Who knew? It was so subtle. New Zealand has been secretly planting an underground network of Secret (Travel) Agents for years. The mission? To encourage Australians to book a holiday in Aotearoa New Zealand.
With successfully executed missions such as introducing the flat white to Australian culture or reminding Australians of how New Zealand does winter with its longer snow season, the Secret (Travel) Agents’ network of approximately 600,000 has been infiltrating Australians’ minds, hearts and mouths for years.
A secret video conference of New Zealand’s top agents was accidentally shared by New Zealand-born, Australian pop star and key Secret (Travel) Agent, Ricki-Lee, across social media in a post that gained media attention.
Meanwhile the accidental fumble saw the meeting broadcast on Digital OOH screens across Australia on Wednesday 6 July. The fumble was conceived and orchestrated by TBWA\Sydney and Eleven, revealing Melanie Bracewell, Ricki-Lee, Richard Wilkins, Stan Walker, Kita Mean, Broxh and the Beached Az Whale as Secret (Travel) Agents who have been working to remind the world what is unique and special about Aotearoa New Zealand.
Katrina Alvarez-Jarratt, TBWA\Sydney Executive Creative director, and suspected Secret (Travel) Agent, stated, “Anyone who knows a New Zealander, knows we just can’t shut up about how unique and beautiful our country is. It appears the Secret (Travel) Agents have seized on this truth to encourage people to holiday in New Zealand. Did I mention that in the Coromandel you can dig your own natural hot spring on the beach?”
Tourism New Zealand also appears to be on a recruitment drive to bolster its approximately 600,000-strong team of Secret (Travel) Agents in Australia. Anyone who has visited, loved and experienced the Manaakitanga (warm welcome, hospitality and kindness) of New Zealand’s people can apply to become a Secret (Travel) Agent online. Once recruited and trained with money-can’t-buy experiences, new Secret (Travel) Agents will be ready to infiltrate Australian culture and share the wonders of New Zealand, enticing others to visit. Their brief is simple yet effective – find ways to include New Zealand in regular chat, social media feeds, or general conversation.
Tourism New Zealand’s general manager, Australia, Andrew Waddel, commented, “New Zealand is ready to welcome Australians to seek out the unexpected in Aotearoa. While some of our Secret (Travel) Agents have been revealed, this only means we need to find more for the cause – which is easily done by welcoming more Australians to Aotearoa, and into our Agent whānau. It’s time for Australians to travel to New Zealand and immerse themselves in a place filled with unmissable experiences and unmistakable Manaakitanga.”
Evan Roberts, chief creative officer of TBWA\Sydney and lead investigator on the case, noted, “We’ve only scratched the surface on the extent of this network, but from what we can see the Secret (Travel) Agents are entrenched in Australian culture, feeding our desire for travel and leading us to seek experiences in New Zealand. We’ve witnessed activity across every channel you can think of, and this new recruitment drive for more agents is only going to make Australians love New Zealand more.
“While this campaign is delivered in a Kiwi tongue-in-cheek manner, the marketing implications are huge. From an earned media moment we are mobilising every advocate they have ever had in the history of social media, capturing first-party data and then rewarding them for their behaviour.”
Activity is also being spotted across social media, earned media, trade and OOH. More to come.
New Zealand’s Secret (Travel) Agents:
● Melanie Bracewell: Kiwi comedian reluctantly moved to Melbourne for work commitments.
● Ricki-Lee: An Aussie popstar who has a New Zealand passport. Why? Spoiler alert – she was actually
born in New Zealand and moved to Brisbane at three months old. Ricki-Lee is a lifelong agent.
● Stan Walker: A proud popstar with Māori heritage who was born in Australia but now lives in New
Zealand. This makes him the ultimate Secret (Travel) Agent.
● Richard Wilkins: Ever since moving from New Zealand in the 1980s, Richard has been gracing
Australian TV screens for 35 years. All the while he’s referred to his home country throughout.
● Kita Mean: Since winning RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under, this Kiwi-born drag performer is not
known for subtlety – we’re proud she’s been able to keep her role as a Secret (Travel) Agent a secret
for so long.
● Broxh: He’s taking his culture to the metaverse. He’s known for his Māori carving work on Twitch,
and even invited none other than Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand Prime Minister, to join him.
● The Beached Az Whale: He’s still beached az, bro! On beautiful and secluded New Zealand beaches,
of course. The Kiwi character from the ABC program Beached Az is also one of the Secret (Travel) Agents.
Credits:
Client: Tourism New Zealand
Creative Agency: TBWA\Sydney
PR Agency: Eleven
Production Company: Photoplay
Director: Gary John
Editors: Andy Kristiaman @ Carve & Stitch Joe Morris
