DQ Consumer Marketing Update

As we wait expectantly for snow to fall and winter to get underway, DQ winter marketing activity is on full throttle in both New Zealand and Australia. Activity in both markets has been upweighted in June, targeting both 'Winter Lovers' and 'Ski Enthusiasts'. The digital-led campaign is focused on driving destination preference for the 2024 season, positioning Queenstown as the ultimate winter holiday destination and pushing our reputation as a top skiing and snowboarding destination. Activity includes nationwide on-demand TV across TVNZ+, social media and digital marketing in both markets, connected TV in Australia and our hero winter edit playing at the 2024 Sydney Film Festival, all supported by the DQ media programme.

DQ’s new video series ‘From the Ground Up’ launched on 8 May bringing to life some of the local business and community initiatives leading the way in regenerative tourism and sustainability. The series is helping to raise Queenstown’s profile and reputation as well as showcasing our regenerative tourism ambition. The campaign is live until August with more episodes being produced throughout the seasons – so if you have a sustainability story to tell please get in touch.

We have some great marketing partnerships underway and more coming up over winter. DQ’s Neat Places partnership is live and will be promoted across the next 12 months. The 2024 Snow Reports are back from mid-June, in partnership with Lake Wānaka Tourism, and the Queenstown Wao Film Festival is running from 7-8 June.

The big news for members this quarter has been the launch of the new Member Capability Building Programme and Member Hub. The hub is a one stop shop to find all things DQ, including all the new capability training, the data and insights dashboard, activity reports and member opportunities. The capability programme gives members access to a range of workshops, resources, subject matter expert material and events to support capability in both regenerative tourism as well as conventional marketing activity. I encourage you to jump online and register for upcoming events.

And finally, some of our members may have noticed a small brand refresh DQ has been working on, with some updated brand assets rolling out across DQ activity over the coming months. We’ll be looking to refresh QueenstownNZ in the coming months as well.

Hei konā mai

Sarah 
Marketing and Communications Director

QueenstownNZ Brand Refresh

QueenstownNZ is undergoing an exciting brand refresh, with updated brand assets rolling out across DQ activity over the coming months. The coloured heartbeat logo will slowly transition to a more modern, contemporary colour palate and overall look and feel. DQ’s eDM templates, presentations, and sales resources have been updated and you will begin to see these within the next few weeks. The official QueenstownNZ.co.nz website is also in development, with enhancements to both user experience and interface.

Winter Marketing 2024

The Queenstown Wānaka Snow Reports are coming back in 2024. In collaboration with Lake Wānaka Tourism, the weekly video series targets New Zealand and Australian ski enthusiasts and aims to drive hype and preference for a Queenstown ski holiday.

DQ’s winter activity is live in both Australia (since 1 March) and domestic markets (since 1 May), focused on driving destination preference for a Queenstown winter and ski holiday. Led by a hero winter brand video and a new ski enthusiast video, the supporting storytelling content dives deep into the Queenstown winter experience, showcasing activities both on and off mountain, shining a light on our unique people and place, encouraging visitors to stay longer, delve deeper and travel with a lighter footprint.

Activity targets ‘Winter Lovers’ and ‘Ski Enthusiast’ audiences via DQ’s paid always-on digital strategy (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Google Display Network) and other high impact channels including connected TV in Australia and video on demand in New Zealand, a partnership with the Sydney Film Festival and media famils planned across the season.

DQ is also running a lead generation ski giveaway through June, designed to grow our domestic ski consumer database.

Showcasing Regenerative Tourism: From the Ground Up

DQ's new video series ‘From the Ground Up’ has received great feedback from local businesses, community members and industry peers. The first six episodes follow inspiring journeys of dedicated locals committed to making change. From repurposing waste to pioneering world-first experiences, each episode celebrates people and organisations shaping a thriving future for Queenstown, from the ground up.

The series is promoted through DQ’s domestic and Australian consumer marketing activity via DQ’s paid digital strategy on Meta and YouTube. The videos are also promoted through partnership activity with We Are Explorers and will take to the big screen at the upcoming Wao Film Festival from 7-8 June at Te Atamira.

The next episode being produced will showcase LUMA Southern Light Project and its commitment to inclusion, sustainability and community.

Digital and Social Always-On Activity

DQ’s always-on digital and social marketing activity means Queenstown has a brand presence in both the domestic and Australian markets year-round, focused on attracting and converting ‘high contributing’ visitors, influencing them to stay longer and create a deeper connection with our place.

Digital marketing activity operates across all layers of the visitor conversion funnel, from building brand awareness, to storytelling mechanisms that encourage visitors to plan their trip, and driving conversion via retargeting.

May - August activity:

Domestic and Australian winter digital marketing activity is running across Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Google Display Network, SEM and native. This activity targets two key segments – 'Winter Lovers' and 'Ski Enthusiasts', positioning Queenstown as an ultimate winter holiday destination offering a variety of activities and snow experiences, defending Queenstown’s reputation as a top skiing and snowboarding destination.

Year to date (1 July 2023 – 4 June 2024):

• More than 2.5 million website visits to QueenstownNZ.co.nz
• Over 590k member referrals (clicks from QueenstownNZ.co.nz to operator websites)
• Conversion rate of 23%

Content Partnerships

DQ’s Neat Places partnership activity is now live, promoting a range of neat things to do, eat and see in the Queenstown region. Activity will continue to roll out via Neat Places channels across the next 12 months.

DQ’s hero winter video will be showcased on large, out-of-home screens during the 2024 Sydney Film Festival in June, driving brand awareness and destination preference for a Queenstown winter holiday.

DQ is excited to get behind the Queenstown Wao Film Festival from 7-8 June at Te Atamira. The festival provides a platform to inspire and educate our community, positioning Queenstown as a thriving creative and cultural centre. DQ’s ‘From the Ground Up’ series will be showcased as shorts through the festival.

A partnership with Cuisine will promote Queenstown as a foodie’s destination via print and digital activity, including a four-page editorial, brand ads and a giveaway designed to grow DQ’s consumer database.

Paid partner content with New Zealand Geographic will share Queenstown's regenerative tourism journey with a focus on what our ski areas are doing and other off-mountain experiences that are helping pave the way to a regenerative future.

New Member Hub

DQ recently launched a new Member Hub – an informative online portal where members can access capability building and training resources, view upcoming member and industry events, access business plans, reports, and get the latest data and insights.  

The hub houses the new member capability building programme – a substantial initiative DQ has developed to support members with both conventional marketing activity as well as regenerative tourism practices. This will be updated regularly with new resources and an event will be held each month.

DQ’s Direct-to-Consumer EDM Platform

DQ’s direct-to-consumer email strategy is focused on building first party relationships with our domestic, Australian and long-haul audiences. Content is tailored to specific subscriber interests via storytelling highlighting our people, place and experiences. DQ is launching a domestic ski giveaway in June designed to grow our domestic ski audience database.

All email templates will be updated in June with a new look and feel as we introduce the new refreshed brand across our email comms.

'What's On' Event Marketing Campaign

DQ’s event marketing activity will continue throughout winter promoting a range of events in size and scale. Let us know what’s on! From local markets and volunteering opportunities to festivals and gigs, it is free to submit an event listing on QueenstownNZ.nz. Event listings inform DQ’s digital activity, seasonal event guides and submissions to Tourism New Zealand.

How to work with and leverage DQ’s activity

There are many ways to leverage and get involved in DQ’s marketing activity:

1. Tell us your news! DQ is on a mission to uncover and share stories about the good things happening in our region. Keep us up-to-date with any new products, sustainable initiatives or regenerative developments making a difference for our environment, social responsibility and/or community.
2. Ensure your listings on QueenstownNZ.co.nz are up to date. Check details are correct and consider updating imagery and descriptions to suit each season.
3. Submit upcoming events to be listed on DQ’s Events hub. It is free to do so, and you can load anything from community initiatives to large scale events.
4. Send DQ any new imagery and video content to ensure we are using your latest assets in our activity. Please share new content with daniellaj@queenstownNZ.nz.
5. Keep your Google My Business listing up to date, considering opening days and times, as well as any contact details.
6. Keep an eye out for the regular Queenstown Connect members workshops where we cover a range of topics to support member capability building.

If you require more information or if you have any questions about DQ’s marketing, please email rubys@queenstownNZ.nz

SARAH O'DONNELL, MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR