2012 Victorian Tourism Industry Council - Lynette Bergin Report

2012 LYNETTE BERGIN TOURISM FELLOWSHIP REPORTPrepared and written by Despina Karatzias, Global Ballooning

Upon entering my Istanbul bound international flight I realised just how big, hairy and audacious my global quest for excellence actual was. A lifetime opportunity and journey of professional development and personal growth waited for me on the other side. Words cannot do justice to the immense gratitude that continues to fill me up for being awarded the 2011 Lynette Bergin Fellowship and working in an industry and organisation like Global Ballooning that supports and empowers their people to flourish

Living, breathing and experiencing first hand a week in Cappadocia followed by a week in Tuscany is by far one of the most rewarding and awakening experiences I could have ever been given in my career to date!

THE QUEST

My quest for this fellowship was to find a region that is the epitome of food and wine tourism as well as a region that is renowned for hot air ballooning where in order to experience the region properly tourists consider hot air ballooning a must.Cappadocia and Tuscany were the chosen regions as the market leaders on a global scale to conduct my research. These two regions have very strong ‘must see’ brands and are market leaders on a global scale. One has had a long standing reputation and the other has seen fast and significant growth and investment.

There was a common theme amongst both group of visitors surveyed as to what motivated them to visit these destinations. The most popular responses as follows:

• They always wanted to visit

• They were celebrating a special occasion• Interested in cultural discoveries during their trip motivated by interest in historical artistic and heritage offering • Invested time in learning the language and were there to visit and put their theoretical knowledge into practice

In 2011, there were 983 million international tourist arrivals worldwide, with a growth of 4.6% as compared to 940 million in 2010.As you can see from the table below both Italy and Turkey are in the top 10 international tourism destinations in 2011

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

My research began well before I landed in Europe. One of my biggest challenges was booking appointments in advance. English was limited for some of the operators I connected with and it was sometimes confusing for them to even comprehend what I actually wanted to do. Once there I found through persistence, patience and a significant use of hand gestures I was able to collect highly valuable information.

As formal appointments were not easily achieved – I found that my mission was more research on the run. It involved making friends very quickly in the week I had in each destination and tapping them for as much information as I could – I would consult in hotel lobbies, in restaurants, cold calling various operators and I even found myself at times door knocking various travel organisations and balloon operators.

I was gaining valuable insight as to what a career in investigative journalism would be like. My mission being to uncover a hidden secret of massive tourism numbers – the tourism equivalent of Lasseter’s Reef. It is not until you climb down into an underground city carved

Rank Country UNWTO Region ‘11 International Tourist Arrivals

‘10 International Tourist Arrivals

Growth Percentage ‘10—’11

1 France Europe 79.5 Million 77.1 Million +3.0%

2 United States North America 62.3 Million 59.8 Million +4.2%

3 China Asia 57.6 Million 55.7 Million +3.4%

4 Spain Europe 56.7 Million 52.7 Million +7.6%

5 Italy Europe 46.1 Million 43.6 Million +5.7%

6 Turkey Europe 29.3 Million 27.0 Million +8.7%

7 United Kingdom Europe 29.2 Million 28.3 Million +3.2%

8 Germany Europe 28.4 Million 26.9 Million +5.5%

9 Malaysia Asia 24.7 Million 24.6 Million +0.6%

10 Mexico North America 23.4 Million 23.3 Million +0.5%

The top 5 international arrivals to Turkey in 2011

1 United Kingdom

2 Germany

3 Netherlands

4 Arab World

5 Iran

The top 5 international arrivals to Italy in 2011

1 Germany

2 Switzerland

3 France

4 Austria

5 United Kingdom

1. Lynette Bergin Tourism Fellowship Report

out of rock or look up at the leaning tower of Pisa or visit the Duomo in Florence, or villages like San Gimignano, Luca and Sienna that you quickly get a sense of exactly why these two countries attract the fifth and sixth largest number of international visitors in the world.

One procedure I used in making some of my systematic observations and pursuit of information was to just be the tourist. Experiencing the product and delivery first hand, expanded my awareness and assisted me to make key observations into customer service and product offering in these two locations.

CAPPADOCIA, TURKEY

First stop Ankara, Cappadocia. Only minutes into my visit, the first sight of the awe inspiring rock formations that make up hundreds of caves that house a community of residents and accommodated the 2,500,000 visitors that were reported to visit this destination in 2011 and I am under a spell! A spell so great that I well up with tears and my mouth naturally opens in amazement! I was taken back and the overwhelming feeling of emotion quickly turned to an anxiety attack - panic set in! My head started to spin and my tears of overwhelming emotion turned into fear. The only thought at this point “what on earth am I going to come up with – THIS IS IT – this is why I am here, this is why there was not one empty seat on the flight over - this is why this bus is full of tourists from US, Japan, Slovenia, Brazil, France and Australia - this is why there are two and a half million visitors coming here!”

HISTORY OF CAPPADOCIA

The origins of this unusual region can be traced some50 million years ago, when craters and chimneys dominated the landscape. Since then huge quantities of volcanic material have spewed over the many volcanoes. Forces of erosion ongoing for millions of years have left mushroom-shaped formations in the soft volcanic stone in which inhabitant’s centuries ago literally carved out their homes. There is a rich diversity of sites from various historic periods, from the time of the Hittites to the early Christians to the 13th century Great Silk Road. But mostly what is unique about Cappadocia is the homes and churches carved from stone and the vast underground cities. These characteristics constitute the unique identity of Cappadocia, which cannot easily be found elsewhere in the world.

TOURISM IN CAPPADOCIACappadocia is a unique part of the world. The field covered by the provinces of Aksaray, Nevsehir, Nigde, Kayseri and Kirsehir in the Central Anatolian region often referred to as a miraculous natural wonder of the world.

Today Cappadocia is one of the most important tourism centers of Turkey and the most popular commercial ballooning locations in the world. It is a region that is visited every year by millions of tourists coming from every part of the world.

Cappadocia is located in Anatolia in central Turkey. It is blessed with a sensational natural landscape that looks like it is a Hollywood film set. It is rich in incredible history and has become one of the most sort after tourism destinations in the world. The region is made up of special geological structures that resemble large mushrooms. They call them fairy chimneys and they have been hollowed out by human hand and turned into dwellings. The ballooning experience flying through this magical valley was absolutely breathtaking and it was so easy to understand how these two amazing sights can lead to such a phenomenal growth in tourism.

BALLOONING IN CAPPADOCIA

Over 20 years ago about the same time Goreme National Park in Cappadocia became listed as a world heritage site and started attracting international visitor flows, Englishwoman Kaili Kidner and the Swede Lars Eric Möre were the first to introduce ballooning as a new way of experiencing the more remote parts of the valleys. The couple from northern Europe set up a hot-air ballooning operation in the Göreme township.

Kapadokya Balloons at that time had developed ballooning as an exclusive (expensive) tourist activity to partake in. The couple marketed ballooning in Cappadocia aggressively, regularly attending international tourism trade fairs and frequently inviting international media to take a balloon flight with them. By the end of the 1990s their ballooning activity was in all the Cappadocia guide books and Turkey’s national tourism board also used images of ballooning over the Cappadocia landscape in its international promotional campaigns, thus making tourism in Cappadocia, and even to some extent tourism in Turkey, synonymous with hot air ballooning amongst the Cappadocia landscape. Over the past ten years, the initial ballooning company has hence grown into a large and highly successful business. In addition, nineteen other ballooning operations have been set up in the region. For most of the summer season now, there are approximately one hundred hot-air balloons flying each morning over the central Cappadocia (Göreme) region.

Kapadokya Balloons now owned by global company Dorak Holdings has introduced a further two sister balloon companies, Atmosfer Balloons and Rainbow Balloons in order to cater to different international markets. Sevgi Peker, Manager at Kapadokya Balloons was in the midst of gearing up for the launch of their third ballooning operation Rainbow Balloons. Sevgi explained that the three companies are set up as completely different brands catering

Cappadocia, Turkey


to different markets. “Kapadokya Balloons will remain predominately for French and VIP market while Atmosfer will target Far East as we have found that the Asian market do not like to be with western passengers and our newest company Rainbow Balloons will target European and group/incentive market”.

As early as 2003 there were only five companies flying approximately 3,500 passengers that year. With five new operators opening this year there are now twenty ballooning companies operating in Cappadocia with a minimum of 5 balloons per company – a legal requirement for any balloon operator to adhere to. It is estimated ballooning organisations alone employ over 1,000 people directly (including crew, drivers and office staff) and this year alone 350,000 passengers will have experienced a hot air balloon flightand without question Cappadocia is the commercial capital of ballooning in the world.

Murat Ozguc is the owner of Travel Atelier, a high-end private touring service. He was originally employed by Kylie and Lars as their Turkish manager to build the ballooning business. His take on the popularity of ballooning today is:

• Location - there are no high rises and they can fly low.• Reliable weather conditions flying approximately 300 days of the year (Melbourne flights are anywhere between 120 to 150 times a year).• They have had a large national and international media focus.• Ballooning is highly visual and with thousands of passengers flying over the regions, thousands of photos are taken and shared.• They have had very generous exposure in all the leading guidebooks around the world.• The entire industry is behind selling ballooning.

Ballooning is so iconic to the region that like Murat pointed out “word of mouth remains king and people that visit and don’t even fly will still recommend ballooning”.

It is worth also mentioning that the way that the business of ballooning is appropriating the economy is significantly more widespread because of the effect that it is having on overall business practice in Cappadocia through the practice of ‘commission-based marketing’. As the ballooning industry has grown in Cappadocia, this process has grown to become a highly significant feature of business practice and of the relationships among businesses and entrepreneurs there. A downside of the opening of increasing numbers of ballooning companies has led to increased competition so that commission payments have grown with balloon operators paying up to 65% for a third party sale. In addition to this every key

stakeholder I spoke to expressed concern that too many balloons in the air is having a negative impact and posing great safety concerns as a result of the mass volume.

The practice of commission payments has led to ballooning’s absorption of individuals’ entrepreneurial practices and host guest relationships – everyone is involved in selling a balloon flight, every travel agency, tour guide, hotel all have preferred partners and there will not be many visitors to the region that will not have been recommended a flight pre or during their visit. According to Murat “it’s not a hard sell, it’s a given”.Today, any individual, from freelance tour guides to waiters in restaurants to ‘tea-boys’ in tea houses, can earn a significant income from ballooning even if they do not possess the financial capital to set up their own more formal tourism business.

MY BALLOONING EXPERIENCE

I was picked at 5am for our flight by a bus already full of other ballooning enthusiast. Our friendly driver joked that it was ballooning peak hour as we passed vehicles with either balloons attached or mini buses with other eager tourists about to embark on their ballooning adventure.

I knew I would be blown away by the experience but I didn’t think it would start at the breakfast venue! There were hundreds of passengers checking in for their flight. The mass number of passengers was not for multiple companies meeting at the one place –this was an average morning for the team a Kapadokya balloons. International passengers came from everywhere Russia, Sydney, Brazil, China, Japan

Pilots and crew from Kapadokya Balloons.


and US. Japanese touristswere the prominent market. So prominent in fact that Kapadokya Balloons has a dedicated Japanese consultant just to come out on the morning and do the briefing in Japanese. I was blown away before I even saw a balloon!

We had breakfast first and then proceeded to the launch site where handy crew were well into the process of inflating our balloon as were another ninety or so balloons around us. From walking alongside the fairy chimneys, to seeing them from above during a hot air balloon

ride, the sublime scenery simply must be seen to be believed. The experience breathtaking and rather then telling you how amazing this experience was I would like to show you below, after all, pictures tell a thousand words.

Current policies and strategies for the promotion and management of the tourist offer in Turkey that contributes to the success of the regions like Cappadocia.

Tourism in Turkey with it’s complex social, economic and physical impact, has become and international phenomenon, and is one of the largest and most rapidly growing industries in the international market. Tourism is no longer a supply driven sector but a demand driven market. Turkey as a destination has one of the most progressive tourism industries in the world.

According to a recent study into the diversity of cultural tourism in Turkey, the key to the continued attraction of visitors to Turkey in significant numbers is a careful consideration of marketing and planning of its rich and diverse tourism resources. Over the past two decades, tourism has become a very important industry for the economies of a large number of both coastal and inland Turkish towns and cities like Cappadocia.

The Tourism Strategy of Turkey 2023 has been prepared by the country’s Culture and Tourism Ministry targeting the term of 2023 for completion. According to the strategic plan, Turkey aims to create seven tourism development corridors and nine cultural tourism zones in 2023.

THE VISION – Turkish Tourism Toward New Horizons

With the adoption of sustainable tourism approach tourism and travel industry will be brought to a leading position for leveraging rates of employment and regional development and it will be ensured that Turkey becomes a world brand in tourism as a major destination in the list of the top five countries receiving the highest number of tourist and highest tourist revenue by 2023.

Key Actions to realise the vision:

• Contribute to the objective of sustainable development by eliminating the interregional differences in levels of development.

• Support tourism development with sustainable environmental policies.• Extend the season throughout the year by diversifying tourism products.• Promote tourism and raise awareness in public, private companies and national government organisations especially on ecotourism and agricultural tourism.• Use tourism as an effective tool for fostering social and economic development of backward regions and disadvantaged groups.• Alleviate the burden on public by encouraging active involvement of private sector enterprises

Cappadocia in the Tourism Strategy of Turkey

STRATEGY

“To use tourism as a key tool for local and regional development in tourism development areas encompassing more than one cities to be transformed into destinations”

Cappadocia falls under the Cultural Tourism Development Zone as a world-renowned destination with unique historical, cultural and natural riches and original urbanscape embedded in a historical and natural layout.

Although the Cappadocia region falls under culture tourism, there is a vast potential for other types of tourismto be further evaluated. In addition to hot air ballooning these include improved scenic layout and attractions such as golf areas,trekking and hiking, rich handicrafts, local gastronomy kitchen and regional wines. These will be complimented by marketing of the region within a perspective of sustainable tourism.

Implementation of Turkey Tourism Strategy

In order for the Tourism Strategy of Turkey to be realised with all its dimensions to reach its objectives it’s important that public and private institutions and organisations, government and general public adopt the strategy and act together towards the common objectives. In order for this to be realised at the highest level a transparent and accountable process at the level of political and administrational management, decision taking, programming, resource allocation, application, coordination and supervision. Within this framework the implementation of the strategy is said to be prepared with the following governing bodies:

• National Tourism Council• State Planning Organisation• Minister of Culture and Tourism• National Tourism Certification Service• Domestic Tourism Research and Steering Departiment• Tourism Education Guiding Service• National Tourism Data Repository Service• City Tourism Councils


New Media, Information and Communication Technology in Cappadocia

Tourism can be viewed as very different from most other sectors of e-business as the consumer goesand collects the product at the point of production, which is the destination. The Internet can be considered as the lastrevolution in the distribution of tourism information and sales. Internet is even becoming the primarychannel for business-to-businesscommunication. It offers the suppliers the potential to by-passintermediaries in the value chain and thus increases their revenue base. Consequently, new businessmodels must be developed by tourism companies in order to manage their relationships with intermediaries and final customers. It is obvious that the application of e-business methods in Customer Relations Management (e-CRM) provides such an opportunity.

Upon asking Suha, Owner of Esvelli Cave Hotel in Cappadocia which agents/wholesaler he works with he shared he only works with twelve agents most of which are local travel agencies. He does not seek to have his product sold by third party agents and he much prefers to market and handle his own clients online.

Today it is not just the corporate markets travelling with personal computers and other internet devices and free Wi-Fi access is fast becoming a necessity to the leisure market just as much as the business traveler. Although it is much more affordable now if one does have to pay for internet use, wireless internet access is a welcome service from any provider. Cappadocia has this covered– even in our cave hotel there was free Wi-Fi available to all guests each room was also equipped with a laptop. This made it so easy to stay connected.The most impressive free Wi-Fiwas in the shuttle when I was picked up from the airport. What is the first thing I did? Like most tourists as soon as I got connected I hooked in to my social media networks and shared my first image of the cavernous village before me, directly from the bus. With almost three million visitors estimated to visit the region this year and social media networks like Facebook and Twitter the size of countries you can see this type of access to technology and ability to share the experience will only keep visitation and ballooning participation rising.

OBSERVATIONS AS A TOURIST:

Outside of the obvious differences that warrant the millions of visitors and thousands of ballooning passengers the main differences observed were cultural. These include:

• Treated as guests - not tourists - Travelling to Cappadocia I never once felt like a visitor.

We were welcomed like guests reuniting with long lost relatives.

• Children are respected and welcome everywhere - Travelling with young children was seamless in this

destination as they received such warm reception at every attraction and restaurant we visited. Every single restaurant we dined in whether it was casual or a formal meeting my children were welcomed with open arms and treated to treats and drinks on the house. Literally they have never been hugged so much by complete strangers. On two separate occasions at different restaurant waiters even made beds for them by putting chairs together and offering blankets and pillows!

• Restaurants go out of their way to ensure you are comfortable - In Istanbul and Cappadocia restaurants have blankets

on hand so that patrons can use as a shall over their shoulders or legs to keep warm when seated outside and the temperature drops.

• Hiring a taxi for the day - Not interested in hiring a car, joining a big coach

tour and no budget for private touring we were recommended a cabbie for the day! After negotiating a daily rate we had a cab driver as a personal guide. He was local, extremely knowledgeable and it was a great solution.

Map of key Turkish regions targeted as their own destinations


TUSCANY, ITALY

Tuscany needs no introduction. Even in off peak lines to get in to any attraction was well over a two-hour wait. On many peoples wish list I met a number of tourists there to celebrate mile stone occasions or simply there because they have either always wanted to go or they visit regularly because they love it so much. No question it is a beautiful part of the word much like Cappadocia there are obvious reasons why they attract the visitation numbers that they do attracting millions from all over the world.

HISTORY OF TUSCANY

Tuscany (Italian: Toscana) is a region in Italy. It has an area of 22,990 square kilometers (8,880 sq mi) and a population of about 3.6 million inhabitants.

Tuscany is known for its landscapes and its artistic legacy. Six Tuscan localities have been UNESCO world heritage protected sites including Florence, Siena, Pisa, San Gimignano, Pienza and the Val d’Orcia.

Florence, the capital city of Tuscany, lies on the River Arno and is known for its history and its importance in the middle ages and in the Renaissance, especially for its art and architecture.

Tuscany is one of twenty regions in Italy. The region is located in the central, western part of the country, north of Rome and south of Genoa. It is bounded by the Apennine Mountains to the North and East, the Apuan Alps on the northwest and by the Tyrrhenian Sea on the West. Its major cities outside ofFlorence arePisa, Siena and Arezzo Its major river, the Arno, begins in the Apennines and heads toward the coast - both Florence and Pisa sit astride the Arno river.

TOURISM IN TUSCANY

Tuscany is a region almost as famous as the whole of Italy. Tuscany is a leading region in the field of international tourist destinations thanks to a huge cultural-historical heritage and to a unique environment.

This makes Tuscany and its capital Florence popular tourist destinations, attracting millions of tourists every year. Florence alone receives an average of 10 million tourists a year, placing the city as one of the most visited in the world.

Lourdes Valentino from Discover Tuscany describes the region as one of the most extraordinary places to visit in the entire world as the sole reason why Tuscany tourism is so popular. “It is known for the art, history, culture, food, wine, sweeping landscapes that will take your breath away and, of course, the villas of Tuscany. After all, Tuscany is the birthplace of the Renaissance and home to highly recognised things like the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Piazza del Campo in Siena, the various cathedrals and art like the statue of David by Michelangelo”.

Visitors come from across all parts of the globe to partake and savour in the beauty that is Tuscany. You’ll find a little bit of everything – and the offerings of Tuscany are some of the world’s best.

Tuscany is a place of two different faces. There are the larger cities filled with art and architecture such as Florence, Siena, Lucca and Pisa. And on the opposite end, there’s the majestic Italian countryside with villas and amazing places to explore, savour and enjoy.

Like Cappadocia cultural tourism in Tuscany is still the main reason of visit. The proposals aimed to boost cultural tourism in Tuscany are also growing year by year, improving the offer in parts of the region that are new to the phenomenon and arranging initiatives that combine different subjects of interest, such as museum-hotel agreements or seaside accommodations combined with food-and-wine tours of hinterlands or with painting and decoration courses, and so on.

MY TUSCAN BALLOONING EXPERIENCE

Interestingly I flew with the most experienced and longest operating ballooning company in the Chianti region who also started his operation 20 years ago. A vast contrast to what has happened in Cappadocia in two decades,Stefano remains a one-man balloon operator with only another two competitors in the region.

Many industries including our own can get caught up in politics and personal differences. I got the impression political agendas and an underlying element of corruption exists here and Stefano and his wife Gianna who manages the bookings as well as crews for Stefano

Hot air ballooning over Tuscany’s Chianti Region, Italy


are experiencing a great deal of hardship. I was one of only two passengers booked to fly on the morning of the flight and visitor numbers, scenery and favourable weather conditions, ballooning in the region should be rivaling other popular ballooning European destinations like Cappadocia and France.

Stefano expressed his extreme disappointment with the local tourism bodies that I discovered after our meeting are actually doing some great thingsto market the region.

“All I ask them is put a photo of a balloon in your brochures” explains Gianna looking exhausted.

My Ballooning adventure with Stefano was a manic, un-organised, chaotic morning with only one balloon and two passengers on board. The actual ballooning experience was just as breathtaking as we floated above lush green country side, beautiful villages, castles, vineyards and olive groves. I ignored the fact that Stefano enjoyed about six cigarettes during the hour duration of our flight whilst at the same time explaining safety is his first priority as he flicked his cigarette butt to the ground below us. Following the flight we headed back to Stefano’s house of which we stopped to pick up from the local bakery in his 4WD with his favourite Jazz music blaring as he sung and pounded his steering wheel to the trumpet sounds whilst of course enjoying more cigarettes with his two passengers in the back. I put this down to the European lifestyle of “the rules are – there aren’t any rules”. One would assume I may have walked away with a somewhat negative outlook yet this was not the case, the craziness of it all only added to an experience that was raw, authentic and just as unforgettable in its own right.

Current policies and strategies for the promotion and management of the tourist offer in Italy that contributes to the success of the region of Tuscany.

ORAGNISATIONAL STRUCTUREThe Italian Government’s Authority responsible for tourism is the Department for Development and Competitiveness of Tourism (Dipartimento per lo Sviluppo e la Competitività del Turismo) at the Prime Minister’s Office, under the authority of the Minister of Tourism ( the Hon. MichelaVittoriaBrambilla).

The most important bodies and organisations that are involved at national level in the field of tourism are: Federturismo (Confindustria), Confturismo (Confcommercio) and Assoturismo (Confesercenti). Their tasks are:

• Representation of tourism industries and professionals; • Information and communication on actions of common interest; • Training, studies and research programs; • Promotion of the culture of the entrepreneurship; • Support of initiatives in favour of sustainable development in the tourism sector.

KEY POLICIES AND STRATEGIES

• As per the Italy report on tourism in 2011 the guidelines for a “National Strategy to enhance the development of tourism in Italy” include:• Setting up a task-force to promote Italy as a destination, through a strong action of marketing and communication; • Enhancing the interaction between national and regional/ local administrations so as to face the challenges of logistics, infrastructures, networks of services and transport; • Signing strategic agreements with key international tour operators; • Ensuring business-oriented management of major cultural and sport events; • Improving the level of professional training; • Supporting enterprises willing to include the new Information and communication technology in their development plans;

• Reorganizing the National Observatory of Tourism, with the aims of enhancing the reliability of data and collecting and disseminating more timely information.

MEASURES AND INITIATIVES Economic prosperity

• To ensure the long-term competitiveness, viability and prosperity of tourism enterprises and destinations.• Provide quality employment opportunities, offer fair pay and conditions for employees and avoid all forms of discrimination

Social equity and cohesion

• To enhance the quality of life of local communities through tourism, and engage them in its planning and management • To provide a safe, satisfying and fulfilling experience for visitors, available to all without discrimination by gender, race, religion, disability or in other ways.

Environmental and cultural protection

• To minimise pollution and degradation of the global and local environment and the use of scarce resources by tourism activities. • To maintain and strengthen cultural richness and biodiversity and contribute to their appreciation and conservation.

Tuscany in the Tourism Strategy of Italy

Tourism Italy is part of the European Trade Union Liaison Committee and over the last three years, PRESERVE the project formed by the Assembly of European Regions (AER) and it’s 13 partners (http://preserve.aer.eu/) promoted the improvement of regional tourism policies, especially cultural and natural heritage. Having the Assembly of European Regions as the lead partner, this project allowed 13 regional and local authorities, coming from 11 different territories in Europe, to exchange experiences, improve capacities and knowledge, identify and share best practices to improve local and regional tourism strategies. An example of best practice from Tuscany is the project “Ospiti di valore”, thanks to which the Province of Siena has succeeded in creating a network of tourist organisations, joined in a common respect for the values of the Terre di Siena, and raising the awareness of tourists and citizens of the need to protect the environment and the cultural heritage and identities that characterise this territory in the landscape, the art and the harmonious living.

“Tuscany Region is delighted to participate in this event, also to get new ideas and inputs from the results of the activities of PRESERVE” stated the former Regional Minister for Tourism, Cristina SCALETTI.

“Since 2009 we’ve been working on the project “Sustainable and competitive touristic Tuscany”, which seeks to combine growth and sustainability. We believe that it is necessary to work for a regeneration of our touristic products, to be offered under the brand Tuscany. This evolution has to be based on the responsible use of resources, the enhancement of the identity heritage, the harmony between tourists and residents and the quality of work. The Region is following this path. For example, at the European level, Tuscany is one of the founders of the European network, and holds its presidency. Within this association, a lively exchange is active both among the participants and with the European and international institutions. It seems to me that there really is a great similarity between the targets and the actions of PRESERVE”she concluded. “Sustainability and excellence are employed, and not from today, as guiding elements for the local policies and the actions of the Province of Siena, on all fronts. They also qualify our touristic offer and reward us in the global competition. The attention that we pay, at all levels, to a land so beautiful and so fragile, like ours, represents, therefore, a great added value for the tourist of today, more and more aware, alert and sensitive to these issues.” stated the Provincial Councilor, Anna Maria Betti.


New Media, Information and Communication Technology

Groundbreaking social media marketing program, Tourism Tuscany called ‘All Things Tuscany’, increasing aided awareness and tourism significantly.

CHALLENGE

The communication challenge was to raise aided awareness for Tuscany by 8%. Marketing objective was to increase tourism to Tuscany by 5%.

Challenges were to promote Tuscany’s landmarks and beauties, among a 20 to 49 year old global target audience, with a limited media budget.

STRATEGY

Insights: Targets are looking for new, hot and trendy travel spots within social media. They are looking for inspiration, reviews and recommendations from influencers, trusted peers, friends and like-minded people.

Due to budget limitations Tourism Tuscany needed to move away from traditional advertising and shift towards a model, which is more content-driven, engaged and focused on consumer dialogue.

CONCEPT

Tourism Tuscany created a big engagement idea called “All Things Tuscany”. A concept that would turn a Landmark into a Lovemark!

First they launched a concept that selected a team of 10 Tuscany lovers that would report from Tuscany for 10 months.

The 10 selected social reporters would next share their passion for Tuscany with the world, through dedicated social media channels ie Trip Say, Yelp, Facebook and Trip Advisor.Finding the social reporters.

“workfortuscany.com”

New Twitter Account – “Tuscanycious”

USE OF MEDIA

In stage 1 the selected reporters created several owned social media channels like blogs, Twitter pages, Facebook fanpage, Flickr page, YouTube Channel and an iPhone App with Geo locations and augmented reality.

In stage 2 our reported published and distributed content (articles, photos, news and videos) across all channels.

In stage 3 the reporters created polls, quizzes and managed social interactions with peers – increasing Tuscany’s buzz, awareness and presence dramatically.

RESULTS

All Things Tuscany was a groundbreaking social marketing program with very high Return on Investment.

The aided awareness of Tuscany in the exposed target audience did not increase with 8% but +11%.

Tourism to Tuscany did not increase to 5% but +7%.

OBSERVATIONS AS A TOURIST:

As stated earlier there are obvious difference that can not be compared including history, culture, food, sights and art to name a few. Apart from the innovative Social Media initiative frommyfirst hand visitor perspective the Tuscan experience left much to be desired and lacked the WOW factor experienced a week earlier in Cappadocia. I could not say it is a destination you feel welcomed and appreciated for your visit and it occurred to me that there is a lack of appreciation for the abundance of tourism interest and dollar. There are some things we do better than anywhere else in the world even Tuscany!

RECOMMENDATIONS:

Treat our visitors as guests – education around basic human core needs, emotional intelligence and positive psychology

I have never experienced the hospitality like I did in Cappadocia, a destination so far away in an environment and culture that could not have been further from what is familiar. In restaurants, in hotels, in gift shops we were treated like long lost family. A cultural shift in gratitude may seem like a long and arduous road yet a necessary one to make our businesses and organisations even better. The people of Cappadocia survive on tourism and they are so grateful their visitors chose them they are thriving. My encounters with the people of Cappadocia was delightful, it came naturally. At times we can find ourselves entrenched in our first world problems and more education is needed in our industry around the basic human core needs of certainty, uncertainty, significance, love and connection, growth and contribution.


Our visitors choose our destination, our properties, and our attractions to spend their time and hard working dollars with us – how do we thank them? VTIC and Destination Melbourne have introduced a fantastic program with MTILP to facilitate this education. The basic emotion of gratitude is intrinsically innate for the people of Cappadocia, for most of us it is a learned skill and programs and workshops like MTILP should be rolled out in every region across the state to educate leaders in our industry to practice the art of tolerance, compassion and gratitude. We are voted the most livable city, year after year – we are doing a great job, yet teaching our people in tourism to fulfill these basic human emotions to compliment the fabulous destinations and products within them can make a world of difference for the visitor experienceas a little extra care, gratitude and compassion cost nothing and can go a very long way.

Deliver excellence to all ages including our children

If a book exists onthe most children friendly destinations in the world Cappadocia would not feature yet if there was a publication for the destination where children are most honoured, welcome and respected I would put it up there as number one. Most of our holidays or weekends away to date are spent in regional Victoria. Taking kids out for a meal to venues in Melbourne that are not pubs, casual diners (you know the type that hand out colouring books and pencils) or play centre’s is sacrilegious – they are just not welcome – that is our culture. Some restaurants even refuse entry to children under 12 or employ policies like no prams on weekends. None of the restaurants we visited in Cappadocia or regional parts of Italy offered colouring books, had a playground at the back, or video games in the corner instead they were greeted with beaming smiles and open arms ready for a hug. Young children were not seen as a burden, cautious of their presence that they will somehow disrupt the peace. My thoughts are that this goes back to education and open discussion of the little things that can make a big impact.

Restaurants go out of their way to ensure you are comfortable

In addition to being extremely welcoming to guest of all ages, blankets were on hand so that patrons can use as a shall over their shoulders or legs to keep warm when seated outside and the temperature dropped with unpredictable weather here in Melbourne, particularly in a location like Dockland’s, I thought this was another simple gesture that could be implemented by many great restaurants here in our fluctuating climate.

Melbourne City Taxi Drivers as Ambassadors and trained regional hosts.

One main recommendation is that outside of public and private tour operators and shuttle transfer companies Melbourne introduces an elite group of taxi drivers formally trained in a tour guide accreditation like this Cert III course in Tour Guiding offered at Victorian University (http://www.vu.edu.au/courses/certificate-iii-in-tourism-guiding-sit30507 ) for private guide/driving to regional parts of Victoria.

Being offered a ‘cabbie’ for the day by my hotel concierge was the perfect solution as we were not interested in joining a large coach tour, private touring was too expensive and we had no desire to rent a car and drive ourselves! We paid a flat rate for the day he was extremely knowledgeable and took us everywhere we wanted to go - it was a win-win for everyone. This meant our designated cab driver had guaranteed work for the day and we had a private chauffeur without the private price tag.

Regional operators in areas like Yarra Valley are always expressing concerns that transportation to the region is a major challenge and given my recent experience in Cappadocia would like to explore this concept in more detail as part of my follow up.

There is no question the taxi industry is experiencing some challenges at the moment.This type of initiative was attempted in the past in preparationfor the 2006 Commonwealth Games. During this time Melbourne’s taxi drivers were actually trained as tourism ambassadors and linked to a high tech online tourism information updated service. According to Simon Pursey from 13CABS it all fell

through the wayside as soon as the games were over, the initiative was not followed through and it just fizzed out.

It was called “The Melbourne Taxi Tourism Ambassador program” aiming to take Melbourne’s cabbies out of the transport industry, and into the tourism industry” former Lord Mayor, John So, said.Lord Mayor So recognised at the time that a taxi is the first experience most visitors have of our state and so it is a natural point to make people feel welcome and assist them to get the most out of their stay.

The program was aimed to compliment from the City of Melbourne highly successful Tourism Ambassadors program that has volunteers roaming Melbourne offering assistance and advice to travelers.

The program proposed to cover:

• Customer service skills such as better communication, building rapport with passengers and grooming• Up to date knowledge of cultural and sporting events• Detailed knowledge of shops, restaurants and theatres• Knowledge of other tourism services.

The program aimed to involve more than 3,000 drivers before the 2006 games. These drivers were then encouraged to act as role models and help to encourage other drivers to take up the training. There are currently around 3,500 taxis and about 10,000 taxi drivers working in metropolitan Melbourne. All cabs will have access to the tourism information updates.

The City of Melbourne was running the program in conjunction with the Victorian Taxi Association and further investigation is required to ascertain why it was not carried through and how it was a problem.

Councilor Irene Goonan, Chair of the Council’s Marketing, Business Development and Major Events Committee at the time, said the program would consolidate driver’s existing skills and generally raise standards across the industry.

I would like to explore this one step further as to one, what actually happened and two, have assigned city cabs trained and specialised in regional parts of Victoria. This elite group of cabbies will be known to hotel concierge and other Tourism Ambassadors around Melbourne and will not be restricted to Taxi zoning. This is some food for thought – and I am keen to explore moving forward from this experience how I can follow through on these recommendations and become more involved to serve our industry.

CONCLUSION & THANK-YOU

It has been an extraordinary experience to travel to such phenomenal tourist locations with my minds eye on my working life. Focusing my attention to detail and delivery has really opened my eyes to how good a job we actually do in Australia. We don’t have significant landmarks, we are not rich in history that goes back millions of years yet we are a still a world-class destination. It certainly is no accident that we continue to be voted the world’s most liveable city. I certainly have a much deeper appreciation for the industry I work in and also my role in our company. Our combined efforts, our government policies and strategic planning for a sustainable city and our attitude encapsulate excellence.

It certainly was an honour to be named this year’s Lynette Bergin recipient and to continue to carry out Lynette’s legacy. Although I did not know Lynette, I believe she was someone very special and much like my impression on my Tuscan ballooning experience, she did not conform but that was the attraction. When it comes to the difference that makes the difference - flair, fun, serving from the heart and a being a little crazy mean a lot – we do need more of that!


“Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”

- THINK DIFFERENTLY -

Should you wish to discuss any aspects of my paper further please do not hesitate to contact me.

Despina Karatzias, Business ManagerGlobal Ballooning Pty Ltd

[email protected] | 03 9428 5703Level 1, 173 – 175 Swan Street

Richmond VIC 3121