The new challenge for Aussie tourism
It’s been 30 years since Paul Hogan leapt onto the global scene and talked about coming to Australia and throwing a shrimp on the barbie.
But the world, and subsequently the global traveller, has changed infinitely, and the time has come to shake up the way our country is marketed.
“We’ve got a whole new group of travellers who wouldn’t have seen that campaign, so that kind of Australia wouldn’t appeal to them,” Carnival Australia’s CEO Anny Sherry AO said at the Tourism and Transport Forum’s Outlook 2015 Conference on Friday.
“What do we now need to do differently?”
It was a question posed to the panel that narrowed in on how to attract tomorrow’s traveller and a cohesive country was at the heart of the solution.
“Making a statement about a country still matters, but you’ve got to stand for something,” Fairfax Media’s managing director of Fairfax Events Andrew McEvoy said.
“States don’t matter overseas, but capital cities, wine regions, experiences, individual people all matter.”
And Tourism Australia’s international deputy chief executive officer Frances-Anne Keeler agreed.
“We have to stand for something cohesively,” she insisted.
“All our marketing is based on consumer research, and that research is still telling us that what makes Australia is its natural beauty and the fantastic Aussie characters.”
Keeler also mentioned that people are “travelling on their bellies” and that food and wine are key components to drawing new tourism markets down under.
Campaigns such as the widely successful Restaurant Australia campaign have become the benchmark for how Australia attracts both new and old travellers to the country.
“You’ve got to allow the country to speak for itself,” McEvoy added, saying that the personality of Australia has evolved over time.
“The good old days of Australia being seen as a free spirited, relaxed kind of place is under threat. You can go to Brazil and attend an event over there and you’ll see it’s the same as Australia used to be.”
Clemenger Group’s managing director Andrew Holt chimed in to this sentiment, adding that while there are a lot of things Aussie marketing is doing right, the sense of authenticity is getting lost along the way.
“The future traveller is looking for macro trends and is on the search for authentic experiences,” he said.
“They’re thinking of themselves not as tourists but as travellers, but the bit we’re not doing quite right is that authentic experience.”
“When Hogan told the world to ‘come and say g’day’, he nailed that. I’m not sure we’re nailing that authenticity as good as we could, and we need to build that into the Australian brand.”
But have we seen enough of the classic campaign and ochre Aussie accents?
“Brand is overused, and Hoge’s is talked about too much,” McEvoy said.
“We need to tell a genuine story, and the media has changed so much now that you can tell more interesting, quirky and fun stories than ever before.”
McEvoy insists that the media has paved the way for destinations to be marketed with these unique new initiatives, such as MONA and Restaurant Australia.
“There are cool hotels in New York and London and plenty of Aussies are staying there. Clearly there’s a market for Australians who want to stay in places like this, and that should be a focus in the future.”
Moderator of the panel Sherry put it to the panel to sum up Australia’s branding in a sharp elevator pitch, encompassing the road we now need to follow to enhance the Aussie brand.
“Australia is like a second country. It’s the place you come to and leave a little bit more Australian,” Holt said.
“It’s all about the people and the way we live.”
“Getting what it feels like to be in Australia across in our brand is what we need to look at in the future.”
Straining back to the point about genuine stories, and clinging on to that free spirited, rule breaking character, McEvoy sung a more blunt tune.
“Australia is the Betty Ford clinic of the world,” McEvoy said.
“In a world of chaos, it’s the place you come and unwind.”
Now surely, that’s a nice escape to market Australia with?
Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au
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When I was a little boy we were sold this dream that Australia was a paradise with Koalas and Crocodiles, but when I went there it was just like any other place but stinking hot. I think they should be more honest with their tourism.
I think they should talk all the great stuff it has to offer like Coles, flip flops and juicy ripe avocados, not all this nonsense about spiders and the Opera house. I went to opera once in was rubbish. They couldn’t even sing properly. I fell asleep and dropped my little tub of ice cream. Why would people come from civilised places like Wales just to hear Australian’s singing in italian? Shape up Aussie tourism Board.