The Situation

Flagship Property Holdings is an award-winning Australian development firm that entered the South Australian market in 2015 to pursue a new $100 million apartment project in the Adelaide CBD.

In late 2015, the company appointed Hughes to manage PR and communications for its “Kodo” development on Angas Street, designed to become Adelaide’s tallest residential apartment building.

To promote development approval and the subsequent launch of the project, Flagship Property Holdings required a communications plan to effectively introduce Kodo to the marketplace and build awareness of the project among target audiences through ongoing, positive communications.

Objectives

Objectives set for the communications program included:

• Establish Flagship Property Holdings’ credentials in South Australia to gain the trust and confidence of key stakeholders;
• Develop, establish and position Kodo in the marketplace;
• Maintain consistent media coverage and stakeholder engagement to build the Kodo brand;
• Identify and mitigate any potential risks associated with the project, including any community and government opposition;
• Build registrations of interest and project enquiries;
• Ensure ongoing communication with the project database to maximise interest and potential sales;
• Drive apartment sales.

Elements

Hughes developed and implemented a communications strategy designed to support the project through the development approval stage, initial launch phase and beyond to meet Flagship Property Holdings’ key objectives as outlined above.

The strategy was designed to give the project early momentum among homebuyers and property investors, with communications activities to then continue throughout the sales period to drive ongoing buyer interest.

Top-line strategies included:

• Maintaining the lowest possible profile during the development approval process to mitigate potential opposition and risks;
• Developing consistent brand messages for the project across all communications;
• Using media and stakeholder engagement to drive registrations of interest via the project website;
• Identifying and mitigating risks as required.

To help launch Kodo in the marketplace, specific activities undertaken by Hughes included:

• Working with the Kodo project team (including Flagship Property Holdings and appointed sales agencies) to develop agreed brand messages;
• Developed a communications calendar of proposed activities (updated on a regular basis);
• Developed a media kit for local and national distribution to formally launch Kodo. This included a media release, fact sheet, images and video;
• Organised a VIP launch event in the new Kodo sales centre;
• Developed and implemented an ongoing social media strategy for Kodo, including the creation of Kodo channels on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Simultaneously, Hughes also developed and implemented publicity activities to promote Flagship Property Holdings’ corporate credentials and its plans for South Australia, including Kodo.

Following the initial launch phase of the project, Hughes:

• Implemented an ongoing publicity program to build further interest in the project across a range of media outlets to highlight project milestones and key features of the development;
• Continued to manage social media channels, incorporating all posting and monitoring across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, including management of Facebook advertising campaigns. Social media analysis was also undertaken on a weekly and monthly basis, with Hughes reporting back to the project team as required;
• Designed a series of infographics to clearly illustrate to target audiences the benefits of investing in a Kodo apartment;
• Produced a series of videos for website and social media use, including a dedicated video targeting Chinese investors (including management of Chinese script and voiceover);
• Provided issues management support regarding an objection to the development by a neighbouring landowner, which resulted in a satisfactory outcome with minimal media/public attention.