1NZTRI I Private Bag 92006 I Auckland 1142 I New Zealand I Ph (+64 9) 921 9999 Ext 8890 I nztri@aut.ac.nz I www.nztri.org

Slowing down, getting local and connecting…. opportunities & challenges

Simon Milne,Ulrich SpeidelCarolyn Deuchar

NZ Tourism Research InstituteAUT University

World Citizens

Risk Takers

Opinion leaders

Enjoy the outdoors

Experienced Travellers

Enjoy life’s indulgences

Use the internet to plan

Big spenders Value Authenticity

Technology Users

THE INTERACTIVE TRAVELLER

The IT strategy has delivered well on its original intentions in providing a focus for marketing activities and the 100% Pure New Zealand campaign within a limited budget.

However, the IT strategy has not been effective at delivering higher expenditure from visitors, one of the most important yield components. The IT strategy targets those with a higher disposable income with the assumption that it would lead to higher expenditure on the ground. This is not the case, as ITs do not appear to spend any more than non-ITs.

Consideration is needed as to what other types of visitor, what other segments, and/or niche markets, would contribute to desirable yield outcomes.

MED Interactive Traveller Review 2007

THE INTERACTIVE TRAVELLER STRATEGY

TOURISM YIELD

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

VISITOR EXPERIENCE

Interactive and absent minded

The need to slow down and connect….

What about the interactive community?

Community 2 Consumer (C 2 C)

What does this mean for you??

KEY THEMES TO EXPLORE

The Absent-Minded Traveller

Laptop

iPodGPS

Cellphone

The Absent-Minded Traveller

• Only spatially removed from home base

• Communication with outside world by text message, Skype, e-mail, blog, instant messaging, mobile phone.

• Destination no longer has traveller's sole attention

• Travel infrastructure develops into cocoon ? or enables engagement with locals?

• Fast travel within NZ or slow?

• Less yield per traveller - purchasing decisions aren't made due to stress and information overload, or more yield through a slower paced and considered decision making process

Destination

Home / WorkTravellingPeer Community

The Absent-Minded Traveller

The Three Spheresof Influence on the road

Marketing

Destination web sites

Brochures

PostersiSite

Notice boardsGuides

Videos

Colleague atwork needingassistance

Auntie Mabel's lost her cat

Mum & Dad

Client

Friends - didn't know I had that many

Mate who hasbeen to NZ

Friend's sisterliving in Dunedin

Cute girl fromSydney backpackerscoming to NZ next week

Israeli couple who didthe Heaphy Track withme

The Swedes I got drunkwith in Hastings

LocalCommunity

Needs of the absent-minded Traveller

Connectivity Balance life and IT

Have time Access to local information

Fast Tourism

Fast travel

Frequent search for ‘connectivity’

Time lost, lack of destinationinformation

Missed opportunities

for localtourism industry

Unsatisfactorytravel experience

Limited interactionwith locals

"Aimless" searchfor tourist experience

11

Waiheke Island

Slow tourism

Slow travel

Less frequent/rapid repositioning

Time for destination& absorbinginformation

Opportunitiesfor local

tourism industry

Satisfactorytravel experience

Interactionwith locals

+ Feedback toon-the-road peers

08/09/09 13

A traditional way of slowing tourists down

Maybe add to the experience??…..

15

Better still – ‘connect’ them – for free

How easy is it for tourists to NZ to ‘connect’?

NZTRI research shows that cost of access to the internet and lack of access points are major concerns for NZ travellers- especially backpackers

Many of our businesses, communities and cities lag behind most of our global competitors in terms of providing free easy to access connectivity

Lawrence as a model?

First town in New Zealand to offer town-wide free WiFi internet.

Three main strategies

The Interactive Community?

Western Southland

www.westernsouthland.co.nz

pre-, during &

post-travel

community

info

Communityresource

C 2 C

Community to Consumer (C 2 C) interaction is a growing trend facilitated by ICT

Getting local

''It was very much like walking with a friend of yours you hadn't seen for a while,'' said Steve Bernstein, a 62-year-old retiree from San Diego who recently followed Ragil's Paris tour. The visits are as eclectic as Paris' neighborhoods. Some greeters will ride bicycles around town with you. Others will help you sift through antique shops, let you into local artists' studios, or have you taste the best pastries in the city.

C 2 C TOURISM

Will you be part of it or dis-intermediated?

How connected to the surrounding community is your business?

The backpacker sector is ideally suited to providing a conduit into the local community but needs to build on this potential

Technical Competency

FeedbackRelationships

Local Income/Linkage Generation

Visitor Info.

Sense of PlaceMissionAdvocacy

Back-packer Web-audit

An unbalanced mix

Local networking

We are excited to be able to assist rugby fans from around the world find a home away from home that is suitable for their specific needs, with a slice of kiwi lifestyle thrown in for good measure!

To make tourism more sustainable and build yield we need to slow travellers down

Need to understand and leverage travellers' increasingly virtual and ad hoc social networks and to acknowledge and cater to their ‘absent minded’ ties back to home

Backpacker operators are well positioned to become a integral part of the growing links between tourist and community

Conclusions

vital to get local

Vital to build free connectivity for guests and to provide them with a reason to slow down as well as be absent minded

www.nztri.org

Thank You

simon.milne@aut.ac.nz