What it had to solve
Sell Australians a region most skip on the way to bigger names, in an eight-week campaign run with Air New Zealand, Facebook, Flight Centre and Northland NZ.
The idea
Open an out-of-home journey with a giant hand-painted mural of Tāne Mahuta, New Zealand's oldest kauri tree — a first for that Melbourne corner
How it works
NZ-born artist Monique Barnett painted Tāne Mahuta at La Trobe and Swanston streets; buses, a tram wrap, train stations, street furniture and billboards carried sequential and stand-alone Northland scenes from the Bay of Islands to Cape Reinga, alongside Facebook. Air New Zealand added sale fares from Melbourne to Kerikeri.
What it did
An eight-week run across Melbourne out-of-home and Facebook backing the Northland regional push; no results figures reported.
Background
In February 2017 Tourism New Zealand brought the Northland region to Melbourne's CBD with 'Every day's a different journey in Northland', an out-of-first campaign via TBWA\Sydney. The centrepiece was a bespoke street-art mural of Tāne Mahuta, New Zealand's oldest kauri tree and 'Lord of the Forest', painted by New Zealand-born artist Monique Barnett on the corner of La Trobe and Swanston streets — a first for that location.
Around the mural, the eight-week campaign decked out buses, a tram wrap, train stations, street furniture and billboards with Northland imagery from the Bay of Islands and Cape Reinga, using a mix of sequential and stand-alone placements to show the region's range, alongside Facebook. Tourism New Zealand's Tony Saunders called Northland and the Bay of Islands a trove of hidden gems for Australians; Air New Zealand supported with special sale fares from Melbourne to Kerikeri, and its then-latest safety video also toured the region.
The campaign ran with Air New Zealand, Facebook, Flight Centre and Northland NZ. No results figures are reported.
Why it lands
A hand-painted mural earns attention a printed billboard cannot — it is made on site, unique to its wall, and a first for the corner.
Tāne Mahuta is the story of the region in one image: ancient, enormous, and unlike anything in Australia's cities.
Sequential placements turn commutes into the 'different journey' the line promises, rehearsing the trip before it is booked.
Pairing the push with Air New Zealand fares and a safety video closes the gap between seeing Northland and flying there.
What you can take
One hand-painted landmark gives a whole transit network a centrepiece worth photographing.
Since then
The eight-week campaign ran across Melbourne out-of-home and Facebook from February 2017, supported by Air New Zealand sale fares. No results figures are reported.
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE