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Road Kill

Capricorn Dave

Issue 7 | July 2008

Agency

Clemenger Proximity Melbourne

Creative Team

James Liddell - Art Director;Mark Welch - Copywriter;Tan Gout Nee - Creative Director

Production Team

Sharon Adams - Production Manager

Other Credits

Susan Lyons - Account Manager

Date

Late 2007

Background

One of Australia’s greatest draws is its unique wildlife, from kangaroos and emus, to the platypus and kookaburra. It seems obvious, but the best place to see Australia’s wildlife is in the wild. Unfortunately, not many tourists who visit Australia make an effort to leave the comfort of the big cities and experience Australian animals in their natural habitat. Capricorn Dave is a wildlife expert and tour guide based in Queensland. Much like the late Steve Irwin, Capricorn Dave has built a business around his passion for the native fauna. Similarly, he believes the best way to experience Australian wildlife is to get up close and personal. The agency needed to encourage tourists to get off the beaten track to see the best of Australia.

Idea

After much research from tourists who had taken wildlife tours, Clemenger Proximity discovered that a key attraction for many visitors to Australia was the wildlife. However, prior to their wildlife tour, the only wildlife they had seen had been lying dead by the side of the road. This is a common sight Australia-wide, as native animals seek the warmth of roads as night falls.

So the agency imagined what would happen if tourists stayed on the main tourist routes, concluding that they would still be enthralled to see their first Australian animal, even if it wasn’t alive. Of course, the ‘hero’ of the campaign – a dead kangaroo – is much more exciting when alive. The same applies to other wildlife. Taking this creative idea and extending it across a variety of media to reach the target market (backpackers at its core), the campaign targeted hostels, restaurants and car rental businesses to bring the message home.

Results

In the three month period following the campaign's launch in October, a response rate of 320% compared to the previous three months was achieved.

Target Audience

Tourists with a sense of adventure, particularly backpackers.

Our Thoughts

This is the sort of job that might easily have started life as a brief for nothing more than a brochure. Create a leaflet which can be left in tourist offices, hostels and bus stations, anywhere that backpackers wander through. But then someone asked: why do a brochure when there are other ways to get visitors to go to Rockhampton? Result, one happy Dave.

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