Powerful recruitment campaign from Stanley St for Department of Corrections

AUCKLAND, Wednesday: Stanley Street has created a powerful recruitment campaign for the New Zealand Department of Corrections – already gaining cut-through in the market.

Agency ECD Brad Collett said: “The NZ employment market is the tightest it’s been for years and every sector is finding it tough to recruit the right people.

“This challenge is being also felt by the Department of Corrections, which has been under huge pressure to attract and retain corrections officers.

“Right now, Corrections needs new recruits for its frontline, and it needs them urgently. So, for the first time, the department is going out with a high-profile multi-media recruitment campaign.

“It’s an unusual brief considering public understanding of the corrections officer’s role has been superficial at best, and sensationalised by the stereotypes depicted in movies and TV shows.

“Working alongside a diverse and highly engaged group of stakeholders, the recruitment messaging developed by the Stanley St team needed to be authentic – confronting at times, but compassionate.

“The fully integrated campaign launched with the first story, What Do You Do? followed by Your Dad’s A Good Man.”

“To be successful, Stanley St employed advertising techniques to develop a creative campaign that would rapidly shift perceptions, demonstrating aspects of the important role corrections officers play – keeping New Zealand safe, making a difference within the community, improving outcomes for those in Corrections management, and their whānau.

“At the heart of the Stanley St campaign are three powerful and nuanced stories, bringing to life the three core ideas – Community, Pride and Rehabilitation.

“Directed by Robin Walters for Film 360, each story is unapologetically emotive, informed by the real-world experience of the cast, corrections officers and the people they work with.

The 45” stories are followed in the same commercial break by 15” harder-hitting spots that feature the characters from the earlier films breaking the ‘fourth wall’ and making a direct invitation for the audience to join the Department of Corrections team.

“Right from the first day of auditions it was clear we were working with powerful thematic material – it’s rare that a script read-through gets those taking part to reach for the tissues.”

The fully integrated campaign launched with the first story, What Do You Do?, followed by Your Dad’s A Good Man and accompanying recruitment 15’’ spots.

Offering a holistic approach to the client, the wider Waitapu Group, of which Stanley St is a part, will also play a supporting role over the coming months delivering targeted digital and social media campaigns.