Redefining ZORB in traveller’s minds: shaking off stereotypes and changing perceptions

The brief 

When we say ZORB – what comes to mind? 

In early 2023, the ZORB team came to us with a dilemma. Potential customers thought that there was a lot of tumbling involved, and many of those who did book, weren’t aware that they would get wet – resulting in many guests turning up unprepared!  

So, the brief was there – help ZORB to tackle the misconceptions among domestic visitors head-on, with a dedicated awareness campaign to help break down those potential barriers to booking.  Challenge = accepted!  

The ZORB team wanted to be as hands-off as possible during the process, as they felt they were too close to the problem to look at it objectively. That’s where we came in – our team of tourism marketing professionals were engaged from end-to-end, from concept, to development, and execution. 

The process 

Over the many years we’ve worked with ZORB, we’ve built up a deep understanding of their brand personality and tone of voice. An iconic NZ experience, they’re professional and safe, whilst also being brave, quintessentially Kiwi, and not afraid to poke fun at themselves (which we love!) 

Working in tandem, our teams started at the beginning. We fleshed out problem statements, creative angles and campaign ideas through a series of collaborative workshops – our think-outside-the-box mentality meant everything and anything was on the cards at this stage. Whittling down to three solid concepts, we eventually landed on a final version that combined the best bits of our brainstorms into one epic campaign – and thus, the Slide While You Ride tagline was born. 

Now, the cool part. We popped our producer hats on and crafted a script and storyboard for a 30 second hero video, complemented by a suite of visual assets that could be applied across a variety of digital and traditional channels. This way, the campaign was set up perfectly to scale up or down across different seasons and markets. 

Filming was tons of fun. After assisting Zorb to source a range of quotes and options, we chose to go with Cambridge-based Play Creative, who were epic to work with. Shots were captured, laughs were had, and after one edit, yep – just one, to the initial first cut of the video, we were ready to go to market. 

The campaign

Meet Scotty, the Slide While You Ride guy, and the face (and body) of the campaign.  

The final concept is a tongue-in-cheek video campaign that tackles the misconceptions head-on – think of it like a mash-up of ‘Celebrities Read Mean Tweets’ and the classic Tip Top ‘Togs, togs, undies’ ad from the 90s. It’s delightfully unexpected and uniquely ZORB! 

In-market for eight weeks, this was a full-funnel, video-led campaign that spanned YouTube, Google Display and Meta with a layer of remarketing. Our target audiences were New Zealand families and people aged 30+ actively considering Rotorua as a holiday destination.  

In addition to changing the perception of the ZORB ride, we were also aiming to build domestic awareness and educate potential visitors on the overall experience – from the hot tubs at the top and bottom, to the epic location and staff (who usually wear more clothes). 

Overall, we delivered: 

• Concept development 
• Graphic Design 
• Script writing 
• Project management 
• Campaign development and execution 
• Reporting and post-campaign analysis. 

The results 

Changing perception doesn’t happen overnight; from the outset ZORB were realistic that this is the first step in working towards a mindset change in their potential customers. For several weeks before the campaign was in-market, the team ran a post-campaign survey with every customer to ascertain how many were a) expecting to tumble during the ride, and b) expecting to get wet. At the conclusion of the campaign, the same survey was used to see if the mindset had changed.  

Before the campaign, 85% of customers thought they were going to tumble during the ride. This shifted to 65% after the campaign had been in-market.  

Were you expecting to tumble during the ride? 

Before the campaign, 75% of customers knew they would get wet before arriving. This rose to 89% after the campaign had been in-market.

Did you know you would get wet?

The results are in – and it’s a resounding success in helping shift the mindsets of domestic travellers. ZORB have since created new content using the ‘Slide While You Ride’ guy, demonstrating the longevity and adaptability of the creative concept. We can’t wait to see where this campaign goes to next!

 What the client thought…

“Working with the team at Maverick is always fun and creative. When you’re a small team, having other marketing and comms people to bounce concepts off is an added advantage. We were delighted with the film crew Play Creative in terms of their professionalism, their output and turnaround time to make sure we got the finished product to market in time. Overall, we’d totally look at this as an option for other campaign development.”

Steph Smith, General Manager, Zorb