Destination. MarketingTourism Australia'sControversial Campaign

This case is about an advertising camp~l;;l~;;;:;;dbyib;;~m Au;tMiJ~,;~

in 2006, the controversies it created, and itS ei:entualwithdrowal.~Tp~'

case revolves around the "So Where the BloodyJ;IellA[!J You?"campC!l~~1thai was wi~ldrawn. in early 2008; ,". ..:.' .,\~~ .~Australian tourism lida belinfacing'the umquefi'ioblimi where the mreJst '~shown by the people in vjsitil1(~the couniIy was not translating into ..~

actual tourist inflm'w;. The com] Jaign wasmten?edto solve this prob!~in ..~by translating the hoge'interesl shown bythe'peoPle to visitAustr$1a "fJ,~into actual tourist ip.j1ows.'The {heme of tile cqi;fi'paignwas iu inVite The ;:tpeople to visit Australia and I'njoy the divti#[e,r(mge ofexperleI1(Jes t~available there. The campaign was ldi1ii~h

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channels andAustralian model J,QlUBingle wasthefucea/thecampaign..~The campaign was del'eloped ufter extensive1iIdrketingresearchcptd§!Slrol'8 to target 'Experience 5eeKr'rs'-earlyadopters;who played aml1;or~ftro/e in influencing 11!epurchas ing behavior of other people. i~;~1

The campaign became controversial rightfrom'the tinle it was launchedand was even initially b,atmed in.§oI11ecQ.u.. .. .(l§;'the UK and .~Canada. The (;d.nrjJdigIi4ftracied~tJl~'iWrt' qtbrs'l~;titJi;e'~. ..."<» '." ."~~l .'~.

icountries beca../!;s~ofJ,~qH.~~pfslV~W:JXg- . r£!'fIWi,,;'a,!~.'HeJ1..'. tTbese words Wgp!;;1{!l:i!/9 lISff9J~d!.fhl!J:'t~ea.

~?mI!ajgn was'j:~fd~Vf:~\i.~. ~feifj!ti:t.. . . y,,;,{,,:';~:~~1-!!Wkl; ..~louI'lsm AuslrallCl wascn.~gz.e(IfqrnqU. n J",eCiiltuiill.aspectsYlto ~

acc~unt before develbpmganad"ertising tlfu1p<¥gnfor tile intemati6~Q]i dmmkels. <~i i~

111an increasingly competitive and tough commercial environment, we mllstbe bold, aggressive, and castincti,'" to win the business. But we aLso mustbe crcdible--we must be true to whc;t we are as a destination and locus onwhy {he world loves us--and allr marketing must be authentically anddistinctively AustraLian... This e:tclting new campaign provides a compellingalld uniquely AustraLian invitcrfion to the world that celebrates ourpersonality, our Lifestyle, and our pLace. It has been carefully designed ioCllt through the clutter and motil",te international tourists to stop puttingit off and visit Australia now.'

- Scott Morrison, Manogi ng Director, Tourism Australia, onthe controversial "So Where the Bloody Hell Are You?"

clIlnpaigll that was launched in 2006"Tourism Australia Asks, 'So WhelP The Bloody Hell Are You?'; Cheeky New AdCampaign,..," www.allbusiness.eom, February 23, 2006.

rQ2008 The Iefai Center for Managemel1l Research (lCMR). All Rights Reserved. For accessing and procuring the case study,log on to www.ecch.com or www.icmrindia.org

They /Asian visitors/ didn't get the joke at all, it wasn 't fullny to themtohaue this word bloody which can be a serious word to others. It cameacross as a demand for people to visit Australia, not an invitation andthat's not at all culturally appropriate in many of the countries in which weare worhing to encourage people to come and see us.2

- Desley Boyle, Queensland's Tourism Minister, in 2007

In awareness, in some areas it was very good. But it seems from everythingthat we see and hear from the industry that it was not strong enough toreally go on from here.3

- Harold Mitchell, the Executive Chairman of the MitchellCommunication Group, in 2008

End of an Innovative and Controversial Campaign

In February 2008, Tourism Australia. announced that it was discontinuingits controversial advertisemen,t campaign, "So Where the Bloody Hell AreYou?" (Bloody Hell). The announcement put an end to the contentiouscampaign launched in 2006 by Tourism Australia, a statutory authorityof the Government of Australia set up to promote the country as a touristdestination, Through the campaign, which featured well-known Australianmodel Lara Bingle (Bingle), Tourism Australia sought to promote Australiaas a rough and wild, but friendly place for tourists. It said that the brandproposition of the campaign was, "Australia invites you to get involved."5The announcement of the campaign's withdrawal came amidst a fall intourist numbers attributed to the fact. that the Australian Dollar <A$)6was growing stronger,

The advertisement campaign received wide media coverage and wasalso accessed online by many people. Though it was initially termed asuccess and as having helped spur tourists to visit the c~untry, it provedcontroversial in some of the target markets, The use of the swear words'Bloody' and 'Hell' particularly incensed many. However, Tourism Australiadefended the use of the words, saying they were part of Australian slangand were intended to portray Australia as "warm, friendly, and inviting".The advertisement was banned :n some t:ountries like the UK and Canada.While the UK banned it for the use of the word 'bloody', Canada banned itfar the opening line in the advertisement of the campaign, "We've bought

"'Bloody Hell' Tourism Ads 'Should Be Mothballed"', www.abc.net.au, December21, 2007.

Edmond Roy, "Tourism Australia Looks Beyond 'Controversial Campaign"'.www.abc.net.au, February 7, 2008.

Tourism Australia was formed in July 2004 by merging the Australian TourismCommission, See Australia, the Bureau of Tourism Research and the TourismForecasting Council for marketing tourism in Austra1ia~oth domestically andinternationally.www.tourism.australia.com

As June 2008, US$1 was approximately equal to A$1.045 and €1 was approximatelyequal to A$1.626.

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you a heer" which, it said, implied the consumption of unbranded alcohol.Singapore insisted that Tourism Australia remove the words 'bloody' and'hell' before releasing the campaign in that country.

The lirst year of the laur.ch of the campaign saw em increase of A$1.8bl1 in tourist spending.7 However, some analysts bdieved that the campaignhad failed to live up to expectations. Even as mw'keting experts remaineddivided in their opinion 0:1 the campaign's effectiveness, Tourism Australiadecided to pull it out under pressure from various stakeholders ~md amidstconcerns that the A$180 mn campaign was a complete failure. Analystsfelt th:.:t the main reasons for :r.swithdrl?-wfllwere the controversy it sparkedin its targeted markets and its failure to attract more tourists from someof the key markets. As of early 2008, Tourism Australia was under pressurefrom the government to take urgent steps to control the fall in touristnumbers. Tourism. Australia said that a new advertising campaign wouldbe launched very soon and that proper care would be taken to avoid anycontroversies ill its future c0mpaigns.

Hjstory of Australian Tourism

Australia is an island continent located in the earth's southern hemispherecomprising the world's smdlest continent of Australia, the island ofTasmania, and a number of other small islands (Refer Exhibit I for a briefnote on Australia). Over the years, Australia made a name for itself as astrong destil13tion brand <nefer Exhibit II for a brief note on Destinationbranding).

I 1he name 'Australia' was ad(>pted from the Latin word 'Australis' which means southerni ;

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ultralia is the biggest island on earth and the sixth largest country in terms of land area. The,capital of Australia i, Canberra. Sydney and Melboume are its ot

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East Timor, Papua New Guinea tl) th~ north, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia to .I the ncrth-east, and New Zealand to the south-east. Australia 15 a co'Untr'y(amous for 115,

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The country is mostly uninhabited and most of its populationlives~~~I'tHe2diiStJihe. The earli~r\iinhabitants of Ihe country were the I..b(]riginal people who llJigrate<l-tlnerejifty to sixty thousand!years ago (rom South-Fast Asia. After IheJurope311 discov~rY II". lia jn 1(iO6, the British.j

colonized Austr~lia in 1770 and the first .se,\tf(!menf~y- Eutop~~Q$ )~~~~(P6~Jqckson in the,jsoutheastern reglon.OfAustralia, ;~ aJ;!ntl,~hpenaltolonYIn1177 ur/ng the 19;"'c:entury, the~.development of Australia was cvnfir:2{l:!o a'igr(j~p of British colqrl,es.ln January 1901, after:Australia got its independence from the UK, the federation of Australia was formed encompassing":

I six states2 and two territories] under a single constitution, the Commol1\"calth of Australia:'

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Australia has bl'C'.,

n a constitutional monarchy with the Queen of Britain, Elizabeth II, as itsmonarch since Febru;lry (" 1952.4

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"Australia," www.encarya.~lJSl1.<:om, 2008.The six states of Australia are New South Wriles,1'llsmanis, Queensland,Victoria,WesternAustralia, and ,SouthAustralia. :\: e ..,~ '~ ~The territories arc.the N0r~l;ertl,:Jerritory and theA~t;EI1ian Capital territory;,

www.wapt~diu.mobi/el1' '~~,""t,;,.~",\.., .~::~T.,,;,~~!;...~:L,>y,',," "",\'!;I- (Cc':id...)

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"Bingle Ad Hakes in Extra $1.8 bu," www.lheage.com.au, March 8, 2007.

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Australia entered the period of growth after 1945. Many refugees and migrants arrived in the postWorld War" period and contributed to the development of the economy.s Nearly 6.5 millionpeople immigrated to Australia in the planned post-war immigration from over 200 countries."Manufacturing became the key growth sector of the country. The 1950s and 1960s saw a periodof continued strong economic growth with major projects like the Snowy Mountains Scheme, a

hydroelectric project. Australia hosted the OIYTPic Games of 1956 in Melboume.In the 19705, Australia experienced major modifications in.lts economic and social policies andextensiveimproverlM!fltsinthe socialsecurity) " i~, industrialrelations,and healthandeducation secto!"1;.~I,i\19,7~,a 'c:onstitutiJ)h~I,,~ ,~;jn,the country when the Laborgovernment wasdfSlj1IsSe<fbv the GOverho~ ..i~1result~ in,a defeat for labor and,Onti11983, the U~iar-l:iati~1 Coaliti<X:IIUI~A~fia!j'!.i: ,

The 1990s:sa~~~I(~~ri~inga!L .c,' '.~pfl~ut3.3~,a yea~.~Thisstrongec~nom\C::'gm~lwas~~JQ,'!ts :oJY/3~:Rf ,', ~ri~~~pl!!d with d.eCrE:asi~glevels ofunempioyment.ln?;(OOo~'A'Ost@1!3hoStedthe OIYfilI 'G~for the second time.ln Sydney.

ThJ Gloss dorn" "0. ".- iM!'n;~~~f )~~;(~er ParitYfJf'A~li3 for the\tear2006 Was'US ;a'tm;a,o' ~OOfJiA~li.r~'J3"'biggest economy-in die worldand was ranked 10" among the:biggest industt:iiiliied ies.lt was also the 8" richest nationin terms of per C!lPita income.9 Australia is al$O aylbrant democracy with strong democratic'institutions. The services sector constituting tourlsm"financial services, and education i

contributed to neary 69% gf the GDP in 2001~ 10Tourism. has emerged as the prime source of ,

reve~ue fot.Austra!!jiwith contrib~ons of.U~.\?~ if';l20Y. ': BlII;the sha~(Jf tou~sm. had been i

steadily failIng overt?eyeatSan91t ISconsld~,~ a m!l1Or!?layer10the world tounsm Industry.'2 i(ReferTablefor~lrst of top 10,toUristdestifiitionsiltheworld). ; ,

"'.. "." "..".., ,.. -.Loo.;~~".""'" , ~ ITable: The World's Top Tourist Destinations l I

for the Years 2005 and 2006 I

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Arrivals

Country (millions)2005 2006

-- -------France 75.9 79.1

Spain ! 55.9 58.5

-Li~iied St~~-+ 49..2 51.1

China 46.8 49.6._---Italy 36.5 41.1

United Kingdom 28.0 30.7

Germany 21.5 23.6

,C4 Mexico '.. 21.9 21.4Austria 20.0 20.3

'IttRussian Federation 19.9 20.2

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Percentage Change2006-2005

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.

Adapted (rom "The World's Top Tourism Destinations,"www.in(oplease.com

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Australia's diverse populatio:1\omprises the Aboriginal people, Torres Strait Islanders, I) and: migrants from around 200 countries., According to the'Aust~lian Bureau of Statistics, theI population of Australia was estimatectat 21.3 million i.!1May.,;lp<>S.14 Thenative Aborigines. constitute only 2.7% of the total population." English is the natlooallanguage and some other

1 aboriginal languages are also spoken by the indigenous A",walians. Nearly 4.1 milH~mA t I

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us ra lans spea a secon aflgu,!~e';iL,'~:~.\'( . '>.". ,~ .~lJ"~~~~

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Realizing the.importance of tourism t-othe nation's' economy, Australiahad been promoting its tourism industry since the 1960s (Refer ExhibitIII for history of Australian tourism: A timeline). In 1967, the AustralianTourism Commission (ATC) was established with a funding of A$1.5 mn.8In 1983, the government granted A$13 mn to ATC to launch a major adcampaign for promoting tourism in Australia. The campaign, called the"Shrimp on the Barbie", featured Paul Hogan.9 It was targeted at the USmarket and ran from] 984 to 1990. The' original slogan of the ad campaignwas "Come and say G'day, I'll slip an extra shrimp in the Barbie for you".The advertisement campaign was developed by the Australian advertisingagency Mojo in association with NW Ayer & Son.1OIt featured a series ofTV ads, and was launched to coincide with the National FootballConference Championship Gamell in January 1984. Its success could begauged by the fact that it helped improve Australia's position from 78th to7th on the list of the most desired vacation destinations for Americans injust three months of its launch and later to number 1 or number 2 positionon the dream vacation list of Americans. 12

~

,

The use of Australian slang in the promotional campaigns started withthis advertising campaign. The word 'Barbie' was Australian slang forbarbecue and the slogan "Slip a Shrimp on the Barbie" of the campaignreferred to fun-filled picnics on sunny Australian afternoons. The campaignwas so successful that the slogan was later used to refer to Australianculture. The campaign helped in the continuous flow of tourists intoAustralia for many years. Analysts felt that this campaign was the first topromote a destination as a brand .on a large scale. According to somemarketing experts, the "Shrimp on the Barbie" campaign broughtdestination branding to the limelight.

"History of Tourism in Australia," www.ret.gov.au

Paul Hogan is a famous Australian actor and comedian. He was honored with anumber of awards like the Golden Globe and the Australian of the year award forthe year 1985.

10 NW Ayer & Son headquartered in Philadelphia. Pennsylvania, USA, is one of theoldest advertising agencies founded in the US.

n The NFC Championship Game is one of the two semi-final matches of the NationalFootball League, the largest professional American football league in the US.

12 Bill Baker and Peggy Bendel, "Come and Say G'Day!" www.atme.org

(',,~,.. rolin 63 Oete

" Exhibit II: 'A Brief N~te'oa; DestinatioriBrarldillg' ,'~~:~;~Efli~;'t'~ifE,'" "', ","""""""""""":,,,,",..,,.f""""~,'~,,",

Destination branding refersto the brandingof all the thingsassociatedwith a placelike itsproductsandservices.Destinationmay referto a nation,a'region,a city, or an event.Destinationbranding usesthe samebranding techniqueSu~ in product branding to position a partiallardestinationasa brand.While branding isprimarilyused onlyforconsumer products, destinationbranding is used to promote tourism by attracting visitors to a particular location and getting a fairshare of the tourism revenues. It helps a destination stand out from the clutter of other alternativesavailablemakingthe choices easier fOrthe cqnsumerf: Commenting on the concept of destinationbranding, Bill Baker, PreSident, Total DeSUl)ation1Management,' said, "In this era of super-brands, it may seem an unusual'notion to conSider adty, state, region, or country as a brand, Webuy brandsbecausewe enjoy,themand th~mi1ke our,<;hoices easier. In the context of a placebeing the focal point for the promotion andc;atalyS{;for~nomic development; it makes sensethat it should be)nanaged "s,a brand to enhan~ if5r~~nt!ty.andperceived value in an increasingly.. .:1;" ",'2 ~,~'.. .-competltlvema ~,~.", !>: ":~'~..:

]jecon~,~!tL" ,~'~hen t;!~'YoJk launched its"'I' Love'J'iJeV ' ' 'w'3"S-one <Wtfiemostsuccessful,.t:al1lpaig~s:,;" ius~~tcin "~heaccommodation,..lmte,rti1Jn,"~t., , , " , " ' whlle'!'developingan imagethatencapsulatedthe benefits to the co

The development of destinationbrlindingresulted'in a significantincrease in the number ofinternational tourist arrivals from 534 minion in '1995 to 900 million in 2007 due to theaggressive promotional strategies followed bWvaridp~cOOntries(Refer Figure for the international

tourist arrivalsfiguresfrom 1995 to 2007).}!~,f ft' "'!'\ i'" ,,'

r Figure; International Tourist A;;ival~~rom 19~5 to 2007 (in ~1Ii~~s)

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Adapted (rom "World Touri5fA"ivals: From 800 Million to 900 Mil/ion in Two Years,' WWW,ul1wto,org

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The campaign slowly started losing its sheen after a successful run ofsix years. It was in this period that Australia decided to curb its investmentsin the US and focus on other lucrative markets like Japan, Europe andSouth-East Asia.

The other important campaign thtit ~romoted tourism in Australiawas the "Australia-a different light" campaign launched in May

0 64 O"tn!)f'1 21101\

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2J~.r:,;~"'C~,:bhibit Ili:'Histo';'yof Australian .Tourism~t.\,tin1~'line,. ".. ,"'." ,. "",' " ..""',". ,- ..., f."."""'," ','

r! . In 1966, th~;~~~-;n~~t appointed [;~;-Ch;ppas the firstfederal ministerfor handling

1tourism aGivities in Australia.

In 1973, Australia's tourism policy, Development of ToiJrism in Australia was launched with

I

an additional grant Qf A$1.75 mn.

In 1998, in an effort to enhance ru,

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Onal tourism

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nt released an act

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agenda for tourism called, "Tourism: A Ticket for the 21~ Century".

In 1999, the ATC r:eleaseda .Set!Australia~ campaign,to capitalize 0<1the Sydney.Olynlpic

Games in 2000." ,,!' .. ,.~.',' .0;: f,r'" '\ l' , -:~.. ~ 'D:

In2003,Australia~i35affu<;t~by~AiWiln~pi.i)I~,,

~' ,sLIJttb&~~;year, the govemment-funded therATC{withA$I.~ 1I_.h.;..;..as part ofits"SARs..re&>ve;y!um' ,L1l.~, ,.

In2004,TOUrismAu~iril;~~6oiity;ttheg6VeW\]le.", rW~r;Q~~:to promote Australia as a tourist destin'ation both at thecdoniestic ai'lcl'intemationalle\ielwnile

providing estimates for the tourisrr sector,'.!:' ';" 't,,~ "",..' 'J ;t." ';' "'~,~iIn December 2005, the National Tourism Emerging Markets Strategy:"China and lii'dia ::(NTEMS) was released and In March 2006, the National ;rourisiTl Investment StratE!gy:Investing for our Future. These reports advocated that thl! government and the toupsmindustry get involved in the task of promoting Australia!l1Sa touristtdestination initl\osemarkets. ',,;'i ~" .' .;;

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2004.13The slogan ofthe C£!mpaignwas "See Australia in a different light".The campaign was intended to promote domestic tourism amongAustralians as well as sell Australia as an experience to other countries.It was also launched in response to New Zealand's "100% pure NewZealand"14 .:ampaign that helped New Zealand become the ~ost favoreddestination in the southern hemisphere with visitor arrivals increasingby 33% in a period of four years.15 The Australian campaign involved fiveTV ads featuring eminent Australian personalities like Delta Goodrem(singer/song writer) and Richie Benaud (cricketer/cricket commentator).The total budget for the campaign, the biggest ever launched to promotetourism in Australia, Nas A$360 mn. The ATC consulted variousorganizations such as Penfolds,16 RM Williams Company,17 AustralianCouncil for the Arts,18 and Foster's Group19 to know their perceptionsabout Australia before launching commercials for the campaign.

One of the intentions ::>fthe campaign was to encourage Australians totake a break and discover new unexplored regions in their country. Thecampaign also focused on promoting Australia based on various attributes

L1 Julian Lee and Anthony Dennis, "Australia t.:> See the Light on Tourislh,"www.smh.com.au, M?y 19, 2004.

14 "100'70 Pure New Zealand" was a highly successful tourism promotion campaignstarted by Tourism New Zealand and designed by M&C Saatchi.

LS .Julian Lee and Anthony Dennis, "Australia to See the Light on Tourism," May 19,2004.

I"Founded in 1844, Pen folds is an Australia-based wine producer.

HM Williams Company is a maker of boots and other leather accessories.

Australian Council for the Arts is the government advisory body that grants fundsfor art organizations in Australia.

Foster's Group is a beverage company based in Australia.

I;

IR

'9

( "'if' Volin 65 Oc

I

that distinguished it from other destinations. Commenting on thecampaign, Stephen O'Neill, Marketing Chief, ATC, said, "We wanted toshow a different side to Australia, not just the sun, the sea, and the sandbut the history and the culture of the place. Today's tourist is looking tolearn more about the country rather than just enjoy some of"its moreobvious delights."2O

The logo of Tourism Australia combining the kangaroo and thesun was also launched during this campaign (Refer Exhibit IV for thelogo of Tourism Australia). The "Australia-a different light" campaignwas the biggest after the "Shrimp on the Barbie" campaign to promoteAustralian tourism. Tourism Australia launched the campaign topromote visiting Australia as an experience to be cherished. Launchingthe campaign, Joe Hockey (Hockey), then federal minister for smallbusiness and tourism, said, "We can't be just another theme park, wecan't be another hotel room. We must provide visitors with a life-longexperience. "21 The campaign helped in positioning Australia as one ofthe world's most booming and attractive destination brands. Thecountry attracted 5.5 million tourists in 2005 till September-anincrease of 6% over the corresponding period of 2004. It earned A$17bn (US$12.5 bn)22 from overseas tourists and this figure was expectedto reach A$32.1 bn by 2014, according to the Tourism ForecastingCommittee.23

Lqg() ()fTo,~~.i~."!;.Aus~i~Ji~.:., (::::F;;:~:;~}ij;;;J;i~z~Jli

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3) Julian Lee and Anthony Dennis, "Australia to See the Light on Tourism," May 19,2004.

21 Julian Lee and Anthony Dennis, "Australia to See the Light on Tourism."www.smh.com.au, May 19, 2004.

Z! "Australia swears by ad campaign," www.fin24.com, February 23, 2006.

ZI "Bloody Hell! Australia's New Tourism Campaign Banned in UK,"www.bloomberg.com, March 9, 2006.

:11 ,., Folio 66 Oclob", ~"("l

The Problem

Despite Australia being a strong destination brand, the problem that thenewly formed Tourism Australia faced was that the number of touristsactually visiting Australia did not match the number of people who hadshown an interest in visiting the country. Australia performed well in anumber of destination ratings and scored high on brand recall. For instance,it was consistently rated high in the Anholt Nation Brands Index24 (NBI).According to NBI, consumers picked Australia as the number onedestination if money was not important and they considered Australianshardworking, trustworthy and honest. In 2005 and in early 2006, Australiawas the number one tourist destination in the NBI results (Refer Table Ifor the top 10 nation brands).

However, analysts felt that there was a disconnect between Australia'svalue as a destination brand and its actual performance in the globalmarketplace as the same people who rated Australia high, ended up goingto a different destination rather than Australia. Simon Anholt of NBIsaid, "One of the most interesting results on Australia's remarkable brandscorecard is the fact that it comes top of the list as a desirable touristdestination. This is such a strikingly inaccurate reflection of actual tourismpatterns that some explanation is required... What the NBI tells us is thatmuch of the world has an appetite for things Australian. Now is the timefor Australia to be producing greatAustralian-branded products, culture,

Ievents, services, ideas, and media as fastas it possibly can."25 I

;j:~~I~'It'!.~e1~.B~.ti~n.~?:1~d~:

Preparing for the NewCampaign ..The 'Bloody Hell' campaign was started bythe Australian Government in 2006 toincrease the tourist inflow to the country.The campaign was designed by the Sydneyoffice of the advertising agency M&CSaatchi (SaatchO.26 Saatchi had earlierdesigned the successful campaign, "100%Pure New Zealand" for promoting tourismin New Zealand.

.. The Anholt Nation Brands Index is an analytical ranking of the world's nationbrands released quarterly. It surveys and analyzes 25,900 consumers in 35 nationsto determine how countries are perceived by others. The nations are then rankedon the following criteria: tourism, culture and heritage, people, governance, exports,investment and immigration (Source: "Marketing Planet Nation Brand Index -What Brand Image Does Your Country Have?" www.marketing-planet.com,December 22, 2005).

25 Jesse Blackadder, "Australia - The Story of a Destination Brand," http://www.mrsa.com.au/index.cfm?a=detail&id=2363&eid= 129.

'" M&C Saatchi, headquartered in London, UK is one of the leading and fastestgrowing advertising agencies in the world.

--( """ Folio 67 Octo!

The important objective of the campaign was to cash in on the awarenesscreated through previous advertising campaigns and convert them intoactual travel bookings. Tim Fischer, Chairman, Tourism Australia, said,"This campaign is about increasing the dollars that we earn frominternational tcurism and encouraging the spread of tourists right acrossAustralia, especially for rural and regional areas. This is the job that theAustralian Government has asked Tourism Australia to do and this is thecampaign that will deliver on ~hat job. This is unashamedly a campaignabout getting international tourists to come to Australia. What mattersmost is what potential visitors think and how we can get them torespond. "27

The target of the "Bloody Hell" campaign was to raise the touristnumbers to 9 million by 2014.28 The new global destination marketingca,!npaign started in 2006 was also aimed at further enhancing Australia'simage as a good international destination. The website of Tourism Australiahighlighted the important objectives of the new campaign as, "to further

enhance Australia's reputation and address the newchallenges such as greater competition from otherdestinations, increased sameness between destinations,and reaching a more sophisticated global traveler who isbecoming increasingly difficult.to target. "29 The "BloodyHell" campaign was aggressive and different from earliercampaigns as Tourism Australia sought to win in theincreasingly competitive tourism market and offsetcompetition from emerging international destinations likeMalaysia, Singapore and India.

18

The target of the"Bloody Hell"

campaign was toraise the tourist

nulnbers to

9 million by 2014Before the launch, the campaign was te'sted on 86 focus

groups30 in the seven topmost target markets of- Australia-the US,the UK,Germany,Japan,South

Korea, China, and New Zealand-which accounted for 67% of the inboundAustralian tourism business.31 The Bloody Hell campai~ had a researchbudget of A$6.2 mn.32 The campaign had got a very good response fromthe focus groups, according to Tourism Australia.

lII'iIi1,,-

After testing the feasibility of the campaign, the target. group wasidentified. This group was called the Experience Seekers and they were

XI "So Where the Bloody Hell are You? Tourism Australia Invites the World to. Australia," www.tourism.australia.com, February 27, 2006.

'" Julian Lee, "How to Lu;-" the Tourists - Spin them a Line of Strine,"www.theage.com.au, February 24, 2006.

2J "A Uniquely Australian Invitation," www.tourism.australia.com, 2007.

3J Focus Group is a fonn of qualitative research. In this method, a group of people areasked about their opinion of a product, service, concept. advertisement. idea,packaging, etc. Members of the focus group are asked questions in an interactivegroup setting and the group members are free to talk with each other during theprocess.

81 "So Where the Bloody Hell Are You? Tourism Australia Invites the World LoAustralia," www.tourism.australia.com, February 27, 2006.

3l Julian Lee, "Bloody Hell! Sensiti~e Poms Rein in Our Ads," www.thenge.col11.au,March 10, 2006.

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early adopters who played a major role in inOuencing the purchasingbehavior of other people. According to the marketers, they were a newhn'cd or traveler:'>who looked for 'authentic personal experiences they cantalk ahout.' These were the long-haul visitors who liked to get involvedand 'engage with the Idcals'. They were adventurous and looking for achange from their everyday lives. They also demanded value for their moneyin their vacation spending.33 Though the campaign primarily targeted theExperience Seekers, care was taken to see that it was not rejected byother groups as this would dilute the efficiency of the media spend. Estimatesfrom Tourism Australia suggested that there was a huge growth potentialfrom target markets such as the UK, Germany, the US, Japan, and Chinain 2007 (Refer Table II for percentages of experience seekers in Australia'sfive key markets).

Launching the New Campaign

The campaign was laullched by Fran Bailey (Bailey), then Australiantourism minister, on February 27,2006. The advertisements of the campaignfeatured a total of 11 scenes and 13 still images. The images and scenesshowed the diverse range of experiences on offer in Australia.

The tag line uspd for the campaign, "So Where the Bloody Hell AreYou?" was perceive!! to be uniquely Australian in tone and character.When deciphered, tll! campaign meant, "Immerse Yourself in Australia'sWorld Heritage."34

The campaign was 1"1In through all the media channels (both traditionaland new media) such as television, print, cooperative and retail activity,web, point of sale, direr! marketing, and outdoor advertising. It cost atotal of A$180 mn.35 (Refl I' Figure for the campaign structure). Thoughthe campaign was standard zed across all the markets, some minor changeswere made for each market .depending upon the cultural factors governingthat market.

The TV ads were made in ~wo30 and 60-second versions r'1dfocused on an array of Australi. 11tourism experiences while th'print ads focused on the diversity UK;" 'i'Jsl""'.

of experiences in a range of G~rmany ;2'6' 74geo~aphical and ~n:ironmental

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were mostly real people (non- r:,models). The advertisement is

; Table II:Experience Seekers ,,'

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"New Aussie Tourism Campaign Targets Japan," www.stuff.co.nz, September 5,2007.

"Brits Lift Bloody Hell Ad Ban," www.smh.com.au, March 18, 2006.

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campaign also featured the Tourism Australia logo. There was a specialfocus on using the Web for the new advertising campaign. Tourism Australiapartnered with OneDigita136and ISOBAR37network of companies to developa digital strategy to revamp the website www.australia.com, and theexecution of a suite of digital programs. The www.australia.com websitewas modified to reflect the new campaign and a new supplementary websitecalled www.wherethebloodyhellareyou.com, was developed to provide digitalsupport programs for the campaign. An example of these digital supportprograms was the electronic postcards activity where the trade andconsumers could create their own postcards online by choosing fromselected images from the campaign and send them to their contacts.Advertisements were run in m~or newspapers in Australia and othercountries encouraging people to log on to the new website and to e-mailtheir contacts.a;

:rI

One Digital, headquartered in Sydney, Australia is an advertising agency whichspecializes in digital advertising. It describes itself as 'full service digital agency.'

ISOBAR, headquartered in London, UK, is a digital marketing agency and theworld's largest digital agency network.

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Australian super model Bingle became the face of the campaign andwas featured in some of the shots of the advertisement. The campaign'stheme was to show how Australians were inviting the visitors andpreparing their country for them. The TV ad began with an opening linewhere a customer in a remote outback38 pub said, "We have poured you abeer." This was followed by similar scenes inviting the viewers to visitAustralia: a camel train silhouetted by the sunset in the Australian desertwhere a woman said, "And we have had the camels shampooed," abarelegged woman at Fingel Spit39who said, "We have saved you a spot onthe beach," a boy diving in a pool who said, '~d we have got the sharksout of the pool," a golfer on the golf course bunker who said, "We have gotthe roos4oofTthe green," a jackaroo41.in a homestead who said, '~d Bill'son his way down to open the front gate," a pilot of a plane landing on thegreat barrier ree£"2who said, "Your taxi is waiting," a woman standingbefore the fireworks display of the Sydney harbor who said, "We have

:J! The back country or remote settlements (Source: www.dictionary.reference.com).

:D The northern head of the Fingal Bay located in the Hunter region of New SouthWales, Australia is called Fingel Spit.

., Australian Informal for Kangaroos. (Source: www.dictio'nary.reference.com)

41 A young man .living as an apprentice on a sheep station or otherwise engaged inacquainting himself with colonial life. (Source: www.dictionary.reference.com)

12 The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system located in the CoralSea, off the coast of Queensland in northeast Australia.

CilC;(' Folio 71

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turned on the lights," and a young woman from a performing Aboriginaldance troupe who said, "And we have been rehearsing for over 40,000years." The advertisement ended with the bikini clad Bingle coming out ofthe ocean at Fingel Spit and asking viewers, "So where the bloody hell areyoU?"4~

This campaign was launched on a global scale unlike the earlier "Shrimpon the Barbie" campaign that targeted the US market. On earlier occasions,specific campaigns were released for specific markets like campaignsfeaturing Greg Norman44 targeting the Korean market while a campaignreleased in Japan targeted the career-oriented office women, who tookdecisions like where their family would spend their holidays. The "BloodyHell" CaIDpaignwas rolled out in many of the targeted markets s1,lchasNew Zealand, the US, Germany, the UK, Hong Kong, China, Japan, andKorea by the end of March 2006, the UK, Germany, and J~pan beingAustralia's main target markets (Refer Table III for the details of theglobal rollout of the "Bloody Hell" campaign). The launch of the campaigl1got extensiye media coverage around the world.

, But even before the campaign was launched, there were someapprehensions about the cultural reactions that the new advertisementscould evok", because of the slang words used in them. Tourism Australiahad even filmed alternative advertisements like the one in English, "Sowhere the hell are you?" However, it was confident that the campaign,would be successful and dismissed all apprehensions about it. Bailey said,"We've done our homework and we have researched it in all our majormarkets. We have really road-tested the campaign and it works."45

John Howard, Prime Minister, Australia, also supported the ad andsaid, "I don't think we are polite enough to each other and good manners

!JI

<tj "Australia Asks Where the Bloody Hell Are You," www.duncans.tv, February 2G,2006.

44 Greg Norman is an Australia-based golf player.

.-, Julian Lee, "How to LurG the Touri::;ts-Spin them a Line of Strine,"www.theage.com.au, February 24, 2006.

'----72 nct..!""

~TIl -~. 'W" ~"..' 'f'~"'" '~""""'"

I... is the basis of a more civilized society. I think it's a colloquialism. it's nota word that is seen quite in the same category as other words that nobodyought to use in public or on the media or in an advertisement... I thinkthe style of the ad is anything but offensive, but is, in fact, in the context,I think it"s a very effective ad."46

Controversy and Criticisms

The "Bloody Hell" campaign attracted controversy immediately after itslaunch. The campaign was criticized in some of the target countries forusing swear words like 'bloody' and 'hell' and for its allegedly crude content.

The advertisement campaign was released in the UK, Australia's mostvaluable market, in March 2006.47(Refer Exhibit VI for the top 10 sourcecountries for short-term visitor anivals into Australia). The advertisementwas banned in UK for using the word 'bloody' and, UK's BroadcastAdvertising Clearance Center48 (BACC) instructed Tourism Australiaauthorities to drop the word 'bloody'from the ad.19 Tourism Australiareacted to the ban saying that itwould actually help the campaign inbecoming more successful.Commenting on the ban in the UK,the Managing Director of TourismAustralia, Scott Morrison said, "Wethank the UK authorities for the ..

extra free publicity and invite themto have a 'bloody' good holiday inAustralia, especially with theCommonwealth Games now on andthe Ashes coming up later in theyear. "50

As a result of the ban the word'bloody' was cut from the advertisingcampaign when shown. on the UKTV But the advertisement was

allowed to be shown on other media ~channels such as print, cinema andonline in the original form. Morrisonsaid, "We would have preferred the

0 ExhibitVI:TheTop 10Source'; ,0 Coun'triesfor Short-term:." :'~.

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.. "PM Backs 'Bloody' Tourism Ad Campaign," www.abc.net.au, February 23, 2006.

47 In 2005, more than 700,000 visitors from the UK visited spending around A$3.4bn. (Source: "Bloody He1\! Australia's New Tourism Campaign Banned in UK,"www.bloomberg.com, March 9, 2006).

of! Broadcast Advertising Clearance Center was a Non-Government Organizationwhich pre-approved the television advertising in UK till December 31, 2007.

~ "Australian Advert Banned on UK Tv." www,news.bbc.co.uk, March 9, 2006,

3J Julian Lee, "Bloody He1\! Sensitive Poms Rein in Our Ads," www.theage.com.au,March 10, 2006.

C;\se Folio OctO:73

<o~:r ::.u

is the basis of a more civilized society. I think it's a colloquialism, it's nota word that is seen quite in the same category as other words that nobodyought to use in public or on the media or in an advertisement... I thinkthe style of the ad is anything but offensive, but is, in fact, in the context,I think it's a very effective ad."46

,

I!!

Controversy and Criticisms

The "Bloody Hell" campaign attracted controversy immediately after itslaunch. The campaign was criticized in some of the target countries forusing swear words like 'bloody' and 'hell' and for its allegedly crude content.

The advertisement campaign was released in the UK, Australia's mostvaluable market, in March 2006,41(Refer Exhibit VI for the top 10 sourcecountries for short-term visitor arl'ivals into Australia). The advertisementwas banned in UK for using the word 'bloody' and, UK's BroadcastAdvertising Clearance Center48 (BACC) instructed Tourism Australiaauthorities to drop the word 'bloody'from the ad.'9 Tourism Australiareacted to the ban saying that itwould actually help the campaign inbecoming more successful.Commenting on the ban in the UK,the Managing Director of Tourism I 7'<.. ~

Australia, Scott Morrison said, "Wethank the UK authorities for theextra free publicity and invite themto have a 'bloody' good holiday inAustralia, especially with theCommonwealth Games now on andthe Ashes coming up later in theyear. "50

As a result of the ban the word

'bloody' was cut from the advertisingcampaign when shown on the UKTv. But the advertisement wasallowed to be shown on other mediachannels such as print, cinema andonline in the original form. Morrisonsaid, "We would have preferred the

.' ExhibitYl: Th~Top .10S~~rce. Cpuntries for Short-term. . '0

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., "PM Backs 'Bloody' Tourism Ad Campaign," www.abc.net.au, February 23, 2006.

41 In 2005, more than 700,000 visitors from the UK visited spending around A$3.4bn. (Source: "Bloody Hell! Australia's New Tourism Campaign Banned in UK,"www.bloomberg.com, March 9, 2006).

41! Broadcast Advertising Clearance Center was a Non-Government Organizationwhich pre-approved the television advertising in UK till December 31, 2007.

~ "Australian Advert Banned on UK Tv." www.news.bbc.co.uk, March 9, 2006.

'" Julian Lee, "Bloody Hell! Sensitive Poms Rein in Our Ads," www.theage.com.au,March 10, 2006.

C<lse Folio Dc!73

idi ..;;; .-"

ad to run the way we first made it, but we can still run it the way it is cutnow, which says 'Where the ~~ellare you?' It is not as if it is not going tobe shown on UK television. It will be shown. It wiIIjust have that slightadjustment to it. It will be run in its original format on the Internet, incinemas and everywhere else."51 The advertising agency which createdthe campaign, Saatchi also reacted strongly to the ban. Richard Alfordthe managing director of Saatchi, said, "The line is a classic piece ofAustralian language. It's just sad that we'll be deprived of this fresh andfunny line on UK Tv. "52 They argued that it was ironical that theauthorities allowed the controversial ads of French Connection of the UK

(FCUK), but objected to their campaign.53

Bailey immediately visited the UK to save the campaign from the UKcensors. The hectic lobbying that she indulg-e,d in resulted in the ban onthe advertising campaign being lifted. But a 9 p.m. watershed54 was imposedon the advertisement. Bailey said, "I am pleased that common senseprevailed and the regulators realized the campaign was intended to be

cheeky, friendly, and very Australian."55 Some critics inAustralia even questioned the heavy costs incurred onthe campaign and on the lobbying efforts of Bailey tosave it. Figures obtained by the media revealed that Baileyspent A$50,000 in just a week in her effort to save thecampaign. It was also revealed that the flights to Londonfor Bailey and her team (which also included Bingle) costA$31,102.94.56

In May 2006, the Advertising Standards Authority57(ASA) in the UK rejected the complaints against the a~campaign saying that the tag line's "acceptabilitydepended on the context and media in which itappeared."58 However, it later imposed a 9 p.m. broadcast+,

restriction on the TV ads with the controversial phrase. q,

Figures obtainedby the mediarevealed that

Bailey spentA$50,OOOin just aweek in her effort

to save the

campaign- I

In the same year, the campaign attracted the wrath of the regulators inCanada. The Canadian authorities bf.\nned the advertisement campaign

51 "Australia's Tourism Ad Restricted for 'Bloody' in UK," www.commercial-archive.com, September 3, 2006.

111 "Bloody Hell! Australia's New Tourism Campaign Banned in UK,"www.bloomberg.com, March 10, 2006.

~. The controversy surrounding clothing and accessory brand French Connection ofUK was the use of its abbreviated form which was very similar to an impolite slangword.

&! Watershed is the term used to describe the time in the television schedules when thebroadcasting of adult content is permitted. The watershed on UK's television startsat 9.00 p.m. and ends at 5.30 a.m. the next morning.

co "Brits Lift Bloody Hell Ad Ban," www.smh.com.au, March 18, 2006.

ffi Scott Murdoch, "What did We Get for $180 mn?" www.news.com.au, December 6,2006.

57 The Advertising Standards Authority was an independent and non-statutorySelf-Regulatory Organization (SRO) of the advertising industry in UK.

ffi "Brit Ban on 'Bloody' Ad 'Incredibly Ludicrous"', www.smh.com.au, March 28,2007.

C<!sc Folio 74 October 200H

for its opening line, "We have poured you a beer". The Canadian regulatorcontended that the opening line was an inference to the consumption ofunbranded alcohol. Canada also found the use of the word 'hell'objectionable. Reacting to the Canadian ban on the campaign Bailey said,"We now have the Canadian authorities not wanting us to use the openingsegment of 'I've bought you a beer' As far as this particular Canadianregulator is concerned, I'd love him to come out. here and I'll buy him abeer and say thank you. "59

Stung by the criticism faced in these countries, Tourism Australia tookprecautions when it released the advertisement in others such as Singaporeand Japan and deleted the words 'Bloody' and 'Hell'. Though controversiesand criticisms over the advertisement campaign created some free publicity,they diluted the purpose for which the campaign had been started, someanalysts felt. Toursim Austral'ia officials contended that the controversysurrounding its advertising was because the slogan used' for the campaignhad been misunderstood and because of a lack of understanding of theAustralian culture.

However, the campaign found critics among expertsin Australia too. Alan Cadman, a member of the federalparliament, found the campaign offensive and said,"People usually can say those things to somebody theyknow well. I don't think they would use it to a strangerand, in this instance, we're talking to strangers of adifferent culture who I think may be offended."60 Analystsfelt that it was also difficult to translate the messageinto other languages.

Despite criticism {romseveral quarter."-

Tourism Australiaauthorities mainta fIled

that the message theadvertisement soughtto convey was to ill vite

people to visitAustralia

Though the UK authorities lifted the ban, the ASAfound the billboards featuring the "Bloody Hell"campaign on the motorways in the UK unpleasant and ordered them to beremoved in March 2007. ASA's decision was based on the 32 complaints ithad received from people who perceived the slogan of the campaign asoffensive and feared that children might be influenced by it.61 ASA saidthat the new campaign did not adhere to the advertising rules relating toresponsibility and children. It also warned Tourism Australia not to useany swear words in any of its future billboards.

Despite criticism from several quarters, Tourism Australia authoritiesmaintained that the message the advertisement sought to convey was toinvite people to visit Australia. Christopher Brown, Managing Director,Tourism and Transport Forum Lobby Group, said, "It's about the onlyglobal brand campaign that Australia does anywhere; it is our message tothe world and obviously Aussies, be it back 24 years ago today when thePaul Hogan campaign launched in America, right through to Lara Bingle,

IB'"

111 "Beer Offer Adds to Bloody Ad Ban," www.news.com.au, March 22, 2006.

II) "Australia'sCrude TourismCampaigna 'Bloody'$130 mn Flop," www.cdnn.info,March 8, 2006.

61 "Brit Ban on 'Bloody' Ad 'Incredibly Ludicrous"', www.smh.com.au, March 28,2007.

C;lse folio 75 October 2008

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Australians are always going to take great interest in the message wesend to the world. "fi2

The Results of the Campaign

Many critics described the campaign as a failure right from the first yearof its launch. In the first year of its launch, the number of tourist arrivalsactually fell. In October 2006, the number of UK tourists who visitedAustralia fell by 2.3% compared to the preceding year. The number ofJapanese tourists fell by 5.7% while the number of German tourists droppedby 4.7%.63These three markets were touted by the Australian governmentas having the greatest exposure to the campaign. But there was an increasein the number of tourists from China and the US who visited Australia inthe' same period. Critics claimed that the campaign was not yielding anyresults even though a lot of money had been spent on it. "We have beentold it was a huge success and ge'lerated all these hits on a website, .but

the latest tourism figures show the numbers are down2.3%,"64 said Labor's Transport Spokesman MartinFerguson (Ferguson).

Australia's position in the NBI too slipped and byJune 2007, it was placed 11thin the brand name valuationindex. Canada overtook Australia as the world'sfriendliest nation.65

Even as the number of

tourists arriving inAustralia saw a

decline, the overall

revenues from tourism

actually increasedafter the campaign

was launched

Even as the number of tourists arriving in Australiasaw a decline, the overall revenues from tourism actuallyincreased after the campaign was launched. The tourismrevenues increased by A$1.8 bn in the year 2006 and

-- tourist spendingincreasedto A$14bn for the first timeafter the launch of the "Bloody Hell" campaign.66 Tourism

industry experts said that the increase in revenues was oQly because ofincreased spending coupled with longer stays rather than an actual increasein the number of tourists. The time tourists spent in Australia increasedby 14% to 3.6 nights after the launch of the campaign.

When the campaign was running through 2007, some analysts opinedthat it was not a total failure. The number of overseas tourists to Australiaincreased to 2.7 million in the firs!. half of 2007, a growth of 4.2% comparedto the corresponding period of 2006. Tourists visiting Australia from China,Korea, and South-East Asia went up by 20%, 8%, and 11% respectively.67

III Edmond Roy, "Tourism Australia Looks Beyond 'Controversial Campaign"',www.abc.net.au, February 7, 2008.

ill Scott Murdoch, "What did We Get for $180 mn?" www.news.com.au, December 6,2006.

fA Scott Murdoch, "What aid We Get for $180 mn?" www.neWS.COID.au,December 6,2006.

ffi "Aussies Knocked Off as World's Most Friendly," www.news.com.au, June 1, 2007.

fJ\ "Bingle Ad Rakes in 'Extra $1.8 bn," www.theage.com.au, March 8, 2007.rn "Tourism to Australia Growing 'Bloody' Strongly," WWW.scoop.co.nz, August 8,

2007.

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A report released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that thetourism industry added A$84.97 bn to the Australian economy in thefinancial year 2006-07 financial year. This was an increase of 7.8% from2005-06 and also the highest growth in the sector since 1999. Of this,overseas tourists accounted for A$22.3 bn (growth of 9.8%).6~

Tourism Australia continued to maintain that the campaign was highlyeffective and released research data to prove that it was working. Withindays of its being launched, the campaign made it to the list of 50 favoritecommercials spanning four decades published by Advertising Federationof Australia69 (AFA). The TV ads of the campaign then made it to thesecond cut of 30 top commercials. In the campaign update published byTourism Australia in April 2007, results of a brand tracking survey wereshown <Refer Table IV for the results f'f the brand tracking survey in keytourism markets). The camp~ign al tracted the approval of mediacommentators who rejected the previo{1s campaigns promoting Australia'sincreasing cultural sophistication. -

However, with the campaign { \iling to increase thetourist inflows significantly and P -essure mounting onTourism Australia to end it, the campaign was withdrawnin February 2008. In 2007, tourist I ',rrivals increased byjust 2o/rto 5.6 million. They declined by 0.7% in January2008 and by 1.2% in February 2008.';" fJltimately, tourismindustry experts said that though the t'lmpaign had beenwell-publicized and had received good attention in thetarget markets, it had become famous t 'or all the wrongreasons. Nor had it resulted in any siglificant increasein tourist numbers. "The ad itself was disl "aceful... Theyspent $6 mn researching it and it was re,; '~cted alloverthe world because first of all nobody kno, 'S what thatterm means,"71 said Federal Tourism Minis!. I' of Australia, John Brown.

Outlook

Analysts said that

apart from the loss intourist numbers and

revenues, the

controversy might

tarnish the image ofbrand 'Australia' itself

Some experts felt that the failure of the "Bloody H T' campaign had dentedthe image of Tourism Australia as its predecessor ATC, was consideredan expert in destination branding. Analysts said thu apart from the lossin tourist numbers and revenues, the coptroversy mig t tarnish the imageof brand 'Australia' itself. They said that Australia S 'ould take urgentsteps to control the damage caused by the failed adverti~. '1gcampaign anddesign a new campaign to stop the decline in tourist num. 'ers, more so in

'" "Tourism Contributes 85 billion Dollars to AuBtrai. 'In Economy,"www.chinaview.cn, April 17, 2008.

IF Advertising Federation of Australia is a union of 185 <;t)mp" 'es providingadvertising and marketing communications services in Aup.lralia. , 'S formed in1975.

'" Ben Packham, "No Spot for Lara in New Ad Pitch," www.heraldsun.com" '. March24. 2008.

71 :'Where the Bloody Hell is the New Ad Campaign?" wv.'w.ninmen.com.au, Feb,> 'ary7, 2008.

Case Folio 17 October 2008

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view of the emergence of new tourist hot spots like India and Malaysia.Tourism Australia also faced competition from the tourism initiatives ofneighboring countries, which competed for the same target markets withsimilar offerings. The main competitor was New Zealand, which promoteditself as a pristine destination with its successful "100% pure New Zealand"campaign.

Another major challenge was the strong Australian dollar that wascausing a surge in outbound tourism in Australia while hampering theinbound tourist arrivals. The government sent out a stiff message toTourism Australia to roll out a new campaign. Ferguson said, "I'veindicated to them this is their core responsibility-to promote Australiainternationally--and that they want to make sure they pay a lot ofattention to this procurement process. It is the responsibility of TourismAustralia to work out what is appropriate, how to actually sell Australiaas a mature, inviting nation and a good place to have a tourism experience

78 October 2008

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in the knowledge that they're not going to get ripped off by a rogueoperator. "72

Tourism Australia said that it would soon launch a new campaign toreplace the one that was withdrawn. In April 2008, it shortlisted someseven advertising agencies73 and two media agencies74 as part of its plansto roll out a new advertising campaign.75 Tourism Australia appointedAgency Register76 for providing strategic advice on the campaign. It, saidthat it would announce the name of the advertising agency which wouldcreate the next advertising campaign by July 2008. Tourism Australiaadded that the new campaign would sell Austr~ia as a 'mature, invitingcountry' and that this would help it boost the declining tourist numbers.It also said that it was taking every precaution to avoid any controversies

in the future regarding its ~paigns. ~

Adapa Srinivasa Rao,Research Associate,

The Icfai Center for Management Researcl: aCMR).

Debapratim Purkayastha,Consultant,

The lcfai Center for Management Research (ICMR).

References

1. Pandora Kay and Llllison Ringer, Persuasive Branding andP,'omotion Strategies, www.marketwiz.info, 2003.

2. Julian Lee and Anthony Dennis, Australia to See the Light /.>nTourism, www.smh.r:om.au, J!ay 19. 2004.

Australia is the World's Favoriie Nation Brand, www gmi-mr.com, August 1, 2005.

3.

4. Australia Swears by Ad Campaign, www.fin24.com, F, bruary23, 2006.

5. PM Backs 'Bloody' Tourism Ad Campaign, www.al'c.net.au,February 23, 2006.

" Ben Packham, "No Spot fo< Lara in New Ad Pitch," www.heraldsulJcom.au, March24, 2008.

13 The seven advertising agencies are Clemenger BBDO, Singleton, Ogilvy & Mather,Media Planning Group, Sal1tchi, Publicis Mojo, and Whybin T! ,WA.

74 The two media agencies are MPG and Carat Group.

... Melinda Varley, "Tourism Australia Announces Shortlist," w IVw.mad.co.uk, April21, 2008.

.. Established in 1987, the Agency Register is a Sydney,based CO!\8ultancy that providesreview, relationship manag3ment, selection, and agency 811arch services (Source:www.agencyreg.com.auJ.

C"se Folio 7£' October 2

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