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Zone Marketing FAQs

Why change the regional marketing approach?

Research undertaken by Tourism Tasmania showed that the previous regional divisions did not make sense to holiday makers.

The research, Lighthouse Report One, also showed that consumers knew little more about Tasmania than it's clean green image, some quality food and wine products, wilderness and nature.

In other words, they didn't know what else Tasmania had to offer, nor where they could find it.

Telling customers about Tasmania's coastal and beach experiences, fine dining, unique shopping, arts, culture and heritage is therefore the important next step in the marketing of Tasmania.

Separating these drivers into logical chunks - or zones - provides a better way to communicate these drivers to consumers.

A stronger co-operative effort will result in better penetration of all marketing messages into domestic markets. Victoria has done this over many years with great success under the ‘Jigsaw’ campaign “You'll Love Every Piece of Victoria”, and more recently the approach is showing positive results in SA and NSW.

What are the benefits of the new approach?

By aligning activities across the State, it is more likely consumers will hear the message.

Put simply, one big domestic campaign effort can have more impact than many small campaigns.

Most importantly, this new marketing strategy will see the money committed to marketing activities by the zones matched on a dollar-for-dollar basis by Tourism Tasmania.

Tourism Tasmania will match those collective dollars up to a maximum of $100,000 a zone.

So, if a marketing zone is able to raise $100,000 within its area, it will have a marketing budget of $200,000 to promote its zone.

Whatever amount is raised within the zone, that amount will be doubled by Tourism Tasmania.

What happens to the touring routes?

The touring routes remain and responsibility for communicating them stays with those who currently support them.

However, in planning promotional expenditure, zone groups should remember that these route names mean little to visitors from the mainland and need to be put into context for visitors who are unfamiliar with Tasmania.

The touring routes are not significant holiday drivers in and of themselves but they are a good way to educate consumers on how they can travel around the state.

They also present a solid and well-established mechanism to facilitate cooperative marketing activities within and across marketing zones.

Touring routes can help visitors who are already here get more enjoyment from travelling along a point-to-point road. Touring routes can be developed into a cohesive product offer, and as long as visitors who are already here have a choice of road to get from A to B, continued encouragement to choose one road over another may still be necessary.

The future of touring routes therefore will need discussion between operators and local governments who support them. As well, their success and return on dollars invested should be continually monitored.

What happens to operators on the boundaries of the new zones?

Operators who lie on the boundary between zones should decides for themselves which zone is best for them; no one knows and understands their customers better than they do.

Operators who want to participate in the campaigns across two zones are free to do so. Tourism Tasmania can provide information and research to assist in this analysis, but ultimately it is a business decision for each operator.

Operators should ask:

  • In which zone would a consumer expect to find my product?
  • What is each zone doing to promote the area, and which promotion suits my product best?

Will Tourism Tasmania continue to fund the Regional Tourism Authorities?

The three Regional Tourism Authorities continue to play an important role working with operators and Tourism Tasmania in coordinating and guiding the promotion of their regions.

Their annual funding from Tourism Tasmania continues, with funds for the Marketing Zones being additional marketing funding.

What will happen to the money currently contributed by local councils for tourism?

Some councils will have more than one zone within their local government boundaries. Remember that visitors don't care about local boundary lines so, just as operators will make business decisions, so too will local councils.

Operators should encourage local government to contribute to promotion that focuses on:

  • The extent to which tourism contributes to their local economy and the jobs it helps generate and sustain
  • The potential to have their financial contribution matched, dollar-for-dollar, in any region they place it, and thereby doubled in every case.

Councils contributing to more than one campaign zone can only increase their chances for their local message to be heard.

Who should be in the Zone Marketing Groups?

Ideally, a ZMG should consist of between nine and eleven people.

Groups are comprised of operators along with an RTA representative and a Tourism Tasmania representative.

Any operator within a zone may become a member, however no operator may sit on more than one group.

Ideally, the ZMG should have an independent chairperson. Zone marketing funds may be used to fund the position of chair if the group thinks it appropriate.

Independent chairs may sit on more than one ZMG.

If a chairperson is elected from within the group, the chair should still refrain from voting.

Member of a ZMG is by application with final membership selected by the RTA and Tourism Tasmania based on merit and skills.

People interested in representing their zone should provide a one sheet outline of their skills, experience in tourism or their area of business, and their reasons for wanting to become a Zone Marketing Group member, in other words, how they can help promote the zone.

ZMG’s don’t have to be made up solely of operators. Individuals from a Chamber of Commerce or other background who are enthusiastic about developing tourism and are prepared to participate will also be considered.

What is expected of members?

Zone marketing group members are expected to:

  • Attend a monthly meeting, with the location rotating around the zone area
  • Be an advocate for the campaigns amongst their local area operators
  • Participate in discussions or advocacy - for example with local council or chambers of commerce - about the zone’s promotion
  • Encourage people to become financially involved in the zone campaigns and help ensure the financial obligations of participating operators are met
  • Help develop their zone's marketing plan
  • Attend occasional meetings or exchanges with other zones and Tourism Tasmania.

Apart from the monthly meeting, will it take up much time?

Being a member of a group should take up no more than six to eight hours a month.

What are the group's responsibilities?

The group's responsibilities are to:

  • Work with RTA representatives and Tourism Tasmania to develop and implement their zone campaign
  • Become active local advocates and a contact point for the campaigns and marketing plans
  • Complete an annual Zone Marketing Plan with tactical activities and measures.
  • In conjunction with the RTA to jointly enter into an agreement with Tourism Tasmania on the mandatory requirements to secure Tourism Tasmania funding on a $1 for $1 basis.

Are my expenses reimbursed if I become a member?

ZMG member expenses could be reimbursed under their respective RTA guidelines, and may be claimed from the zone marketing budget if the zone marketing groups believes it appropriate.

How will the funding work?

A total of $500 000 a year is available over three years from 2008 to 2011.

Each of the five zones can receive up to $100,000 a year if matched by industry, local government and other sources. For every dollar the industry contributes, Tourism Tasmania will contribute a dollar, thereby doubling the value of a zone's campaign.

In order to receive the funds, each group must fulfill mandatory marketing requirements.

Can the ZMG spend the money how they choose?

Some mandatory tactical promotions or collateral will be required.

Once these have been achieved, the ZMG can spend the remainder as it chooses, providing it is part of the mutually agreed zone marketing plan of activities.

How does a zone create a marketing plan?

Each Zone Marketing Group prepares a Zone Marketing Plan.

How this is delivered is up to each group. They can choose to use elements of an existing RTA or LTA plan and add new elements while deleting others, or commence entirely from scratch.

Tourism Tasmania provides each group with a prospectus of Tourism Tasmania's marketing activities for the next 12-18 months so the group can plan in a way that leverages these major communications and promotions.

Tourism Tasmania can also supply a template and a facilitator for the marketing plan.

Once completed, the plan is lodged with Tourism Tasmania and the RTA.

Consultation and feedback

Tourism Tasmania worked in partnership with the industry via peak bodies, RTA's and regional industry workshops to build the detail around the form and function of the program. 

Tourism Tasmania works with industry to ensure the program is a comprehensive partnership between government and industry and has support, ownership and carriage within industry.

All views and suggestions should be directed through an RTA, either directly or via the relevant LTA, or to the Chairperson of each Zone Marketing Group.


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