Nelson Tasman Tourism October 2011 Newsletter

CEO Comment

Hi everyone.  We’ve been trying to get this newsletter out for a few weeks …and now, instead of a lead-up to the RWC2011 event, I’m reporting that it is over.

The month of September 2011 seemed to fly by from the arrival of the Italian team on the 2^nd to the departure of the Qantas Great Crusade Campervan Tour, and the Australian and Russian teams, on 2 October. We’ve had positive feedback from the accommodation, activity and hospitality sectors that the RWC2011 event has generated additional visitation and business, which is very pleasing. The world economy (and New Zealand) is still in an economic recession, so any improvement on September 2010 business results is a good story. It is important to note that had New Zealand not hosted the RWC2011, visitor numbers for September and October 2011 could possibly have been down on 2010 figures…so in that sense for the Nelson Tasman region, we have seen good visitation during September.

From a media perspective, the region has received amazing coverage from international broadcasters covering the games which has been soundly supported by a sea of great print and blog posts about the fantastic time the teams (and media) have had in the region. For Nelson Tasman Tourism, the real icing on the cake has been the sound-bites we have received from broadcasters promoting the region which have been relayed predominately to the United Kingdom, United States of America, and Australian, French and Italian markets. The ability for us to leverage off the media coverage the region has will add a new dimension to our international marketing activities in the future.

One of the most significant stories media covered was the Haka performed by 1200 Nelson College Boys and the Re-enactment of the first game of Rugby played in New Zealand, on 20 September. All the major international channels broadcast these two events and most certainly the eyes of the world were on Nelson City and the region. The other initiative the region got great exposure with, was the Mayor’s ‘Hug an Aussie Day’!

Has the RWC2011 delivered economic benefit for the region? Yes. Has every business experienced a benefit, perhaps no. It’s important to put into context these visitors are rugby travellers and their spending patterns are different from other travellers. Has the region increased its profile and future positioning as a desired visitor destination? Absolutely yes! It’s been a blast.

We are sad to farewell Marie Hendren who has been an integral member of the team since January 2011 in this new era of partnership and promotion. Marie returns to Queenstown after covering a maternity leave contract for Nicki van Asch. We wish Marie all the best with her new adventures in Queenstown and know she leaves as a wonderful ambassador for the region.

Over the next few months, Nelson Tasman Tourism will begin preparing for the start of the 2012 marketing programmes. We have a number of industry updates planned where we will present key findings from our Annual Report 2010/2011 and plans for marketing activities over the next twelve months. We invite your attendance and feedback, particularly as we begin the preparation of the Nelson Tasman Regional Tourism Strategic Plan 2011/2021.

The majority of the meetings have been planned to coincide with the Department of Conservation’s (DOC) round of stakeholder meetings across the region.  Dates, times and venues are as follows.

Please RSVP your attendance to: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it by 24 October. Tea, coffee and biscuits will be served on arrival.

ITOC Conference August 2011

Key comments and trends from the ITOC Conference held in August 2011 were:

• Current travel trends: a tendency for late bookings, customers now wait longer to book, and travel within 3 months of booking their trip

• On the ground booking for activities: FIT customers tend not to book activities through travel trade and will now wait until they are in the country to book their planned activities

• On line booking: customers now want to book online, and will spend longer researching their trips. Price competitiveness in product offering is forced by websites such as www.wotif.com and www.expedia.com

• Diversification of product offering (ie a tour group specialist now also offering FIT itineraries)

Key areas of growth and focus were indicated:

·    China

·    South East Asia

·    Germany

·    Cruise ships

·    Youth and backpackers

Tourism NZ International Marketing Alliance Roadshow – UK & Europe, July 2011

Loren and Lynda attended Tourism New Zealand’s annual roadshow in the UK and Europe in July. This event was highly successful and resulted in a number of new opportunities as well as being a great opportunity to introduce the new Nelson Tasman Tourism team to trade and establish relationships.

The team met with over 50 product managers from key markets in the UK, France, Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands and Switzerland. During the roadshow, Nelson Tasman Tourism also presented to over 300 reservation and frontline staff and performed in depth training sessions with over 90 of these staff in London.

Statistical evidence provided on this roadshow shows that the UK market is down in New Zealand travel bookings by 9.3% and this is believed to be part of the recession trend for ‘staycations’. Germany showed strong consistency and forward bookings show growth in this market - Nelson Tasman Tourism receives 50% of all German visitors to New Zealand. France is considered an emerging market and Nelson Tasman can expect to see some growth in this market, particularly as major French travel agencies bought large French tour groups through the region over Rugby World Cup 2011.

USA Webinar

Loren recently participated in an online webinar presentation to product managers and reservation staff across the USA. This was a joint presentation with Destination Marlborough and gave a regional overview, the highlights and must visit activities, an accommodation overview and an update on new product and news within the region.

Over 90 different viewers logged in across North America and feedback has been that the presentation was very well received. Nelson Tasman Tourism plans to participate in more of these online presentations, as an easy and cost effective way to encourage travel to the region.

International Media Hosting

Beyond RWC 2011, the Nelson Tasman Tourism International Media Team has also been busy planning itineraries and hosting other non-rugby media including:

• Post Quake South Island Media Programme – 4 Australian journalists focusing on stories around the South Island being open for business despite the Christchurch earthquake.

• Australian Geographic – Focused on a story about the Heaphy Track being open for mountain biking and the highlights of Golden Bay.

• Early September: Brancott Estate WOW Awards Media – A contingent of over 20 different art, fashion and lifestyle focused media from Hong Kong, China, Thailand, Australia, Germany, South Korea and United Kingdom. They visited the region to explore the WOW and Classic Cars Museum, wineries, art galleries and the Abel Tasman National Park.

• Late October: Society of Australian Travel Writers – 225 travel writers will attend a 2 day conference in Rotorua and it is anticipated that some of these writers will travel to the region to write travel pieces.

• Early November: Society of American Travel Writers - 450 travel writers will attend a 5 day conference in Wellington – as part of this 20 travel writers have signed up for a 5 day Nelson/Marlborough tour co-hosted with Destination Marlborough.

Other Media News

• Media Award: Loren Aberhart-Heaphy, International Marketing Manager and Tracee Neilson, International Media Liaison, were recently awarded the “Best Media Team in New Zealand” at the Tourism New Zealand RTO Awards. This was one of only five awards and recognised the team’s “enthusiasm, efficiency, hospitality, huge regional knowledge and willingness to go the extra mile”.

• International Marketing Group Media Hosting Level: Want to host international media? International media hosting is offered to International Marketing Group members in the first instance, so please feel free to give Loren Heaphy a call on 03 545 6853 to discuss how to become involved.

Joint Marketing Campaign with Interislander

Loren recently met with the Marketing Director of the Interislander in order to discuss joint marketing opportunities and a closer working relationship.  The end result of this has been a September – October marketing campaign, including a billboard in place above the Wellington Southbound Motorway from 1 September  – 31 October encouraging visitors to “cruise on over to Nelson Tasman with the Interislander”. This campaign will also feature on the Interislander website homepage and be sent out to their e-newsletter database of over 350,000.

The Estimated Advertising Value of this campaign is $100,000 (including billboard and e-newsletter) for a cost to Nelson Tasman Tourism of $1,500 for the billboard design, as well as the development of an Interislander fare finder on the www.NelsonNZ.com homepage.

South Island Self Drive Campaign

Christchurch Canterbury Tourism and Christchurch International Airport along with funding from Tourism New Zealand have begun a campaign to encourage travellers to visit Christchurch and Queenstown for spring skiing and snowboarding, as well as to self-drive the South Island. As you will be aware Canterbury have had a tough season due to the earthquakes, Queenstown lost out on a number of tourists due to a very slow start to the ski season and therefore this campaign has a large focus on these areas. Additional funding has also been supplied by TranzRail, promoting the TranzAlpine and CoastalPacific routes.

Nelson Tasman Tourism, Destination Marlborough and Tourism West Coast have been invited to be part of this joint venture campaign in a lower level of involvement – Nelson Tasman Tourism’s involvement is to encourage travellers to self-drive to our region (given we are not on the TranzRail link).

Ways we will encourage travellers north will include:

• Online northern itineraries on the campaign website

• An “off the beaten track” message for travellers looking to explore more than the traditional Christchurch-Queenstown-Milford Sound route

• Rental car and campervan deals if picked up in Nelson or Marlborough.

• An i-Phone touring application

• An authentic Facebook campaign by a key Australian travel blogger

Welcome to new Convention Marketing Group Members 2011/2012

Tahuna Function Centre and Tahuna Beach Holiday Park

onCue – Professional Conference Organiser

Move Nelson – Segway Tours of Nelson City

Executive Limousines – Limousine and custom tour services

Cognita – Audio visual services

The above businesses join our strong group of 35+ operators who are focused on attracting and hosting conference and incentive groups. If you are interested in finding out more about the opportunities the Convention Marketing Group can offer your business and our region, please contact our office on 03- 546 6228 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for a prospectus.

Media Hub

For copies of articles published featuring our region, check out www.NelsonNZ.com/media-hub

Onboard Magazine Summer Nelson Feature

Inflight Publishing produces the complimentary magazine on board all Interislander Ferries and all TranzScenic trains.

The summer issue will have a readership of at least 200,000. As Nelson Tasman has a strong presence, the opportunity exists for operators to advertise to ensure a good spread for the region. The material deadline is 27 October, however your invoice would not be due until January 2012. Inflight publishing can design an ad for you at no cost.

For further information, please use this link: http://www.ournewzealand.co.nz/ or contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

What’s on the horizon for the Convention Bureau?

• Sales calls to Auckland and Wellington

• Late November/early December C&I famil of Nelson Tasman

• Restructuring the way we market the region domestically to focus more on Conventions and Events

• Packaging up sample proposals for organisers simplicity

• Focusing on some key selling points for conferencing in our region - accessibility, affordability, activities, attractions and appeal. Offering organisers a budget health check

• Comparing conferencing costs in our region to other regions

• Updating Nelson Tasman locals on what conference and events are happening here and the impact on our economy

• Supporting locals in bringing their conference to Nelson Tasman

Nelson Tasman Official Visitor Guide 2012 Released!

The 2012 edition of the Visitor Guide has been released.  The guide has been distributed to 80 i-SITE Visitor Centres throughout NZ, over 680 other key locations through the Jasons distribution network, to all advertisers in the guide, and to Tourism New Zealand offices & New Zealand embassies off-shore.

If you would like supplies of the guide, please email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it advising the number of guides required and we will arrange for these to be distributed

www.NelsonNZ.com

Thinking about advertising on our website or upgrading your free listing to a premium listing?  Now is the perfect opportunity as we are offering a special to 30 June 2012 of $150 plus GST.

A premium listing gives you enhanced profile with contact details, 50 word description, a link to your website, google map reference, up to three images and the ability to upload a YouTube video.  Have a look at www.nelsonnz.com/accommodation to see how premium listings stand out.  Plus they now have priority ranking over free listings!

Just go to http://buynow.nelsonnz.com to purchase.

And if you wish to gain even greater exposure for your product and stand out from the crowd, why don’t you trial a banner or home page hot spot advertisement?

For more information on banner and hot spot advertising and to register your interest, click here

Events Marketing and Development News

Sponsored Event Update:
A number of sponsored events have taken place recently: The Nelson Winter Music Festival ran over a three week period in July; in September The Italian Festival and Taste Nelson took place for the first time; and The Nelson Cycle Festival took place over the first week of October.

Other current and future sponsored events include the Oi You! Urban Art Exhibition until 24 October, the South Island Masters Games from15 – 23 Oct and the Mixed Golf Foursomes Championship on 22 – 23 Oct.

If you would like to learn more about the programme and find out if your event is eligible for sponsorship funding, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , Events Marketing & Development Coordinator at Nelson Tasman Tourism. Applications are considered quarterly, with the next round closing on 1 November 2011.

ItsOn:
ItsOn is Nelson Tasman’s number one events website, and the best source of what’s coming up in the region with over 200 events at any one time to choose from. Don’t miss out on upcoming events – sign up to receive free weekly event newsletters by email by clicking here or enter competitions to win tickets to events!

ItsOn is an initiative of Nelson City Council and is supported by Tasman District Council, MORE FM & Wild Tomato.  Listing events on the website is completely free! To load your event, go to www.ItsOn.co.nz and click on Event Organisers

Monthly Statistics

Here are the latest Nelson Tasman statistics on domestic and international guest nights.

Source: Statistics NZ

Website Visits - www.NelsonNZ.com

Most Visited Pages
1. Accommodation
2. Things To See & Do
3. About Nelson
4.Getting Here & Around

Origin of Visitors (to site)
1. New Zealand
2. Australia
3. UK
4. United States

What's New - Operator Update

• Abel Tasman Sea Shuttle have recommenced the very popular Nelson to Abel Tasman National Park ferry service

• Congratulations to Greenwood Park Holiday Park for their recently awarded 2 Star Plus Qualmark rating in the Holiday Park category and to SBL Group for their Qualmark Enviro Silver Award

• Look out for Move Nelson (It's Wheely Fun) Segway Tours which are offering a variety of guided tours around Nelson

Snippets

• have the facility to have the BookIt button included in the listing, allowing online real time availability check and booking.  (Bookings incur a 10% commission). We will automatically add this feature to your listing if you are BookIt capable - if you have any questions please email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

• If you have any schedule or price changes that have come into effect or that will in the future please email these to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it as soon as possible. Michael needs to receive any changes in writing to be able to change them in our ticketing system.

Quick E-Tips

Help us to get the word out via social media - link @I love Nelson Tasman on your facebook postings and please “Like” the following pages; I Love Nelson Tasman, Nelson i-SITE, Golden Bay i-SITE and Murchison Visitor Centre and use the #tag #NelsonTasman or #NelsonTasman_NZ or #Nelson_NZ when tweeting please.  If you need any assistance contact Selena on 03 539 0820 and she will help you through the process.

Facebook is becoming an increasingly important communication tool but for many businesses their websites remain their primary consumer touch point. This article has five tips to help you drive Facebook fans to your website.