The premier tourism body for NSW has ditched the "one-stop shop" model following the expiration of its contract with Ogilvy, appointing Banjo to handle its new Sydney in winter campaign.
According to Destination NSW chief executive Sandra Chipchase, who spoke with AdNews at the campaign's launch event in Sydney last night, the tourism body will no longer employ an overarching retained agency to oversee all marketing.
She said the body would now use a more “fluid” approach, which will involve regular pitching among a rostered list of agencies, which the company is currently compiling.
Destination NSW was formed mid last year as an amalgamation of Tourism NSW, Events NSW, the Homebush Motor Racing Authority and the Greater Sydney Partnership. Ogilvy was the creative agency of record for Tourism NSW, but the contract with the tourism body ended in March this year.
While Ogilvy is no longer the “one-stop shop”, the agency will still be given the opportunity to pitch for Destination NSW business.
Chipchase told AdNews Destination NSW is beefing up its marketing functions internally, with numerous hires expected in the coming months. She would not confirm exact numbers, but said the strengthening of the body's internal marketing removed the need for an overarching retained agency.
“The agency's we are looking for will be those that can provide the really big ideas, or the really specialist skill sets. We could appoint agencies to a single project, or we could appoint them to a part of the business. The organisation is still very new, so we don't want to be locking ourselves into anything.”
The first agency appointment in this new structure has been Sydney agency Banjo, which was appointed after a pitch. Banjo has been employed for the body's Sydney in winter campaign, which was revealed last night.
The campaign, is called 'Love every second in Sydney', and will be rolled out around major Australian cities and in New Zealand.
Media buying for the campaign has been handled by MediaCom, the master media buyer for the NSW Government.
Tourism and Major Events Minister, George Souris, said: “Sydney is a great place to visit all year, but the campaign encourages travel to Sydney over the cooler months, suggesting ways to explore and enjoy the city’s many world-class attractions, experiences and events.
“The campaign shows how every second in Sydney during our mild winter there is something exciting happening around the clock.”
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