A national campaign to position VictoriaÕs Spring Racing Carnival changed the perception of horse racing in Victoria from a niche sport for old men into a fashionable party event for young women and their partners, and has grown attendance at racing carnivals to levels not seen for decades. RacingÕs image problem had led to a steady decline in attendance levels in the early 90s. Ad agency Lowe Lintas and media company Initiative Media devised a campaign to create a whole new breed of influential racing enthusiast Ñ women, the key decision makers when it comes to organising social outings and a group whose disposable income is on the rise. ÒWe knew if we got women to attend the races then the men would follow,Ó says Danny Curran, general manager of marketing at Racing Victoria. The need for a campaign to attract them recognised a huge growth opportunity. Lowe Lintas and Initiative created the ÒLet yourself goÓ campaign in 1996, what would be phase one in the gradual turnaround of horse racing, followed in 1999 by phase two, ÒFancy a bit of horseplayÓ. The ÒLet yourself goÓ campaign was designed specifically to target women, portraying the Spring Racing Carnival as a party, to begin attracting them to the sport itself. The campaign used party imagery such as fashionably-dressed, attractive women and champagne. Besides television and outdoor advertising to achieve broad reach, and Avant Card postcards in cafe and entertainment precincts, the agencies devised two influential elements to the campaign: radio coverage generating word-of-mouth and a magazine insert, Your Guide to Racing. The radio component used prime morning and afternoon programs popular with Racing VictoriaÕs target audience of 18 to 39 year-old women. Triple MÕs Grill Team on Friday afternoons, and Livinia Nixon and James OÕNeill on Monday and Friday mornings on TT FM Ñ which has a mostly female audience Ñ would talk about the upcoming horse racing events during their programs. Initiative Media worked with Australian Consolidated Press on the magazine insert, Your Guide to Racing. It was placed in ACP mass titles such as Australian WomenÕs Weekly, and NW to reach a broad audience, as well as high-fashion titles such as HarperÕs Bazaar to reach young, affluent, style-conscious women. The insert aimed to generate reader involvement in the sport, says David Hoyle, general manager at Initiative. ÒIt provided useful information for the racing novice: what to wear, what to put in the picnic basket, how to bet and so on.Ó Network Ten received the lionÕs share of the TV advertising, as the official broadcast sponsor of the Spring Racing Carnival. Ads aired in programs rating high among women, such as Ally McBeal and Friends. Research into the effectiveness of the campaign, conducted by Ross Knight Research in April 1999, revealed that unaided recall for racing advertising was at 69%, and the slogan, ÒLet yourself goÓ, enjoyed a 69% prompted recall and 9% unprompted recall. Focus groups were conducted last year before the agencies developed phase two of the campaign, extending the appeal of racing from women aged 18 to 39 to include men of the same age. Women in the focus groups said that they wanted to see men in advertising for horse racing. ÒFancy a bit of horseplayÓ, phase two, launched last year featuring two women and two men having fun at the races. The characters Ñ ÒDanÓ, ÒJustinÓ, ÒClarissaÓ and ÒColetteÓ Ñ were created to develop with the campaign, Òmuch like the stars of popular sitcoms like Friends and SeinfeldÓ, says David Stretch, managing director of Lowe Lintas. In one TV spot, Clarissa flirts with a guy who later walks off with another man. Another involves horse trainer Bart Cummings, kissed on the cheeks by both girls, leaving lipstick impressions. The four characters will tell an ongoing story as the campaign progresses. Since the ÒLet yourself goÓ campaign, attendance levels at some racing carnivals have been their highest in decades. The FosterÕs Melbourne Cup last November saw its highest attendance in 50 years Ñ at 104,028 compared to 90,149 in 1996. The Caulfield Cup had its highest attendance levels for 21 years, at 43,347 compared to 36,112 in 1996. The five-day Spring Racing Carnival last year achieved a record total attendance of 593,000 Ñ consisting of 63% from Melbourne, 12% from country Victoria, 19% from interstate and 6% from overseas. The economic impact of last yearÕs carnival was $238.2m according to an Economic Benefits Study commissioned by Racing Victoria from IER Strategic Planning. Says Curran: ÒBefore we had a small percentage of people going a lot. Now we have a larger percentage going a few times a year, which is a better position to be in.Ó
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