by Mat Churchill

Tourism Australia's chief, Andrew McEvoy and his team were in Port Douglas yesterday, to spruik the work being undertaken by Australia's largest tourism body.

An attentive crowd of around 40 people gathered at Sea Temple as Mr McEvoy highlighted the current tough times for tourism around the world.

Tourism on a global scale was down 4% in the previous year, with Australia neither gaining or losing ground. However, Mr McEvoy understood that Far North Queensland had been one of the areas hardest hit.

Chairman of Tourism Port Douglas and Daintree (TPDD), Wendy Morris, acknowledged the difficult times the local tourism industry has experienced.

"This has been the worst two years anyone can remember. We've been on a knife edge and we know there's a lot of pain for both small and large operators."

Mr McEvoy urged tourism operators to use the tools available on Tourism Australia's website to tie in with campaigns such as 'There's nothing like Australia.'

He spoke of the excellent response the TA's latest campaign has been receiving around the world, and said the campaign should run for many years to come.

"We have to keep the message consistent. I think we should run it for ten years until we're all sick to death of it, then run it for another ten," he said.

As always it is measuring the success of a campaign that proves a challenge. "There's no silver bullet. It's an issue across the country." he said. "None of the systems are perfect."

For campaigns such as 'There's nothing like Australia', TA employ a market research company to survey a sample of travellers and ask questions such as "Have you heard about the campaign?" and importantly "Did it prompt you to take action?"

At present, 4% of TA's budget is spent on research.

TPDD experience similar frustrations. Apart form their fortnightly survey to their members, TPDD also source research undertaken by James Cook University, and figures from Cairns International Airport.

Some of the key points to come out of the session included:

- Aviation access into Cairns is a top priority;
- TA has a 10 year plan to double expenditure growth requiring a 6.75% pa growth figure;
- Benefits of social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter need to be maximised through "social advocacy".
- 40% of TA's marketing budget is spent on digital media while 60% goes to traditional mediums such as print media.

Mr McEvoy remarked that Far North Queensland needed to "Recapture the enthusiasm that was evident in the 90's."

He went on to say that during that period the area was a powerful force in tourism, but had since lost some of that drive.   "The time is right to re-energise the region because Port Douglas is a market indicator for the whole of Australian tourism".

Editors Comments: It is interesting to note that Tourism Australia usually allocate most of their time liaising and co-operating with the State tourism boards.  It is a tribute, therefore,  to this 'Jewel in Australia's crown" that TA took the time to come to visit us with their full team and update us on their latest plans and developments.  This is a significant sign that it is time for Port Douglas to remember just how important it is for Australian tourism.  We should be immediately responding to this attention by expediting the implementation of all our plans to re-instate Port Douglas and surrounding areas to the top of the tourism 'must do' list.