Background:After the economic collapse in Iceland, tourism replaced banking as the most important industry for the country. Visitor numbers during the summer months (apart from when the volcano hit) had been growing year on year but there had been no growth during the off-peak season.Challenge:The key objectives for this campaign were to increase visitor numbers during the off-peak months by positioning Iceland as an all year round destination. The idea had to generate global PR and inspire a hard to target ‘enlightened tourist’ to visit Iceland during the winter months.The Idea:Tourists who visit Iceland during the winter months weren’t just going to be visitors in Iceland; they were going to be ‘Honorary Icelanders’.

As ‘Honorary Icelanders’ they had access to special experiences that offered them a unique look into the life of Iceland, as Icelanders opened their homes and invited them in.

We inspired thousands of Icelanders to pledge their support to the campaign and invite tourists into their homes to experience something totally unique. They opened their doors to welcome visitors with open arms, inviting them into their lives, showing how they live and the hidden beauty of Iceland.We made news in 57 countries; the idea generated 1.18bn global media impressions.Consideration of Iceland as a winter holiday destination more than doubled (an increase of 124%) amongst 'enlightened tourists' exposed to the campaign.We created the most successful winter in Iceland’s history with tourism experiencing double digit growth, creating an additional £34m of incremental revenue to the Icelandic economy.

A Unique Approach:Instead of creating a conventional tourism marketing campaign targeting overseas tourists, our strategy was to stimulate Icelanders to be our media. By involving Icelanders we knew we could create something unique that would appeal to marketing-wary ‘enlightened tourists’.The President’s Address:We kick-started the campaign with an historic address from the President of Iceland to the nation in which he pledged his own unique invite and urged his fellow citizens to do the same. The address was webcast live online and covered by almost every global news media.Stimulating a Nation:Thousands of Icelanders responded and their invites were uploaded to the Inspired By Iceland website and Facebook pages.We then used carefully targeted digital, press and outdoor channels to spread the individual invites internationally and drive ‘enlightened tourists’ to take up the unique invitations on our website and social pages.