CEO-Board Updates

November 2018 – CEO Update

As the year draws to a close we take time to reflect on our achievements and realise that so many of them have resulted from strong partnerships.

This is especially true in the tourism industry where small organisations like TTNQ rely on the collective strength of our members and stakeholders to amplify our marketing efforts.

We have partnered with Regional Tourism Organisations (RTOs) along the Great Barrier Reef for the Tourism and Events (TEQ) Queensland European Great Barrier Reef Campaign to promote our greatest asset to high-value travellers.

This is the first time that Tourism Tropical North Queensland and our fellow Regional Tourism Organisations that border the Reef have partnered with TEQ in Europe to focus solely on the Great Barrier Reef as an aspirational travel destination.

The multi-faceted campaign will target consumers with strong conversion points to trade and airline partners. This includes a major promotion with Germany’s Klassik Radio (2 million listeners per day) in partnership with Cathay Pacific and Explorer Fernreisen, a Travelessence 5-page feature in Abenteuer & Reisen travel magazine (95,000 circulation), Explorer Fernreisen 16-page feature in major Dive Magazine “Unterwasser” (75,000 readership), Boomerang Reisen online promotion partnered by Tourism Australia and DERTour promotion, all backed by social media and online (EDM) activity. Anyone wanting more information should contact Claudia McFadden.

By working together and pooling funds we are able to leverage partnerships with the airlines and Tourism Australia. This two-year campaign is the largest Great Barrier Reef campaign ever done in the lucrative German-speaking market and we hope it will continue beyond that period.

Just last week the Great Barrier Reef RTOs were rewarded for our partnership when The Ultimate Guide to Driving the Great Barrier Reef won The Richard Power Award for Destination Marketing at the 2018 Queensland Tourism Awards.

A great industry-led partnership is the China Sales Group which toured China last month promoting the region. The Quicksilver Group initiated this partnership 11 years ago to focus on premier products within Cairns. This year Quicksilver, CaPTA, Hot Air and Accor came together to tour the country and strengthen trade relationships which is the best way of doing business in China.

The trip coincided with the launch of a new online concept store in Chengdu dedicated to Queensland, the Great Barrier Reef and the rainforest. This is the 18th branded retail shop initiated by the Group and the first in the digital world. It is operated by online travel agent iTrip.com which offers the most comprehensive range of experiences and content to independent Chinese travellers on its platform. TTNQ’s China representative Contineo Marketing joined the China Sales Group at the event.

This year TTNQ partnered with the Torres Strait Regional Authority as part of its Regional Economic Investment Strategy to grow tourism as a significant economic driver for the Torres Strait region. This will help strengthen Indigenous tourism as the third pillar for our destination.

Strong partnerships exist throughout our business community. TTNQ partnered with Advance Cairns, the Cairns Chamber of Commerce and key industries in the region for the Canberra Convoy in September. With a Federal election looming we hope Tropical North Queensland’s show of strength will bring us a happy new year of funded initiatives to help our region’s economy.

May the festive season be a time of rejuvenation for you and your families. I look forward to a year of successful partnerships in 2019.

Pip Close
Chief Executive Officer

CEO November activity