Results and Effectiveness

342,965 plays from the Tourism Malaysia Vimeo platform. TVC cost savings (production) valued at MYR 5,000,000 (USD 1.5 Million). Total Malaysia inbound tourists managed to stay on a positive growth (despite global economic slowdown) from 24+ million to 25+ million. Inbound tourists from respective countries include: USA +10.8%; France +6.4%; Germany +5.3%; Italy +1.1%; Denmark +9.6%; Spain +6.7%; and UK +0.4% The Vimeo community engaged with these videos, generating conversation both within the community and beyond as they shared with other friends. Five filmmakers were so inspired that they created an additional eleven videos, at no additional cost.

Creative Execution

Malaysia, My Journey - Stories told from the eyes of budding and talented filmmakers selected from 5 countries – including US, UK and 3 other European countries. To capture these explorers’ attention and to inspire them to visit Malaysia, we collaborated with Vimeo and engaged their 'Super Vimeons' - users who have a high follower and fan base. We engaged 10 filmmakers who were avid explorers from different walks of life, and gave them different destinations and/or topics to cover. Working in pairs, they were tasked to personalize their journey through videos and tell the world their story of "Malaysia, My Journey". Malaysia Tourism's investment was kept to a minimum to cover the filmmakers' travel, food, and lodging. They were commissioned to produce ten short videos. These videos offered the world the hidden treasures that no commercialized tourism video could capture.

Insights, Strategy and the Idea

As travel today gets cheaper and consumer reviews become brutally honest and easily available, travellers sometimes form a perception of the place even before they decide on the destination. We wanted to reach out to the explorer and adventurer in every traveller, and tell them visual stories so compelling, that they would want to experience the magnificence of Malaysia for themselves. Every traveller sees a place differently from another. What they want to experience is a reflection of their personalities, cultures and beliefs. The best way to hear about a place was from a person you know, can relate to, and ideally from the same culture as you. The idea: “Malaysia, My Journey”.