AIGO, Israel Ministry of Tourism and Donna Moderna together for the DM Negev Adventure
AIGO, Israel Ministry of Tourism and Donna Moderna together for the DM Negev Adventure
AIGO, Israel Ministry of Tourism and Donna Moderna together for the DM Negev Adventure
AIGO, Israel Ministry of Tourism and Donna Moderna together for the DM Negev Adventure
AIGO, Israel Ministry of Tourism and Donna Moderna together for the DM Negev Adventure

AIGO, Israel Ministry of Tourism and Donna Moderna together for the DM Negev Adventure

22 January 2019

Five Donna Moderna readers ran a 50 miles marathon in the middle of the Negev desert to help promote Israel as a popular touristic destination.

THE PROJECT

To promote the Negev Desert (in Israel) as a tourist destination, AIGO developed a partnership with Donna Moderna, one of the most popular female lifestyle magazines (1,5M weekly readers and 746K Facebook fans), and launched the «DM Negev Adventure: an all-women run in the desert» project.

The concept of this destination marketing campaign was to gather an appealing challenge with the determination of the female universe and a fascinating desert location, chosen for its tremendous tourist potential.

DEVELOPMENT

From June to October, more than 1,800 readers took part to 3 training sessions organized by Donna Moderna (in Turin, Pescara, and Palermo) in order to be among the finalists and leave for the Negev.

Five runners made it to the end: they spent 4 days in the desert and ran a 50 miles marathon, organized by the Israel Minister of Tourism and divided into 4 legs of 20km each.

From the training sessions until the end of the race, Donna Moderna mentioned the Negev Adventure on its website Donnamoderna.com, on its weekly newsletter and, most importantly, on various articles of its printed edition. All of this material didn’t focus exclusively on the race, but it also concerned the history, culture, and attractions of Israel. Both Negev and Israel brands benefited from high and continuous coverage among the target audience throughout the whole campaign.

AIGO team boosted Donna Moderna’s coverage by using owned media, newsletters, press office activities and by organizing an event right before the departure of the five runners, in order to introduce them to the press. The location chosen was the central Mondadori Store in Piazza Duomo, Milan.

RESULTS

The total campaign reach was 193,000,000; with an advertising value of €4,000,000.

The data show that the project sustained the growth of Italian tourism in Israel. October 2018, when the marathon took place, marked a record +63% of Italian tourists (15,600) when compared to the same period of the previous year, while the whole 2018 ended with a +39% (compared to 2017), for a grand total of 150,600 Italians visiting Israel.

KEY FACTORS

  • Choosing a trending concept based on trips with friends, event-related or linked to a specific experience
  • Emerging destination enhanced by the desert charm
  • Media partnership with a leader magazine for the target, known for having a high-fidelity readership
  • Multi-channel communication strategy