Think energy providers are unfeeling? Special New Zealand is setting Contact Energy apart. The partners have launched a very unexpected, very welcome initiative, Fourth Trimester, offering families three months free power immediately after the birth of a baby. Because looking after newborns can be draining. It doesn’t just take a lot of physical energy but a lot of energy too – washing machines, dryers, heaters, sound machines, steam sterilisers, the list goes on.
Contact Energy and Special New Zealand launched the initiative after a successful pilot in 2022 in which Kiwi families-to-be received three months of free power. The initial offer proved transformative for families, so to expand its generosity, Contact announced more than two million hours of free power would be given away in the new iteration of the initiative in 2023.
The Fourth Trimester is designed to help take the pressure off during a financially challenging period, enabling whānau to spend more time enjoying the newborn phase and less time worrying about bills. Special created a campaign film featuring a new father adapting to life with a newborn around the house.
Fourth Trimester was launched in conjunction with PR activity via Special PR, announcing Fourth Trimester to press with the support of Whānau Āwhina Plunket, who facilitated gifting of the offer to new parents at its Manurewa branch. After distributing captioned onesies to customers who participated in the offer in 2022, infant-luencers were created with imagery featuring newborns in the onesies with phrases such as, Can’t talk. Can pay the power bill and I’ll sort the power bill. You sort my nappy. The announcement resulted in editorial coverage across major news outlets as well as partner content through The Project and NZME.
Lisa Fedyszyn, executive creative director at Special, stated, “It’s always inspiring to develop an initiative that has purpose and this one is already proving to have a powerful impact for families when they need it most. When we developed the idea and built the creative around it, we wanted to show how Fourth Trimester helped our most vulnerable and newest New Zealanders. We’re thrilled to work with a client that shares our vision for developing creative campaigns that improve outcomes for Aotearoa.”
Sera Flint, head of brand & marketing at Contact, added, “The first three months after birth is a magical time for parents. But we also know that it can be a challenging time too. Offering families free energy at this time is a small thing we can do to help – removing any hesitation to run the dryer or keep the heating on to keep baby warm. It’s one way we’re trying to improve the quality of home life for New Zealanders.”
Fourth Trimester is available for New Zealanders expecting babies from 1 February 2023 and will result in two million hours of power gifted to families. Find out more about Fourth Trimester conditions and how to apply here.
Credits:
Agency: Special New Zealand
PR Agency: Special PR
Media Agency: Hearts + Science
Production Company: Finch
Director: Christopher Riggert
Client: Contact Energy
Chief Retail Officer: Matt Bolton
Head of Brand & Marketing: Sera Flint
Advertising Communications Manager: Shea Whittington
Head of Communication & Reputation: Louise Wright
