UNLESS you have been living under a rock for the last fortnight you would know by now that Novak Djokovic won the Australian Open men’s final on Sunday.
You would also be aware the Swan Hill Lawn Tennis Club won first prize in a national competition to have the world number one represent Swan Hill at the event.
Upon winning, hopes ran high around town in anticipation that the Djoker himself might pay us a visit out here in the Mallee, but alas he didn’t come on Monday, was nowhere to be seen Tuesday, and is probably home in Serbia with his wife and baby boy as you read this story today.
Although many fans who rallied to the call of ‘Get behind the Mallee Djoker’ may be disappointed by the no-show they can rest assured that the Australian Open men’s singles trophy, the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup, will indeed come to Swan Hill in the coming months.
Another massive positive to come from the two week rollercoaster ride of enthusiasm has been the ability of locals to help raise the profile of their home town.
While marketing coordinator at Swan Hill Incorporated Julie Wiggins was still crunching the numbers on how much exposure Swan Hill gained from having the world number one represent Swan Hill at the Australian Open it is known that the two week social media campaign to ‘Get behind the Mallee Djoker’ accumulated 1 million unique views.
“The exposure on social media and TV definitely was worth all the effort that went into it, plus it has brought the town together and gave people a common focus,” Ms Wiggins said.
“From the perspective of Swan Hill Inc we have been really happy to be involved in the whole process but it must be said that the Swan Hill Lawn Tennis Club did well firstly winning the competition to get Novak to represent us and secondly to coordinate such a massive social media campaign.”
For more on this story, grab a copy of Wednesday’s Guardian (February 3).
