Our Approach

The Puffing Billy steam train is one of Victoria’s primary international visitor attractions, but long-term sustainability relies on its ability to attract local Victorians and Australians more often. Together with our client, The Emerald Railway Tourism Board, 600 Puffing Billy volunteers and representatives from local heritage boards and Visit Victoria we helped Puffing Billy Railway shift from a brand focussed on heritage only to a heritage brand promising memorable, contemporary experiences.

A subtle shift, but an important one.

As such we were able to articulate - through a series of interactive stakeholder co-creation workshops - a new brand promise. The promise builds on Puffing Billy’s legendary status but also captures the emotional essence of the wonders of time travel, imagination, immersion in the natural beauty and stories from local people and passionate enthusiasts.

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Outcome

‘We are a living time machine that transports all-comers to a realm of natural wonders and endless memorable discoveries.’

iSPY delivered a refreshed brand positioning for Puffing Billy focussed on moving Puffing Billy from being a steam-train brand to an emotional promise of Endless Wonder. This included the development of key stories to act as guidelines for ongoing communication and implementation ideas which were a joint effort with iSPY's creative design partner Cupla. Cupla took the strategy and developed a new visual identity and a set of visual guidelines and assets which culminated in a brand playbook.