Tourism NT is targeting potential millennial holidaymakers in Australia with great reasons to visit the NT now through a new marketing campaign.

Previous successful marketing to this audience has been attributed to appealing NT content appearing in places where millennials spend their time, predominantly through digital channels and on social media.

As part of this year’s campaign, Tourism NT is hosting a group of seven social media influencers comprising travel bloggers and content creators on a trip around the Territory to build on the NT’s reputation as a must-visit destination.

The group is travelling from the Red Centre to the Top End and will share their best photos with their social media followers using the hashtag #NTaustralia. Combined, the group has more than 1.49 million followers, so the marketing potential of the trip is huge.

The extensive reach of social media posts was highlighted recently when Australian movie star Margot Robbie posted a photo of Uluru on her Instagram page. More than 1.6 million followers liked the post, with more than 6000 commenting.

In July last year an Instagram photo taken at Bitter Springs by social media influencer Carmen Huter received more than a million likes after the social media giant reposted it on the official @instagram page, which has more than 243 million followers. Carmen was taking part in a road trip hosted by Tourism NT through the NT Government’s Turbocharging Tourism initiative.

As part of the current campaign, Tourism NT has engaged other channels that millennials respond well to such as Facebook, Pedestrian TV, Spotify and YouTube.

The seven influencers travelling through the Territory will provide owned content for Tourism NT along the way, including images, videos and travel articles. In addition they are running photography workshops for winners of Tourism NT’s Snap the NT competition – one took place at Alice Springs Desert Park on 26 May and another will take place at Darwin Trailer Boat Club on June 1. The competition involved Territorians uploading photos of the NT to their social media channels using the hashtag #snapthent. 

Quotes from Department of Tourism, Sport and Culture Deputy CEO Andrew Hopper:

“The tourism market is evolving and the NT Government is responding to the changes by adapting our marketing, in this case through working with social media influencers.

“Social media platforms offer extensive scope for images of the Territory to reach a global audience, and people who would otherwise perhaps not be exposed to content from the NT.

“Tourism NT has strategically chosen to work with influencers who are also professional content creators, photographers and videographers, which means they’re not only receiving global reach through social media, but also large suites of owned content.

“The reactions to posts such as those by Margot Robbie and Carmen Huter demonstrate the power of social media, and how turning the NT into an 'Instagrammable' destination can boost interest in the Territory, which can help drive visitor numbers.

“We want everyone in the world to see just how amazing the Territory is, and social media is helping us do that.”

Media Contact: Department of Tourism, Sport and Culture Media Manager 0428 052 647