MTB ready to ramp up web marketing spend

The move will see digital play a larger role in the Ministry of Tourism's upcoming 'Visit Malaysia' push, expected to roll out this spring. Online portal MSN, which was in the process of pitching for the 'Visit Malaysia' brief as Media went to press, also handled the 'Malaysia Truly Asia' drive. It was tapped to handle the initial campaign, which aimed to promote Malaysia as a premier holiday destination across the MSN network in a total of 16 countries, including Australia, China, Japan, Korea and New Zealand as well as the rest of Southeast Asia, Europe and Scandinavia. "I think that one of the key reasons that MSN was chosen to handle the Malaysia Tourism online campaign is our significant network in Europe," said Rajine Gow, regional sales manager, MSN Asia. "We also have a strong regional team that can coordinate with the participating markets around the world. Having a single point of contact makes it easier for MTB to roll out its creative on a global scale." The online promotion, which included banner ads with colourful, eye-catching visuals of Langkawi beaches, Penang temples, Mount Kinabalu and the Kuala Lumpur city skyline, ran on a host of MSN services including the MSN homepage, Hotmail and MSN messenger. The campaign was aimed at raising awareness and driving traffic to the revamped MTB website which underwent a re-launch last December. The site offers tourists a comprehensive guide to the different tourist attractions in Malaysia including sightseeing and shopping in Kuala Lumpur, cultural and heritage sites, island life and adventure holidays. The creative was localised for each of the specific markets -- for example, the ad that ran in New Zealand asked the question 'Freezing?' and linked to the MTB site. The campaign, which also included outdoor, print and TV placements, ran for three weeks over the Christmas and New Year period and targeted affluent internet users aged 25 to 55. Subsequent campaigns are currently in the pipeline and will be rolled out over the next year.