Real Native

Real Native

Bringing a brand-new nature tourism experience to the world

Waikato, New Zealand: Tourism is an industry full of dreamers and doers – and we love working with new businesses to help them take a great idea and bring it to market. For us Mavericks, there’s something special about being part of the journey from day one – turning passion into plans, a vision into vibrancy, and a spark into a successful tourism venture.

And that’s what happened with Real Native – a premium multi-day catered walk through Waikato farmland and native bush. It all started with a referral and phone call, and turned into a fully-fledged partnership of strategy and delivery.

Working alongside the client and teaming up with Tourism x Design, our collaborative approach meant that marketing plans were built on solid strategic foundations from the beginning. Rather than creating a beautiful brand for a poorly-defined product, or developing an amazing strategy with no way to execute it, we had both firing in sync.

Together, we’ve given Real Native a stunning visual identity and brand story, launched a multi-layered marketing campaign to drive awareness and bookings, and built the foundations for sustainable, long-term success.

Client

Real Native
Waikato, New Zealand

Project

Branding & positioning
Campaign development

Go to website

Real Native

Starting with strong roots

To get started, we rolled up our sleeves and headed to the Waikato to see the site in person, meet the team, and get the strategy balls rolling. Across a series of face-to-face meetings and virtual calls, we worked in tandem from the ground up, identifying unique points of difference, target markets with the best potential, and the key moments that would enhance the overall guest experience. Brad from Tourism x Design tackled the business foundations and experience guidelines, while we focused on building a new website, and sorting the digital fundamentals.

By bringing in two specialist industry perspectives alongside the client’s ideas and vision, we were able to draw on our collective expertise to quickly gain momentum in bringing the product to fruition, staying focussed on creating a premium guest experience right from day one.

A brand and identity to be proud of

One of the most rewarding parts of this project has been helping Real Native discover and articulate what makes their experience stand out. Brad sought to differentiate Real Native as “not just another farm walk” – identifying aspects like their inland Waikato location, the abundance of native birdlife, their high-quality accommodation, and having a variety of route options for varying fitness levels as key product pillars.

Being located in real, rugged wilderness (not the typical coastal or mountain scenery that usually defines New Zealand’s image), showed itself as another strong competitive advantage. From here, a clear target market emerged – women aged 45-65 who enjoy getting into nature while also appreciating comfort and convenience.

Real Native

We were then able to dial up these elements in our marketing messaging – our primary angle being the joy of re-connecting with friends and going off-grid for some quality time together, with a touch of luxe.

Trust building is a slow burn – and at a higher price point, we knew we had a big task on our hands to demonstrate the value of the Real Native experience, without having a legacy of previous customer reviews to rely on.

Spreading the word

With a defined target market, clear selling points and bookings open for the inaugural season, the Maverick team jumped in with a savvy campaign across paid search and social. In-depth SEO research and competitor analysis gave us a solid set of keywords to target, and we designed aesthetic on-brand creatives to stand out on social feeds. An early-bird launch promotion helped to convert curiosity into bookings, with a tinge of urgency.

Covering all the important bases, we helped create social media pages and an email marketing funnel – providing a mechanism to capture interest from their Fieldays expo stand and turn them into early brand ambassadors. Facebook and Instagram pages quickly grew and became a hub for behind-the-scenes updates, stories from the first walkers, and for word-of-mouth to ripple through.

Overall, the marketing funnel we’ve built for Real Native allows us to simultaneously spark awareness, capture interest, guide the right mix of users to the website, and provide hooks to book. The initial results speak for themselves – with an incredible 75 bookings in just the first five weeks, a notable achievement given it’s an all-new, multi-day experience with a premium price tag.

Listen, learn, adapt, win

With any new experience comes the importance of listening to customer feedback, learning the stand-outs and the pain-points, and using these to continually enhance the product and promotion. Together, we’ve stayed nimble as the experience evolves, refining the website layout, tweaking USPs in Google Ad copy, and testing a variety of visuals in Meta Ads to optimise clicks.

Early guest reviews told us that using more imagery of the forest rather than the farmland, and highlighting the special touches in the accommodation would resonate with audiences strongly. So we realigned the messaging to “adventure wrapped in luxury”, a shift that’s helped unlock deeper engagement within our campaigns.

One step at a time

For new tourism businesses, we know every marketing dollar matters, and spending strategically is key to staying visible and viable. Having laid the groundwork, we’re in for the long-haul as we scale for season two and beyond – developing Real Native into a remarkable retreat that stands proudly alongside New Zealand’s renowned eco-tourism attractions and Great Walks.

As the digital acquisition landscape evolves with AI influencing how people discover and plan their holidays, we’re already monitoring and adjusting our approach to stay ahead of the curve. From the big milestones to the small wins, we’re proud to be walking this path together.

Get in touch with us to explore our marketing retainer options.