Times tough as market share drops
AGGRESSIVE domestic competition has stolen market share from Cairns just as emerging global destinations cast covetous eyes on Australia’s tourism dominance.
Far North Queensland has lost 17 per cent of its share of national visitor expenditure over three years, equating to a $1.2 billion loss in spending.
That hair-raising figure is about to bite even harder when the full impact of the coronavirus scare becomes clear.
Tourism Tropical North Queensland chief executive Mark Olsen said 7000 Chinese tour bookings across the region had already been cancelled for February and March – a figure set to grow over coming days.
“Basically, 60 per cent of our visitor market from China is at risk because of the cancellations. This is only the tip of the iceberg,” he said.
Even without the pressure of the coronavirus, the region’s loss of market share demands immediate action.
Other Australian destinations are taking over territory – not to mention the likes of Indonesia and its plan to build “10 new Balis”.
There has never been more competition for a tourist’s hard-earned money, and tourists have never been more sophisticated in their demands.
“There’s no doubt that we are losing market share,” Mr Olsen said.
“The market keeps evolving at a faster rate than ever before, so we need to keep evolving at a faster rate just to maintain our market share.”
That includes operators refreshing their stand-alone products – but innovation is pointless if potential customers are unaware of its existence.
“Now more than ever, it is clear we need to invest more in our destination marketing to overcome the challenges of an increasingly crowded market and the impact of more frequent crisis events,” Mr Olsen said.
“Whether the additional funds come from an increase in state funding or a visitor levy, what is clear is more funds are needed and they need to be locked in for the long term.”
Mr Olsen and TTNQ recognised something on their end was not working and recently traded the old “Tropical North Queensland” destination name for the “Cairns and Great Barrier Reef” tagline.
The organisation is almost ready to unveil a new regionwide branding and marketing strategy after months of work – an announcement pushed back first by bushfires, and now the coronavirus.
That outbreak has once again proved the importance of market diversification.
“The China market has played such a key role in diversifying the seasonal visitation to this region (during the slower season),” Mr Olsen said.
“(Coronavirus) reminds us to continue to diversify and our base of markets to build the resilience the destination has shown over its last 40 years in this tourism partnership.”