Susan Coghill on destination marketing: “It’s all about the power of screens — particularly in tourism”

Susan Coghill on destination marketing: “It’s all about the power of screens — particularly in tourism”
Edited by Travel Weekly


Susan Coghill, CMO of Tourism Australia, has said that the next 12 months of destination marketing will be dominated by video.

Speaking to sister publication B&T, Coghill said “It’s all about the power of screens — particularly in tourism, but I think for many brands, video storytelling really lets you connect with consumers on a much deeper level”.

What screens in particular is more varied now than ever before, she went on.

“I say screens because it could come through your social media channels, connected TV, it could be linear. I’m still a fan of linear TV. It could be, like in China, for example, where there’s a rise of live streaming and real-time interaction with viewers or giving consumers a peak behind the curtain and thinking beyond the traditional formats.”

For Coghill, there has been a significant shift away from traditional TV screens.

“There aren’t a tonne of brands who have fully pulled out of linear TV ads, but we are already close to 85-90 per cent digital, and there are a lot of screens in that digital mix,” she said.

“It has taken us a few years to get to this decision, but we have gone from five, six or seven brands on TV and reducing them year by year. We think that from an attention standpoint, how much attention are we receiving in these ad breaks… we have decided to shift to different types of screens.”

Long-form video is something Coghill is keen to utilise – back in 2022, Tourism Australia launched its much celebrated “Come and Say G’Day” campaign featuring Ruby the ‘Roo and Louie the unicorn, voiced by Rose Byrne.

“Our long-format storytelling really worked. With short-form video, immersive 3D technology, I think storytelling will continue to become more important in many categories,” she explained.

“One of the biggest challenges in destination marketing is misattribution. An ad showing people having a great time on the beach, having great food and wide and mistaking one place for another. So, for us, creating a character like Ruby the ‘Roo and having her in the ad makes it immediately identifiable as Australian.”

Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au

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