We’ve had some wonderful winter content to share over the last few months and are now diving into spring and sharing wildflower season, springtime experiences, seasonal foodie ingredients, and outdoor wining and dining. We have fleshed out a six-month content calendar but as we are still in a particularly reactive period for content development, the plan will remain fluid, and we will continue to seek EOIs in the one-month lead up to content being published. You can see the content outline here.
Please see below how you can be included across paid advertising or in free of charge content inclusions. If you have any questions or would like to share your feedback, please email Acting Marketing & Communications Manager Sophie Mathewson [email protected]
Expressions of Interest for October Content
Free of charge inclusions in October blogs can be registered with the marketing team by Monday September 14th. Blogs scheduled are:
- The Best Family Friendly Things to do in Margaret River
- How To: Experience Culture on Wadandi Boodja
- Busselton’s Best Kept Secrets
- Where the Wildflowers Are (repurposed blog)
Contact [email protected] with your EOI
Paid Advertising
Please get in touch with the membership team for paid opportunities such as web ads, TV advertising in the Visitor’s Centres, or a top listing on margaretriver.com
Email [email protected]
Campaigns
- Margaret River Main Street Video.
In collaboration with the Margaret River Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Shire of Augusta Margaret River, The South West Development Commission and the Margaret River Main Street Traders, MRBTA supported a video production by local creatives Farmhouse Films and Mixtape Creative to educate visitors to the region on the Margaret River Main Street site works currently underway. In order to mitigate any ‘disappointment in destination’ the video brief was to inform the public of the works, share messaging that the traders are still open with parking available off the main street, and that the finished result will be looking great upon completion (at the end of 2020).
The marketing team assisted with initial development meetings, offered caves and lighthouse passes for talent, and have led the video’s distribution through social media and electronic mail.
Spring / Summer Image Library
We encourage members to access our spring image collection here and continue to share inspirational visuals of The Margaret River Region. Please always credit the photographers when using images.
Event Support
MRBTA supported CinefestOZ Film Festival in August. Marketing staff attended the industry event and provided support through website content, consumer and media electronic mail, billboard space, and Visitor Centre TV screen advertising.
Margaret River Region Open Studios were also offered support in August which will continue through to the event in September.
Media
Grape Expectations – Age article
Gourmet Traveller Wine article
Wine King Declares Margaret River Tops – The Age
Scoop Features New Member Kaarna Sauna
International Lighthouse Day on ABC National News
Traveller.com Best Things to do in Australia
15 of the Best Farmstays – Perth is Ok
Monthly EDMs
Consumer Newsletter Sent to over 30k subscribers. 30% open rate, and 17% click-through rate
Media Newsletter Sent to over 270 media contacts. 35% open rate and 35% click-through rate.
8 New Blogs over August:
- International Cabernet Day
- Halliday Wine Companion’s Best Wineries 2021
- 8 Luxurious Things to do Before the end of Winter
- Secret Cellar Doors
- Through the Lens: Wander out Yonder
- The Indelible Buzz of Margaret River’s Main Street
- The Ingredient Podcast
- Repurposed and updated – Your Guide to Glamping.
Social Media
There have been two new developments in August – Firstly, in order to increase opportunities to drive users to margaretriver.com, we have introduced sked link to our @margaretriver Instagram – this means that when a user clicks on our Instagram bio link, they are taken to a series of images, each of which links back to a different page at margaretriver.com where members are featured.
Our team also jumped at the chance to experiment with the newly launched Instagram Reels, which knits together video clips in a similar style to the TikTok social media platform. This new tool opens up possibilities for sharing a wider range of content via Instagram (e.g. user-generated video, or older video) and the team will continue to explore its potential.
Popular posts over August include whales and their calves (image shot by Dylan Dehaas had a reach of 31.9k), and The Margaret River Region Main Street video.
Website
Website statistics for August continue to demonstrate the importance of margaretriver.com as the internet’s number one authority on the Margaret River region, with sessions increasing by 11% to 112k and the number of users increasing by 9% to 80K. The number of new website users increased by 12% to 74k, indicating that the website could be attracting growing numbers of intrastate travellers who may not already be familiar with the region.
With the vast majority of users finding the website via organic search, these increases show that margaretriver.com is in tune with what visitors are searching for online. It also demonstrates the credibility of margaretriver.com in providing up to date information on the region. Thanks to all of our members who have helped to achieve this by keep your listing page on the website up to date.
Top Website User Countries:
- Australia 87%
- USA 7%
- Great Britain 0.85%
Top Website User Cities:
- Perth 72%
- Sydney 3.4%
- Melbourne 2.6%
What’s Coming Up?
- Experience driven campaign: A campaign to support struggling tour and attractions operators is currently underway to encourage the instrastate market to engage in more experience-led activities within their own backyard.
- Brand launch: Our brand evolution has been happening behind the scenes and will give the region’s towns further identification and individualised branding. We look forward to being able to share this with you all.
- Website launch: The marketing team are busily working behind the scenes on a new look website which will launch alongside the branding work in October.
- TV Screen updates. Our TV Screen advertising will be updated with spring content this month. Please contact the membership team if you wish to purchase a TV ad at the Visitor’s Centres.