Class is in for Great Ocean Road traders

GREAT Ocean Road Regional Tourism is holding a marketing masterclass next month as part of its inaugural conference for local traders.

Nine guest speakers — including iSpy brand strategy expert Tania Farrelly, QT Melbourne general manager Troy Cuthbertson and Visit Victoria chief executive Peter Bingeman — will offer attendees tips and insider knowledge on how to grow their business and expand their audience and reach.

Speakers will be covering the key themes of branding, search engine optimisation, social media, international marketing, and blogging. Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism general manager Liz Price said the conference was a “not-to-be-missed opportunity”.

“We have worked hard to develop a program of speakers to deliver businesses real tips and tools to take away and implement immediately to drive their marketing and promotions efforts harder,” Ms Price said.

It has been a rollercoaster July for business and tourism in the Great Ocean Road/Otways region, with federal Tourism Minister Steven Ciobo announcing $1.3 million Commonwealth funding for projects in Wye River, Apollo Bay, and Forrest. The Tourism Demand Driver Infrastructure program was followed by the release of a Great Ocean Road Coast Committee options paper — partnering with Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism — investigating how to deal with overwhelming tourist demand and traffic congestion in the memorial arch precinct.

The paper received backlash from Corangamite MP Sarah Henderson for suggesting turning away tourist foot traffic and transforming the arch into a “drive-through” — offering an alternative “digital technology service that would enable self portrait images to be embedded within a background image of the arch”. “This historic arch is not a McDonald’s — the drive-through option is a really terrible idea,” Ms Henderson said.

“As for the fake arch idea, which might involve a digitally produced arch, this is laughable — tourists are looking for a genuine experience, not green screens or photo boards.”

The Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism 2017 Conference is being held from 9am to 4.30pm Thursday, August 10, at Deakin University’s Warrnambool campus.

Head to greatoceanroadtourism.org.au for tickets and more details.