Australia’s states need a serious rebrand
New York has it, cool Britannia has it, so why doesn’t Australia have it? PwC Australia’s chief creative officer Russel Howcroft considers why our states need some serious branding work.
My recent trip to Perth highlighted the importance of destination brands – brands which help a state, a region, or a city engage with local and international audiences to attract trade, investment, tourism and assist with growth. I have heard this type of marketing called “place branding”.
And, when you put it like that, why wouldn’t governments and their various trade and tourism authorities invest to position the place in order to drive growth.
Indeed, as I write this article I am getting cross.
Where is the great place branding for Australia? It certainly isn’t Baz Luhrmann and his film “Australia”.
Tourism Tasmania punches way above its weight compared to the other states with its gobehindthescenery.com campaign, but it doesn’t get a mention here at all. And I’d put the locally produced ‘Kettering Incident’ a few bars over Baz Lurmans Australia.
I have to agree, Tourism Tasmania does a great job – and that is especially true considering they have less ‘staples’ such as Australia Zoo, the AFL, Opera House etc.
Let’s not forget the desperate need for NYC to come up with a rebrand campaign back in 1977. The city was awash with crime and an exodus of people leaving the city for safer locations to work and live.
I don’t think Australia needs a capitalist view to make us realise how amazing this place we call home is.
10yrs ago Brisbane’s slogan was “I heart BNE” – which means nothing to nobody.
An excellent article and idea Russell. Unfortunately, this whole space can become paralysed when there are numerous parties with their own kpi (and political stance). When parties are forever changing so does the investment capital and Brand platform!
An excellent Idea, if the feds gave us back some GST, or perhaps Tasmania could loan us a couple of million dollars, then I am sure we could afford to invest in a branding exercise
While “Cool Britannia” was probably more a magazine headline about the Gallagher brothers than a Government campaign, it’s impossible not to agree with what Russell says here.
Unfortunately across State and Territory Governments, the jobs of managing “tourism”, “branding” and “investment attraction” currently sit in different departments who rarely talk to one another and certainly not to anyone in Canberra. It’s not a political or budget issue, it’s structural.
And sadly, despite the significant dollars being spent, that makes it much harder to fix.
Why does it require big budgets?
CU in the NT.
Simple.
I am getting bombarded with positive brand messages about all states of Australia.
Pop yourselves onto Instagram and view all the photo’s for a variety of locations, states, landmarks and the country as a whole.
You do need to advertise; just ask Barcelona!