2004 - 2005 Annual Report - Tourism Australia

Asia
HONG KONG
OVERVIEW
Tourism growth from Hong Kong recovered strongly and is nearly back
to record levels. Australia received 148,900 visitors in 2004/2005, a 13
per cent increase over 2003/04.
A number of initiatives were launched during the year to maintain
interest in Australia and drive visitors to discover new regions and
experiences.
Highlights and results
> The new brand campaign, ‘Australia. A Different Light’, was launched
in Hong Kong in March 2005. More than 23 key media attended
including ATV, Bloomberg TV, RTHK, the International Herald Tribune,
Newsweek, HK Economic Times and Action Asia.
> Tourism Australia partnered with Qantas and the South Australian
Tourism Commission in two co-operative brand campaigns that
utilised billboards and trackside posters at major train stations,
product information on australia.com, an e-newsletter distributed
to 20,000 consumers and print advertising in key publications.
Three other co-operative campaigns were sponsored with Cathay
Pacific Holidays.
> The 7th Team Australia Business Events Educational (TABEE), held
in Hong Kong in March, brought together 80 Asian corporate travel
agents and 40 Australian business tourism suppliers. To date, the
event has generated nine pieces of confirmed business, accounting
for almost 2,500 passengers to Australia.
> Tourism Australia’s marketing activities in the incentive sector
generated seven pieces of confirmed business (departures in
2004/05) and a total of 1,170 passengers.
> Agent participation in the Aussie Specialist Program (ASP)
increased by 62 per cent over the previous year, with the number
of graduates rising dramatically by 256 per cent. Twenty-nine
agencies and 191 agents have now joined the program in
Hong Kong with 121 ASP graduates.
> The Hon Fran Bailey MP, Minister for Small Business and Tourism
made her first official visit to Hong Kong to meet with key trade,
industry and media representatives. The visit further confirmed
Australia’s commitment to this important market and the region.
INDIA
OVERVIEW
This financial year saw visitors from India reach 59,200 an increase of
10 per cent over 2003/04, and the highest rate ever achieved.
The Aussie Specialist Program continued to build the distribution
network in the two key markets of Mumbai and Delhi as well as other
secondary markets.
Tourism Australia continued to work with other Australian
Government agencies including the Department of Immigration,
Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs (DIMIA) to facilitate faster visa
application and approval for Aussie Specialists’ clients.
A key objective for 2004/05 was to position Australia as an ‘out of
the ordinary’ holiday destination while ensuring the relevant tourism
products were available through the primary distribution channel.
Highlights and results
> Brand Australia was successfully launched in March 2005. Eightysix
media representatives from Delhi and Mumbai attended the
event, which resulted in 70 press articles with a media value of
$AUD140,000.
> NDTV, India’s leading news channel, broadcast live from the Gold
Coast and Sydney for its NightOut lifestyle program. The broadcast
showcased aspects of Sydney and the Gold Coast. There were a total
of 23 episodes of 30 minutes recording an airtime value of more
than $AUD2.9 million.
> 357 travel agents from 103 agencies enrolled in the Aussie Specialist
Program, an increase of 79 per cent and 69 per cent respectively over
2003/04. Of these, 152 agents completed the program, an increase
of 31 per cent on the previous year. This exceeded the target set at
the beginning of the fiscal year of 220 individual registered agents
and 60 agencies.
> A very successful India Travel Mission was held in Goa in September
2004. The event was attended by 25 Australian suppliers and more
than 100 Indian travel agents.
> In September 2004, Qantas resumed operations in India with nonstop
direct flights between Mumbai and Sydney. Tourism Australia
and Qantas launched a co-operative brand campaign to capitalise on
services in August/September 2004 and February/April 2005.
> Tourism Australia co-ordinated a booth at the Celebrate Vivaha 2004
– a bridal show in Delhi which attracted 350 couples who registered
an interest in honeymooning in Australia.
> The interactive promotion with Barista Coffee using mobile phones,
recorded 2,507 responses during the fortnight-long campaign in
March/April 2005.
58 59