Council votes to renew billboard contract

JUNEE Shire Council has voted to renew its Hume Highway billboard contract for a further 12 months, continuing a marketing campaign aimed at attracting travellers and boosting the local visitor economy.

The decision was formally resolved at Council’s April Ordinary Meeting following debate over the value and future role of the prominent roadside advertising site, located on the southbound side of the Hume Highway at the Mungi Mungi Rest Area near Coolac.

Under the renewed agreement with oOh!media, Council will spend $24,050 to retain the billboard for another year, with the design, printing and installation of new skins expected to bring the total spend to $27,650.

The expense will be funded entirely from Council’s existing visitor economy and economic development marketing budget.

The motion also commits Council to supporting the campaign with regular creative updates and stronger performance monitoring.

However, the decision was not unanimous, with councillors Robin Asmus, David Carter, Andrew Clinton and Pam Halliburton voting against the motion.

Council papers described the billboard as a strategic tourism asset, providing Junee with exposure to a large self-drive audience travelling one of Australia’s busiest interstate corridors.

The advertising space has previously been used to promote the “Enjoy Every Piece of Junee” tourism campaign, major attractions and seasonal tourism opportunities, including canola season.

Most recently, the billboard was used to promote a live music weekend in Junee in March 2026 | Image: Nathan Pratt via LinkedIn

In recommending renewal, staff argued the billboard serves a different role to digital advertising by targeting travellers already on the road and within practical stopping or detour distance of Junee.

The report acknowledged direct measurement of visitation generated by the campaign remained difficult, but said destination marketing rarely relied on single-channel attribution alone.

Instead, Council was advised to consider whether the billboard remained a strategically aligned and financially contained component of its broader visitor economy program.

Support for renewal was also linked to positive feedback from local businesses, recognition recorded through the Visitor Information Centre, and the billboard’s alignment with Council’s wider tourism and destination branding efforts.

A previous design pictured in 2024 | Image: Nathan Pratt via LinkedIn

As part of the renewed arrangement, Council staff have been directed to strengthen monitoring and evaluation measures.

These include aligning campaigns with key tourism periods and events, integrating messaging with digital and social media promotion, gathering feedback from visitors and businesses, and continuing to refresh artwork up to three times annually.

Council officers said the enhanced monitoring framework would provide a stronger evidence base ahead of any future renewal decision.

The report also outlined alternative options, including expanding advertising onto the Federation Highway to target travellers from Canberra and eastern approaches, or discontinuing the billboard altogether and redirecting funding into marketing channels with more measurable outcomes.

Ultimately, councillors resolved to retain the Hume Highway presence for at least another year as part of Junee’s broader tourism marketing strategy.