Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism will host a one-day contest on its Facebook page on Wednesday, giving consumers the chance to win one of 48 round-trip flights on WestJet.
The contest runs from noon on Wednesday, June 22 until noon on Thursday, June 23. Contestants can enter at Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism’s Facebook page, with one participant winning a flight every half-hour during the 24-hour period. Individuals can enter once per half-hour.
The contest was put together by St. John’s agency Target Marketing and Communications, which initiated the partnership between Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism and WestJet.
Jenny Smith, creative group head at Target, said the division of the contest into 48 half-hour sections is in keeping with a theme introduced by television ads that launched in January. Those spots referenced Newfoundland’s unique time zone, which is half an hour ahead of the rest of Atlantic Canada.
“Having our own time zone is a product of our geography and it’s a compelling part of this place,” said Smith. “It’s also a metaphor for who we are as people.
“We just thought that making a lot of noise about it over one day would create a lot of buzz and get people excited about coming here.”
Smith said the use of Facebook was also a nod to the tourism research habits of consumers.
“Our core touring and exploring audience skews older; it’s 45-plus. But that audience is the fastest-growing group on Facebook, so we thought this was a great way to reach them,” said Smith. “And most people these days do their research and travel planning online, so fittingly the contest is being held on Facebook.”
The contest is open to Canadian residents outside Quebec. Residents of Newfoundland and Labrador can enter, but any winners from the province must use their flights to bring in visitors from elsewhere in the country.
