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by The Newshound

on Oct 9

Aussie Tourism gone ‘Walkabout’

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Move over Lara Bingle, here comes the Baz Luhrmann Australian tourism machine!

To bring the country’s tattered advertising strategy back into line, big bad Bazza (not his nickname overseas, only in Australia) has created a series of ads aimed at showcasing Australia as a place to escape to from the hectic pace of modern life.

Two TVCs, one set in New York and one in Shanghai, depict people being harassed in their jobs and in their personal lives, but who are magically transported to some of Australia’s more obscure Outback locations.

Federal Tourism Minister Martin Ferguson, who launched the $40 million campaign, says “this campaign is different, it's actually about our visitors, it's about what's in it for them that end benefit if you like of an Australian holiday.”

The campaign has received mixed reactions here, but Baz has linked the ads to his soon to be released epic Australia – not a bad idea considering the success Hollywood had had in marketing its feature films. Well… most of them.

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3 Comments

Editor | Scotland
  • Wrote on 9 Oct, at 12:18PM
I think these ads are beautifully put together - great music, great cinematography - but does anyone think that they are really going to get people watching their wallets and careful about discretionary income to shell out thousands of dollars on a flight?

When I was younger I never realised it, but we went for a whole bunch of holidays on this bizarre little German island near Denmark. As a kid you never really think about it, but it coincided with the recession of the early 90s.

Lesson: during a global recession, it doesn't matter how sexy your tourism campaign materials are. Nobody is going to trade up from a local holiday to the monumental effort and financial outlay of coming to Australia during lean times.
The Marketer
  • Wrote on 9 Oct, at 05:30PM
Beautifully put together, great music, great cinematography...yes 100%.

Also, I agree targeting Americans in the current financial crisis could be a bit of a problem.

In addition, Ive got two other small problems with this campaign. Firstly, aligning the campaign with a film that may bomb at the box office and secondly, if I were stressed I wouldnt fly half way around the world just to swim in a desert pool, even if its called a Billabong.

I hope it works...
DIFFUSION
  • Wrote on 15 Oct, at 09:59AM
I wonder what kind of segmentation study, if any, was conducted by the agency for this new campaign and what input Tourism Australia had into both the content and timing of the launch, which seems more aligned with the much slated November release of Luhrmanns film Australia.

I understood Tourism Australias strategy was to move away from the standard iconic images of brand Australia into a broader expression of the sum total of an Australia experience. On this basis, while the film ads are beautifully shot and produced there is no real movement away from what is already regarded as an atypical set of images of Australia.

Further, both ads appear targetted at highly paid DINK couples. I was in New York late last week and given that this segment is the one going to be most exposed to the global financial meltdown it seems a rather cruel and ingenuous campaign.

Put simply, bad and unfortunate timing and more of the same against a segment who may very well be concerned about their jobs and financial security than with a holiday in Australia.

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