Tourism Australia unveils $38m global marketing campaign

The distinct and defining character of Australia and of Australians will be celebrated in a new campaign unveiled by Tourism Australia today.

The campaign, ‘Come Live our Philausophy’, aims to capture the philosophy of Australians and their informal approach to living – something that is appealing to visitors, according to research by Tourism Australia.

Federal Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham said Tourism Australia’s latest global campaign strategy is part of a $38 million investment that will be rolled out in the country’s 15 key tourism markets over the next three years to attract more international tourists Down Under.

“Our $143 billion tourism industry is such a vital part of our economy, and in order to grow the industry further and create more tourism jobs, we need to find new ways to sell Australia and differentiate ourselves,” Birmingham said.

“In such a competitive global market, the sell is tougher than ever. We need to stand out from the crowd and find a unique selling point that sets us apart from our competitors.”

“Philausophy aims to do this by not only encouraging people to book a flight to Australia and visit our incredible destinations, but go a step further and actually immerse themselves in the best of the Australian way of life.”

Tourism Australia managing director Phillipa Harrison said Philausophy was all about elevating one of Australia’s greatest assets – its people.

“We know from our research that 70 per cent of international travellers believe that Australians have a different perspective on life, 79 per cent believe that the Australian people are an important part of the Australian lifestyle, and 82 per cent would like to travel to Australia to experience our lifestyle,” Harrison said.

“The Australian character and way of life has long been woven into our marketing. The journey perhaps began with Paul Hogan and ‘Come Say G’Day’.

“In more recent times Chris Hemsworth, our global ambassador, has been integral in embodying the Australian character for our audiences. ‘Dundee’ too was all about leaning into our personality, and promoting our people is at the core of our Friends of Australia advocacy program.

“Our new campaign will continue to build on this narrative by inviting the world to come and live our ‘philausophy’.

Harrison said the campaign will be brought to life by the local tourism industry, “because who better to talk about the Australian way of life than the tourism operators who live it themselves every day”.

“Not only will they be front and centre in the campaign, but they will be pivotal in ensuring its success by continuing to be the face of our country’s tourism offering to international travellers,” she said.

https://twitter.com/Australia/status/1189303964589854722

Alongside a series of industry videos, a suite of new creative assets have been developed for the campaign, including over 5,000 new images captured across every state and territory.

The campaign will also include bespoke social content, a refresh of the australia.com and Australia.cn websites, and a book featuring well-known Aussie icons who provide their own personal perspectives and experiences that help explain the unique Australian way of life.

The campaign was developed with agency partners M&C Saatchi, Digitas and UM, and will start rolling out internationally in the coming months.

Tourism Australia also revealed to The Nibbler that it will launch a “time-specific” iteration of the Dundee ad, which appeared during last year’s Super Bowl and has won several awards, in the next few months.

“We do have our next Dundee, but not for the US – we’re looking at a different market,” Tourism Australia chief marketing officer Susan Coghill said.

Tourism Australia wouldn’t confirm or deny if a Hemsworth would front the next Dundee ad. However, Harrison did offer The Nibbler this vague clue: “You can expect a notable Australian whose love of Australia is epic.”

Earlier this month, Tourism Australia launched a campaign that aims to attract Indians to the country during the men’s and women’s ICC Cricket World Cups in 2020.