Tourism Australia begins creative pitch
One of Australia’s most prestigious and high-profile accounts, Tourism Australia, has kicked off a creative pitch process by opening an expression of interest for the provision of its brand and creative services.
Posted in a tender notice to market, Tourism Australia said it is seeking a creative agency which would be open to reviewing the long-standing ‘There’s Nothing Like Australia’ brand platform.
The tender notice flagged the lack of creativity and variety which often limits tourism campaigns.
“The key objective of the partnership would be to develop a compelling and differentiated brand positioning to attract high-value travellers and a robust creative platform from which engaging global and local/regional campaigns can be developed,” the notice said.
“The successful brand and creative agency will understand the challenges and opportunities inherent in the tourism category, specifically that there tends to be a distinct lack of variety in travel marketing communications.
“The ideal agency partner will be able to identify what has worked well for Australia (and the category) and why, as well as when and how to innovate to ensure a unique and differentiated brand and message that sets Australia apart.”
Clemenger BBDO won the Tourism Australia account in May 2013, while digital agency DT won the digital creative services tender.
Tourism Australia’s current contract with BBDO is due to expire on December 31.
Digital services will not be included in the pitch, instead there will be a seperate tender for this which is expected to commence in June.
In a statement to Mumbrella, Tourism Australia confirmed the pitch and said the new contract is expected to commence in November this year.
“The tender will be conducted in two phases, starting with an initial Expression of Interest (EOI) process starting on 13 April, followed by a formal Request for Tender (RFT) in June, involving a shortlist of agencies identified through the first phase.
“Tourism Australian periodically review its agency partners to ensure the best service, value and fit with its marketing objectives and goals,” the statement said.
Tourism Australia managing director John O’Sullivan said the expiry in December of its existing global creative services contract with BBDO provided an opportunity to test the market again.
“Tourism marketing is constantly evolving and so too are the requirements for our creative agency. With greater clarity around our target audience and market prioritisation and as we move towards doing fewer but more impactful initiatives, this is an exciting time for Tourism Australia and we look forward to finding the right partner to help deliver our vision to be the most desirable and memorable destination in the world,” O’Sullivan added.
Earlier this year, Tourism Australia launched a huge international marketing push, leveraging off the Super Bowl.
The campaign initially paraded as movie trailers for a Crocodile Dundee sequel starring Chris and Liam Hemsworth, Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe and Danny McBride.
The ads, created by Droga5, were then extended into a ‘Why Australia’ content series.
Meanwhile, in July last year, Tourism Australia appointed One Green Bean as its PR agency of record.
The tender closes on May 7 at 10am.
Abigail Dawson was Mumbrella's senior content journalist covering event content. She left Mumbrella to move into an agency role in 2020.
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Maybe they should open the tag line/positioning statement up as a competition for all Australians. Offer a big prize to the creator of the chosen copy. Then invite agencies to pitch ideas around the winning line. I’ve got a cracker in mind.
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“Australia. G’arn!”
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Nooooooooooooo! Not a good idea.
Andrew Constance would probably try to exert his influence and decide to go with “Ozzy McOzFace.
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