Auckland: the little city big on self-publicity

Alex Swney. Photo / Kenny Rodger

In a $1.8 million marketing campaign that sounds like it was lifted from a children's book, Auckland aims to displace "Positively Wellington" and overtake "That's Me!bourne" to become a little bit world famous.

Auckland businesses will tonight launch their new brand: The Big Little City. Yes, it may sound like the Big Little books you read at school, or the little red engine that thinks it can. But members of the Heart of Auckland City business group are adamant: they really think they can.

They hope to give a boost to the local economy and show the rest of New Zealand that Auckland is a destination, albeit a Big Little One.

Heart of Auckland is backing the campaign. CEO Alex Swney says it is a chance to show the rest of New Zealand what the city really holds.

"We've got the events; we've got the entertainment; and we've got the big city life, like no other city in New Zealand." Event-driven tourism is the key says Swney.

"You put on the events and people come. The success of Simon and Garfunkel and Cirque du Soleil is proof of that."

Well-known locals will have cameos in the ads but the idea was to keep it to a minimum.

"We are giving a snapshot of what it's actually like down here. You can be in a cafe having a coffee and someone like Paul Holmes, or Boh Runga will come in."

Born-and-bred Auckland fashion designer Denise L'Estrange-Corbet from World has a cameo in the ads. "This is a great city with a lot to offer," says L'Estrange-Corbet. "But at the moment even people who live in the city are not making the most of it. Doing things in the city doesn't have to cost money."

Alex Swney says: "In tough times it makes sense to reach out to the domestic market.

"Wellington did a great job with its campaign and Melbourne has done an amazing job. They are unabashedly events-based and it works. Melbourne now has the highest rate of domestic tourism in Australasia."

A quarter of the $1.8 million was funded by the private sector, which Swney says speaks volumes about its feasibility.

The remainder of the money came through targeted rates and the Heart of the City's mainstreet levy.

* www.biglittlecity.co.nz