The Otago Stadium has been chosen as an interim name to differentiate between the new stadium and Carisbrook, and to emphasise a stadium for the whole southern region, commercial manager Guy Hedderwick said at a press conference yesterday to launch the campaign.
The final name would depend on negotiation with a naming rights sponsor, and Mr Hedderwick said it was unknown at this stage what it might be, and whether Carisbrook would be part of it.
Trust staff were confident yesterday of raising more than the 60% of the private sector funding the Dunedin City Council has required be raised by February next year, despite international economic problems.
The trust said on Monday 20% of formal contracts that had been sent out had been returned, equating to $22.2 million or 49% of the target, with 20% of available lounge memberships and 25% of corporate suites taken.
Mr Hedderwick said yesterday while he did not yet know how economic conditions would affect people the marketing campaign was targeting, nobody had yet withdrawn from seating packages for which they had already signed.
"It is a difficult environment," trust chief executive Ewan Soper said.
But most people believed the economy would "bounce a little bit" in the future, and payments for packages were spread over a long period.
Mr Hedderwick said the "It's What's Inside" campaign would appear on billboards and buses, a new website would be online today, and there would be direct mail and telemarketing.
Products included corporate suites for up to 24 people costing $45,000 a year, "open club reserves" for eight or 12 people costing $15,000 a year, and 1850 lounge memberships at $1500 a year.
Asked about the progress of signing up a naming rights sponsor, Mr Hedderwick said the trust was trying to negotiate the cost of sponsorship, and what would be offered for the money.
He appeared to indicate only one company was in negotiation, when he said it was not an environment where two companies were competing for the naming rights.
The marketing would mostly be in the Otago-Southland region, though corporations would be contacted directly.
Local firms had been used, with Dunedin company the Flying Lizard providing design, and Oamaru company Pulse Business Solutions carrying out the telemarketing.
