She had visited the Northern Territory’s capital city when she was younger and knew it was a “very relaxed and welcoming place”.

Ms Rapley is the head of Marketforce North, a new advertising joint venture between Colemans Printing and Perth-based Marketforce.

“The Territory symbolised a new challenge for me,” she says. “I’ve always loved being part of a community and was excited to be able to put my skill set to use on a more intimate level. My passion and excitement for what I do comes from actually seeing businesses grow and achieve their goals. I get a much clearer view of that here.”

Colemans has recently taken on two other staff from outside the Territory – financial controller George Chen from China and graphic designer Daniel Curts Jimenez from Mexico. They are part of a wave of new Territorians enticed to attractive jobs and supported by the NT  Government’s Welcome to the Territory incentives package.

Colemans chief executive Magdaline Coleman says the Welcome to the Territory incentives are a “great idea”.

“The retention of good people in The Territory will help us all move the Territory forward,” she says.

Ms Coleman says recruiting from outside the Territory is not difficult – the company has a state-of-the-art HQ in Darwin and Marketforce North offers staff a locally run company with family values backed up by the power and support of a national network.

“The Territory is a market that for too long has been overlooked by the industry and deserves a dedicated agency service and all new employees contribute to the start of this change.”

The Territory Government has released a progress report a year on from the launch of its 2018–2028 Northern Territory Population Growth Strategy, which aims to boost population and create jobs.

The 10-year strategy includes five focus areas:

1. Attracting investment and creating jobs – the NT has $24 billion in significant and major projects in the pipeline, including Project Sea Dragon; the Arnhem Space Centre; Sun Cable’s solar farm; mining of titanium, lithium and vanadium; the Westin luxury hotel and Australia’s largest ship lift.
2. An estimated 11,000 jobs will be created pre and post-construction.
3. The investments bring certainty, confidence and employment opportunities that are good for Territory families and those considering moving here.
4. The Boundless Possible campaign – more than 2000 people are registered with the strategy’s online database. They are made up of those who want to move to the Territory, want to visit, are interested in the Territory or used to live here.
5. A comprehensive suite of engagement programs is in place, including sending regular emails with targeted content, such as events, lifestyle opportunities, real estate data, job vacancies and successful business stories to help make the decision to move.

The target is to reach 2.1m Australians with the Boundless Possible campaign. After only 10 months, research shows that 10 percent of a sample target audience saw Boundless Possible ads. Those who saw the ads doubled their desire to live, study or invest in the NT.

Attracting and retaining migrants and those from interstate – more than 450 people have relocated or are in the process of relocating to the NT through the Welcome to the Territory incentives and since the second NT Designated Area Migration Agreement for skilled overseas workers was signed late last year.

Enhancing liveability – a key focus of the strategy is ensuring Territorians stay in the NT and that the expectations of people considering a move are met.

The Territory Government has invested $4.95 million to improve the lifestyle of Palmerston families; the $200 million Cities Deal will cool, green and revitalise Darwin CBD; funded the Turbocharging Tourism campaign, and supported festivals and other events.

Understanding the drivers for change – Charles Darwin University is hosting an online survey, The Territory and Me, which involves collecting information over two years about what people like about living in the NT, what they don’t like, what encourages them to stay and how connected they feel to the Territory.

Focus groups will also be held with people about their relocation decisions.TQ