WHAT IS THE ROLE OF NATURE PLAY SA?
Nature Play SA’s role is to encourage and support organisations to host nature play inspired events for families. We will collate event submissions to create an online guide that allows families to view festival event offerings in their area. Nature Play SA will promote the festival guide and events via our social media platforms, website, email marketing and investment in digital marketing and PR.
WHAT TYPE OF SUPPORT CAN NATURE PLAY SA PROVIDE?
The key component of support is promoting your event via our online calendar. We can provide advice in relation to what type of events could be run by host organisations, or logistical questions you may have about running a nature play event. We also have some great free resources which we encourage you to utilise and distribute if you wish – take a look at our Family Downloads page for information on loose parts play, mud play, spring nature play ideas and more..
CAN NATURE PLAY SA HELP RUN MY EVENT?
We will be running our own events as part of the festival and unless negotiated via a partnership arrangement, won’t have the capacity to physically support the implementation or coordination of other events. We can however offer advice and support you with contact details for service providers who offer practical nature play services, if you require.
WHAT WILL NATURE PLAY SA’S SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN LOOK LIKE?
Our campaign will primarily focus on promoting the festival as a whole, encouraging families to visit the online calendar to see what events are in their area or appeal to them. We will be active on Facebook and Instagram, utilising a combination of organic posts and paid advertising. Individual posts will vary with their levels of reach and engagement. Additionally, we will invest in digital marketing of the festival through other media businesses which target South Australian families with children 0 – 12 years.
Unfortunately, we do not have the capacity to promote all events individually due to the scale of the festival and number of events involved. In some instances, we may select various ‘feature’ events that provide a representation of the diversity of activities across the state and may be able to assist with promoting events that need additional support to meet registration numbers in the lead up to their events.
Nature Play SA will also be promoting the events we are hosting during the festival period, including SpringFest on October 19, which is being delivered in partnership with Flinders University.
WHAT CAN ORGANISATIONS DO TO PROMOTE THEIR EVENTS?
In addition to Nature Play SA’s festival marketing, we encourage all organisations hosting an event to utilise a range of promotional strategies to target their audience and maximise attendance at their event. Some examples include:
- Downloading the 2019 Nature Play Festival logo to use on your event marketing materials
- Promoting the event on their social media and marketing channels
- Setting up a ‘Facebook event’
- Email marketing through their database and local networks
- Creating a flyer for local distribution.
DOES NATURE PLAY SA PARTNER ON FACEBOOK EVENTS?
We do not specifically partner as hosts on Facebook events, unless we are directly involved in the event organisation and delivery. We encourage organisers to utilise the Nature Play Festival logo and reference involvement in the festival as part of the event information.
WHAT IF OUR EVENT DETAILS CHANGE FOLLOWING OUR SUBMISSION?
We want to ensure that we have the most up-to-date information from hosts to ensure those looking at the calendar get accurate details regarding time/location etc. In the instance of a change, we ask that you email our Event Manager, Jodee Dellow at [email protected] so we can amend accordingly.
WHAT HAPPENS IF MY EVENT REGISTRATIONS BOOKS OUT?
Congratulations! Please let us know if your event books out so we can update the online guide. This will help families easily identify what is still available and maintain the accuracy of the guide.
THE WEATHER ISN’T LOOKING GOOD FOR MY EVENT, WHAT SHOULD WE DO?
Spring weather can be variable and we may have some poorer forecasts during the festival period. A general nature play philosophy is ‘there’s no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing’ and we encourage play in all kinds of weather unless hazardous conditions are forecast or may affect your event. Should you have a forecast of rain or showers for the day[s] of your event we encourage you to communicate with attendees to come prepared with wet weather gear if required.
WILL NATURE PLAY HAVE A PRESENCE AT ANY OF THE EVENTS?
As we are a small team and have commitments delivering our own festival events, it isn’t feasible for us to attend all events, particularly regionally-based events. We do however coordinate our team to attend events and connect with Festival hosts wherever possible. In this instance, we would drop by in a supportive capacity and would look to promote events in action via social media.