Travel Weekly has teamed up with Tourism Australia and Qantas on The Ultimate Aussie Adventure campaign. We spoke to John O’Sullivan to find out more.
Q. How did the Ultimate Aussie Adventure campaign come about?
A. At the start of this year, we ran a very successful campaign in the US in the style of a movie trailer, starring Chris Hemsworth and Danny McBride, which drew a lot of international attention. We wanted to work with Qantas to build on this campaign and remind the UK travel trade about Australia’s unique aquatic and coastal experiences, food and wine, nature and wildlife, culture and heritage and sport and events.
The Ultimate Aussie Adventure is about inspiring agents to promote and sell this remarkable country and its friendly people – with a fantastic two-week holiday for two also up for grabs!
Q. Do you think travel agents are embracing the message that Australia is a realistic two-week holiday choice?
A. Definitely! Through the Aussie Specialist Program, and our face-to-face training, we demonstrate how achievable Australia is as a two-week holiday destination. Knowledge is key, so in order to alter perceptions that you need over a month to holiday Down Under, we provide agents with two-week itinerary suggestions, designed to see a combination of three places.
To date, we’ve had really positive feedback from agents who anecdotally have admitted it’s changed their perceptions around the length of time needed for a trip.
Q. How important is the travel trade to Tourism Australia and how do you support agents?
A. During the last 12 months Tourism Australia has excelled in engaging the travel trade to learn more about Australia. Research tells us that over 40% of all holiday bookings down under are booked through a high street agent, reinforcing our strategy of engaging frontline sellers.
The Aussie Specialist Program, Tourism Australia’s online training platform for agents, sets the bar for innovation and content. Re-launched in September 2015, the platform educates and influences agents with content rich modules.
These are continually refreshed, with Youth Experiences of Australia, Self-drive Australia and Australian Wildlife Journeys added in the last year. The past 12 months has seen more than 3,193 agents qualify as Aussie Specialists and a further 1,386 currently in training.
The likes of Flight Centre and STA Travel now make it compulsory for every staff member to complete this during their induction training.
We also have a number of roadshows, face-to-face training and webinars throughout the year, so we encourage agents to keep an eye out for them in the coming months.
How to enter
You can be in the running to win an amazing two-week holiday to Australia and a host of great weekly prizes by taking part in The Ultimate Aussie Adventure incentive. All you need to do to get involved is log your Qantas bookings to Australia and complete training modules before October 31.
For full details of the incentive and prizes and terms and conditions, head to:
ultimateaussieadventure.com