Best Kept Secrets: An evaluation of South Australia’s direct marketing campaign

Abstract

In 1998 the South Australian Tourism Commission launched an innovative marketing campaign known as ‘Best Kept Secrets’ to attract visitors to the state from external domestic markets. The campaign involved direct mail, and was supported with cinema and print advertising. The centrepiece of the campaign was a magazine-style 148pp direct mail piece known as ‘The Book of Best Kept Secrets’ that was distributed to 1.4 million households in targeted geographic areas. Evaluation of the campaign indicates that it had a substantial impact in raising awareness of the state, stimulating interest in visiting and delivering a motivational and travel planning document that was valued and retained by a substantial proportion of recipients.