The lingering effects of Covid on tourism in 2022 prohibited Sarawak Tourism’s “eco-warrior “ influencer Bindi Irwin (daughter of the late “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin) from her planned visit for on-location promotions. Instead, ISCI aired Bindi’s social media campaign commending Sarawak on its wildlife conservation efforts.

A new campaign launched January 2023 – an evolution of “Sarawak, More to Discover,” to “Sarawak, Now More Than Ever,” with its “revenge tourism” message: after sustained lockdowns, now was even MORE reason to visit.

The campaign ran exclusively on digital platforms, plus OOH in Malaysia, Australia and Singapore.

Key visuals focused on the Client’s five “pillars” – Culture, Adventure, Nature, Food and Festivals. A complementary “Destination Video” was also shot, featuring well-known local influencers.

In addition to selling Sarawak, ISCI gave more prominence to Borneo for added allure and recognition.

Results are impressive. According to Sarawak’s Ministry of Tourism, foreign arrivals from the top five countries reported significant growth in July 2023 over July 2022: Brunei, a whopping 1337% increase; China up 375%; Indonesia 74%; Philippines 421%; Singapore 35%.

To date, tourism numbers have rebounded: foreign visitor arrivals from January – July 2023 were 1,245,613 versus 1,173,205 for the same 2019 period – up 5.8%, whilst Client’s target for 2023 is only 3.5%!

A separate digital campaign also launched in Q1 2023 to attract visitors to the iconic annual Rainforest World Music Festival, cancelled for two Covid years. The RWMF ran in late June and drew one of the highest attendance figures in the event’s 26-year history!

ISC International submitted this case study in the 2023 Globeys: https://youtu.be/ZySK8Cxht5g