During my placement at Qantas I was involved with the Masterchef project.
2011 is the second season of Masterchef Australia and the second time that Qantas has been a major sponsor.
My job for the second two weeks of my placement was to liase with Fremantle Media, the production company and Masterchef to organise the finer details of the filming of a Masterchef episode featuring Qantas that would take place at Sydney airport in late February.
My responsibilities were to make sure the Next Generation Q Bag Tags and Frequent Flyer Cards were ordered and delivered, boarding passes were created and that we had clearance from Sydney Airport to commence filming. I spoke with at least 10 different people and departments in Qantas and sent numerous emails to ensure the day ran smoothly. It was a stressful process, as I was still getting things organised the morning of the filming. And I needed to make sure that everything was done perfectly, as we only had one chance at the filming!
I unfortunately cannot give away details of the day, as the episode that we filmed has not gone to air. However, the particular episode that we supervised the filming of was to include a broad scope of the Qantas brand and would discretely showcase the Qantas products on offer.
Sponsorship is a very expensive initiative and we needed to ensure that our brand was represented as premium. We found it tricky at times, as it was hard to judge what the cameramen were actually filming and if they were capturing the Qantas Check-in facilities working at their full potential. There were conflicting values between the production company who's aim was to create an episode that would attract the largest audience, and us, who's aim was to ensure our product was shown as much as possible.
Overall, it was such an exciting project to be a part of. It was so interesting to discover how important sponsorship is when it's a big part of a company's marketing budget.
Showing posts with label Qantas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Qantas. Show all posts
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Qantas Welcomes New Aircraft on Tasman Route
In the second week of my placement we began preparing for an event that would take place in Wellington, New Zealand. On the 8th February Qantas would announce the arrival of a new Boeing 737-800 aircraft that would operate the Wellington- Australia route and would be named in honour of Sir Edmund Hillary, New Zealand mountaineer and explorer.
My roles were to write the media release for the event, research the great explorers who were to give their names to the three new aircraft, call on relevant Qantas departments to obtain information about the product offering of the new B737 and obtain information about the New Zealand Rugby World Cup.
I began by researching into the lives of the three explorers- Sir Edmund Hillary, William Pickering and Abel Tasman. The event was to showcase the first new B737-800 into service that was to be named after Sir Edmund Hillary, and the following two would be put into service later that month. From my research, I learnt to approach things with an open mind. As this was a New Zealand event, I immediately thought that all three explorers would be of New Zealand decent. This however was not the case. I am also sure my research told me this, but somehow I did not notice! It was not until hours before the release was due out, that one of our executives noticed the mistake, even after it had been passed through at least three of my managers, and I quickly needed to make the changes.
I also learnt that I needed to speak to a lot of different people to obtain the correct information. I needed to speak with the Fleet Managers to find out specific dates, Route managers to obtain correct informationa about where exactly the new aircraft would be flying to and the Product centre to find out the features of the new aircraft. I began with calling each relevant person. Many could provide information directly over the phone, but others wanted a detailed email of what I wanted exactly.
I spoke with our sponsorship department who could provide me with information about the Rugby World Cup. This was relevant to put into the release, as the arrival of these new aircraft would mean that Qantas could add extra flights to cope with the New Zealand 2011 Rugby World Cup Demand.
Research is very time consuming and sometimes confusing if you are unfamiliar with what you need exactly. It took me a week to draft a media release I was happy with and write up three biographies, but once I was done, it was very satisfying and rewarding that a lot of my hard work had actually been used in the final release that would be viewed by hundreds of people.
My roles were to write the media release for the event, research the great explorers who were to give their names to the three new aircraft, call on relevant Qantas departments to obtain information about the product offering of the new B737 and obtain information about the New Zealand Rugby World Cup.
I began by researching into the lives of the three explorers- Sir Edmund Hillary, William Pickering and Abel Tasman. The event was to showcase the first new B737-800 into service that was to be named after Sir Edmund Hillary, and the following two would be put into service later that month. From my research, I learnt to approach things with an open mind. As this was a New Zealand event, I immediately thought that all three explorers would be of New Zealand decent. This however was not the case. I am also sure my research told me this, but somehow I did not notice! It was not until hours before the release was due out, that one of our executives noticed the mistake, even after it had been passed through at least three of my managers, and I quickly needed to make the changes.
I also learnt that I needed to speak to a lot of different people to obtain the correct information. I needed to speak with the Fleet Managers to find out specific dates, Route managers to obtain correct informationa about where exactly the new aircraft would be flying to and the Product centre to find out the features of the new aircraft. I began with calling each relevant person. Many could provide information directly over the phone, but others wanted a detailed email of what I wanted exactly.
I spoke with our sponsorship department who could provide me with information about the Rugby World Cup. This was relevant to put into the release, as the arrival of these new aircraft would mean that Qantas could add extra flights to cope with the New Zealand 2011 Rugby World Cup Demand.
Research is very time consuming and sometimes confusing if you are unfamiliar with what you need exactly. It took me a week to draft a media release I was happy with and write up three biographies, but once I was done, it was very satisfying and rewarding that a lot of my hard work had actually been used in the final release that would be viewed by hundreds of people.
Monday, May 2, 2011
Media Event
During my placement at Qantas Corporate Communications I was involved with the media events leading up to the 2011 Formula 1 Qantas Australian Grand Prix and was lucky enough to be flown to Melbourne for the media launch on the 2nd February.
I was responsible for some of the smaller tasks involved in putting it together and one of my responsibilities was collating an RSVP list. This was for media guests who were invited to a media even held at one of the Qantas maintenance hangars in Melbourne where we unveiled the Formula 1 branded Boeing 747 and the new Qantas ambassadors Mark Webber, Australian sporting champion, and Ashley Hart, Australian model.
I certainly learnt how tricky it can be dealing with the media at times! Many guests did not RSVP although stated on their invite that they would not be allowed to attend the event if they hadn't responded with the relevant details. This meant that on the day of the event I was left to organise security passes, security checks and briefings for those that had not replied.
I was also responsible for writing the media release, which took me quite some time to perfect before I was confident enough to give it to my supervisor. I was never really introduced to the media release guidelines to follow, rather just thrown into it, so I did the best I could.
On the day I greeted each media representative, whether from a TV network, radio station, newspaper or magazine and gave them a rundown of the rules that must be abided by when at the hangar (the event was held Airside where obviously there are many safety and security concerns!) Each guest was given a media kit that I helped put together with the team from the Australian Grand Prix and they were ready to go! There were 80 guests, and each group of 20 people as they arrived were transported to the maintenance hangar by bus. We needed to strictly adhere to the precise time schedule and ensure all guests adhered to the strict safety rules. I was responsible for checking that guests were wearing HI-VIS vests and that girls were wearing flat shoes (luckily we had spare shoes on hand!)
After my greeting duties were complete and everyone had arrived, I made my way to the maintenance hangar to watch the event unfold. The Qantas MC and TV celeb David Whitehall introduced Mark Webber, the Grand Prix branded B747 and Ashley Hart. Our CEO Alan Joyce made a speech and guests were then invited to ask questions. The event was a big publicity opportunity for Qantas to be shown as the major sponsor for the 2011 Formula 1 Qantas Australian Grand Prix, and we did this well!
I felt very priviledged to be a part of the event, and to see my hard work pay off. It was very rewarding rading parts of the media release that I had written in the next day's newspaper articles and even in our CEO's speech.
I was responsible for some of the smaller tasks involved in putting it together and one of my responsibilities was collating an RSVP list. This was for media guests who were invited to a media even held at one of the Qantas maintenance hangars in Melbourne where we unveiled the Formula 1 branded Boeing 747 and the new Qantas ambassadors Mark Webber, Australian sporting champion, and Ashley Hart, Australian model.
I certainly learnt how tricky it can be dealing with the media at times! Many guests did not RSVP although stated on their invite that they would not be allowed to attend the event if they hadn't responded with the relevant details. This meant that on the day of the event I was left to organise security passes, security checks and briefings for those that had not replied.
I was also responsible for writing the media release, which took me quite some time to perfect before I was confident enough to give it to my supervisor. I was never really introduced to the media release guidelines to follow, rather just thrown into it, so I did the best I could.
On the day I greeted each media representative, whether from a TV network, radio station, newspaper or magazine and gave them a rundown of the rules that must be abided by when at the hangar (the event was held Airside where obviously there are many safety and security concerns!) Each guest was given a media kit that I helped put together with the team from the Australian Grand Prix and they were ready to go! There were 80 guests, and each group of 20 people as they arrived were transported to the maintenance hangar by bus. We needed to strictly adhere to the precise time schedule and ensure all guests adhered to the strict safety rules. I was responsible for checking that guests were wearing HI-VIS vests and that girls were wearing flat shoes (luckily we had spare shoes on hand!)
After my greeting duties were complete and everyone had arrived, I made my way to the maintenance hangar to watch the event unfold. The Qantas MC and TV celeb David Whitehall introduced Mark Webber, the Grand Prix branded B747 and Ashley Hart. Our CEO Alan Joyce made a speech and guests were then invited to ask questions. The event was a big publicity opportunity for Qantas to be shown as the major sponsor for the 2011 Formula 1 Qantas Australian Grand Prix, and we did this well!
I felt very priviledged to be a part of the event, and to see my hard work pay off. It was very rewarding rading parts of the media release that I had written in the next day's newspaper articles and even in our CEO's speech.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
New Beginnings
Hi everyone,
Welcome to my blog! I am 2 weeks into my placement... Finally I have my first entry!
I am from Perth and have relocated to Sydney for a month to complete my placement and I am working for Qantas in their Corporate Communication division.
Working in such a large and diverse organisation, means there is always something going on. For the past 2 weeks I have been a part of event organisation, writing media releases for new product launches and policy changes, compiling media coverage reports for major incidences, monitoring the airline's social networking pages, dealing with the media and assisting with internal communications.
For those of you who haven't heard of Qantas, (I doubt that is the case, as there is NEVER a day when we aren't in the media!) it was founded in Queensland in 1920 and is Australia’s largest domestic and international airline. The Qantas group employs 37 000 people and offers services across a network spanning 182 destinations and 44 countries in Australia, Asia and the Pacific, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
I am working with a wonderful and talented communications team. It is divided into events, media relations, internal relations, a speech writer and social media. I have been fortunate enough to get a taste of what every role entails.
I have written a number of media releases including; one concerning customers and their luggage, one which detailed some awards we have recently won and another was to announce a new Qantas ambassador. Qantas is very committed to communicating with its stakeholders in a timely and effective manner and the media team have been a wealth of information in teaching me how to get the job done right!
The airline has recently begun to interact with it's stakeholders via social media channels. Although a traditional organisation with an older market, it has realised the need for a Facebook and Twitter account. I have had the role this week of answering our customers' requests as they vent on Twitter- something to really think about, as we need to be 100% sure we are giving them the correct information!
I have been given the task to compile a Press Coverage Report for 2 separate recent events that attracted a lot of attention. Although a timely task, it's amazing to see what the media is interested in and how much monetary value can be added or lost for a company.
Welcome to my blog! I am 2 weeks into my placement... Finally I have my first entry!
I am from Perth and have relocated to Sydney for a month to complete my placement and I am working for Qantas in their Corporate Communication division.
Working in such a large and diverse organisation, means there is always something going on. For the past 2 weeks I have been a part of event organisation, writing media releases for new product launches and policy changes, compiling media coverage reports for major incidences, monitoring the airline's social networking pages, dealing with the media and assisting with internal communications.
For those of you who haven't heard of Qantas, (I doubt that is the case, as there is NEVER a day when we aren't in the media!) it was founded in Queensland in 1920 and is Australia’s largest domestic and international airline. The Qantas group employs 37 000 people and offers services across a network spanning 182 destinations and 44 countries in Australia, Asia and the Pacific, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
I am working with a wonderful and talented communications team. It is divided into events, media relations, internal relations, a speech writer and social media. I have been fortunate enough to get a taste of what every role entails.
I have written a number of media releases including; one concerning customers and their luggage, one which detailed some awards we have recently won and another was to announce a new Qantas ambassador. Qantas is very committed to communicating with its stakeholders in a timely and effective manner and the media team have been a wealth of information in teaching me how to get the job done right!
The airline has recently begun to interact with it's stakeholders via social media channels. Although a traditional organisation with an older market, it has realised the need for a Facebook and Twitter account. I have had the role this week of answering our customers' requests as they vent on Twitter- something to really think about, as we need to be 100% sure we are giving them the correct information!
I have been given the task to compile a Press Coverage Report for 2 separate recent events that attracted a lot of attention. Although a timely task, it's amazing to see what the media is interested in and how much monetary value can be added or lost for a company.
I am looking forward to keeping everyone in the loop with what's happening at Qantas over the next couple of weeks!
Courtney
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