Ford New Zealand held The Parker of the Year Championships 2012 in October highlighting the Active Park Assist technology in the all-new Ford Focus. It was the first time Kiwi motorists had the chance to compete in an effort to find the country’s best parallel parker.

Bullet PR drove the media relations strategy which leveraged the unique technology of the Ford Focus as well as the fun aspects of the outdoor event which saw well known celebrities competing with each other in parallel parking.

Bullet PR secured for Ford significant consumer media coverage across a range of mediums offline and online, including prime time evening television viewing on TV3 Campbell Live.

Other mainstream coverage appeared in The New Zealand Herald, Sunday Star-Times, Newstalk ZB and Sunday News.

The 100% New Zealand Bacon & Ham Competition celebrates New Zealand’s finest cured pork products and helps consumers identify and appreciate local, sustainable bacon and ham, supporting NZ pork producers in the process.

Bullet PR project managed the public relations for the competition. On the morning of Competition Day, judges Anita Sarginson and Simon Holst appeared on TVNZ Breakfast to discuss what’s involved in the judging process, and how to determine what makes winning bacon and ham.

The ‘Bacon of the Year’ and ‘Ham of the Year” were announced at events in Auckland. Chris Brown and his Ellesmere Butchery won Bacon of the Year, while Nosh Food Market won Ham of the Year for its Black Rock Butchery, free-farmed, Manuka smoked, honey cured sliced ham. Winners were featured on TVOne News at 6pm, along with coverage in the NZ Herald and Stuff.co.nz .

Overall, the competition received more than 70 pieces of coverage throughout New Zealand, including: 3 television, 36 print, 2+ radio, and 30+ online hits.

Auckland Civil Defence, a division of Auckland Council, has launched a new public alert system for the entire region to better prepare for natural disasters, which includes targeting the estimated half million Aucklanders using smartphones.

Aucklanders can now download the free ‘Auckland Civil Defence’ application on any smartphone handset, including iPhone, Android and Windows devices. After registering their contact details within the app, Aucklanders will receive advance notification of impending disasters such as tsunamis and cyclones, as well as important advisories from civil defence authorities following major catastrophes such as earthquakes.

Bullet PR assisted Civil Defence in communicating the benefits of the new public alert system at a press conference attended by a wide range of media including NZ Herald, Stuff.co.nz, TVOne News and TV3 News. In addition, senior representatives from the emergency services were present as well as central and local government. Head of Civil Defence in Auckland, Clive Manley, explains how to use the app in this video on NZ Herald.co.nz

Bullet PR gave the New Zealand media a glimpse into the future with the unique VGo for client Asnet Technologies.

VGo is a ‘telepresence robot’ that operates like a webcam on wheels, that can be driven via a laptop or desktop computer from a remote location, allowing the user to interact with people face-to-face. Designed for use in offices, hospitals and factory floors, the VGo has also been used in schools so children who can’t leave home due to sickness or injury can still attend classes and interact with their teacher and classmates.

As the only device of its kind in New Zealand, Bullet PR introduced VGo one-on-one to a selection of tech and business journalists, including National Business Review and the NZ Herald, who were amazed at its simplicity and usability, taking it for a drive around their own offices. As part of this, Bullet earned VGo a starring role alongside the Gadget Guy on TVNZ Breakfast.

Iconic Kiwi drink MILO launched a new campaign today with the help of Bullet PR, achieving extensive coverage across all major media outlets: ONE News 6pm, TVNZ Breakfast, New Zealand Herald, Otago Daily Times, Radio New Zealand, RadioLive and Newstalk ZB.

The Play Movement follows a recent study – the first of its kind to investigate the play habits of New Zealand children aged 8 – 12 years old – revealing that nearly half (46%) of New Zealand children are not playing every day.

An IMR (Interactive Media Release) was used to launch this campaign, which featured:

• The State Of Play report
• Media release
• Info-graphic
• Play tips for parents
• Key facts from the research
• Images from the report

Kiwis were also encouraged to visit the MILO Facebook page to keep up-to-date with the movement and share play tips with other parents.

The first certified homes assessed under the Homestar™ residential rating tool were unveiled today at an event supported by online property market portal Realestate.co.nz.

Homestar™ is the comprehensive home rating system developed by the New Zealand building industry and backed by the Government that aims to help Kiwis create healthier, more comfortable and energy-efficient living spaces.

Alex Cutler, CEO of Homestar, announced the first certified homes located nationally that achieved Homestar ratings of between 4 and 7 stars, including several homes that are on the market.

“We are delighted to now have homes with official Homestar ratings available on the property market. This is an important developmental step in the process of improving the overall stock of New Zealand homes. ”

These homes also received enthusiastic support today from Alistair Helm, CEO of Realestate.co.nz. Mr Helm says that from today, Homestar Certified properties for sale will have their ratings featured on the Realestate.co.nz property portal to show buyers that these homes have an added value in terms of performance and comfort.

“Houses that are warmer, drier and more energy efficient will always be more appealing to buyers. In this way, Homestar has the potential to be a great service to homeowners, real estate agents and the whole New Zealand community,” says Mr Helm.

Mr Helm presented international research at the event that showed a direct correlation between homes with high performance ratings and higher property prices. He said Homestar will provide vendors and real estate agents with a direct competitive edge when marketing properties.

Support for Homestar was also received from Hon. Maurice Williamson, the Minister for Building and Construction.

“I would like to extend my warm congratulations today to Alex Cutler and the team at Homestar on the work they have done towards realising this achievement today. The unveiling of the first Certified Homes today is the result of many years of hard work, research and development to bring to the New Zealand market a home rating tool that is comprehensive, robust and accurate,” said Mr Williamson in a statement.

“Homestar provides homebuyers, sellers and especially real estate agents a benchmark for rating the environmental attributes of New Zealand homes to increase their comfort, appeal and value. I warmly commend the Homestar tool to the real estate industry, and encourage agents to educate themselves about it.”

To achieve a certified rating, Homestar Assessors typically spend a few hours at the home measuring in detail the attributes that contribute to its comfort, health and performance. The Assessor performs a comprehensive assessment of features such as the level of insulation, type of heating, water use, waste, ventilation and indoor air quality, among other things, and calculates a rating from one to ten stars, based on these factors. The homeowner then receives a Homestar™ Certified Rating, along with a unique registration number for authentication purposes.

“When you are selling or renting a home a Homestar Certified Rating will provide a greater level of credibility and assurance for any prospective home owner or tenant,” says Ms Cutler.

“The assessment is not compulsory, though over time it is expected that market forces will encourage more home owners to obtain a Homestar Certified Rating when buying or selling a home. We expect Homestar to have a growing impact on property values, with higher star ratings providing a competitive edge for some houses on the market.”

For more information, please visit www.homestar.org.nz, or to view Homestar Certified properties for sale visit www.realestate.co.nz.

Bullet PR client 2degrees mobile today officially launched its 3G network.

The event was held at the Viaduct Harbour Marine Village and it created a great atmosphere for the assortment of journalists and stakeholders in attendance.

In addition to the 3G network, 2degrees also launched a range of data plans to offer New Zealanders more affordable mobile broadband rates.

Finally, there were some new handsets on display and a hint towards the Post-Pay service on the horizon.

Coverage has already appeared on the NZHerald.co.nz, Stuff.co.nz, TVNZ.co.nz and TV3.co.nz as well as on Radio NZ and Newstalk ZB.

Bullet PR client Vista Entertainment Solutions featured on TVNZ’s ‘NZI Business’ on Wednesday 15th July.

Vista CEO Murray Holdaway talked with host Corin Dann about how Vista has recently entered the Mexican cinema market and how the company now has offices in LA, London, Shanghai and Auckland.

Vista Entertainment Solutions is a global leader in entertainment software solutions, including much of the behind-the-scenes technology for cinemas, such as point of sale and back office logistics.

TVNZ’s NZI Business screens every weekday morning from 6am, bringing viewers the business news and analysis of the day.

Student Job Search is New Zealand’s only free student employment service for casual, part-time and summer work.  It needed to increase its profile and spread the word that it has more than just menial, household jobs on its books. Bullet PR found some of the wackiest jobs listed with Student Job Search, liaised with employees and employers and secured coverage in The Sunday Star Times as well as a prime-time hit on TV3′s Campbell Live.

Official website of the real estate industry and Bullet PR client, Realestate.co.nz, yesterday released research that debunks the theory that summer and spring are the best times to list your property. It reveals that sales are actually less susceptible to the seasons than some may think. TV3′s Campbell Live featured the research which illustrated that when selling a property, the best time may actually be in the middle of winter, a time traditionally considered to be the least advantageous for property sellers.