#MakeItHomeNZ
Annual Report 2018-19
COUNCIL MEMBER ORGANISATIONS Accident Compensation Corporation Boys’ Brigade NZ Christian Camping Department of Conservation Education Outdoors NZ Federated Mountain Clubs Girl Guiding NZ Girls’ Brigade NZ Heliski Operators MetService New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment NZ Alpine Club NZ Deerstalkers’ Association NZ Defence Force NZ Land Search and Rescue Inc. NZ Mountain Guides Association NZ Mountain Radio Service NZ Outdoor Instructors Association NZ Police NZ Shooting Federation NZ Snowsports Council/SAANZ NZ Sporting Goods Association Recreation Aotearoa Scouts NZ The Duke of Edinburgh’s Hillary Award Tourism Industry Aotearoa William Pike Challenge Award
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Annual Report 2018-19 | New Zealand Mountain Safety Council
Contents Welcome Organisational Excellence
5 6-7
Insights 8-18 Issue Specific Advisory Group Projects
10-11
Tramping Video Series
12-15
Research Projects
16-21
Partnerships 22-31 Projects with our partners
24-31
Messaging 32-35 Financial Summary
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New Zealand Mountain Safety Council Level 1 Harbour City Centre, 29 Brandon Street | Wellington 6011 info@mountainsafety.org.nz mountainsafety.org.nz All images copyright Mountain Safety Council 2018 Cover photo: Adam Smith, Tararua Forest Park Inside cover photo: LoĂŻc Lassueur, Queenstown-Lakes
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Safer places, safer activities, safer people
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Annual Report 2018-19 | New Zealand Mountain Safety Council
NIC BROWN
MIKE DAISLEY
NZ MOUNTAIN SAFETY COUNCIL BOARD CHAIR
NZ MOUNTAIN SAFETY COUNCIL CHIEF EXECUTIVE
Welcome This Annual Report summarises our work over the last year. While we have continued our focus on the development of insights, this year we have seen a significant number of safety interventions driven from these insights. Our partnerships allow us to access knowledge and data, they allow us to reach people and our partners significantly amplify the impact of everything we create. We build each partnership based on shared value, but we are constantly humbled by the support and enthusiasm for what we collectively achieve. Our insights are developed by connecting knowledge, data and information from many sources. We then work with partners to distil this and identify the most significant factors. These insights then allow better decision making for us and the entire sector. Our messaging reaches people because they didn’t have to look for safety information. You connect with our resources when you check the weather, when you’re buying gear, when you’re looking for places to explore. It finds you where you are already looking. Our Board and staff share a common focus on creating the most impact with limited resources. We make evidence-based decisions, we test assumptions and we seek out other expertise. Governance and operations work together to foster this culture, recognising this approach requires more time and effort but has significantly better outcomes. Our funders enable everything that we do. Our special thanks to the NZ Lottery Grants Board, NZ Police, Department of Conservation (DOC), NZ Search and Rescue (NZSAR), and Sport NZ for their continued investment, trust and belief in MSC. Their support extends well beyond simply providing investment. Their continued support demonstrates that what we are doing is relevant, effective and positively influences people recreating in the outdoors.
Left photo: Bevan Smith, Fiordland National Park
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Small team, big impact By investing in our organisational culture we’ve developed a resilient, positive and high-performing team. Our staff are motivated, empowered and driven to succeed. They can see the success that their energy brings, and they love what they do. We’ve continued to deliver quality results and have a real and known impact on people’s safety in the outdoors. We’ve continued to achieve a significant, and growing, reach into the various communities that participate in outdoor recreation activities, and despite our proportionally small operating budget, we’ve achieved significant results. Photos on the right show the MSC team in action for the year.
INSIGHTS
ORGANISATIONAL EXCELLENCE
MESSAGING
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Annual Report 2018-19 | New Zealand Mountain Safety Council
PARTNERSHIPS
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Annual Report 2018-19 | New Zealand Mountain Safety Council
Insight-focussed outcomes Our drive to be entirely evidence-based continues. Doing so requires us to invest significantly in the things that enable an evidence-based approach; our culture, our partnerships, how we identify critical safety issues, and then plan corresponding prevention initiatives. Most of all, we commit the time to it. Evidence-based decision making doesn’t happen overnight, we’ve been working on this for many years. The recent impact of our work is further showcasing the huge value in this approach. In the last year we’ve seen the implementation of some critical evidence-based work, and this relies heavily on our insight’s platform. Highlights include: »» The Tongariro Alpine Crossing Issue Specific Advisory Group »» The Tararua Ranges Issue Specific Advisory Group »» Project White Gold: A deep dive into avalanche incidents »» In situ safety information and on track safety alerts. Without question the most successful insights-led work has been the development of the Tramping Video Series. The 12 videos are creating a significant change in the bahaviour of walkers across some of our county’s most magnificent, but harmful, tramping trips. This series sets a benchmark for future prevention tactics. Read more about the Tramping Video Series project on Page 12 of this document.
Left photo: Tongariro Alpine Crossing Issue Specific Advisory Group in action this year.
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Issue Specific Advisory Group
Tongariro Alpine Crossing In early March 2019, the MSC facilitated the first meeting of an issuespecific advisory group. The diverse group were specifically chosen to look at solutions for reducing safety incidents on New Zealand’s most popular day tramp, the Tongariro Alpine Crossing (TAC).
Tongariro Alpine Crossing
Our ‘Issue Specific Advisory Group’ (ISAG) method to solving safety problems is underpinned by two key principles: ‘Follow the data, not the assumptions’, and ‘work with others to find the most robust intervention’. By bringing together a diverse range of people, we ensure the problem is picked apart thoroughly and the solutions developed to combat it are formulated from a whole raft of evidence-based ideas. The group has a wide range of professional training, experience and broad range of expertise. The expert advisory group members were selected through an open application process and the high-calibre nature of applicants ensured MSC could select a group perfectly suited to the specific issues of the TAC.
“ As kaitiaki (guardians) of our ancestral lands, part of that role is to ensure the safety of manuhiri (visitors) whilst within Tongariro National Park and the surrounds. Ngati Hikairo welcomes MSC and are looking forward to the collaborative work to address the adequate preparation of visitors before entering this often harsh environment. We want to ensure manuhiri leave this place safely with lasting memories.” – Bubs Smith, Ngāti Hikairo Next Steps MSC will facilitate further feedback from key TAC stakeholders as we work towards a collective agreement to implement a range of prevention solutions.
Above: Photos of our work progress during the Issue Specific Advisory Group for Tongariro Alpine Crossing.
10 Annual Report 2018-19 | New Zealand Mountain Safety Council
Issue Specific Advisory Group
Tararua Ranges The second Issue Specific Advisory Group we facilitated this year was for the Tararua Ranges. Through our insights we identified the Tararua Ranges as being one of the leading hotspots for tramping incidents. With 186 people involved in search and rescue over 7 years (2010-2017) the Tararua Forest Park is the third highest conservation area for search and rescues, behind Fiordland and Tongariro National Parks. A further 5 fatalities in 10 years (20072017) makes the park the top spot in the North Island for tramping fatalities.
Tararua Forest Park
With its proximity to Wellington, the Tararua Ranges are one of the most frequently used Forest Parks in the country. There are approximately 152,000 visitors each year, with 130,000 coming from Wellington. The ranges act as a natural divide between Kāpiti and Horowhenua to the west and Wairarapa to the east. The Tararuas have a long and proud tramping history. The New Zealand Forest Service established it as the first State Forest Park in 1954 and New Zealand’s first tramping club, the Tararua Tramping Club, built one of the country’s earliest dedicated tramping huts, Field Hut, in 1924. The 116,535-hectare Tararua Forest Park covers more than three-quarters of the Tararua Range. Nowadays it is administered by the Department of Conservation (DOC) and extends from the Pahiatua Track in the north, to the Remutaka Saddle in the south. The main access points are from Holdsworth on the eastern side, and Otaki Forks on the western side. Next Steps The first of two Advisory Group meetings was completed prior to 30th June. These workshops provide the primary mechanism for developing a range of potential prevention solutions. When the Advisory Group met again in October 2019, the initial ideas were further refined into a concise package of options. A discussion document will be developed, similar to what was used for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing ISAG, and this will be used by the wider Reference Group for further feedback, before direct consultation with relevant partner organisations.
Above: Current track signs from Tararua Forest Park, first meeting of the Tararua Ranges ISAG.
“ The Tararuas are an often-underestimated place to go tramping that can have significant consequences for unprepared participants. It’s great that MSC are now able to lead this process based on the insights they’ve developed in the last few years. We’re looking forward to being a part of this Advisory Group process.” – Sergeant Anthony Harmer, NZ Police
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Tramping Video Series
Launching our new video series The Tramping Video Series has proven to be one of the most engaged pieces of content MSC has ever produced. The YouTube metrics post release continue to show strong viewership, which is indicative of high relevancy of content. The Department of Conservation has placed these videos on the relevant track pages, which helps to link participants who visit their site (or select Visitor Centres) with an easily consumable, informative and engaging way to learn about the track. By creating highly engaging content we’re able to create an opportunity to inform and guide participants on their journey through a specific alpine track/trip. The specificity of the video is important as the information delivered is contextualised for the viewer’s intended trip. They get a birds-eye view of the track via a 3D map and drone images, along with dynamic graphics overlaid that highlight things like key decision points, wind-affected ridges, river crossings, mountain passes, potential avalanche paths and much more. It’s clear we’ve struck a winning formula with this content. MSC intend to produce a wider range of track specific videos in the upcoming years.
REACH METRICS OCTOBER 2018 TO 31 AUGUST 2019
252,314
FACEBOOK VIDEO VIEWS
712,576
TOTAL FACEBOOK REACH
2,300+ FACEBOOK SHARES 6,000+ FACEBOOK LIKES 3,500+ FACEBOOK COMMENTS 198,697 YOUTUBE VIEWS Metrics do not include views from DOC Visitor Centres and i-SITES
Above: Filming of the Mueller Hut Video, Tongariro Alpine Crossing Video playing in the local DOC Vistor Centre, filming Nelson Lakes series, DOC website with the Tongariro Alpine Crossing video embedded on the track page.
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Measuring their impact Over the 2018/19 summer, MSC tasked Research New Zealand (RNZ) with conducting a research project to measure the impact and effectiveness of the Tramping Video Series. We knew the series was hugely popular online but we wanted to know ‘were the videos actually having an impact on improving people’s safety?’
99% Positive reactions on Youtube
We kept 3 of the 12 videos from public release for this purpose. In collaboration with DOC all walkers on the Routeburn Great Walk, Mueller Hut Route and Robert Ridge/Angelus Hut Route were invited to participate in a controlled research project. All research participants were split into two groups, a Test and Control Group. This allowed us to compare the difference between those who watched the video and those who didn’t. Participants also answered a survey before and after their trip. This allowed us to compare the difference in their actions/ behaviours before and after watching the video. The results are very clear. The videos have had a dramatic and positive impact on improving planning and preparation, changing behaviours and driving improved decision-making. You can read the full report ‘Scaling Success’ on our website.
“ In my 35 plus years’ experience, I have never ever seen behavioural results as strong as these that can be attributed to one single initiative. There is no doubt, that the videos have had a significant positive impact on trampers’ safety-related behaviour. And this is reflected in the fact that the ‘test’ group gave the safety video a ‘Net Promoter Score’ of 43.” – E manuel Kalafatelis, Director Research NZ and Fellow of the Research Association of New Zealand (RANZ)
RESEARCH PROCESS
CONTACT DETAILS VIA DOC
REGISTRATION
SURVEY 1
SURVEY 2
CONTROL GROUP
CONTROL GROUP
ALL POTENTIAL RESPONDENTS
TRAMP TEST GROUP
TEST GROUP
* Watched the video 13
Tramping Video Series
The locations TONGARIRO ALPINE CROSSING
MT TARANAKI SUMMIT ROUTE
POUKIRIKIRI/TRAVERS SADDLE
ROBERT RIDGE ROUTE Used for research
WAIAU PASS
MUELLER HUT ROUTE Used for research
ROUTEBURN TRACK Used for research
CASCADE SADDLE TRACK
BEN LOMOND TRACK
GERTRUDE SADDLE
MILFORD TRACK
KEPLER TRACK
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Tramping Video Series
We found
76% Said they would make changes to their plans
90% Of them actually made these changes
95%
Of Test Group respondents found the changes they made because of the videos were useful
95%
Learned something new
18%
Increased knowledge of hazards along the track
Yes
82%
You can see more research findings on our website.
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What did they have to say? – QUOTES FROM RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS
‘ Impressed with the quality and clarity of the information - hope there are ways we can encourage more people to watch them, as they seem effective at [conveying] a lot of important messages in an accessible way.’
‘ [I] Shared the video on a blog so more people can benefit from it, and to support more videos like this being produced. Can’t beat seeing real footage of the conditions you might come across, e.g. climbing rocks, using at least three points of contact.’
‘ The content and production quality are outstanding. Please come over to Australia to train Australian National Parks on how to do [this] well.’
‘ Definitely a good idea! It’s hard to make out some of the more finer details of the walk when just looking at the standard DOC PDF pamphlets of the walks.’
‘ Great idea and very informative - should be compulsory viewing for anyone attempting these tracks.’
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‘ I think they’re fantastic, generally. I’m not the target audience (I don’t think - lots of mountaineering experience, sub-alpine and alpine tramping for years, now starting to do overnighters with my kids...) but they WERE really good for getting the kids [ready].’
‘ I think they are a valuable resource, I am an experienced hiker and trailer runner and have lived in NZ for a while but still found them very useful and helpful for planning my hike. Especially since I was traveling with someone less fit than I.’
‘ I will buy wet weather rain pants. Was going to try and get by with shorts.’
‘In my opinion, these videos are very helpful for a person who is new to the region or even to the activity. It informs them of the important aspects of the track and help them make decisions on what to carry with them and what to expect on the track.’
‘It’s extremely helpful to give an idea about what to expect when you are not in New Zealand country, to make preparation efforts appropriate.’
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Visualising our Insights
Supporting Coroners Inquests
There is an enormous amount of data that never makes it into our insights publications such as ‘A Walk in the Park?’. Often this is because the insights we glean from the data is hyper-localised and not of common interest to the public. However, this does not mean that these insights don’t have utility, it’s just that finding the correct table in the correct file can be a laborious task, especially for those not as intimately familiar with the sheets as the Insights Team are. Because of this we’ve been investigating how we can use a dashboard tool such as Power BI to give the users (our partners) a simplified interface.
MSC continue to support the Coroners Office. This year we’ve completed five fatality reports.
This project is an ongoing one as we’re currently gauging how much utility this tool might have for operational staff at organisations like the Department of Conservation (DOC), NZ Police and LandSAR. It is expected that with a user-friendly interface the data we have collated - and the insights it can offer operational staff are able to make more informed decisions about their operations. Additionally, this tool is of high value to MSC Media relationships. The tool allows for swift and accurate responses meaning that the chance of an informed comment from MSC making the news is far greater than having to get back to a reporter hours later.
When requested by the Coroner, the MSC produces independent expert reports for individual outdoor recreation fatalities. Using the evidence supplied, we utilise both our staff and wider network of technical advisors to focus on understanding the events that took place over the course of the incident. We then determine contributing factors and causes. Where appropriate, we also provide recommendations around actions that could be taken to prevent further incidents of a similar nature. Feedback from Coroners to date indicates these reports have been very helpful in providing an independent perspective, as often the cause of outdoor recreation fatalities is a mixture of many complex factors. The MSC see significant value in producing these reports for Coroners. With our focus solely on prevention, there is a lot we can learn from these tragic events that can be used to influence both our own and our partners’ safety messaging, information and resources. Providing these reports also ensures that the Coronial data we receive for our insights work remains available.
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Outdoor Safety Project Code Review White Gold
Project Outlander
The Outdoor Safety Code (OSC) has been in use for over 12 years and still includes the five original points that were developed at its inception.
Using historical data (incidents and participation) we have been developing a projection tool which will allow us to create future trend forecasts. This tool will be useful for projecting trends associated with safety incidents, especially for key hotspots and popular tracks. By adjusting the forecast participation numbers, utilising projection data from agencies like DOC, MBIE and Regional Tourism Organisations, we can predict the range and frequency of possible safety incidents.
T he review is governed by a Steering Group made up of relevant organisations, including: MSC, DOC, NZ Police, LandSAR, NZSAR and RCCNZ. The review is currently underway, and we hope to complete this process midway through 2020.
Over the last few years MSC has been developing a world-leading insights platform. Through the combination of multiple data sources and extensive work to understand and analyse this data, we’ve developed the most comprehensive understanding of outdoor safety incidents. Until recently this work primarily focussed on activities such as tramping and hunting. This project combined existing data from ACC claims, Search and Rescue events, and fatalities via the Coronial Services, alongside our New Zealand Avalanche Advisory InfoEx database. This has resulted in the most comprehensive understanding of modern-era avalanche incidents in NZ. Now the dataset has been established and preliminary analysis completed the project will delve into some key areas relating to avalanche forecasting and the prevention of avalanche related mountaineering fatalities.
One major benefit of this tool is the ability to ‘get ahead’ of the problem. If we know where safety incidents could increase, because of historical trends and future projections, we can ensure suitable prevention systems are in place before they’re needed.
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Impact Survey
Brand Survey
Every two years we conduct a research survey of trampers and hunters. This survey allows us to test out various questions with a relevant target audience. A number of the questions we ask are consistent across each survey (so far we’ve done them in 2017 and now in 2019) so this allows us to compare results. A further selection of questions vary each year and this allows us to ask time sensitive questions which could be relevant to current or future work projects.
MSC is investigating the brand associations of our name. We aim to understand more about the public perception of our brand, what the public thinks MSC does, and if those perceptions match what we exist to do.
This year we increased the survey size to give us a more accurate picture. In partnership with Research NZ (RNZ) we surveyed 637 trampers and hunters.
Preliminary results have been shared with MSC and indicate there could be some misinterpretation of the role MSC plays in the community. Once finalised, we will use the findings to develop recommendations for any changes required to our brand that better signal who we are and what we do.
The results of this research are used by MSC in many varying ways, including; »» Maintaining an understanding of targeted audience attitudes and behaviour – this is critical in maintaining a participantcentric approach to our work. »» Maintaining an understanding of targeted audience preferences to information channels and key sources of trip planning guidance - this is critical in maintaining a participantcentric approach to our work and ensuring our placement of advertising or promotion of safety messages is correct. »» Maintaining an understanding of targeted audience preferences to retail shopping habits - this is critical in helping to guide our Outdoor Safety Retail Partnerships. »» Targeted audience awareness of safety resources and tools – this is critical in measuring the broad reach and uptake of our tools and resources. Although the difference is not statistically significant, there has been a 3% increase in awareness of our day walking guide. This potentially represents another 35,000 more participants, increasing the total number of adults who are aware of this resource to approximately 400,000.
Photo: Bevan Smith, Fiordland National Park
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1.2 Million MINUTES OF VIDEO FOOTAGE VIEWED ON OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL 1 JULY 2018 - 30 JUNE 2019
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We aim to improve outdoor safety with others. By increasing the amount of time and energy we spend connecting with relevant partners and our Council Member organisations, we broaden our reach into distinct outdoor user communities. By continuing to integrate our partner’s communities with ours, we can continue to have an increasing impact on improving outdoor safety. Our partners will continue to look to us for leadership, to solve known problems and to establish a collective voice on outdoor safety issues. By continuing to foster strong partnerships the outdoor sector will be more aware of outdoor-safety-related issues, the factors that contribute to these, what mechanisms can be put in place to solve these, and how our partners and council members can contribute to positive outcomes.
Photo: The 2019 Southern Hemisphere Alpine Conference in full swing
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Partnership Projects
In situ safety information Collaborative messages with Department of Conservation Information at some critical decision points within the DOC infrastructure has been revamped, replaced or updated. Gertrude Saddle Route signs – We collaboratively developed signs and collateral with a range of safety information for this track. We used the recently released Tramping Video Series for images and information to support visitors with a handout at the Te Anau Visitor Centre and signage on-site. Several critical points had signs which we refreshed and simplified the information. Tongariro Alpine Crossing signs – Each toilet door represented an opportunity to deliver location-specific messages to a captive audience. We used our insights and the Tramping Video Series for the content on each poster, providing them an update of their progress and what is coming up on the track. Visitor Centres – We produced regionally-specific posters that are placed in DOC Visitor Centres to help participants. We used our insights to develop a range of key messages then print and deliver these ahead of each season. They have been very well received by the staff and draw positive comments from participants. By focussing on decision-making points within the DOC network, as well as modern messaging techniques, we’re able to positively influence the behaviour of participants.
Supporting alpine explorers with new avalanche signs For the first time in history, New Zealand now has a consistent suite of backcountry avalanche danger signage. These signs are present throughout the South and North Island high-country, strategically placed at common backcountry access points such as ski fields. The new signs were created through a process that combined best practice international signage research and input from local sector experts. The signs play a critical role as part of a wider backcountry safety programme. In conjunction with our NZ Avalanche Advisory (www.avalanche.net.nz) they provide backcountry users with the most up-to-date safety information for on the spot informed decision-making.
60+ NEW AVALANCHE SIGNS ACROSS NEW ZEALAND
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Partnership Projects
On-track safety alerts CamperMate/Roadtrippers/Geozone MSC partnered with Geozone to deliver contextual safety information and alerts via their mobile apps. To date over 1.4 million travellers have downloaded the app on iOS or Android. There are 11 ‘geo-fenced’ areas around the country that stimulate notifications when a user goes inside the GPS ‘fenced’ area. For example: for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing we selected Mangatepopo Stream, Soda Springs, South Crater, Red Crater, Blue Lake, Ketetahi Springs, Tongariro Alpine Crossing (finished) as we’re able to deliver specific information about each step. The information has been viewed by 38,900 users within six months. This is double what we had for the 17/18 business year. Users are guided through decision-making points for their trip by utilising the power of the app and geo-fenced areas. This early work is the test case for plans to include other ‘hotspot’ areas and widen resources as functions of the App are updated/added in the future. Nationally, there have been 175K unique views of the location information for the 18/19 year which is up from 142K the previous year.
80,332 MSC PROFILE VIEWS VIA 11 GEOFENCED AREAS JAN-JUNE 2019
188,533 TOTAL TRACK NOTIFICATIONS SENT JAN-JUNE 2019
JAN-JUNE 2019 METRICS
PROFILE PAGE VIEWS
NOTIFICATIONS SENT
Tongariro Alpine Crossing
17,028
78,751
Mt Taranaki Summit Route
8,856
11,633
Robert Ridge Track
6,929
11,258
Mueller Hut Route
12,042
26,880
Gertrude Saddle Route
13,805
13,694
Ben Lomond Track
10,430
26,393
Kepler Track
11,242
19,924
Above: The app in use and the geofence targeting travellers heading towards the Tongariro Alpine Crossing.
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Partnership Projects
Outdoor Safety Retail Partnership The Outdoor Safety Retail Partnership (OSRP) underwent a process of reflection early this year, as each retailer and MSC reviewed the work we’d completed together through the initial two years of our collaborative partnership. Upon completion of this, there was widespread agreement to the continuation of the OSRP, and agreement to ramp up the work. The existing partners (Macpac, Torpedo7, Bivouac and Kathmandu), including the recently joined Hunting and Fishing, gathered in Christchurch, along with the MSC team, to map out a range of key projects for the immediate future. Those agreed projects include the implementation of projects such as: MSC resources within every online order, retailer staff training, development of blog/article content for social media channels and much more. The Outdoor Safety Retail Partnership requires a significant investment of MSC staff time. The potential to reach huge numbers of active outdoor adventures with contextual and consequential messaging means we’ll continue to invest significant energy into this work.
Above: Meeting with retailers and some examples of working together this year.
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Partnerships Projects
Developing Partnerships
Councils and RTOs
AA Traveller
Our continued efforts to engage with regional authorities often uncovers opportunities for ‘plugin’ safety information within existing sites/collateral, or, the creation of bespoke items to fill an identified lack of suitable information.
MSC provided safety content for the AA Traveller Walking Guide, 2019.
Our resources are intersecting participants at multiple points on their journey into the outdoors. This increases the chance of absorption/interaction with the message. Auckland Council – at their expense – printed over 5,000 of the translated guides below for use in their region.
The Walking Guide is distributed to thousands of members and available at AA centres around the country. Digital versions of safety content from the Walking Guide are published on their website and then on social media (which has a 95K audience on Facebook alone). Through our insights we know that the AA is a great channel for several of our most at risk target groups.
Love Taupo and Love Wanaka - Embedded resources such as our Tramping Video Series in their websites.
Above: AA traveller Walking Guide with the MSC safety section.
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Partnership Projects
Project Plugin We’ve worked hard over the last few years to develop useful resources for participants. The driving force of most of these digital resources such as videos, recreation guides and learning tools is so they can be shared and contextualised in external channels. We are excited to see that partners and other relavant channels are ‘plugging in’ these resources for their audiences to access. Successful efforts this year have been our Tramping Video Series for specific track information in hotspot regions and the Plan My Trip Tool as a standard ‘before you go resource’.
87% OF OUR ONLINE PUBLICATIONS ARE VIEWED VIA EMBEDS - PRIMARLIY ON PARTNER SITES
49% OF ALL EXTERNAL YOUTUBE TRAFFIC FROM DOC.GOVT.NZ (01/07/18-30/06/19) Top image towards bottom right: Examples of our resources being plugged in - DOC website for the Gertrude Saddle Route, AA Traveller website, NZ Police website, Discover Queenstown website and Walking Access Commission website.
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Get Outdoors Week 1.0 15-22 Feb 2019 Wide support for an exciting concept There was widespread partner support for the concept from MSC’s partners as well as the general public. Some examples of partner intiatives were talks/seminars, organised walks, supporting media releases and social media competitions. We were thrilled to see partners taking the concept and adding their own ideas to encourage safe participation during the campaign week. As part of the Impact Survey we undertake with Research NZ every two years, we added questions to the latest one specifically about Get Outdoors Week. Research suggests that the concept has interest from our intended audience and is therefore worth pursuing further. MSC intend to run #2 (Nov 2019) and #3 (Nov 2020) before evaluating the long-term campaign future.
28% OF SURVEY RESPONDENTS WERE AWARE OF GET OUTDOORS WEEK
48% OF THEM WENT ON AN ADVENTURE
41%
OF THEM ENGAGED IN SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT
24%
OF THEM ENGAGED IN AN INSTORE RETAILER EVENT
Top to bottom: Images shared by participants on the Get Outdoors Week Instagram page, Newshub story, Auckland Council article.
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Delivering Firearms Safety Courses Since August 2018, the Mountain Safety Council has had the contract with NZ Police to provide the new Firearms Safety Training Programme as part of the NZ Firearms Licensing process. The new programme has a focus on giving every applicant instruction and practice in safe firearms handling. With over 63 venues, the overwhelming majority of New Zealanders are within an hour of a venue. These have been made available through working with Fire and Emergency New Zealand, NZ Deerstalkers Association, St Johns and other local clubs. In this first year, with 40 professional instructors, we have held 473 courses. In total, the number of trainees attending was 4,155. The booking site, firearmsafety.org.nz shows all current classes up to two months in advance. It shows availability in real time and allows trainees to cancel and rebook classes if their schedule changes. Participants from the first six months of classes were sent a feedback survey. The responses were highly positive with 87.3% of respondents rating the practical sessions an 8 or higher (1 to 10 scale). We have also conducted an instructor survey in anticipation of partnering with NZ Police to work on version 3 of the practical course.
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63 LOCATIONS AVAILABLE ACROSS NZ
4,155 ATTENDEES
473 TOTAL COURSES DELIVERED
87% PARTICIPANT SURVEY RESPONDENTS RATED THEIR EXPERIENCE 8 OR HIGHER OUT OF 10
Southern Hemisphere Alpine Conference The Southern Hemisphere Alpine Conference (SHAC) took place again in June 2019. It is the only event of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, bringing together snow safety professionals, commercial snow and alpine organisations, guiding companies and industry influencers for two days of collaboration. MSC runs SHAC every second year in order to provide a platform for people interested in alpine snow environments to share ideas, network and enhance their knowledge and practical skills. It also generates opportunities to develop future strategies and collaborations that help more people stay safe in the outdoors.
138 DELEGATES
9 EXHIBITOR BUSINESSES
Alongside SHAC we also hosted the Search and Rescue (SAR) seminar, sponsored by NZSAR, which specifically focussed on alpine search and rescue. We were privileged to have 24 world-class speakers, including Manuel Genswein from Switzerland, one of the most well-respected experts in avalanche rescue, who shared the learnings from research in Europe, which has changed how avalanche rescue is performed internationally. We also welcomed Ilya Storm, from Avalanche Canada who presented on avalanche safety innovations. The Alpine Gala included an entertaining talk from Mark Seddon who presented his epic kite-skiing expedition across Antarctica.
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We work to influence participants As New Zealand’s land-based outdoor safety prevention organisation, we continue to influence the behaviour of a greater number of outdoor users. We do this by providing informative and timely safety messaging, contextual to the participant and in a manner that highlights the consequence of the activity without minimising desire for participation. Our messaging is designed to be highly shareable so that more outdoor users will seek out safety information, advice and guidance before heading outdoors. Increased awareness of the consequences of inadequate planning and poor decision making helps participants understand the simple steps they can take to avoid getting into trouble.
Sharing our brand statement By adding the tag #MakeItHomeNZ or the statement in written copy we’re able to positively influence our ‘Search Engine Optmisation’ (SEO). Search engines index every word on websites and track behaviour so as to offer the most relevant results for their users search questions. In lay terms this is about linking our resources, tools and messages with large and influential organisations that have significant traffic, thereby building positive associations and referral traffic. DOC, MetService and NZ Police are good examples of this tactic in action whereby they have our brand statements in various forms on their pages. MSC’s safety-related content, resources and messages are easier to find and better prioritised by search engines.
32 Annual Report 2018-19 | New Zealand Mountain Safety Council
Plan My Trip Plan My Trip launch Facilitating good planning We partnered with a local agency - GSL Promotus - to run this campaign. We focussed on three distinct phases of the participant journey from their house to the outdoors: ‘Dreaming’, ‘Planning’ and ‘Doing’, each had its own collateral and strategy. Google search, YouTube, MetService App, Facebook, and Trademe were utilised in various ways. The campaign focussed on:
The campaign to promote the Plan My Trip tool delivered a total of:
9.5M IMPRESSIONS
151,000 VIDEO VIEWS
»» Raising awareness of the Plan My Trip tool »» Increase the number of trips planned »» Increase the number of trips shared The standout performance from a ‘click through rate’ (CTR) perspective – the percentage of the audience that clicks on a banner/ad – was a staggering 4.7%. Typical CTR are at or below 0.5% for most advertising. This result gave us confidence to bolster our search and display advertising for other campaigns. All other channels performed as expected and helped to raise awareness of the tool.
17,064 WEBSITE SESSIONS
»» From the combination of advertising platforms employed, 2,847 trips were started and 1,604 trips completed »» Google Search dominated both effectiveness and efficiency measures, providing the largest number of website clicks at the highest click-through rate and the lowest cost per click and lowest bounce rate. Search also delivered the highest number of both started and completed trips
Overall, the bounce rate was incredibly low for an advertising campaign, at just 6.91%. Most advertising campaigns have a normal bounce rate of over 50%. This shows that when people got there, they got what they needed. We were targeting the right people.
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Alpine Skills Series filming We created a five-part instructional video series to help people understand how to use crampons and ice axes correctly, and to safely manage snow and ice terrain. While this series is a standalone item, the skills demonstrated augment the popular Tramping Video Series. The series is due to be released over summer 2019/20.
Scene from the the Avalanche Skills Series
Avalanche Curriculum Review An important part of supporting backcountry participants is providing training curriculum to external avalanche course providers. This year we collaboratively re-developed much of our avalanche course curriculum. This included an overhaul review of information as well as the incorporation of our new online avalanche course, which introduces users to basic avalanche safety.
18 EXTERNAL COURSE PROVIDERS Online avalanche course - available on avalanche.net.nz
NZAA Public Observations During the upgrade of our New Zealand Avalanche Advisory (NZAA) we added a new feature that enabled public snowpack and avalanche observations. The feature was live through winter 2018, although it operated without any promotion to drive increased use. This approach allowed us to develop a user baseline, essentially gathering metrics around user behaviour and live testing of the new functions. Over winter 2018 we received 62 public observations, a great benchmark to build from. While winter 2019 largely falls outside the time frame of this annual report, to give a sense of user growth, we’ve received more than 160 public observations so far this season. The primary purpose of the public observation tool is to capture more user generated information about snow pack conditions and recent avalanche activity. This is especially important in ‘data sparse regions’; avalanche forecasting areas like Arthur’s Pass or Nelson Lakes where there are very few commercial operators and very little field data available. Feedback from the avalanche forecasting team clearly indicates the growing amount of user generated public observation data is of significant benefit.
34 Annual Report 2018-19 | New Zealand Mountain Safety Council
Above: Public Observations appearing over our NZAA, one of the winning entries from the season - J. Grinstead.
Advertising
Insight: A Hunter’s Tale, 2017 | NZMSC
We use advertising as an opportunity to support our partnerships by utilising their existing reach and advertising space to integrate our messages/key resources. These have shown to be more effective as participants explore channels that support the planning phase of their journey. E.g. weather, maps, gear etc.
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2 3 4 5
10
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SPIKER?
PR/Media
Above top left to bottom right: Outdoor Kid Guidebook advert, Hunting and Fishing NZ catalogue advert, TradeMe digital banner on outdoor gear sections, The Country article using targeted digital banners for Avaalnahce Advisory.
New Zealand is more aware of land-based outdoor recreation safety issues as a result of editorial articles generated or informed by MSC. MSC sent a total of 20 media releases in the last business year resulting in dozens of articles. We prioritise this work primarily because each article generates ‘reach’ of 15K in small publications and over 3 million with larger syndicated media companies such as Stuff.co.nz and the NZ Herald. Cumulatively, this adds up to tens of millions of times that our message (within an article) is loaded on a device (phone, tablet, desktop) or printed in the broadsheet newspaper of the region. While the success ratio of media release to article remains modest, MSC intend to continue to drive news articles based on risk - seasonally or otherwise - as well as using any incidents as ‘teachable moments’ for the public to learn what decisions/behaviours/conditions to avoid.
15,000 SMALL PUBLICATION REACH 3M LARGE MEDIA REACH Above: Examples of media stories from the year.
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Our online channels supports participants and partners. Segmentation of audiences into distinct ‘channels’, represented by the 10 individual social pages, allows us to tailor the content specifically to the intended audience of the page. Moreover, we can cross-post between pages where there’s a universal message such as a promotion, media release or a comment on an incident.
17.6 Million TOTAL SOCIAL MEDIA REACH
1.5 Million MONTHLY AVERAGE SOCIAL MEDIA REACH
245% OF OUR SOCIAL MEDIA GOAL REACHED
36 Annual Report 2018-19 | New Zealand Mountain Safety Council
MOUNTAINSAFETY.ORG.NZ
3.4M
TOTAL PAGE VIEWS
AVALANCHE.NET.NZ
233,078
43%
1,404,264 SESSIONS
127,135 SESSIONS
37%
303,859 UNIQUE USERS
FACEBOOK (MSC + ALPINE + HUNTING)
78%
4,522,195 189,263
425,200 VIDEO VIEWS
10,845
20%
1,582,341 IMPRESSIONS
TOTAL REACH
56%
TOTAL PHOTO ENGAGEMENTS
TOTAL FOLLOWERS
24%
90%
YOUTUBE
566,905 TOTAL VIEWS
3%
INSTAGRAM (MSC + NZAA)
11,354,607TOTAL IMPRESSIONS 34,826 TOTAL LIKES
8%
44,183 UNIQUE USERS
20%
8%
TOTAL PAGE VIEWS
155,994 IMPRESSIONS
173%
76%
173%
1,219,475 TOTAL MINUTES WATCHED
240%
Unique website users - Number of users who have at least one session, includes both new and returning visitors. Sessions - Number of times a user is actively engaged with the website. Metrics cover 1 July 2018 - 30 June 2019 and do not reflect current statistics of our channels.
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Financial Summary
38 Annual Report 2018-19 | New Zealand Mountain Safety Council
MSC has applied Public Benefit Entity Simple Format Reporting - Accrual (Not for Profit). These summarised financial statements have been extracted from the Performance Report (PR) which was authorised for issue by the Executive Committee on 11 October 2019. The PR has been audited and an unqualified opinion was issued. These summary financial statements have not been audited.
The summary financial statements cannot be expected to provide as complete an understanding as provided by the PR. A copy of the PR can be obtained by contacting MSC.
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION - AT 30 JUNE 2019
2019
2018
156,902
176,041
156,902
176,041
Assets Property, plant and equipment Non-current Assets Inventory and debtors
137,037
124,209
Term deposits
300,000
750,000
Bank accounts
458,973
69,392
896,010
943,601
$1,052,912
$1,119,642
Current Liabilities
288,543
503,628
Retained Earnings
764,369
616,014
$1,052,912
$1,119,642
Current Assets Total Assets
Total Liabilities and Retained Earnings
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE - YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2019 Revenue Providing goods or services New Zealand Lottery Grants Board
1,300,000
1,265,000
New Zealand Police
270,125
256,000
New Zealand Search and Rescue Council
206,320
172,000
85,000
85,000
9,000
39,500
125,730
84,254
Sport New Zealand Department of Conservation Other Other revenue Interest and sundry Total Revenue
36,756
38,733
2,032,931
1,940,487
Expenditure Employee related costs Providing goods or services
765,682
737,977
1,118,894
1,058,135
Total Expenditure
1,884,576
1,796,112
Surplus
$148,355
$144,375
CASH FLOW STATEMENT - YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2019 Net Cash Flows from Operating Activities
(5,204)
381,142
Net Cash Flows from Investing Activities
394,785
(575,674)
Opening cash balance Closing Cash Balance
69,392
263,924
$458,973
$69,392
This is represented by Bank accounts Closing Cash Balance
458,973
69,392
$458,973
$69,392
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#MakeItHomeNZ
mountainsafety.org.nz
40 Annual Report 2018-19 | New Zealand Mountain Safety Council