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China Ready Helping Australian tour operators prepare for the emerging
inbound Chinese tour market
Case Study: Pilot program conducted with Eco Lodges of
Australia
Presenter: Dan Butt
Communities Benefiting from Strategic Partnerships
Content
Why was the China Ready program
developed?
Eco Lodges of Australia pilot program
Lessons learned along the way
Participant Perspective
Where to next?
1. Market Intelligence collected from travel
agents out of China in 2010:
Rapidly growing demand for new and
innovative Australian tourism products,
particularly nature based
BUT
Shortage of Chinese friendly products
AND
Difficulties dealing with Aussie operators,
particularly when sourcing new products
Why Develop China Ready?
2. Tourism Australia research also found that Nature Based Products, Travel
Journeys and Indigenous tourism experiences where the 3 biggest draw cards
attracting Chinese tourists to Australia
13 million trips in 2001, increased to 56 million in 2011
Projected to reach 100 million in the next 5 years
Australia enjoying 1% of this massive market
0.5 million visitors and 3 billion AUD spent in 2011
Why Develop China Ready?
The numbers speak for themselves!
2011 saw 19.5% increase on visitor numbers from 2010
Expectation of similar increases for 2012
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Australia
Hawaii
Maldives
France
Switzerland
USA
Egypt
UK
Greece
Italy
Canada
New Zealand
Dubai
Denmark
South America
South Africa
Rankings of International Must Visit Holiday Destinations
%
Source: GfK Blue Moon, Development Plan Research for Tourism Australia, 2011
Perceived Barriers:
Price points: Chinese unwilling to pay for more expensive products
Accessibility from urban centre
Language
Cultural differences
Availability of Chinese cuisine
Why Develop China Ready? The Australian Perspective
Can’t service large coach tours so product is unsuitable for this market
Business costs associated with changing product for a niche market
Other Questions:
What changes need to be made to
existing products?
Is this a genuine business
opportunity?
Do all Chinese expect 5 star service?
Why Develop China Ready? The Australian Perspective
How do we work around the language barrier?
Will Chinese travel outside the East coast capital cities?
What general expectations and requirements do Chinese travellers have?
Conclusion
There was a real and urgent need for a product to provide answers for
Australian tour operators looking to access the growing Chinese
market.
Project Aims
1. Develop and deliver Chinese cultural awareness training program
2. Provide details on how to deliver superior service to Chinese guests
3. Assist in the development of marketing strategies for attracting Chinese visitors
4. Create a link between Australian operators and travel agents in China
5. Develop and promote a standard to Chinese agents that will allow them to put
faith in Australian products
China Ready Pilot Program
Strategic Partnership Ecotourism Australia
Spirit of China | AVANA
T-QUAL Grant Pilot development with
Eco Lodges Australia
This initiative is funded by T-QUAL grants
Where has the China Ready team visited so far?
FREYCINET ECO RETREAT
Why become China Ready
Stereotypes and expectations
Defining the modern Chinese
traveller
Adapting products to a
Chinese market
Engaging with the market
Training Overview
Develop star standard system for Eco
tourism products
Playful, interactive activities are the
most popular (playing a didgeridoo)
Chinese travellers prefer a structured
schedule
Opportunity for easier first up wins
with Chinese students already in
Australia
Importance of clear instruction for
even the simplest activities
Education is an extremely important
part of the travel experience
Minimal impact tourism and Eco
friendly experiences are key selling
points
Some Key Lessons and Training Outcomes
Key lessons
Need to understand the Chinese culture to appreciate travel motives and expectations
Importance of star ratings for sales into China
The need to define and understand the expectations of an ecotourism experience
Meal requirements
What steps have you now made towards engaging the Chinese market?
Welcome information packs in Chinese
Marketing material translated
Utilising Chinese social media platforms (Weibo and Ren Ren)
Developing relationships with agents in China
Placing more focus on targeting travellers from tier 2 cities such as Chengdu, Chongqing and Xi’an
Participant Perspective Sonya Mroz (Sales and Marketing Executive)
Participant Perspective continued...
Major Difficulties
Travel agents continuing to use traditional itineraries – limits the time available to
travel outside east coast capitals
Language barrier – currently do not have enough demand to employ a Chinese
speaking guide
Future Opportunities
More independent Chinese travellers visiting QLD
Travel agents now more willing to promote new/unique experiences
Size of the market
Continue improving the pathway to market – making it easier for Chinese travel agents to communicate with Australian tour operators
Educate travel agents in China about Australian ecotourism products and the new star standard
Conduct more training in Australia for
the ecotourism industry
Public launch of Eco Lodges to
agents in China late October 2012
Where to next?
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