TNE Activity Report – Indigo Shire Council 2018-19 Q1 · The North East Victoria Cycling...

1. Introduction Tourism North East (TNE) is the regional tourism board for the High Country, charged with developing a broad range of supply and demand driven tourism initiatives that deliver strong outcomes to the local visitor economy. It operates across the key areas of regional marketing, industry development, infrastructure and product development, strategic planning, advocacy and research, and works collaboratively with a range of stakeholders to drive visitation, yield and dispersal throughout the High Country. At the end of each quarter, TNE produces a report that provides an overview of all of the regional activities that Indigo Shire Council invests in, and key deliverables within that period. Following is the report for first quarter of 2018/19, which is already off to a strong start with $4million confirmed for cycle tourism marketing, the completion of consumer segmentation research for both cultural tourism and agritourism, and the development of the Feast High Country creative concept, just to name a few.

2. Ride High Country

2.1 Campaign Overview and Funding The North East Victoria Cycling Optimisation (NEVCO) Masterplan identifies a range of priority projects that offer the greatest cycle tourism growth opportunities for the region, covering the infrastructure, private sector activation and marketing required to achieve a leadership position in this space. Of all of the priority projects identified in the Masterplan for the region, investment in a marketing campaign of scale was determined to deliver the greatest impact on the visitor economy, with the potential to attract an additional 99k visitors to the region who will spend $37million per annum. This recommendation was supported by a significant body of market research that was undertaken as part of the Masterplan process. This research identified that one of the primary issues inhibiting cycle tourism growth in the region is lack of awareness of the High Country bike offering. A lack of consumer awareness points to the need for sustained investment in a marketing campaign of scale – one that has the ability to move current and potential market segments from awareness through to inspiration and finally conversion – to generate cycle-related visitation and yield opportunities for the region. Recognising the need for marketing investment, $4million from State Government has been committed to the delivery of a four-year marketing campaign that looks to capitalise on the clear and identified latent demand that exists for the High Country’s cycle tourism offering. Delivered

TNE Activity Report – Indigo Shire Council 2018-19 Q1

by TNE, the program will be taken to market under the region’s ‘Ride High Country’ cycle tourism master-brand, launching in October 2018 at the start of the region’s cycle season. The delivery of a highly targeted and integrated marketing campaign of this scale will enable the region to own the cycle tourism category ahead of its competitors. It will effectively leverage the existing public and private sector investment that has already been made in the development of a broad range of cycle assets, and will create a platform for clear and competitive growth within the local visitor economy. 2.2 Campaign Channels

a) Above the Line The first half of the 4-year marketing campaign (2018/19 and 2019/20) will focus on driving brand awareness. As such, it will primarily be an above the line (ATL) campaign that incorporates a range of mass media channels to stimulate brand recall and recognition. These marketing efforts will focus on the promotion of the hero products and competitive differentiators of the Ride High Country offering, showcasing the array of cycle products that establish the High Country’s ride experiences as being the best in Victoria. Telling the complete destination offering, as it relates to the cycle tourism experience, will be key in establishing the region as the leader in this space. Key components of the 2018/19 campaign are as follows, primarily targeting the region’s core metropolitan Melbourne market:

● Out of Home (OOH) – Premium large and medium format billboards in high-traffic, high-impact locations that have been geo-targeted for maximum reach amongst core segments.

● Melbourne Airport Takeover – an activation involving linked signage and vision throughout both the Qantas and Multi Airline Terminals that will allow Ride High Country to own the consumer journey of domestic and international travellers.

● Digital Display Advertising – targeted digital advertising on key cycling, news, and entertainment sites, as well as advertising via Video on Demand channels.

● Content Partnerships – primarily with cycling publications to reach engaged audiences with high frequency via a combination of digital advertising and editorial.

● Print Advertising – advertising with limited cycle titles, particularly those with leverageable PR opportunities.

● Strategic Marketing Alliances – with brands in the cycle space that have strong profiles and presence within the cycling community, and can add credibility and reach to the campaign.

● Ride High Country Managed Digital – reaching consumers through the Ride High Country website and social media platforms, and also search engine marketing (see item 2.3).

b) Below the Line Media A successful below the line (BTL) program is imperative for the overall performance of the Ride High Country campaign. Where ATL has a mass communications approach, BTL channels provide opportunities for conversion amongst primary segments via more targeted and personalised engagement opportunities. Through this communication, the campaign will progress high value consumer segments through the purchase consideration funnel more rapidly. Key BTL campaign components are as follows:

● Events and Exhibitions – attending cycle events and expos enabling direct engagement with high-value visitors to promote the regional ride offering and supporting tourism experiences.

● Event Sponsorship – sponsoring limited in-region events that offer brand exposure to a targeted audience, and support repeat visitation opportunities.

● Database Acquisition and Communication – growing current cycle tourism databases and communicating in a direct and meaningful manner with both awareness and conversion in mind.

● Ride High Country Ambassadors – appointing ambassadors that enhance campaign reach, and provide further authentication from trusted sources that the High Country is Australia’s premier cycle offering.

● Hosted Rides – In-region rides offered by Ride High Country Ambassadors that enable visitors to engage with cycling personalities across a range of local rides.

● Public Relations – PR via targeted media channels to influence consumer opinion and travel trends, and keep the regional cycle offering front of mind.

c) Cooperative Marketing Partnership

TNE is partnering with entities to deliver cooperative promotional activities that have the ability to extend campaign reach and engagement. To this effect, TNE is currently working with Visit Victoria to determine how the Ride High Country offering could work in conjunction with the new ‘Your Happy Space’ campaign.

2.3 Ride High Country Digital Assets

a) Website A series of content and functional changes have been made to the Ride High Country website for the coming season aimed at refining user experience and reinforcing branding:

● On the homepage, new creative techniques have been introduced to highlight each cycle discipline colour and to assist in framing each section of the page.

● New navigation has been introduced with more elegant design, improved layout and the introduction of graphic elements to assist in location awareness.

● The layouts of each of the cycle discipline landing pages has been reviewed around conversion funnel principles of inspire -> inform -> convert to drive higher engagement with the rides and town/places pages.

● A new interactive map has been introduced on the ‘Getting Here’ and ‘Where to Ride’ pages that provides graphic context of the High Country in relation to Melbourne and

Albury, and offers the ability to click through the interactive icons for the major towns within region for details of the services and the cycle offer.

During October, further changes are being rolled out including updates to the featured images for many of the rides and a revised layout of the templated ride listing pages.

b) Social Channels Ride High Country social on Instagram continues to show strong results, which reflects the visual engagement of the channel. Solid growth has also been experienced across Facebook over the same period, albeit marginally below (0.69%) the fan acquisition target. This result has now been consistent over a number of quarters and potentially reflects the changing nature of the channel as a result of algorithm changes that occurred in April 2018. Further assessment will be undertaken in quarter two to determine if content and messaging needs to be refined or if the KPIs need to be re-evaluated given the changes in the Facebook platform.

FACEBOOK

Objectives Metric KPI ACTUAL

Brand advocacy Engagement rate 4.00% 4.05%

Fan acquisition New pages likes

increase 5.2% 4.51%

INSTAGRAM

Objectives Metric KPI ACTUAL

Brand advocacy Engagement rate 2.23% 8.79%

Fan acquisition New followers 2.27% 17.8% Indigo Shire is well represented via Ride High Country social channels and other regional social sites, gaining strong exposure for its diverse cycle and tourism offering:

2.4 Ride High Country Preferred Business Program Building on the success of the marketing campaign, the Ride High Country Preferred (RHCP) Business Program is for those businesses providing exceptional service to cycle visitors. RHCP businesses are listed first on ridehighcountry.com and featured exclusively in any Ride High Country media. This program supersedes the old ‘Cycle Friendly Business’ program with a more relevant set of qualifying criteria that are available on the Tourism North East website. https://www.tourismnortheast.com.au/tools-and-support/ride-high-country-preferred-program/ RHCP businesses embrace the partnership by displaying a window sticker (see below) to ensure the business is easily identifiable as RHCP, sharing #ridehighcountry on social media and working with TNE on media activities when required. Of the 74 RHCP businesses currently listed, 10 are located in Indigo Shire.

3. Feast High Country Campaigns 3.1 Feast High Country Overview Towards the end of the 2017-18 financial year, TNE finalised the new Feast High Country brand to represent the region’s food/drinks pillar. The brand unifies the multifaceted food/drinks industry, and will lead all marketing campaigns associated with this category. The overarching, long-term objectives of the Feast High Country brand are to raise awareness of the High Country’s breadth of food and drink offerings and experiences, and help position the region as a ‘must-visit’ destination for associated target segments. The creative concept for the Feast High Country campaign celebrates the people that capture the essence of High Country’s food/drink offering, and aims to convey the welcoming feel and authentic spirit that is alive and well in the region. The tagline ‘Join our table’ will be used across

https://www.tourismnortheast.com.au/tools-and-support/ride-high-country-preferred-program/

https://www.tourismnortheast.com.au/tools-and-support/ride-high-country-preferred-program/

all Feast High Country executions, featuring portrait-style imagery of the region’s industry personalities with copy that depicts their impressive credentials, history and connection with the region. An example is below:

The call to action for the Feast High Country brand and associated campaigns is the feasthighcountry.com.au website. The site has been pushed live in advance of the launch of the first Feast High Country campaign (for winery tourism) which will be in-market in November. The website has been developed in an editorial style, ideal for telling the story of the rich food and drink offering across the region, profiling producers and personalities, and providing the opportunity to change content in line with seasonality.

https://www.feasthighcountry.com.au/

3.2 Winery Campaign The first of the campaigns to be rolled out under the Feast High Country brand for 2018-19 will be focussed on driving awareness of the region’s winery and cellar door offering, split into two streams that will both be in market from November 2018 to April 2019 to optimise brand impact:

a) Melbourne domestic campaign This campaign will target key domestic consumer segments in the Melbourne metropolitan market, driving awareness and conversion of the High Country winery tourism experience. The campaign will be delivered using grant funding secured by TNE under the second round of the Victorian Government’s Wine Growth Fund, complemented by a local financial contribution from relevant LGAs and industry. Throughout the first quarter, TNE has worked in conjunction with its media agency to develop an integrated campaign across a range of channels that includes: large format out of home (like billboards); digital display advertising and video via Broadsheet, SBS on Demand, Gourmet Traveller and Fairfax Good Food; and advertising and engagement via social media.

b) Chinese visiting friends and relatives (VFR) campaign According to 2016 census data, 23% of the Melbourne population are of Chinese descent. This ‘New Resident Melburnian’ population acts as a key motivator for China-based family members to travel to Victoria, known as the visiting friends and relatives (VFR) market. Once here, research shows that these VFR Chinese travellers are highly influenced by their host regarding where to travel and what to do within Victoria, deferring to their local knowledge when determining their Victorian itinerary. The second campaign will target the Chinese New Resident Melbournian market to influence their decision on where they travel with their Chinese VFR visitors. Channels that are favoured by Chinese nationals living in Melbourne, as well as geographic locations with a high proportion of Chinese migrants, have been incorporated into the campaign. This includes:

● Out of home ○ Digital video panels at Melbourne airport baggage carousels ○ Animated digital panels at shopping centres in areas with a high proportion of

Chinese migrants ● Digital:

○ Youku.com - Chinese video streaming platform with 17 million monthly Australian users

○ Weibo - Chinese social media platform with 400,000 daily active Australian users ○ Google Display Network - utilising Chinese language targeting, and users

interested in food and wine and things to do in Melbourne. ○ SBS On Demand pre-roll video

● Print advertising via the Chinese Official Visitors’ Guide - Melbourne ● Social media

The campaign will be delivered using Federal grant funding secured by TNE under the Australian Government’s Wine Australia International Wine Tourism State Grants, once again supplemented by a local LGA and industry contribution. 3.3 Brewery Campaign TNE is working in conjunction with the breweries that form the High Country Brewery Trail (HCBT) to develop a long-term, strategic approach for growing craft beer tourism across the region. The breweries have agreed that an opportunity exists to better formulate and centralise marketing, product and industry development efforts in order to maximise awareness and tourism opportunities for the breweries, which TNE is now providing strategic support for. Craft breweries are a key sector within the food and drink pillar, and represent a strong offering in comparison with other regions, both within Victoria and the whole of Australia. The High Country craft beer offering is also an important adjunct to other products, including cycling (particularly mountain biking), walking and snow sports. In August, TNE held a strategic session with the breweries, after which time an overarching document - the High Country Brewery Tourism Development Strategy - was developed, which outlines a strategic direction for the breweries in terms of marketing activities, and industry and product development initiatives. This document will be supported by annual marketing plans outlining the tactical activities required to meet the objectives of the strategy. Being year one of the strategy, the first marketing plan is focussed on the first phase of the marketing strategy - raising awareness of the High Country and its brewery tourism offering via above-the-line marketing initiatives under the Feast High Country brand. In year one, activity will consist of the following:

● Asset development - photography/videography ● Updating the HCBT brochure ● Media buy and creative development - it is envisaged that the media buy will consist of

targeted digital and social media advertising. TNE will continue to work with the craft breweries to assist with delivering the initiatives outlined in the strategy, as well as identifying funding opportunities and leveraging additional marketing exposure via the wider Feast High Country campaign.

3.4 Feast High Country Digital Assets The Feast High Country website, which soft launched at the end of 2017/18, is the primary call to action for all Feast marketing campaigns. Current content on the site is targeted at the Spring/Summer period with products, experiences and imagery aligned with these seasons. Commencing in October will be the development of series of additional editorial pieces that further build on the makers and product strength of the High Country offer. The first piece will be an a piece titled ‘What does 150 years taste like’ which showcases the world renowned Rutherglen Muscat and its multi-generation history. This will be followed with new content for Pedal to Produce covering Rutherglen, Bright/Wandiligong and Milawa. The Facebook and Instagram Social Media activity for Feast High Country will commence in late October as a precursor to the main campaign activity which commences in November.

4. Feast High Country Festival High Country Harvest, the region’s signature food/drinks festival, has been reimagined to align with the new Feast High Country brand. Accordingly, the event will now be known as the Feast High Country Festival, effectively enhancing the impact of the master brand amongst the core Melbourne foodie market. In 2019, the Festival will be held on 3-19 May, featuring a 17-day regional event program that showcases the phenomenal food and drink offering that the High Country is renowned for. Importantly, the campaign will look to encompass the broader Feast campaign, celebrating the faces and personalities of the High Country. Throughout quarter one, TNE hosted a range of ideas generation workshops throughout the region to inspire and assist operators in developing a new selection of Festival events. In particular, working with operators to create unique and innovative offerings that diversify the traditional program ensuring it remains contemporary and gives visitors a reason to come back each year. Industry partners are required to submit their events for consideration for inclusion in the Festival program by the end of October. TNE is also currently working to secure a new partnership with a high profile restaurant in Melbourne to further extend the reach of the Festival’s program and marketing efforts.

5. Feast High Country Guide TNE is currently updating the region’s popular Food and Wine Guide, which is produced biennially and provides a comprehensive outline of the region’s food and drink offering. The publication is a valuable tool for visitors before and during their stay, both as a source of inspiration to visit the region with the food and drink offering as a driver, as well as providing a complete guide for visitors in-region. In line with the move to the Feast High Country brand, the publication will now be called the Feast High Country Guide. The Guide will be updated with a new look and feel and colour palette, in line with the Feast High Country masterbrand. It will use the overarching themes of people, place and produce in editorial, telling the stories of the producers and their rich history and connection with the High Country from a food and drink perspective. The advertising prospectus for business listings was circulated to industry in September, with the finished Guide ready for distribution in early December.

6. Walk High Country Campaign The Walk High Country brand leads regional marketing efforts in the nature-based tourism product pillar, representing a product that has widespread appeal across key market segments. Walking constantly ranks as the number one ‘alternate/extra’ activity of those who have travelled to the High Country to experience in other activity pillars (including cycling, snowsports and food & wine), and integrates well with all other products/attributes that the High Country is known for. Additionally, 63% of participants in a recent gap analysis product survey indicated they would consider travel specifically to the High Country for a hero walking product. The first Walk High Country campaign will launch in the second quarter. As a campaign, Walk High Country aims to raise brand and product awareness of the hiking, bushwalking and village strolling offerings available in the High Country’s alpine resorts, parks, village and town destinations, and will look to capitalise on existing latent demand for walk offerings. A range of imagery and taglines for this campaign will be tested as part of the walking consumer segmentation research (see below), allowing for program finessesing prior to launch that will ensure resonance with the target market. The call to action for the campaign will be the Walk High Country website www.walkhighcountry.com.au, which was developed by the TNE digital team and is currently live. This website represents the entire regional offering, showcasing local destinations and top regional walks, and allowing for easy search and categorisation of walk experiences.

http://www.walkhighcountry.com.au/

7. Walk High Country Research TNE has secured State funding towards consumer segmentation research that will provide insights into the walking tourism market, identifying potential visitors with the highest yield potential over time. Quantum Market Research has been engaged to deliver the project, determining trends and demand drivers that will be used to guide tourism marketing, product development and infrastructure investment. As demonstrated in similar research projects commissioned by TNE, it will act as a point of competitive advantage for the region through the delivery of the clear consumer insights that guide strategic efforts. More specifically, the project will consider the following items:

● Consumer segmentation, identifying segments along with their travel motivators, barriers, spend and experience preferences, as they relate to walking tourism.

● Current perceptions about the High Country walk offering, particularly in relation to other walk destinations.

● Identification of marketing and communication messages likely to resonate with target segments.

In the first quarter, a project steering group was established to oversee this body of work - including representation from each LGA/RMB in the region, along with TNE and RDV - and a project inception meeting completed to guide research scope. Research activities have commenced with the project on schedule for completion in November. Following the delivery of the final report, an all of region research presentation will be delivered by Quantum, supported by smaller workshops delivered by TNE across the region.

8. Arts and Cultural Heritage Research TNE has implemented a robust tourism research program over the last two years in order to gain market insights that can inform strategic efforts. To assist with product development and longer-term marketing efforts within the Arts and Cultural Heritage pillar, TNE recently commissioned consumer segmentation research amongst cultural tourists. This research was finalised and presented to industry and stakeholders in the first quarter, clearly identifying cultural tourist segments with the greatest potential for the High Country. The research has also noted some top-level observations regarding opportunities for the region in this space:

● The most commonly cited motivation to engage in cultural tourism is ‘to learn and educate myself’ (57%). For many families this extends to engaging their children in wholesome and enriching activities.

● Interest in Australian history is almost universal among Cultural Tourists. Of the arts and cultural experiences available in regional Victoria, ‘sites with significant historical importance’, and ‘museums and exhibitions about Australian history’ are among the most attractive, and the most worth travelling for.

● Almost three quarters (70%) said they, in principle, had at least some interest in finding out more about ‘the Ned Kelly story’. In person interviews found that the optimal execution will be immersive, where the attraction is worth visiting for more than just the story itself.

● Almost three quarters (72%) are open to engaging with ‘the Aboriginal culture of North East Victoria’. In-person interviews found that a cultural trail promising a real, authentic connection with heritage has the potential to invigorate latent enthusiasms.

● Historic assets may provide a foundation for the region’s cultural tourism offering. Unlike other offerings, from art to artisans, the region has a natural pedigree in this context. Based on this foundation, other offerings can become more appealing. For example, artisans can host a more attractive experience in this setting.

TNE will now take the findings of this research and insights garnered through current product development efforts in the Arts and Cultural Heritage space (like via the Ned Kelly Alive and Hume Aboriginal Cultural Trail projects) to develop a framework for growth in this product pillar.

9. Industry and Product Development While significant efforts are dedicated to driving demand for the High Country offering, it is essential that a commensurate effort is committed to diversifying and enhancing the supply side of the tourism equation. TNE delivers on this need through the provision of a broad range of industry and product development services that are focused on providing a high-quality tourism experience. 9.1 Industry Development TNE supports existing High Country tourism operators in optimising their businesses and the experiences they offer visitors. This work includes up-skilling industry through mentoring and briefing sessions, identifying and working with businesses to fill gaps in the regional tourism offering, managing industry communication efforts, and driving ongoing industry and product innovation. It also involves facilitating relationships and tourism efforts between industry, Government organisations, tourism associations and other public and private entities to drive regional collaboration and growth. In the first quarter of 2018-19, TNE has delivered a range of initiatives in this space for Indigo Shire including:

● The delivery of 7 individual business development sessions to address the trends, issues

and opportunities of most relevance to their businesses. For this quarter, the most popular topics covered were food and drink, cycling and arts and cultural heritage.

● The delivery of a range of both Indigo-specific and broader regional group briefing sessions, which engaged 66 Indigo Shire tourism businesses. These sessions included:

○ Introduction to Tourism North East - Introductory presentation for Indigo’s new and lapsed tourism businesses to assist in understanding the regional landscape and opportunities for involvement.

○ Attract attention and sustain interest in your business - a workshop to assist operators better understand the current digital landscape including: the role of local and Victoria's High Country websites and the regional digital platform; ATDW listings; and the role of the Visit Victoria site.

○ Cultural Tourism Research - All of region presentation clearly identifying cultural tourist segments with the greatest potential for the High Country. The research has also noted some top-level observations regarding opportunities for the region.

○ Cultural Tourism Research Group Session - A follow up workshop in covering the information presented at the larger cultural tourism segmentation presentation with focus on the Indigo region.

○ Food and Drinks Events Think Tank - Workshop for businesses looking to run an event featuring a food and wine theme covering outtakes from the 2018 High Country Harvest festival.

○ High Country Brewery Trail - All of region workshop with High Country Breweries to assist in the development of the High Country Brewery Trail Strategic Plan.

○ Ned Kelly Alive Stakeholder Session - A presentation of the consultant’s recommendations as part of the Ned Kelly Alive project to associated stakeholders engaged through the product development process.

○ Agritourism - All of region presentation clearly identifying agritourism visitor segments with the greatest potential for the High Country.

● Facilitating or being involved in a range of meetings and sessions focused on developing

tourism experiences and opportunities for Indigo Shire, including: ○ Attending a Beechworth to Yackandandah site visit to understand the

complexities of the trail alignment leaving Beechworth township. ○ Attending Tour de Beechworth cycling event and dinner, representing Ride High

Country and discussing future gravel ride events.

○ Attending the Tastes of Two Regions Food and Wine event in Canberra (with Rutherglen and King Valley), assisting with guest check-in, wine collection and the use of technology for online wine sales.

○ Working with Friends of Murray to Mountains Rail Trail about cycle tourism opportunities.

● Attending or being involved in a range of meetings and sessions of relevance to Indigo Shire and its strategic tourism direction including the following:

○ Facilitating discussion with VicRoads to develop road cycling signage across region. ○ Facilitating and presenting at quarterly Visitor Information Centre meetings. ○ Delivering an annual briefing to over 35 Visit Victoria staff on new products and

initiatives in the region, which was very well received.

● Strategic engagement with other associations and organisations to progress Indigo Shire tourism priorities including Regional Development Australia, Regional Development Victoria, Ovens Murray Regional Partnership, and Visit Victoria.

9.2 Product Development In terms of product development, TNE works across the region to deliver tourism projects of scale, most of which are supported by grant funding. TNE is instrumental in securing this funding, leveraging its reputation with Government for developing and delivering significant and strategic projects that have the potential to be regional gamechangers to deliver positive outcomes for the High Country and its stakeholders. TNE also work directly with its public and private sector partners to assist them in delivering new products and experiences that have the ability to enhance the destination offering, and diversify the broader regional landscape. In quarter one, the projects that TNE has been working on in this space are as follows:

a) Food and Agritourism Research

In 2017-18, TNE secured $60k in grant funding towards a $75k Food and Agritourism Research project which looks to identify both current and emerging food and agritourism customer segments with consideration given to how the segments are defined, the current barriers and motivators for visitation by each segment, the type of experiences these segments are looking for and identification of which segments represent the best yield and visitation opportunities.

Delivered across the broader Hume region, this research project was completed in the first quarter of 2018/19, presenting several key findings:

● Overall, two-thirds (65%) of all regional tourists engage with local food and produce in a

way which qualifies them as an ‘agritourist’. Therefore, such visitors are very diverse in their range of backgrounds, characters and other travel behaviours.

● A commonality agritourists share is their engagement with fresh food and produce. They are drawn to opportunities to try different varieties and fresher produce than they can ordinarily access.

● Although agritourism is an important component of what many visitors are seeking, it is assumed to be available across regional Victoria and is not typically a travel driver to particular locations.

● The vast majority of agritourists have a relatively shallow, passive and opportunistic engagement with the category. Whilst there is a base for the more highly involved end of the market, it is small and not a meaningful mainstream proposition for the region as a whole.

● The strength of the Hume Region is in its assumed laid-back authenticity. Common among agritourists is a desire for immersion in the region which it’s felt is best facilitated by this genuine, honest approach to market.

This research was presented to industry by the research consultant in the first quarter, and will be rolled out across the region as part of TNE’s industry and product development group and individual sessions in the second quarter.

TNE will now take the findings and key recommendations from this research, and insights garnered through the mapping project (featured below) and develop an action plan for a strategic way forward in the agritourism space. Key to this will be product development to meet current consumer expectations and an enhancement of in-region communications to facilitate access to this product.

b) Agritourism Mapping Project

While the aforementioned Food and Agritourism Research project is imperative in understanding market demand, an equally important project is associated with determining product supply. That is, understanding the types of agri-tourism experiences currently available in-region; where they sit within the product development life-cycle; and which operators have capacity to evolve and innovate to meet market demand.

With this in mind, TNE has developed an Agritourism Industry Mapping project that identifies current and potential agri-tourism businesses. This project looks to:

● Identify current and emerging agri-tourism businesses within the specified destinations. ● Audit their current agri-tourism experiences. ● Understand their capacity to evolve and innovate their offering. ● Create a network of connected agri-tourism businesses that breaks down the silos that

currently exist between the growers, fair food movement and tourism. ● To build in-depth and trusted relationships with operators to ensure long term project

legacy.

This project will capture both traditional and non-traditional agri-tourism operators, with a focus on identifying those who are poised to activate a genuine agri-tourism product that both meets consumer expectations and have the ability to achieve cut-through in this rapidly emerging environment. The mapping project will be completed in the second quarter, and will be key in guiding strategic efforts in this space.

c) Pedal to Produce Pedal to Produce is tourism product that targets the foodie market, connecting and highlighting the key food, wine and craft beer offerings associated with the Murray to Mountains Rail Trail. It showcases the townships along the Trail and their various farm gates, wineries, cafes and more, offering visitors to the region a unique culinary and cycle tourism experience.

Developed by TNE in conjunction with its LGA and industry partners, one of the first Pedal to Produce trails to launch was in Rutherglen in 2016/17 (complete with branded tandem purple bikes), which has proven to be very popular. In the first quarter of the 2018/19 financial year, TNE has worked on developing the Beechworth leg of this offering, complete with a historic theme to differentiate it from other sections.

Industry and product development for this section will continue throughout the second quarter with the aim to launch in December with an online and printed Pedal to Produce map.

10. Digital 10.1 Regional Digital Platform Update A series of major infrastructure software updates were performed on the Regional Digital Platform that supports the destination and regional assets. These updates were largely targeted at security and minor bugs fixes, and are aimed at ensuring ongoing platform stability. The platform’s digital maps are currently provided by Google. In May 2018 Google advised it would be replacing its cost-free Google Maps offering with a new model that charges based on map views. As Google Maps is integrated throughout the sites supported by the platform, TNE

undertook an analysis of the cost implications of this change, estimating that it would increase running costs by $6-8K per annum. Following engagement with LGA/RMB partners, it was determined that the platform and its sites move away from Google Maps to Open Street Maps. To this effect, the first of these changes covering the maps that appear at the bottom of ATDW listings was completed at the end of September. Further changes will be rolled out during quarter two. 10.2 Destination Websites TNE commenced content management for the Indigo websites during the first quarter. The content on all sites was reviewed and assessed against current site visitation metrics to determine where improvements will have the highest impact. As part of this process, 53 small content and layout improvements were made across the four sites. This has then provided the foundations for major changes that will continue to be progressively implemented throughout the year based on seasonal and stakeholder priorities. To date this has included:

Site Summary of Change

Rutherglen

Increase engagement with changes to frontpage hero imagery, including the introduction of stronger imagery with supporting byline and call-to-action

Introduce refined front page social media feed that augments content from Destination Rutherglen and Indigo Shire Council Instagram feeds, presented in a more contemporary way

Beechworth

Increase engagement with changes to frontpage hero imagery, including the introduction of stronger imagery with supporting byline and call-to-action

Enhance the layout of the Historic Precinct page through improved imagery and layout changes

Introduce new Short Walks content and 12 additional town walks based on content from the new Indigo Shire ‘Short Walks with a Story Guide’

The sites changes scheduled for the second quarter are as follows:

Site Summary of Change

Rutherglen

Introduce new editorial celebrating the multi-generational makers of Muscat

Introduce new editorial around the winemaker’s passion for Durif

New functionality and content layout for Packages & Deals page

New content aligned with Indigo Shire Council’s ‘Short Walks with a Story’ walking guide

Chiltern


Enhance road/gravel ride content

Yackandandah


New editorial content around the Yackandandah’s sustainability beliefs and initiatives

Beechworth

Introduce refined front page social media feed that augments content from Destination Rutherglen and Indigo Shire Council’s Instagram feeds

Introduce new content for the Burke Museum and Historic Precinct, along with redirection of the bourkemuseum.com.au domain to explorebeechworth.com.au

Following TNE assuming management of site content, strong performance has been observed across all four Indigo Shire tourism websites, with visitation up an average of 25.8% and onsite engagement up 16.3%. Significantly, after five quarters of declining visitation, the Explore Rutherglen site achieved growth in visitation of 19.8% and increase engagement of 14%. Once onsite, visitor engagement with ATDW listings was high, with listing views increasing by 29.2% for a total of 57,804 views achieved across the four sites. ATDW listings achieved high engagement with 10.5% of listing views resulting in a click through to the operators’ website or booking service. For further site performance information, please refer to the easy to use dashboard reporting for Indigo Shire’s sites as follows:

Sessions

19.3K 37.3%

Audience and Engagement (compared to previous year)

mobiledesktoptablet

46.7%

14.1%

39.2%

Sessions by device type

Page Views

51.5K 19.4%

Pages/Session

2.7 -13.1%

Digital Dashboard - Q1 2018-19explorebeechworth.com.au

Page Views by page type(compared to previous year)

Page Title Page Views

1. Beechworth, Victoria - O�cial Travel Website 11,443

2. Search things to do in Beechworth, Victoria 4,163

3. Search accommodation in Beechworth, Victoria 2,131

4. Search festivals and events in Beechworth, Vic… 1,390

5. Beechworth Gorge Walk - Beechworth 1,388

6. Asylum Ghost Tours - Beechworth 1,353

7. Eating out in Beechworth - restaurants, cafes, … 1,230

8. Woolshed Falls - Beechworth 1,178

9. Beechworth Historic & Cultural Precinct | Beec… 1,160

10. Mayday Hills - Beechworth 1,082

▼

Top 10 pages


1. Beechworth Gorge Walk - Beechworth 1,388

2. Asylum Ghost Tours - Beechworth 1,353

3. Woolshed Falls - Beechworth 1,178

4. Mayday Hills - Beechworth 1,082

5. Ned Kelly - Beechworth 819

6. Ned Kelly Vault - Beechworth 471

7. Billson's Brewery - Beechworth 457

8. Beechworth Farmers' Market - Beechworth 438

9. Powder Magazine to Woolshed Falls - Beechw… 431

10. Lake Sambell - Beechworth 394

▼

Top 10 listings

Which channels are driving visitation?Goal: Engaged Users

Sessions Page Views

0 10K 20K 30K 40K 50K

Organic Search

Direct

Referral

Social

Home

11,700 7.8%

Editorial

18,355 18.5%

Listings

21,051 31.7%

Search Engine Terms Ranked 1 to 5

Sessions Page Views

0 5K 10K 15K 20K 25K

mobile

desktop

tablet

Which devices are driving visitation?Goal: Engaged Users

Total Clicks

2,371 40.5%

CTR

10%

FY1718 - Q2 FY1718 - Q3 FY1718 - Q4FY1819 - Q1

0 80 160 240 320 400

Beech…Listings: Outbound Clicks & CTR

Sessions

24.1K 20.7%


mobiledesktoptablet

9.5%

36.5% 54%


Page Views

55.6K 12.8%

Pages/Session

2.3 -6.6%

Digital Dashboard - Q1 2018-19explorechiltern.com.au



1. Mans�eld Mt Buller, Victoria - O�cial Tourism … 7,639

2. Search accommodation in Mans�eld Mt Buller,… 2,696

3. Craig's Hut - Mans�eld Mt Buller, Victoria 2,493

4. Hiking & Walking - Mans�eld Mt Buller, Victoria 2,323

5. Craig's Hut - Mans�eld Mt Buller 2,258

6. Search festivals and events in Mans�eld Mt Bu… 2,147

7. High Country Huts - Mans�eld Mt Buller, Victor… 1,727

8. Camping - Mans�eld Mt Buller, Victoria 1,698

9. Search things to do in Mans�eld Mt Buller, Vict… 996

10. Getting here by bus - Mans�eld Mt Buller, Victo… 922

▼

Top 10 pages


1. Craig's Hut - Mans�eld Mt Buller 2,258

2. The Pap's Lookout - Mans�eld Mt Buller 713

3. Bindaree Falls - Mans�eld Mt Buller 381

4. Mirimbah Park - Mans�eld Mt Buller 329

5. Razorback Hut - Mans�eld Mt Buller 312

6. Buttercup Creek Camping Area - Mans�eld Mt … 311

7. Fry's Hut - Mans�eld Mt Buller 299

8. Mt Timbertop (Saddle to Summit) - Mans�eld … 296

9. Howqua Hills Historic Area - Mans�eld Mt Buller 285

10. Mans�eld Farmers' Market - Mans�eld Mt Buller 280

▼

Top 10 listings


Sessions Page Views

0 10K 20K 30K 40K 50K

Organic Search

Direct

Referral

Social

Home

7,898 8.4%

Editorial

28,249 0.8%

Listings

18,791 44.0%


Sessions Page Views

0 6K 12K 18K 24K 30K

mobile

desktop

tablet


Total Clicks

1,925 2.2%

CTR

9%

FY1718 - Q2 FY1718 - Q3 FY1718 - Q4FY1819 - Q1

0 8 16 24 32 40

ChilternListings: Outbound Clicks & CTR

Sessions

18.2K 19.8%


desktopmobiletablet

43.6%

14.1%

42.3%


Page Views

48.8K 14.0%

Pages/Session

2.7 -4.8%

Digital Dashboard - Q1 2018-19explorerutherglen.com.au



1. Rutherglen, Victoria - O�ce Travel and Touris… 7,947

2. Rutherglen Wineries | Rutherglen, Victoria 4,838

3. Rutherglen and Corowa Unlocked - Rutherglen 4,099

4. Search accommodation in Rutherglen, Victoria 3,210

5. Search festivals and events in Rutherglen, Vict… 2,755

6. Search things to do in Rutherglen, Victoria 1,697

7. Muscat of Rutherglen | Rutherglen, Victoria 1,631

8. Rutherglen Winery Tours | Rutherglen, Victoria 998

9. Restaurants and Cafes - Rutherglen, Victoria 972

10. Search - Places to Eat & Drink 753

▼

Top 10 pages


1. Rutherglen Corowa Unlocked - Rutherglen 642

2. Rutherglen Farmers Market - Rutherglen 611

3. Tuileries Rutherglen - Rutherglen 427

4. Rutherglen Historical Town Guided Tour - Ruth… 341

5. Lake Moodemere - Rutherglen 330

6. Lil Tipsy Tours - North East Regional Winery To… 282

7. Behind the Scenes Rutherglen Winery Tours - R… 248

8. Rutherglen Wine Experience and Visitor Inform… 245

9. Alister's Tours - Rutherglen 245

10. The Pickled Sisters Cafe - Rutherglen 230

▼

Top 10 listings


Sessions Page Views

0 8K 16K 24K 32K 40K

Organic Search

Direct

Referral

Social

Home

8,209 5.3%

Editorial

26,417 16.7%

Listings

13,924 19.8%


Sessions Page Views

0 5K 10K 15K 20K 25K

desktop

mobile

tablet


Total Clicks

2,504 2.7%

CTR

16%

FY1718 - Q2 FY1718 - Q3 FY1718 - Q4FY1819 - Q1

0 80 160 240 320 400

Ruther…Listings: Outbound Clicks & CTR

Sessions

6.4K 25.7%


mobiledesktoptablet

44.2%

13.9%

41.9%


Page Views

15.8K 19.1%

Pages/Session

2.5 -5.2%

Digital Dashboard - Q1 2018-19exploreyackandandah.com.au



1. Yackandandah, Victoria - O�cial Travel and T… 4,622

2. Walking Trails & Nature | Yackandandah, Vict… 1,024

3. Yack Tracks | Yackandandah Mountain Bike Tr… 941

4. Search activities, tours and places to see 897

5. Search Festivals and Events 667

6. Yackandandah Gorge Scenic Walk - Yackanda… 654

7. Accommodation Search 654

8. Cafes & Restaurants | Yackandandah, Victoria 502

9. Search - Places to Eat & Drink 396

10. (not set) 337

▼

Top 10 pages


1. Yackandandah Gorge Scenic Walk - Yackanda… 305

2. Schmidt's Strawberry Winery - Yackandandah 179

3. Allan's Flat Reserve - Yackandandah 122

4. Yackandandah Gold Panning - Yackandandah 114

5. Into the Woods Glamping - Yackandandah 114

6. Indigo Gold Trail Yackandandah - Yackandan… 83

7. Saint Monday - Yackandandah 83

8. Yackandandah Lions Walk - Yackandandah 65

9. Top of the Town Motor Inn Yackandandah - Ya… 64

10. Fishing - Allan's Flat Reserve - Yackandandah 58

▼

Top 10 listings


Sessions Page Views

0 2.4K 4.8K 7.2K 9.6K 12K

Organic Search

Direct

Referral

Social

Home

4,957 21.4%

Editorial

6,689 14.3%

Listings

4,038 23.6%


Sessions Page Views

0 1.5K 3K 4.5K 6K 7.5K

mobile

desktop

tablet


Total Clicks

286 4.8%

CTR

7%

FY1718 - Q2 FY1718 - Q3 FY1718 - Q4FY1819 - Q1

0 40 80 120 160 200

Yacka…Listings: Outbound Clicks & CTR

11. PR 11.1 Media Famils During quarter one, media famil itineraries were prepared for leading craft beer influencer, Beer Diva - Kirrily Waldhorn and her producer, Sophie Goldsmith. They visited each of the craft breweries of the High Country Brewery Trail as well as a range of other tourism businesses including Provenance accommodation, The Empire Hotel, Hub 62, Rutherglen Brewery and Ripe @ Buller Wines during the course of their four day itinerary. They attended and covered the annual Collaborative Brew Day at King River Brewing and posted images and content about each of the elements on their itinerary on Instagram and Facebook along the way. Beer Diva will also publish a full travel feature and podcast arising from the Brew Day in coming weeks.

11.2 Other PR activities

Media releases developed and distributed to key targeted media during the period included a seasonal Spring in the High Country release focusing on new products and experiences from around the region. These included the Spa at Beechworth, Black Barn Farm in Stanley and MTB Adventure’s Ultimate 8-day High Country adventure which includes Beechworth and Yackandandah. A Collaborative Brew Day release was also developed and distributed, resulting in extensive coverage including in Good Food, Border Mail, Crafty Pint and regional newspapers. TNE met with key editors and journalists in Melbourne and Sydney in September resulting in a number of new famils and features being negotiated for 2018/19.

The annual new product presentation to Visit Victoria’s communications and marketing team took place in September. The presentation was extremely well attended and well received. Giveaways to highlight local products and experiences were provided to the team including morning tea from Beechworth’s Three Mile Kitchen and gifts from the Spa at Beechworth. As a result of the presentation, a High Country famil for key members of the Visit Victoria team will be arranged during quarter two.

ABOVE: A cover story and multi-page feature appeared in the July/August issue of Country magazine, the result of a famil during 2017 which included Indigo Shire businesses.

TNE Activity Report – Indigo Shire Council 2018-19 Q1 · The North East Victoria Cycling...

Documents

Transcript of TNE Activity Report – Indigo Shire Council 2018-19 Q1 · The North East Victoria Cycling...