TA sets out plan to get tongues wagging

TA sets out plan to get tongues wagging
By admin


Tourism Australia has launched a series of social media guidelines for tourism businesses with the aim of making Australia the world's "most talked about" destination.

The five-step plan is laid out in a slideshare presentation available online and has already received almost 50,000 views since it was posted on Friday.

It draws on the tourism body's own expertise in the social arena, with managing director Andrew McEvoy claiming Australia as the most popular destination on Facebook, Google+ and Instagram in 2012.

"Ultimately, we want our four million Facebook fans, the 23 million Australians who live here and the 6.1 million people who visited last year to become part of the world's biggest social media team and ambassadors for our country," he said.

Creating social media platforms that encourage fans to interact and become the "hero" is one of the recommendations contained in the guidelines.

In addition, operators are advised to select the "right social media opportunities to surf", with smaller ideas such as publishing the photos of fans, often yielding good results.

Compelling stories are also an important key to social media success, according to TA, with emphasis on stories people can tell themselves and share with their social networks.

Its final recommendation is to "not be afraid" of new ideas, although it stressed the importance of testing them first and learning from them.

McEvoy highlighted the importance of social media for small to medium sized enterprises, many of which don't have the resources for traditional marketing campaigns.

"Social media has levelled the playing field for everyone and is a proven and effective way to secure endorsement," he said.

"The more operators that are willing and able to become part of our social media team, to share their great tourism experiences and demonstrate Australia as an aspiring travel destination, the better."

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