Viking River Cruise partnership with Fairfax Media

Campaign Objectives

Part the sea of sameness

Viking River Cruises were drowning in a sea of sameness within the category. Our task was to part this sea by establishing a unique point of difference, to create brand cut-through and salience to drive bookings.
Target Audience

Those interested in discovery

People 50+ with a skew towards women, whose common core need is all about ‘discovery’. Discovery of new destinations and unique experiences.
Strategy

Providing the right access at the right time

Aiding and inspiring discovery by providing access throughout the travel planning process. Access to expert advice, compelling content and detailed travel information.

15ACA_AI_Tab_Insights_VikingRiverCruisesCaseStudyTab1 — Dreaming Phase

Spark intrigue with visually engaging branded content via ‘Brand Discover’ format, written by those with travel authority. A series of articles outlining the regions, destinations and experiences available along Europe’s waterways. Branded support was weaved throughout the article through advertiser - owned reveals.

15ACA_AI_Tab_Insights_VikingRiverCruisesCaseStudyTab2 — Planning Phase

We took readers on a rich river cruise experience of discovery with an interactive custom rich format – the Mosaic. Cruise itineraries were provided to assist their choice of destination and experience.
This custom ad unit launched from a half page and was designed to take the reader on a journey through inspiring imagery and editorial. Upon expansion, a map showcasing the European river cruise route was revealed with various destinations pinned, where the user was able to interact with these pins and reveal the itinerary in more detail.
To create further impetus to book, as well as providing a practical resource for the trip, two high impact executions ran across Good Weekend & Sunday Life:
In Sunday Life a belly-band drew readers into an advertorial inside front cover, showcasing content appealing to foodies centred around the ‘Grand Tastes of Europe’, dialling up the taste encounters of the grand European tour.
In Good Weekend, a reverse back 7 page advertorial ran profiling the river haven provided by Viking’s fleet. Featuring the ship, on shore culinary experiences and some of the crafted journeys available on a Viking River Cruise – from the waterways of Tsars to the Rhine getaway.

15ACA_AI_Tab_Insights_VikingRiverCruisesCaseStudyTab3 — Booking Phase

To keep Viking River Cruises top of mind, a print display and a digital behavioural and re-targeted element ran, with the intention of converting user exposure to bookings.

15ACA_AI_Tab_Insights_VikingRiverCruisesCaseStudyTab4 — Anticipating / Destination Phase

Branded content was syndicated into print, giving readers access to the information on location.