Constructing the Two Oceans Aquarium website and watching their online presence grow dramatically over the past year has been one of our most rewarding and exciting projects here at Flow Communications. Working with a great team at the aquarium, combined with the interesting and educational material we are tasked with producing, has created a partnership fit to hold water for many years to come.
Flow started development on the website in April 2010, with many late hours and weekend work clocked by the Frank brothers Richard and Stephen (programming), and media developer Ingrid Sinclair (project management and content creation). The site went live to the public in May 2010, and since then we have watched the aquarium’s online presence and social media following blossom – they now have 3 504 Facebook followers, and
1 730 Twitter followers!
Flow Joburg journalist Stuart Dickinson contributes to the site content, and enjoys exploring scientific topics surrounding sustainability, species and climate conservation, and anything that creates awareness around issues faced by the aquatic community, such as his piece about ocean acidification.
“I love writing for the Two Oceans Aquarium. It allows me to really dig into a topic, and keeps my journalistic skills honed,” he says. “At the top of my to-do list you’ll find - take a trip to Cape Town, visit the aquarium, meet the team and go diving with ragged-tooth sharks before writing a blog about all of it.”
Speaking of diving, Flow has also created an online commercial portal on the site, where fans and guests are able to book daily tickets, membership, diving experiences and Penguin Encounters all online. Booking on the site is also a great way for people to save money!
Although the work done by the aquarium is of a serious nature, we love the fact that their team also has a wonderful sense of humour. In July, Ingrid wrote a blog poking a bit of fun at the Weird, Wild and Wonderful campaign that ran earlier in the year.
She says, “Sometimes the best work is done with no notice and in no time at all. I relished this opportunity to write a tongue-in-cheek ‘sea-lection scandal’ article for the aquarium’s school holiday campaign; the aquarium’s wonderful animals are the best inspiration.”
The client responses have been full of praise. Membership Coordinator of the Two Oceans Aquarium, Amina Hoosain, commented, “We had our meeting with [Ingrid] earlier today, discussed this idea and she promptly went off and wrote this fabulous article.”
Two Oceans Aquarium Financial Manager Iqbal Datay said, “This is really good stuff. Thank you for your effort.”
Much of the work we produce for the aquarium focuses on local issues, events and promotions, but every so often we tackle something that carries international weight. In April this year, we compiled a report on how the Fukushima Aquarium was damaged by the massive Japan earthquake, based on correspondence we received from officials there.
Two Oceans Aquarium Communications and Sustainability Manager Helen Lockhart was moved by the piece.
“Thank you for the most beautiful piece you compiled from the letters from Pat [Garratt] and [Yoshitaka] Abe which I sent through last week. You brought me to tears… It is work such as this which reaffirms (yet again!) that our decision to enter into a partnership with Flow was absolutely right. I don’t think I have ever worked with external people who are just so in tune with what the Two Oceans Aquarium is about and stands for.”
Well Helen, we’re not going anywhere!