TICNSW Newsletter | February 2011

March 16, 2011 · by ADMIN · eNewsletters

NSW Election – The Opposition launches NSW tourism policy….

The NSW Opposition announced their NSW Tourism Policy today stating that “A NSW Liberals & Nationals Government will create Destination NSW to sell NSW here and overseas, boost tourism funding by $45 million and strategically aim to double tourism in NSW by 2020.”

NSW Opposition Leader Barry O’Farrell and Shadow Minister for Hospitality, Tourism and Major Events George Souris in their announcement said, “This is a plan to make NSW the number one tourism destination in Australia and double tourism in our state by 2020.A $40 million boost to the Destination NSW budget will drive our efforts to rebuild the State’s tourism industry”.

It was also stated by the Opposition Leader that, “These new initiatives complement our plans to deliver a new world-class convention, hotel and entertainment centre in Darling Harbour and provide a $5 million budget boost to Regional Tourism Organisations across NSW to develop tourism product and attractions.” We understand this $5million addition for regional tourism is a “one-off” payment but will aim to get further clarity on this soon.

So the key points from today’s policy announcement were;

”A NSW Liberals & Nationals Government will commit to:

Create Destination NSW, bringing together the marketing functions of Tourism NSW and Events NSW into the one entity;

Boost tourism funding for Destination NSW by $40 million;
Establish a Visitor Economy Taskforce to deliver a strategy with industry to double overnight visitor expenditure in NSW by 2020.

TICNSW congratulates George Souris (the Opposition spokesperson for Tourism) and the Coalition on the initiatives announced today. They have directly responded to TICNSW’s call for:

The development of a focused industry driven plan for tourism in NSW that aims to unlock the potential tourism growth for NSW and sets an inspirational visitor growth target out to 2020, that government and industry can work towards together.

An integrated, whole of government approach to planning, development and marketing of tourism in NSW, and
Increased funding to develop and promote tourism in NSW, particularly regional tourism.

Each of these actions were key parts of our “Going for Growth” tourism policy document, released in September last year. So we very much welcome this announcement and look forward to continuing a dialogue as to how these initiatives will be implemented by a Coalition government, if elected.

Natural disasters – Floods and Cyclones …

Our thoughts are with our tourism colleagues in Queensland and Victoria who have been impacted by the recent floods and cyclones. For those operators in Northern NSW who have been impacted by the floods it is generally now back to business as usual.

There are a couple of implications from these recent natural disasters for the NSW tourism industry.

We are expecting to see a lot of competition in the domestic market to chase the domestic dollar. And, in particular, we anticipate that we will see a very strong response from Tourism Queensland to tell their story and generate strong sales campaigns for their region. This presents an opportunity to promote regional tourism in NSW and say something positive about the regional NSW experience.

While the floods have brought challenges for operators, we’re seeing parts of NSW which have been dry for 10 years, now full of water and rich with wildlife and flora and fauna experiences. This is a great opportunity to highlight some special experiences that outback and country NSW now offers visitors!

New Business Improvement Programs …

A key focus for TICNSW is helping the NSW industry to develop its skills and knowledge to better manage and grow your business in the changing and challenging environment that is the tourism industry today.

So we are really pleased to announce two great value initiatives for industry members:

1. TOURISM BUSINESS MENTORING PROGRAM

A special offer for tourism operators! Representing $3000 worth of value for only $500!

Small business operators have the opportunity to be part of a Tourism Business Mentoring Program in Greater Sydney, thanks to a $20,000 NSW Government grant awarded to the Tourism Industry Council NSW. The program includes 15 hours of small-group business skills workshops, ten hours of specialist mentoring, work on a special business project and two networking events. This program has a focus on local tourism operators within the Greater Sydney and Sydney regions.

The program which will commence on 1st March includes a series of customised workshops coupled with mentoring offering experienced business people who can offer practical support. Workshops will include Business Planning, Financial Fundamentals, Marketing, AussieHost Customer Service and Strategic Selling Skills.

The Business Mentoring Program runs from 1st March to 14th June 2011 at Mercure Sydney Parramatta and is a program conducted by the Tourism Industry Council NSW. Business owners who are interested are encouraged to contact Karina Groth on 0401 276 428 or email aussiehost@ticnsw.com.au for further information.

2. AUSSIEHOST ONE DAY CUSTOMER SERVICE WORKSHOPS

One of the keys to success is ensuring that staff are trained and ready to manage the demands of service delivery in a hopefully busy and exciting 2011.

The AussieHost One Day Customer Service training program is specifically tailored for businesses to maximise sales potential by preparing new and existing staff for selling and service.

We are offering a program on Friday 11th March 2011 at the Australian Hotel Association Training Rooms, Level 15, Hudson House, 131 Macquarie St, Sydney. Parking is recommended in the Opera House Carpark at 2 Macquarie St which offers an early-bird rate of $16 for the day if you enter between 6:00am and 10:00am and exit between 3:00pm and 7:30pm.

The course runs from 8.45am for 9.00am start with conclusion at 4.30pm. The objective is to cover the following critical service aspects:

Identify the importance of good customer service to Australia and the role they play.

Meet and greet to customer in an appropriate manner,
Understand the importance of high standard of workplace and personal presentation.
Use all forms of communication to communicate clearly with the customer and make a good first impression.
Listen effectively to customers and understand their individual needs.
Use effective techniques to handle customer complaints and dissatisfaction.
Increase their professionalism and price in providing service to their customers and community

SPECIAL OFFER: $195 per person including GST for full day program (normally $295.00 per person).

To register please contact Karina Groth, AussieHost Coordinator on 0401 276 428 or aussiehost@ticnsw.com.au

Latest Inbound Visitor Arrival statistics just released …

Overseas Arrivals and Departures – December 2010 have just recently been released. The key points include:

Growth in inbound travel to NSW has slowed significantly in the December 2010 quarter to just around 3.4 per cent compared to strong 9.5 per cent growth in the September quarter. However, it should be noted that growth remains above the decade average of 1.2% per cent.

In year-ended terms, short-term visitors to NSW rose by 5.9% per cent in December 2010, which is above the national average of 5.7% per cent.
The moderation in growth in visitors to Australia has seen over the past few months reflects a slowing in visitor growth from Asian source markets. Meanwhile, there are tentative signs that the UK market is starting to recover, with the UK posting their first monthly growth in visitors to Australia since March 2010.
In monthly average terms, growth in outbound travel declined from 11.7% per cent in the September quarter to just 7.3% percent in the December quarter.

Reminder LGSA Tourism Conference …

The Local Government Tourism Conference 2011 will take place on March 9-11 in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire. The conference will deliver a challenging and highly informative program dealing with many aspects of Local Government’s engagement with tourism. Conference sessions will deal with topics including: