Farewell Hoges and Lara Bingle; hello Ruby the Roo

Farewell Paul Hogan and Lara Bingle. Hello to Ruby the Roo. 

Tourism Australia has unveiled a new Brand Ambassador, Ruby, a souvenir kangaroo brought to life with CGI animation, as the face of a new global tourism campaign that will invite the world to Come and Say G’day when it launches next week.

The next instalment of Tourism Australia’s There’s Nothing Like Australia global brand platform will star Australian actress and Tourism Australia ambassador Rose Byrne, who will be the English voice of Ruby. 

The campaign will also be localised in non-English markets, with Japanese actress Maryjun Takahashi to be the voice of Ruby in Japan.

The Minister for Trade and Tourism, Senator Don Farrell, this week unleashed Ruby to the world on a major digital billboard in Tokyo, kick-starting a world tour which will take Australia’s new brand ambassador onto billboards around the globe.

“From today Ruby will hop onto billboards in Singapore, London and New York building anticipation ahead of the launch of the new campaign, which will invite international travellers to Come and Say G’day,” Farrell said.

“Ruby will resonate with international audiences as the campaign is rolled out across key international markets to remind the world why There’s Nothing Like Australia.”

Tourism Australia managing director Phillipa Harrison said the new campaign will support the tourism industry as it rebuilds, by converting the pent-up demand for an Australian holiday and encouraging people to plan and book their adventure Down Under.

“We know that Australia consistently ranks high on people’s consideration list but we need to get travellers to take that critical next step and book their holiday to Australia to experience everything we have to offer,” Harrison said.

“Visitor economies around the world are looking to rebuild as we emerge from the pandemic and that will make the tourism landscape more competitive than ever before, which is why we have made sure Come and Say G’day will cut through and make Australia stand out today and in the long term.”

Tourism Australia Chief Marketing Officer, Susan Coghill, said the multichannel campaign will remind travellers of Australia’s iconic destinations and friendly faces.

“The use of an animated character in Ruby was a deliberate move that aims to cut through the clutter of destination marketing internationally and it is backed by research,” Coghill said.

Tourism Australia’s global Come and Say G’day campaign will officially launch on Wednesday, October 19.