One of the lost arts in marketing, according to Kathryn Illy, is stakeholder engagement. “I think we may have forgotten how to engage,” the Destination NSW GM of marketing believes.

“As technology continues to develop, we need to come back to the basic principles of how to build relationships and engage with stakeholders – picking up a phone and having a face-to-face conversation.”

Such whole-of-organisation influence is critical in Illy’s playbook at DNSW. And in a public sector promotional body driven by visitor outcomes and funded by taxpayer dollars, it’s arguably even more essential to foster buy-in– especially given the need to adapt and be nimble in the face of consumer and macro-economic change. So bringing stakeholders along the journey has worked in lockstep with every decision Illy has taken to move marketing forward since she joined the NSW promotional body four years ago.

Effective marketing strategy

One pivotal initiative Illy has led is the launch of Destination NSW’s ‘Feel New’ visitor brand to reposition NSW as the premier visitor destination brand in the Asia-Pacific.

“When I joined, tourism was reeling from Covid-19. Travel had become about safety, not inspiration. Compounding this was the lack of a unified brand for Sydney and NSW for over a decade,” she explains. “This presented both a challenge and an opportunity to reignite desire for travel and restore NSW’s competitive advantage.”

Development of a long-term brand strategy had three objectives: Position NSW as the leading destination in the Asia-Pacific; ensure NSW ranks first in consideration; and drive demand and grow the visitor economy through increased visitation and spend.

Underpinning this were four strategic priorities: Unify Sydney and NSW under one compelling, differentiated brand; deliver a brand that citizens are proud of; extend the brand beyond leisure to include business, education and trade audiences; and develop a sustainable, long-term positioning that adapts to evolving conditions.

“I set the vision, ensuring alignment across government, industry, and internal stakeholders. And I led the go to market process of each campaign burst from research, creative development, execution and stakeholder engagement,” says Illy. “Build the Brand is a strategic pillar of the NSW Government’s visitor economy strategy, delivering exceptional results to date.”

These stretch from NSW improving its visitor ranking, to incremental visitor expenditure and a strong return on investment.

“Beyond immediate commercial impact, Feel New has changed how NSW is marketed and experienced. It is more than just a campaign, it is a long-term brand strategy that continues to drive economic impact, industry alignment, and tourism growth into the future,” says Illy.

More recently, Illy recognised the need to continue investing in the Feel New brand while still driving shorter-term demand for the NSW visitor economy, reframed the challenge as an opportunity, coining the concept of ‘Brandemand’.

“This is about blending brand and performance marketing into a unified strategy. The principle was simple: If we had one dollar to invest, we needed to make it sweat,” Illy explains. “We extended traditional conversion-led partnership campaigns up the funnel, integrating brand-building elements via above-the-line channels like TV, print and outdoor.”

Marketing is often treated as the creative department – the storytellers. Or worse, the colouring-in department. But real marketing power lies in its ability to shape business strategy, says Illy.

One of the ways she sees marketing making progress in this vein is by proactively taking the reins on digital strategy.

“As an executive leader, I’ve embedded marketing at the centre of decision-making, championing digital transformation to elevate Destination NSW’s strategic influence,” she continues. “Our role in the consumer journey is one of influence – shaping desire, inspiring intent, and driving action. To do this effectively, we needed a smarter, more connected digital foundation.”

In partnership with Destination NSW’s digital team, Illy led development of a long-term digital transformation strategy,  implementing a Customer Data Platform (CDP) last year.

“This is more than a marketing upgrade, it’s a shift in how we influence, operate, and deliver value.”

Helping better understand what makes customers think about visiting the state through all stages before conversion is critical. But Destination NSW didn’t have a specific ‘customer ownership’ role when Illy joined the organisation from PwC four years ago. So as Mi3 has previously reported, she created one. It’s all part of brand and demand working in tandem, with the top of the funnel now better feeding the bottom.

“Our brand metrics continue to grow and equally our return on investment [within] campaign performance marketing continues to grow,” says Illy. “It’s not a debate of either [brand or performance], it has to be an and – striking the right balance between the two.”

Commercial delivery

The business lens has extended a step further with a new look at Destination NSW’s partnerships approach.

“Marketing is often judged by creativity, but when it comes to taxpayers' money, we judge it by outcomes,” Illy comments. “Every dollar we invest has to be measured, and every dollar has to deliver a return.”

Faced with this reality, Illy led the development of a strategic partnership model that prioritises investment based on commercial value and strategic alignment. It’s a model designed to help the partnerships team allocate resources and invest in partners with the highest growth potential and measurable return. And the model has now become a key tool in enabling fast, data-driven decisions on where to invest for the greatest impact and ROI.

“This model demonstrates marketing’s direct contribution to growth and firmly positions it as a high-performing, revenue-driving function within Destination NSW,” says Illy.

People leadership

Driving Illy’s leadership style is a passion for solving complex business problems through customer-centric marketing and building high-performing, empowered teams. As a CMO, she describes her approach as “inspirational, commercial and strategic”.  

“At Destination NSW, I’ve cultivated a culture that is responsive, adaptive, and rooted in continuous learning—where people feel supported to innovate, experiment, grow, and most importantly, have fun,” she says.

To future-proof capability, she’s launched ongoing training programs with ADMA and the Australian Marketing Institute, building expertise in martech, digital strategy, and consumer insights, while tapping into partners' networks for added value. Investments into tools and workflows to give teams autonomy, visibility and purpose are ongoing.

“I lead with a collaborative and consultative style, creating space for people to take ownership. Through mentoring, coaching, and thought leadership, I help emerging marketers build confidence and a strategic mindset,” Illy says.

Championing diversity and inclusion in leadership is another must, and through her roles with the AMI and UTS Advisory Board, Illy is helping shape the future of marketing education and industry standards, “giving back to an industry that’s given me so much”, she says.

“I lead a team at Destination NSW that does not just promote destinations. We create experiences, shift perceptions, and drive tangible economic results. Our marketing does not just serve a brand; it serves an entire state economy. That requires a team and culture that’s equipped to adapt, lead, and thrive – and that’s what I’ve built,” she concludes.