Qantas: Out Of Office Travelogue

Going on holiday? You can now transform your out of office auto reply email into a real-time travel journal, featuring photographs from your trip thanks to a new service from Qantas called 'Out of Office Travelogue'.

Recognising that millions of bland Out Of Office emails are sent out everyday to unsuspecting colleagues and friends, Qantas' new Out Of Office Travelogue endeavours to take the once mundane experience to a whole new level with an interesting and fun way to connect via an Instagram feed.

"The traditional out of office message can be both generic and impersonal in nature and from our research, sixty per cent of employees say they appreciate receiving something more creative," said Olivia Wirth, Qantas Group Executive Brand, Marketing & Corporate Affairs.

"We know that tips from friends and colleagues are the highest driver for people when choosing their next holiday destination, so we saw an opportunity to encourage travel through the millions of out of office emails being sent every day," she added.

The Qantas Out of Office Travelogue connects your email to your Instagram and updates your auto reply email with photos you select and tag with the hashtag #qantasoutofoffice. When someone emails you while you're travelling, they'll receive an email showcasing the latest photos from your travels.

Instagram Brand Development Lead, Australia and New Zealand Sophie Blachford said Qantas is innovating in the aspirational travel space and Instagram was proud to endorse the new service.

"Qantas Out of Office Travelogue is a unique and clever platform for an airline because most people who are travelling will activate their out of office as their final gleeful gesture before jetting off," she said.

"We're thrilled about partnering with Qantas to create and develop a new product and service. They’ve always been an innovative company, and this is just one more example of them improving an experience for their customers," said Justin Drape, Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer at The Monkeys, the creative agency that created the Out of Office Travelogue.

To set it up, simply go to qantasoutofoffice.com, connect your Instagram and email, enter a message and you’re good to go. The application pulls only the pictures tagged with #qantasoutofoffice, so you can curate which photos make up your auto reply message. The Out of Office Travelogue also works with private Instagram accounts.

The Qantas Out of Office Travelogue works on all Office 365 emails and all Gmail accounts, including other domains that use the Gmail inbox.