-ranging set of world class experiences.

“JOS - the forgotten photographer who saved a town” documentary commissioned by Friends of Waiuta has been a success. On opening week the documentary reached 12th at the box office, and since May it’s been watched by over 3000 people in cinemas across the country. At the same time, the Department of Conservation has started a $100K restoration project to shore up Jos Divis’s cottage at Waiuta, which dates back to the 1920s. Work is expected to finish in September, with a formal opening taking place in early 2024.

As we head into a new financial year the team has been planning and we are keen to get Tohu Whenua out and about at community events, to share the story of the programme, and encourage even more people to visit the beautiful places we spend our days promoting. We have booked the Canterbury A&P Show in November so look out for more info about that. We would love to hear from you about events happening in your rohe that might be a good fit for a Tohu Whenua stall or to participate in a stall you are hosting. If you have any suggestions or would like to partner with us, drop Caroline a line.