Queensland’s Best Job: Social media or integrated marketing?
In an attempt to answer the burning question, “what can social media do for destination marketers?” the team at Wanderlust began looking for ROI stories about social media in destination marketing. After almost a year of searching for evidence that could prove that using social media in destination marketing could help deliver real results, they found it at the 2009 PhoCusWright Conference in Orlando. The details of “The Best Job in the World” social media campaign and its results were presented by Chris Chambers, Director of Digital Marketing for Queensland, Australia, and summarized in a recent issue of The Wanderlust Report.
“Truth be told, while Tourism Queensland’s The Best Job In The World relied heavily on social media,” stated Mark Shipley, President and Chief Strategist at Wanderlust, “it was an integrated marketing campaign that could not have succeeded without a website, the heavy use of advertising, public relations and a healthy dose of crisis management.”
It all started with a big idea
Conceived with the help of Queensland’s advertising agency, Cummins Nitro, The Best Job In The World idea was a big one: recruit applicants for a six-month assignment to become a Great Barrier Reef island caretaker, take out the garbage, clean the pool, water the dog and feed the fish.
While on the job, the successful applicant was also expected to explore the islands and write a weekly blog reporting on his or her adventures. Compensation included round trip travel from anywhere in the world, room and board, all expenses while in Queensland, and a salary of $8,800 US per month. Total package, $150,000 AUD.
Paid Advertising
While the core of The Best Job In The World campaign was social media-based, it launched as a world-wide drive to web effort using paid classified advertising, online recruitment ads, banner advertising and video.
Website
The want ads pointed interested parties to a website selling the Great Barrier Reef in terms of the benefits of the job – live in one of the most beautiful, unspoiled places in the world and definitely on your top ten list of places to vacation. Anyone interested in applying was encouraged to submit a 60 second video explaining why they should get the job.
Public Relations
An aggressive PR push was also mounted. Coverage was widespread, with placements on Oprah, ESPN Sports, in Time magazine, on TechCrunch and SpringWise, and in local news programming around the world. The BBC produced a reality TV-style documentary, following four British applicants as they competed for the job.
Social Media
YouTube was used both for distributing recruitment videos and as the video submission engine on the campaign website, and a branded YouTube channel was created to expose the applicant videos to a much larger audience. This was a particularly effective play as YouTube is the largest social media network in the world. Branded Facebook and Twitter pages were also created to open the campaign up to an even wider social media audience, as well as photos on Flickr.
Read more of Using Social Media In Destination Marketing in the Wanderlust Report, Volume 2, Number 1.
About Wanderlust
Wanderlust provides marketing, branding and management consulting to destinations, resorts and tourism attractions. We are experts at uncovering what drives people to choose where they go and building integrated marketing programs to attract them — using the internet, social networks, direct marketing and mass media.
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Contact: Mark Shipley
Phone: 518-272-2500
Email: mshipley@createwanderlust.com