Regional Marketing

ADVOCACY & LEADERSHIP

Highlights

8

Research report delivered 64%

Open rate on research report correspondence Regional Crisis Committee maintained 18

COVID-19 Updates $285,000

Directly secured additional investment for COVID-19 recovery

Goal

To provide clear direction for growth and development in the Murray region through strong leadership, advocacy and industry engagement.

Strategic Priorities

• Continue to be the leading cross border entity for tourism industry advocacy, research and support • Continuously evolve and provide guidance and support in implementing the region’s crisis management plan in response to COVID-19 • Coordinate access to timely and relevant research with shared benefits that can be adopted widely by the community • Advocate for government funding assistance for the region.

Key Outcomes

Strategic Research

Our research program enabled us to advocate to government in relation to impacts associated with COVID-19 health directions, border closures along with measures such as additional support for the industry and region. Additionally, the research program provided a range of data and insights from which the regions future recovery plan has been developed to guide the collective efforts to build back the visitor economy in a living with COVID-19 environment.

ADVOCACY & LEADERSHIP (cont)

Over the course of the year we delivered a range of research programs including:

• Extensive Murray region and sub region Visiting Friends & Relatives research • Murray region and sub region visitation quarterly reports and profiles • Various COVID-19 economic impact assessments aligned to lockdowns and border restrictions

• Various consumer sentiment COVID-19 tracking reports • Murray Industry COVID-19 impact survey research

Crisis Response

In a year where COVID-19 continued to dominate the first six months, MRT invested significant resources in our response and recovery program. A key focus for the year has been to provide industry with whole of region leadership to address the ever- changing cross border challenges which emerged in crisis. We worked collectively with Federal, State and Local governments along with industry partners with a solutions based approach to articulate and elevate key issues and create positive outcomes for the sector and industry. As part of our work, we continued to engage with our local government partners through the region’s Crisis Management Committee, formed industry sector working groups to address sector specific issues, engaged more broadly with the industry through workshops and surveys, resourced our communications processes and added COVID-19 updates along with engaging with a wide range of government agencies to highlight the impacts and issues of the industry.

Recovery and rebuilding was the focus for the second half of this year. Through our strong relationship with Government we were able to deliver two key projects providing a range of benefits and strategic outcomes designed to directly respond to the needs of industry and government across the region in both the immediate and long term.

Other Activities

As part our advocacy and leadership role we also:

• Continued to lead and support whole of Murray strategic initiatives to deliver region wide benefit for industry and community • Supported both local government partners and the private sector with a range of State and Federal grant applications to secure investment in key strategic infrastructure projects • Secured a long term funding agreement from the Victorian Government which remains critical to facilitating the cross border role and delivering our goals and objectives for the region • Participated in various State government and industry working groups in the development of future strategies and initiatives • Advocated on key issues impacting the visitor economy including workforce development and planning, river management and telecommunication blackspots and service deficiencies, regional funding requirements and priorities.

REGIONAL MARKETING

Highlights

1,335,564

Love the Murray reach 803,151

25.12%

Views on visitthemurray.com.au 35

Media stories 1284

ATDW Listings

4

Journalist and influencer familiarisations 24

Content Shoots 407 Images 28 Videos

Professional content and editorial images created

Goal

To be a dynamic marketer of the Murray region in partnership with key stakeholders and the industry.

Strategic Priorities

• Facilitate access to timely consumer research to help industry make informed business decisions

• Implement reactivation marketing campaigns to drive visitation • Develop a region wide program to increase yield from the

Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) market • Develop a region wide program to heighten awareness of the destination to a younger market, thereby increasing the visitor economy • Provide inspiration and information to connect visitors with the destinations and experiences they seek.

REGIONAL MARKETING (cont)

Key Outcomes

Consumer Website and Social Channels

Over the year, significant focus was directed to driving visitation and an ongoing improvement to user experience and inspire visitors through curated content and information.

Key activities included:

• Revising content seasonally • Developing dedicated campaign landing pages and associated content

• Implementation of road trip itineraries and functionality • Creation of dedicated Travel Blogs • Implemented agreed social media strategy • Focus on building audience and reach • Curating content by season and key experience pillars

The approach and investment have achieved excellent results, some of which are highlighted below:

Highlights and Insights

320,050 45%

Users 393,301

41.64%

Sessions 803,151

25.12%

Page Views

146,629 122.74%

Organic Search 1min 27 secs

Average Time On Page

19,099

Leads To Operators 1min 51 secs

Blog Average Time On Page 11,107

97.1%

Facebook Audience Growth 2,991,351

123.9%

Facebook Organic Reach 2,934,634

200.5%

Facebook Paid Reach

1,187,076

596.1%

29,160

Murray Travel Planner and Maps Distributed

831 45.79%

REGIONAL MARKETING (cont)

Love the Murray Campaign

As the Murray River region continued to see a high level of uncertainty to travel as restrictions to regional and state border towns were constantly implemented – Love The Murray was developed as a reactive campaign platform to build awareness and the desire to travel across all regions within the Murray among those audiences where it was safe to do so.

To support our partners, and create a holistic view of the Murray River LGAs, MRT created Love The Murray branding that was overlayed on images highlighting travel location and rolled out with adapted messaging across the travel phases to inspire visitation once the border and travel restrictions were lifted.

Campaign highlights included:

Enhancement of the Love the Murray creative and branding with more than 120 hero images branded. Working in alignment with every LGA to secure hero images of their region that highlighted hero experiences and content pillars – food and drink, outdoor adventure, nature and big skies, family fun, golf and arts, culture, history and heritage. Digital paid media campaign implemented using the branded hero images. An industry toolkit to give all stakeholders and LGAs access to high-res branded imagery to share across their social channels to leverage campaign, increase reach and awareness of the Murray River region as a whole.

REGIONAL MARKETING (cont)

Destination Marketing

Through a successful Regional Development Victoria funding application, MRT implemented a significant marketing recovery program during July 2021 – June 2022.

Seasonal Campaigns

To encourage repeat visitation and extend the shoulder seasons within the Murray River region, MRT developed three seasonal campaigns across Winter, Spring, and Autumn with the creative branding - Love The Murray. While many people may be familiar with The Murray as a summer holiday experience, MRT wanted to drive awareness that each season gifts new experiences to be had.

Underpinning each campaign MRT developed the positioning statement The Murray is Perfectly Seasoned and used this as the creative anchor for the seasonal campaigns throughout the year.

The three strategic seasonal campaigns were created and delivered to drive tourism during the shoulder and off-peak travel seasons, increasing awareness and brand recall to compliment the region’s strong visitation in the summer months.

Winter Campaign

With damaged consumer confidence following repeated border closures and uncertainty, MRT shaped a Winter campaign to drive visitation to the region without moving between states.

Careful content creation ensured the accuracy of information while also attempting to inspire visitation - blogs were also repurposed into Instagram guides to extend the reach. A targeted paid social media campaign drove traffic from key audiences in NSW and Victorian markets to itineraries in their respective states.

Highlights

3

Blogs were written highlighting the attractions of NSW border towns 3

Blogs were written highlighting the attractions of the Victorian border towns 402,754

Paid social media campaign with a total reach of 402,754 (1,096,151 impressions)

REGIONAL MARKETING (cont)

Spring Campaign

Fuelled by consumer sentiments following COVID-19 lockdowns, the Spring Campaign focused on the core themes of nature and road trips to entice visitors to the Murray’s iconic outdoor attractions and to reconnect with nature.

Made in the Murray spotlighted makers and creators of the region to drive business towards their e-commerce as well as positioning The Murray as a core agri-tourism destination and the food bowl of Australia.

Highlights

9

Content creation on the website and the publication of 9 new blogs 735,797

A paid social media campaign with a total reach of 735,797 (2,093,479 impressions) 9

Instagram story takeovers highlighting key attractions with organic reach of 13,735 12,098

A collection of Made in the Murray landing pages which received a combined 12,098 pageviews

The campaign was delivered through Visit the Murray owned channels with:

• Partnering with BlackWolf allowed Visit the Murray to reach an audience with a strong outdoor and camping focus. Through a competition offering a Murray escape as a prize, the lead generation campaign provided an additional 1,536 e-new signups.

• A brand awareness campaign with Tripadvisor was used to generate more traffic to Murray destinations and build The Murray brand awareness. Targeting NSW,

VIC, ACT and SA travellers looking for VIC and NSW content, the campaign resulted in 667,073 impressions.

REGIONAL MARKETING (cont)

Autumn Campaign

The Autumn campaign was designed to rebuild confidence and broaden the appeal of the Murray as a shortbreak destination amongst younger travellers from key drive markets and ultimately assist in the resilience of the region.

Spotlighting the makers and creators of the region alongside presence at the Melbourne Good Food and Wine Show showcased the region as a prominent foodie destination with a focus on seasonal changes throughout the year.

The campaign was delivered through Visit the Murray owned channels with:

Highlights

3

Content creation on the website and the publication of 3 new blogs 12,925

A social media traffic campaign that generated 12,925 pageviews to the blogs landing page 5

Instagram story takeovers highlighting key attractions with organic reach of 9476

2,727

Instagram story takeover covering the Melbourne Good Food and Wine Show with an organic reach of 2,727 137

An Instagram Augmented Reality filter that has received 137 opens

One strategic partnership was developed:

• A lead generation campaign was included with Vacations and Travel Magazine which included a two-page editorial, digital editorial and EDM inclusion. Through a competition, the campaign provided an additional 625 e-news signups.

2,864

A social media traffic campaign that generated 2,864 pageviews to the Made in the Murray landing page

REGIONAL MARKETING (cont)

Melbourne Food and Wine Show June 2022

2021 saw the Melbourne Food and Wine show postponed till June 2022. Through a successful Regional Development Victoria funding application MRT partnered with a number of food and beverage operators to come together under the banner of Visit the Murray. Housing our 17 siteholders under one major banner was a unique way to to engage with consumers, and build awareness of the destination and the food and beverage offering growing our audience reach audience reach and consumer EDM database. In excess of 21,000 consumers attended the three day event.

Activity supporting Melbourne Food and Wine Show:

• Participation by operators in the Good Food & Wine online catalogue featuring all exhibitors with options for the consumer to purchase direct from exhibitor websites distributed to 260,000 registered consumers. • Murray Regional Tourism launched a the Made in the Murray social marketing campaign which also called to action the exhibitor direct sales functionality via a dedicated landing page on www.visitthemurray.com.au

Social Media Activity included:

Highlights

3

Blogs were written and adapted into IG Guide generating a total of 2,195 page views Paid social media campaign with a total reach of 85,569 (247,196 impressions) 27

Instagram stories were shared featuring each operator with a total reach of 3,339

REGIONAL MARKETING (cont)

Houseboat Campaign

Anchored in storytelling, the houseboat campaign was one of two sector campaigns following industry feedback of excessive struggles related to lockdowns. Developing evergreen content to attract new markets for off season travel was a positive hook for the Murray. It encouraged visitation from families and group travelers thereby driving new economic benefits for the region.

Highlights

3

Blogs published with combined 13,418 pageviews and an average of 2:08 time on page 374,271

A paid social media campaign with a total reach of 374,271 (944,602 impressions) 279,000

Reel shared via Tourism Australia Instagram with 279,000 organic views 58,700

Reel shared via Visit Victoria Instagram with 58,700 organic views

36,900

Reel shared via Destination New South Wales Instagram with 36,900 organic views 2,200

Reel shared via houseboat operator Instagram with 2,200 organic views

REGIONAL MARKETING (cont)

Golf Campaign

The golf campaign was the second sector campaign following industry feedback of excessive struggles related to lockdowns. Leveraging A Golfing Great and the strong relationship with Visit Victoria, MRT secured a content shoot with leading golf photographer Gary Lisbon at three Murray courses. To increase media spend, an evergreen blog provided the call to action for a social media paid campaign alongside a Golf Deals landing page with direct links to industry, while a partnership with Golf Australia positioned the Murray as a top destination for serious golfers and holiday-makers alike.

Highlights

148,896

A paid social media campaign with a total reach of 148,896 (542,599 impressions) 2,921

Golf Deals landing page reactivated with 2,921 pageviews and an average of 2:22 time on page

Full page advert and editorial in Golf Australia’s June issue plus online golf and travel feature with paid social media promotion and newsletter inclusion scheduled for August 2022 1

Content shoot across three locations organized for Spring 2022

REGIONAL MARKETING (cont)

Visit Victoria Co-Operative

Through a co-operative campaign partnership with Visit Victoria, the Murray leveraged off the Stay Close, Go Further campaign to drive visitation from Metro Melbourne and Regional Victoria into the region. The campaign was designed to build awareness, engage with key audience segments and curate new content which could be used in future marketing activities.

Highlights include:

• TVC campaign across networks in Metro Melbourne and Regional Victoria with amplification between February and June on both free-to-air and online streaming

• 15 second non-skippable ads on YouTube targeted to Metro Melbourne and Regional Victoria from

February to June • Social media paid campaigns across both Facebook and Instagram • Content partnerships with Broadsheet resulting in 5 new regional hub pages created, 5 itineraries created and 70 products spotlighted • Content partnership with TimeOut resulting in 4 new destination articles created and 1 new ‘whole of

Murray’ article • Content partnership with We Are Explorers resulting in 75 new images and 5 new videos with amplification through We Are Explorers paid social media campaign and new Murray article • Full page print advertisements in Metro Melbourne and Regional Victorian publications from February to

June

Golf Activity – A Golfing Great

In partnership with Visit Victoria, MRT delivered the following golf activity:

• Murray episode on Your Golf Show featuring Visit Victoria’s golfing brand ambassador Karrie Webb with visits to Black Bull Golf Club, Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club, The Sebel Yarrawonga and Rich Glen • Partnership with Golf Digest with double page spread in April 2022 edition, video and content creation for social media with amplification through Golf Digest and Visit Victoria owned channels

• Golf Digest EDM to approximately 400,000 subscribers planned for Winter 2022 • Weekend Australian famil with visits to Black Bull Golf Course and Sebel

Yarrawonga • Golf Australia partnership including display media buy including home page takeover • Social media paid campaign in line with A Golfing

Great strategy • Content shoot across three clubs organized for Spring 2022.