Out Of Office

Objectives

Research showed Qantas was under threat of appearing old fashioned compared to the competition so comms were used to convey modernity and inspire travel in the millennial workforce. It was based on three insights: the desire to travel for young Aussies is often sparked by social media, in particular Instagram. Qualitative research indicated that friends and colleagues are the highest influencers for people choosing their next holiday. And 65% of travellers believe turning on their out of office reply is the first step to being on holiday. Qantas flies around 78,000 passengers daily so potential reach was huge.

Campaign

This is the first time that an airline, or any company, turned the ‘out of office’ email into a new media channel. It would be the world’s first out of office reply powered by Instagram photos. The Qantas Out of Office Travelogue (OOOT) campaign was executed through a world-first combination of Instagram and Gmail to create the OOOT. The audience was told that using #QantasOutofOffice they could pick which photos friends, family and work colleagues could see (and which ones they couldn’t). Then every time a contact sent an email, the OOOT sends them a return email with someone’s latest travel photos. And if inspiration struck them, they could even book a flight of their own right from the email. The OOOT turned customers into brand ambassadors who shared their association with Qantas every time someone sent them an email while they were away.

Prominent Instagram influencers like Nicole Warne who also seek to inspire travel with their photos were engaged to activate their OOOT. They were taken to Hayman Island to share their holiday experiences using the hashtag.

Results

Within a month of launching, with zero media spend, the Qantas OOOT achieved over 500 Out of Office Travelogue emails being sent every single day; over 10,000 Out of Office Travelogue shares; and over 10 million impressions organically via social media. The campaign also had more than 100 million online media impressions worldwide. For each travelogue sent, the equivalent of a further 1000 in organic reach was achieved. Based on zero paid media, there were 10 million impressions globally, delivering a potential 100 million.

Judges Comments

This pro-active campaign was commended as 'genius' by the judges. Creating a new media channel and bragging platform meant that this appealed to everyone - and most importantly, it's memorable. The judges loved this entry.