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strategic content plan

01 purpose

This strategic content marketing plan has been developed to provide insights and actions for the roll-out of the new brand: Central Queensland Highlands, Explore More.

We have also given consideration to COVID-19 and its impact on visitation to the region, which is evidenced by the Localis data provided to CHDC in delivery of this project.

This plan has been developed to ensure the launch of the brand is successful across the region and is adopted between the local government areas that make up the Central Queensland Highlands, the operators who work within Central Queensland Highlands and the people who live in Central Queensland Highlands.

The overarching aim of this strategic content marketing plan is also outlined in the Visitor Economy Strategy:

While this strategy’s focus is on its application to visitor economy, we have provided recommendations where it can also be applied to business development and resident attraction in the TOOLKIT that accompanies this document.

Increase OVE Attract new markets and grow existing ones Enhance community pride Drive economic growth and job creation This strategic marketing plan should be read in conjunction with the Central Queensland Highlands Style Guide, which is available for download HERE.

strategic content plan

02 overview of explore more

the Central queensland highlands brand at a glance Friendly Explore More is the new tourism tagline to support the Central Queensland Highlands story. It’s been developed as both an invitation and a challenge for visitors to the region to “Explore More”. The tagline can be applied to both the parent brand, Central Queensland Highlands, and equally, the four sub-brands that make up the Central Queensland Highlands: 1. Carnarvon Gorge 2. Blackdown Tableland 3. Sapphire Gemfields 4. Emerald

Welcoming Sparks curiosity Promotes length of stay Articulates both the challenge and opportunity for the region – there’s more than meets the eye Includes all the diverse sub-regions and operators within the Central Queensland Highlands

strategic content plan

03 challenges and opportunities for the strategic content marketing plan

In preparing this strategic content marketing plan, consideration was given to the following opportunities and challenges:

opportunities Carnarvon Gorge (and to a lesser extent the Sapphire Gemfields) have strong brand recognition in the eyes of the consumer Emerald has daily flights and excellent drive and rail access, which makes it accessible for a short-break fly/drive combination – although most visit in a longhaul capacity Once visitors are in region, there are plenty of natural attractions to extend the length of stay by virtue of their distance from Emerald – whether it be the Gemfields, Blackdown Tableland or Carnarvon Gorge COVID-19 has seen a younger market visit the region, one that’s likely to cement into future years as young families create their own word of mouth network Central Queensland Highlands presents a compelling affordable holiday option for visitors – a unique selling point that speaks to price motivated travellers

challenges People don’t know where the Central Queensland Highlands is – even if they were currently standing in region Low awareness of what’s on in the region along with signature events from the region Perception of the area as a mining centre is strong, so the Central Queensland Highlands is not seen as a tourism destination Seasonality with hot summers, makes the Central Queensland Highlands optimal for visiting for only half of the year – with a ‘tourism season’ running from March to October Lack of tourism/visitor experiences – there is a need for product development Limited capacity to host more visitors in tourism hot spots like Carnarvon Gorge and due to lack of product a genuine risk of over tourism Lack of RV parking for visitors to experience tourism offering once in region

strategic content plan

04 channels in play

At present, the Central Queensland Highlands has the following consumer channels in existence to encourage visitors to Explore More. Our recommendation is to continue to grow and leverage these channels and build their audiences to be able to connect with more customers. Due to budget and resource restrictions, an owned media strategy is the strongest for the Central Queensland Highlands as most paid and earned media is cost-prohibitive.

WEBSITE

FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, TWITTER, LINKEDIN & YOUTUBE

TRAVELLERS GUIDE & TOURING MAP

VIC STAFF & AD HOC PAMPHLETS

BILLBOARDS

strategic content plan

05 across all channels, the following content pillars will deliver the brand promise - explore more

PILLAR 1

PILLAR 2

PILLAR 3

PILLAR 4

explore iconic national parks

get down to earth

uncover history and heritage

captain your own adventure

Carnarvon Gorge Blackdown Tableland

Sapphire Gemfields

Indigenous History Mining History European History Country Towns Outback Hospitality

Road trips Nomadic travel Spontaneous travel

strategic content plan

07 strategic objectives and recommendations In order to achieve the following strategic recommendations, across pages 11-24, we have outlined a number of actions to deliver the brand story and increase OVE, extend length of stay and attract new visitors. The below 2021 marketing plan reflects our recommendations.

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strategic content plan

08 actions required | website refresh

strategic recommendations: As a first step of the rebrand, CHDC is recommended to undergo a website re-development for Central Queensland Highlands. We note the URL www.centralqueenslandhighlands.com.au has now been purchased, which we’d recommend become the primary URL for the destination. All existing URLs should be pointed towards this central domain, to ensure customers can find how to Explore More regardless of their search words. In its current format, the website does not invite or encourage visitors to Explore More. The website is currently difficult to navigate with multiple pages buried behind others, reading more like a repurpose of the travellers guide opposed to a site that’s built with UX in mind for a seamless digital web experience. The objective is for the website to be built around pillar four ‘charter your own adventure’ giving the audience the tools to be able to design their own trip. When visitors land on the website, they should be encouraged to filter their

decision making between by experience rather than destination. The website should be image-led and let the visuals do the talking, rather than being overlywordy or descriptive. From a written content perspective, the website should be itinerary-led with plug-and-play itineraries that weave across the region, with a dedicated blog/news/article page for SEO-led copywriting activity. The ‘Explore More’ tag should be incorporated where possible in all copywriting, leaving visitors with a sense of intrigue and curiosity in the region. The brief for the website re-development (to a new or existing supplier) should include: New hosting including re-directs of all derivatives of the Central Queensland Highlands name to www. centralqueenslandhighlands.com.au Complete website re-design in line with look and feel of the website, including a restructure of existing content

Development of new pages of the website including blog, drive itineraries / trails, product listings, tourism services listings, event calendar and operator inclusions incorporating ATDW data Creation of a website userexperience strategy including a detailed breakdown of each of your demographic’s pains, wants needs and desires which informs your online customer journey map Development of a website conversion strategy including website page wireframes that map out what content needs to go where on your website pages to convert your browsers into bookers

ESTIMATE WEBSITE REBUILD INVESTMENT: $15,000 + GST + ongoing maintenance

strategic content plan

09 actions required | seo strategy

strategic recommendations: A website, a bit like a car, requires constant servicing for optimum performance. In the case of a destination website, the servicing is your ongoing SEO management. SEO management includes the researching and optimisation of search words on your site, so more people can find you when they are looking on their preferred search engine. This remains of critical importance for the Central Queensland Highlands brand, where the brand competes domestically and internationally with other ‘highlands’ destinations. The brief for technical SEO should include: The development of an SEO Strategy including detailed keyword research to understand what your audience is searching for and how we can capture the searches with your new website. Ongoing monthly SEO maintenance of the website, with recommended hours for monthly maintenance Development of ongoing content (blogs/articles) to be supplied monthly (more on that, page 11)

ESTIMATE TECHNICAL SEO INVESTMENT: Initial investment of $3000 + GST + ongoing monthly retainer of hours, pursuant to your budget

strategic content plan

10 actions required | website copy

strategic recommendations: In rolling out the new brand, your new tone of voice needs to be adopted across the whole website. The tone should evoke the three brand qualities of the Central Queensland Highlands: Honest – we are bold, bright and direct Positive – we are optimistic, vibrant and encouraging Familiar – we are inclusive, inviting and down to earth Whether delivered internally, or by an external copywriter, the brief should include: Copy updates to all pages of the website Suggested edits to the Travellers Guide be undertaken at same time to create cost efficiencies for the Central Queensland Highlands Greater emphasis be given to mobile-first forms of reading text – with more bullet points, breakout boxes and white space to enhance navigability.

ESTIMATE WEBSITE COPY: $5000 + GST

strategic content plan

11 actions required | itinerary / article creation

strategic recommendations: It was recognised across the focus groups that there is a need for content development on the website to encourage length of stay. We recommend a blog / article page is established that outlines how travellers can Explore More of the region. In developing blog articles, it’s important they are supported by keyword research so they contribute to your ongoing SEO strategy. That said, SEO is not everything. The secret to powerful and emotive editorial is its ability to connect with the customer and drive more sales – so it must have a clear audience in mind, and an understanding of why they’d read on. We’d recommend developing one post per month for the duration of 12 months to build a catalogue of stories to support the visitor experience in region. These stories could be used in the printed travellers guide and linked out to in consumer eNewsletters for maximum content (and cost) efficiencies. The brief to either an internal or external copywriter should include: Tone of voice documentation Keyword search term as determined by your SEO support partner or web developer Desired length of all editorial – 600 – 1000 words

ESTIMATE ONGOING BLOG / ARTICLE MAINTENANCE: Development of 1 x article per month for 12 months, $700 + GST / month

strategic content plan

12 Editorial Suggestions

based on the feedback from the focus groups, we recommend developing the following blog posts in the first instance: Title

Keyword

Audience

3 day Emerald Central Queensland Highlands explorer itinerary

Emerald

Grey Nomads

5 day Carnarvon Gorge Central Queensland Highlands explorer itinerary

Carnarvon Gorge

Young Families

7 day National Parks Central Queensland Highlands explorer itinerary

National Parks

Young Families

48 hours in the Sapphire Gemfields

Sapphire Gemfields

Grey Nomads

10 things you didn’t know about the Central Queensland Highlands

Central Queensland Highlands

Young Families

Where to eat in Emerald

Emerald

Young Families

strategic content plan

13 actions required | Imagery strategic recommendations:

Suggested influencers:

They say a picture tells a thousand words and nothing rings more true in bringing your brand’s story to life.

The following influencers are recommended due to their alignment with the young family, nomad market synonymous with the Central Queensland Highlands. They range in size from macro influencers to micro influencers:

It’s recommended Central Queensland Highlands commissions a mixture of professional photographers and influencers to showcase the following hero experiences. Bushwalking / hiking

@theblondenomads @lifestyle_hustlers

Fossicking Caravanning and camping Driving It’s important the talent chosen reflect the younger target market Central Queensland Highlands are trying to connect with in a post-COVID world. These images could then be used across: the development of your new website, social media and new travellers guide content.

@these.wander.days @thetradieandhisladies @mumpacktravel @tinytraveltwo @rileys_travels @awolfamily @tripinavan @karstanandmaxine @our.wild.unknown

A NOTE ON BRIEFING INFLUENCERS: It’s recommended when briefing influencers, you create a Memorandum of Understanding that captures both the influence you want to achieve (in your case, to grow your Central Queensland Highlands social media channels) and owning the images joint-copyright so you can use them further for marketing purposes, including your website, travellers guides and billboards. You can download a template MOU HERE.

strategic content plan

13.1 mood board for imagery To capture the essence of the region and Explore More messaging, we’d recommend images be taken in the following style:

strategic content plan

14 actions required | social media management

strategic recommendations: To truly speak to consumers in all phases of the travel cycle, it’s important Central Queensland Highlands has a strong social media presence across Facebook and Instagram. At present, the channels are not regularly updated, have low following and poor engagement. To grow them, a social media strategy needs to be developed, along with a channel management strategy that sees a minimum of four posts per week shared to both Facebook and Instagram.

the brief to a social media manager (internal or external), should include: Development of a social media strategy that aligns to Tourism & Events Queensland’s Best of Queensland program Ongoing monthly management of the social media feeds, incorporating the Explore More messaging Community Management of the pages to build engagement across the channels – that’s both proactive and reactive Creation of a hashtag strategy to increase reach Recommendations on new forms of visual media for Central Queensland Highlands, including reels, IGTV and Live Monthly reporting including but not limited to reach, engagements and impressions

ESTIMATE SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGEMENT: $1200 / month + GST (ongoing) ESTIMATE SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: $2500 + GST

strategic content plan

15 actions required | competitor analysis

It’s imperative Central Queensland Highlands dedicates resources to growing its social media following. The following destinations have been identified as competitors in terms of both their social media growth and destination’s appeal, and as you can see, the Central Queensland Highlands performs poorly against its competitor set. Facebook

Followers

Instagram

Followers

www.facebook.com/ centralqueenslandhighlands

2,209

@centralqueenslandhighlands

www.facebook.com/ OutbackQueensland

95.5k

@outbackqueensland

44.6k

www.facebook.com/visitcapricorn

14.3k

@visitcapricorn

6959

www.facebook.com/ ExperienceLongreach

2699

@experiencelongreach

1197

www.facebook.com/ ExperienceWinton

10.6k

@experiencewinton

1428

www.facebook.com/ visittownsvilleaustralia

40.7k

@romarevealedtownsville northqueensland

23.7k

www.facebook.com/romarevealed

6.4k

@romarevealed

329

811

strategic content plan

16 actions required | travellers Guide

strategic recommendations: With over 50,000 copies of the Travellers Guide and Touring Guide printed each year, the guide is the Central Queensland Highland’s single biggest marketing asset and emphasis should be placed on using the 2021 Travellers Guide to launch the new brand. To launch the new brand, the guide should be edited to include the brand story, inviting customers to Explore More. The design should be updated to include more elements of the Explore More brandmark throughout, with a new structure that shifts from destinations to experiences across the region. Content from the website can be repurposed across the Travellers Guide such as the itinerary-led blog post concepts outlined on page 11.

brief to content developer should include: Updated editorial to match the new tone of voice for the Central Queensland Highlands Fresh new design to reflect the new brandmark Improvement of readability through use of white space to let the eyes rest Increased use of Double Page Spread (DPS) imagery

ESTIMATE TRAVELLERS GUIDE BUDGET: $7,000 copywriting $14,000 design + printing

The guide should be structured to lead with experiences rather than events, grouping content according to experience rather than location, as it’s well established this is how customers funnel through the booking cycle.

strategic content plan

16.1 an example travellers guide flat plan might follow this format

Cover

Contents + Welcome

Welcome to Country Weather Getting here

DPS: 3 day Emerald Central Queensland Highlands explorer itinerary

DPS: 5 day Carnarvon Gorge Central Queensland Highlands explorer itinerary

DPS: 7 day National Parks Central Queensland Highlands explorer itinerary

Destination-Specific: Carnarvon Gorge

Destination-Specific: Blackdown Tablelands

Destination-Specific: Sapphire Gemfields

*listicle style

Destination-Specific: Emerald *listicle style

Destination-Specific: Blackwater

Destination-Specific: Capella

Destination-Specific: Duaringa

Destination-Specific: Dingo

Destination-Specific: Misc.

Experience lead content:

Where to free camp in CQH

Experience lead content: Where to fish in CQH

*listicle style

Experience lead content:

Where to fish in CQH

Station Stays of CQH

Museums / History of CQH

DPS: Events Calendar

For the kids / X best playgrounds in CQH

VICS

Directory

Maps

Back Cover

Hero Event Editorial: Gemfest

strategic content plan

17 actions required | establishment of a consumer enewsletter

strategic recommendations: If Central Queensland Highlands is to successfully extend the length of stay of visitors in region, it needs to provide more information to visitors before they arrive in region. It’s our recommendation to establish a monthly consumer eNewsletter that gives visitors a reason to visit the Central Queensland Highlands and encourages them to Explore More at every stage of the booking cycle. It’s noted that the eNewsletter communication rhythm could slow down over summer in line with the seasonality of your region, however with a frequency of monthly sends, this may not be necessary. Since you will be starting from ground zero in building this eNewsletter database, Facebook Lead Generation advertising is recommended to build your audience base. Through the incentive of a competition, giving away a gift voucher to use in the region, we believe we can build an engaged audience base quickly, in order to commence these email communications.

brief to enewsletter content developer (internal or external) should include: In developing the new website, an integration with your current CRM needs to be put in place for the consumer eNewsletter send. There needs to be a place to sign up for the eNewsletter whether that’s fixed or a pop-up box. A template needs to be established for the consumer send with a short introduction and plug-in content modules whether that be events, itineraries or articles on the website. The template should be easy to use so that CHDC staff can populate the template independently Creation of a monthly editorial calendar with content themes Writing of short, sharp, punchy editorial that captures the reader’s attention and encourages them to open the send Reporting at the conclusion of each send

ESTIMATE ENEWSLETTER CREATION: $500 + GST / Send

strategic content plan

18 actions required | media famils

strategic recommendations: To support the launch of the new brand, it’s recommended Central Queensland Highlands engages in a media famil program for travel journalists to further the message of exploring more of your backyard. Given international borders remain closed, there’s opportunity to partner with media outlets like Escape and Traveller which would otherwise focus primarily on overseas destinations with domestic holidays off the beaten track. The theme of Explore More, ties nicely with Tourism Australia’s Holiday Here This Year campaign and all travel media’s emphasis on local holiday exploration.

brief to pr agency (external) or media consultant (internal) should include: In developing a proactive pitch list, emphasis should be given to the emerging young families market Media should be chosen for their interest in outback travel We recommend Central Queensland Highlands is not packaged into coop media famils with other outback destinations as it may not stand alone in comparison to other destinations like Winton/Longreach within a broader Outback story

ESTIMATE FAMIL COORDINATION AND COSTS: $15,000 + GST

strategic content plan

19 actions required | event strategy gemfest

strategic recommendations: To leverage the existing Gemfest event and develop it into a drawcard for visitors, we recommend developing an event strategy to transform it from a small, regional event to a hero/anchor event for the region. To do this, we’d recommend enlisting an event strategist to build and grow the event – with a focus on how to make the event more sustainable on both human resources, cost resources and the environment.

Brief to event strategist (internal or external) should include: Event feasibility report – including event rationale, objectives, review of location, review of internal and external factors which may impact the growth of the event Review of resourcing plan for event and potential opportunities for resourcing Analysis of current planning and operational procedures of the event and recommendations Audit of current event strategy (if in existence) and development of a new event strategy / strategic recommendations Create a new strategic approach and objectives (if required) including event optimisations Development of a sponsorship strategy to grow the event’s income Incorporation of an event sustainability plan to ensure the event leaves no footprint on the Central Queensland Highlands environment

ESTIMATE OF EVENT STRATEGY COSTS: $20,000 + GST

strategic content plan

phase 2

supporting recommendations

strategic content plan

20 supporting recommendations | partnerships

strategic recommendations:

recommended strategic partners:

To help grow the Central Queensland Highlands channels, it’s recommended CQH reach out to strategic partners to help run competitions to grow its new consumer database asset. Competitions could take the format of code-share campaigns, where data is exchanged at the conclusion of the competition period.

OQTA Toyota Caravanning Australia Apollo / Jucy / Britz Camping suppliers e.g. Blackwolf Australia Shimano / fishing companies

strategic content plan

21 supporting recommendations | member buy in / co-op campaigns

One of the key objectives of building and growing your following and audiences is the fact you can co-op marketing opportunities to your members to feature their region, product or event on your pages. By building your audience, you’ll effectively create a sustainable marketing program, where the outlay of hard costs can be offset by member buy-in to campaigns. Example features could include: Facebook posts / Instagram posts Website banners on centralqueensalndhighlands.com.au eNewsletter takeovers We note, your audience will need to grow substantially before buy-in opportunities be created for members to show a true value exchange for participation in the program.

strategic content plan

questions paul thompson tourism development coordinator pthompson@chdc.com.au hannah statham hannah@mediamortar.com.au rob garwood rob@firme.agency

strategic content plan