Three ways to promote your business or event for free in the City of Melbourne*

Take advantage of the City of Melbourne’s free marketing opportunities and reach more Melburnians than before.

June 2018

* Subject to business criteria

List on the What’s On website

To be considered for free promotion, simply submit your business or event online[1] at whatson.melbourne.vic.gov.au.

By listing, you can reach even more Melburnians via our What's On Melbourne channels:

  • 6,450,000 visits annually to our What’s On website[2]
  • 80,000 subscribers receive our weekly e-newsletter[3]
  • 780,000 followers combined on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

These figures are correct as at June 2018.

Join our seasonal campaigns

Apply to be part of our seasonal marketing campaigns for free advertising for your business or event.

To ensure you don’t miss the dates to apply, simply subscribe to our newsletter at melbourne.vic.gov.au/marketingcampaigns[4]

Our 3 seasonal campaigns include:

  • Summer​[5]- January to February
  • Winter​[6]- June to August
  • Christmas[7]- November to December

Eligible businesses within the City of Melbourne municipality may receive free advertising in our seasonal campaigns, through channels such as:

  • Digital, radio and outdoor advertising
  • What's On website
  • Weekly e-newsletter
  • Social media
  • Seasonal guides
  • Videos and blogs

Business Benefits

Independent research^ estimates that last year's seasonal campaigns generated:

Winter: 89,000 extra visits to the city and $22 million additional spend with city businesses

Christmas: 81,000 extra visits to the city and $25 million additional spend with city businesses

^ Winter and Christmas campaign research,Whereto 2017

Provide strong social media content

Boost exposure for your business or event by submitting your content at melbourne.vic.gov.au/digitalmarketing[8]

Businesses or events can be featured in our social media channels by following the steps below.

Must Haves:

  • A listing[9] on our What’s On website - whatson.melbourne.vic.gov.au
  • A great photo (refer photo tips below)
  • Short, succinct information to use for the social media caption (refer copy tips below)
  • Provide 2-4 weeks before preferred publication date

Photo tips:

  • Photo should be high resolution (1MB or more) with no text, logos or graphics
  • Bright, colourful and in focus
  • Facebook and Twitter: preferred format is landscape (horizontal rectangle)
  • Instagram: preferred format is square or portrait (vertical rectangle)

Copy tips:

  • Keep it brief
  • Include the most newsworthy aspect of your event or business or a compelling story
  • Don’t use promotional or sales focused language

Hashtag:

  • Remember to use #MelbMoment when posting on your Instagram page. We continuously review content that includes this hashtag to share across our channels.

Important information

To be considered for promotion, your business or event must be located within the City of Melbourne municipality and you must have a listing on our What's On website.

We curate all content published on our social hub and retain editorial rights over content submissions. We reserve the right to decline to publish any business or event that we deem unsuitable.

Contact us

Find more information about our marketing opportunities at melbourne.vic.gov.au/digitalmarketing[10].
If you have questions, contact us at .

Like us on Facebook /whatsonmelb

Follow us on Twitter @whatsonmelb

Follow us on Instagram @whatsonmelb

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