Dunedin launches high impact domestic marketing campaign

Enterprise Dunedin, the Dunedin City Council’s destination marketing arm, has launched an intriguing, high impact new domestic marketing campaign, entitled ‘Dunedin, a pretty good Plan D’, which aims to attract a healthy share of the New Zealand travel market in the months ahead.

With the usual self-deprecating, wryly humorous branding Dunedin is renowned for, the campaign highlights the city’s many attractions in an unfolding story of references to famous international visitor hotspots, with stunning creative imagery backing up the connection.

Enterprise Dunedin Director, John Christie, says, “We are conscious that Kiwis had to cancel their international travel plans this year and many would have been heading to ‘bucket list’ locations and activities overseas. Dunedin may not have been their first choice, but it is ‘a pretty good Plan D’ and can offer alternatives comparable to those found in Europe, Asia, Australia and the US.”

The initial focus of the campaign will be on the four-five hour ‘drive market’, i.e. people in Canterbury and the southern South Island regions. It will then expand to the Wellington and Auckland ‘fly market’.

Mr Christie is confident the campaign will have impact, saying, “Prior to COVID-19 the domestic market was our largest in terms of spend, accounting for $527M in the year to March 2020. For the many Dunedin businesses that rely on tourism, the current economic downturn makes attracting New Zealand visitors to the city over the next six to eight months crucial to their survival.

“We hope the beautiful visuals and surprising comparisons of this campaign, will help to change Kiwis existing perceptions of Dunedin and entice them to come and explore the special places that are so abundant here. Our compact city has so many destinations that overseas visitors rave about; ‘Dunedin, a pretty good Plan D’ will turn the spotlight on them for the domestic market to see,” Mr Christie concludes.

Another key part of the campaign targets Dunedinites themselves. To ensure locals are also encouraged to patronise nearby attractions, a new Explore Dunedin programme has been launched on the My Little Local app, featuring special offers and promotional deals.

This multi-layered campaign kicked off with the first in series of videos showcasing well-known Dunedin landmarks. It reveals the beauty and ancient story of the Pyramids at Okia Reserve on Otago Peninsula.

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