MEDIA Guide 2016
A basic guide to media and marketing an event in Hamilton
o PRESENTING YOURSELF AND YOUR EVENT
o PRESS RELEASES AND PHOTO TIPS
o ALTERNATIVE MARKETING
o KEEPING IT FRINGE
o MEDIA CONTACTS
Welcome artists and mayhem makers to the Hamilton Fringe Festival for 2015. Dealing with
marketing and media can be daunting at times and this guide has been formulated to give you a
helping hand in promoting your art. If you do find yourself with more questions or concerns, please
don’t be afraid to contact us – we’re here to help! info@hamiltonfringe.co.nz
A list of all relevant media contacts is at the end of this document.
PRESENTING YOURSELF AND YOUR EVENT
The first thing to think about is HOW DO YOU WANT TO PORTRAY YOURSELF AND YOUR EVENT…
Keep this at the front of your mind in all media and marketing related matters.
Poster images, press release, photographs, programme blurbs and all other promotional material
should project YOUR vision of YOUR event and the following will help to guide you in doing this.
Stay true to your vision.
PRESS RELEASE AND PHOTO TIPS
Press releases are a good way to get yourself into the local papers. Journalists are looking for an
easy, interesting story to be handed straight to them and a great way to get coverage is by showing
the story behind your work.
Just remember, they won’t cover something they don’t understand so make sure to write in plain
language.
What to put in a press release 
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Open with a simple paragraph – who, what, where, when and why
Look for a quirk that will “sell” your story
The body paragraphs (two is a good number) are the place for bio, background etc and to
extend on your point of difference
Quote yourself – people do this all the time so it’s not going to seem weird to the press and
it saves being misquoted and misrepresented!
Include contact details
Make sure it is no more than a few paragraphs
ATTACH high-resolution images (do not embed them). Papers will not print low-quality
images. Use a camera, not a phone where possible.
Prepare yourself for a photoshoot in case they are interested in coming to take some of their
own.
PHOTOGRAPHS
It is preferable to engineer your own image or use your Fringe programme event image and to
provide this along with any press releases you may send out. This way YOU can have some control
over how you and your event are seen.
The ideal thing is to think of an image which will be recognisable and constant throughout all your
promotion, including your section in the Fringe programme. Cute, quirky, zany… an eye-catching
image draws the audiences in to read further. Journalists tend to prefer colourful pictures of shiny,
happy people so perhaps have one of those as a backup if your event image is an object or artwork.
POSTERS
A great poster has a strong, simple image with a minimum of words that are easy to read from a
distance. Include what, when, where and the Fringe logo. Seek advice from a graphic designer if
you can or us if you are not very tech-savvy.
RADIO
Radio are often looking for interesting stories, and local content. Get your pitch ready and give them
a call (on their off-air number). Again, think about what it is that sets your event apart from the
others. Like all media, they are looking for things that are unusual and interesting. See contact
details at the end of this document.
GIG GUIDES and ARTS LISTINGS
USE THEM to promote your event! Lots of them are FREE and EASY to do online. If you are using a
local venue, ask if they have a mailing list that your event can be included in.
SOCIAL MEDIA is your friend. Tweet and post your little hearts out. Make fan, group and event pages
and keep the updates coming. The audience is there and captive so use it! Again, think about how to
make your event stand out in amongst all of the other stuff out there. Do not rely solely on making a
Facebook event for your advertising. Use social media alongside the other suggested marketing
tools. Make sure you ‘like’ the Fringe facebook page so you can share our festival updates with your
friends.
TELL YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY
Don’t assume that your friends will ‘just hear about it’. Word of mouth is the best marketing tool.
Ask your friends and family to distribute flyers and posters to their workplaces, sportsclubs
etc.
Go to other people’s events and network in person.
VOUCHERS AND ONLINE DEALS WEBSITES
Grabone is a website which advertises daily deals to 100s of 1000s on kiwis who like to hear about
discount offers on activities, holidays, retail etc. Consider listing your event there and offering a 2
for 1 ticket deal or buy one, get a second half-price. This is a great way to widen your audience and
has been very successful for Fringe artists in the past.
http://www.grabone.co.nz/get-on-grabone
MAKE A VIDEO TRAILER
Make a short trailer of your event and post it on all of your social networking haunts. Keep it under
2 minutes, keep it simple STAY TRUE TO YOUR VISION.
ADVENTUROUS MARKETING
The Fringe Festival is the perfect time to employ those alternative marketing tactics that you’ve
been gagging to try out… here are just a few ideas:
STICKERS
print a large sticker with a logo/image/text which is easily recognizable as being
related to your event. Place it on your car, bike, lunchbox or letterbox or..?
CHALKING
some people don’t like this but the rain will wash it away. Chalk up the name and
dates of your event.
PROJECTIONS
possibly for the more tech savvy among us but in basic terms, project a
logo/image for your event onto buildings around town at night.
STUNTS
free and easy. Create a stunt to draw attention to your event be it performing in a
public place, dressing up and parading through a public place, utilizing a loud hailer…
the list is endless, almost.
PROPS and OBJECTS place props and objects (relating to your event) with event details
written on them in weird and wonderful places all over the city.
TEASER PERFORMANCES perform a short section of your show in a public place at a busy time.
You may also want to put up some teaser videos online.
T-SHIRT
Print your event on a t-shirt, wear it every day and give some to your friends who
work in public places!
HUMAN SIGNPOST-Dress up and wear a sandwich board, make like a statue in a busy public place
or jiggle a large sign around on the side of a busy road or bridge.
** Please REMEMBER – you have all been provided with a Hamilton Fringe Festival 2015 logo to be
placed on ALL of your promotional materials. Also, don’t forget to rep any sponsors or funding
bodies.
KEEPING IT FRINGE
Most of us know how to market our events, or if we didn’t we have a fair idea of how to do it now;
so how do we go about saving it all from becoming the same old tat?
There are a thousand ways to skin a photo/press release/blurb/poster image but we at the Fringe
committee believe that keeping ours on the fringey side will potentially make them more eyecatching, more interesting and more attractive to prospective audiences. Keep this in mind when
designing your promotional material and fly the Fringe flag proudly!
We also aim to support sustainable, recyclable promotion and marketing so PLEASE think green
people. No need to spam the world with your flyers, put them in places where your target audiences
are likely to find them.
CONTACTS
Newspapers:
Waikato Times (publishes daily)
News desk – news@waikatotimes.co.nz 07 849 9666
Arts reporter – Mike Mather mike.mather@fairfaxmedia.co.nz
Phone 07 849 9666 or after hours 07 849 6180 (general stories contact numbers).
Hamilton Press (publishes weekly on a Wednesday)
News desk - hamilton.press@wrcn.co.nz 07 849 6180
OR Geoff Lewis Geoff.lewis@wrcn.co.nz 07 849 9583
Hamilton News (publishes weekly on a Thursday)
Newsdesk – colin.vincent@htw.co.nz 07 834 4652
Nexus magazine, Waikato University (publishes weekly on a Monday) nexus@waikato.ac.nz
The Waikato Independent, Wintec (Favours current or past Wintec students)
Email Charles Riddle during term time through the ‘Contact Us’ page at
www.waikatoindependent.co.nz.
Raglan Chronicle (publishes weekly on a Friday)
Newsdesk – raglan.chronicle@xtra.co.nz 07 825 7076
Franklin County News (published weekly on a Wednesday)
Editor – Julie Kaio – julie.kaio@wrcn.co.nz 09 237 0400
Cambridge Edition (publishes weekly on a Wednesday)
Newsdesk – Cambridge.editor@wrcn.co.nz 07 827 3840
Te Awamutu Courier (published on Tuesdays and Thursdays)
Newsdesk Editor – grant.johnston@teawamutucourier.co.nz 07 871 5151
Hauraki Herald (published weekly on a Friday)
Editor – Clint Fletcher - hauraki.editor@wrcn.co.nz 07 868 8850
Matamata Chronicle (published weekly on a Wednesday)
Editor – Katrina Lintonbon - matamata.editor@wrcn.co.nz 07 888 7011
Piako Post (published weekly on a Wednesday)
Editor – Steve Edwards – steve.edwards@wrcn.co.nz 07 889 7099
Taupo Times (published weekly on a Wednesday)
Editor – Mary McCarty – taupo.editor@wrcn.co.nz 07 378 9060
South Waikato News (published weekly on Wednesday)
Editor – Patrice Tarrant – swaikato.editor@wrcn.co.nz 07 886 9159
Radio:
Mediaworks own most major NZ radio stations (09) 928 9200 See this link for a plethora of email
contacts http://www.mediaworks.co.nz/Radio/Contact.aspx
Free FM (Community Radio) info@freefm.org.nz 07 834 2170
Contact FM contact@contactfm.co.nz 07 858 5050
Yak FM (Wintec) blair.dowling@wintec.ac.nz 07 837 7019
Tractor FM (Raglan) tractorfm@gmail.com 027 8668 444
Gold FM 96.4 info@goldfm.co.nz 07 863 9644 http://www.goldfm.co.nz/ Brian Gentil
Coromandel FM cfm@mediaworks.co.nz 07 901 0100 http://www.coromandelfm.co.nz
Fresh FM 88.3 https://www.facebook.com/FreshFM88.3
National Radio Network craighobbs@radionetwork.co.nz 07 858 0700 National Radio
rnz@radionz.co.nz 04 474 1876
Online listings:
creativewaikato.co.nz (the most prominent Hamilton gig guide)
russellsreminder@gmail.com – Russell Armitage compiles gig guides for theatre and classical music
undertheradar.co.nz
whatsonhamilton.co.nz
hamiltoncitylive.co.nz
eventfinder.co.nz
thebigidea.co.nz
artlist.co.nz
If we have missed something feel free to let us know, there are bound to be many more
email lists you can get yourself on,
If you don’t hear back from someone, call them again. It is also a good idea to make
yourself a marketing plan with a timeline for deployment of material.
Promotion is often a good vehicle for articulating your ideas and plans to yourself and your
team, but keep it simple, clear and consistent and target it to people who are interested.
Good luck!