Any Australian who has travelled overseas - no matter how wonderful that place is - knows that there’s nothing quite like the feeling of 'wheels down' at your home airport. You may have had a great holiday, wonderful experiences, fantastic food, beautiful people, magic scenery … but there’s no place like home.
And now Tourism Australia wants all of us to be part of its team in selling Australia and making Australia the world’s most talked about holiday destination.
“Ultimately, we want our four million Facebook fans, the 23 million Australians who live here and the 6.1 million people who visited last year to become part of the world’s biggest social media team and ambassadors for our country,” said Managing Director of Tourism Australia, Andrew McEvoy.
Tourism Australia says there are five steps to success in social media, one of which is to let fans of Australia be the ‘hero’.
One such hero is 81-year-old Facebook user, Harry Willey, who regularly engages with fans and has become one of Australia’s most passionate advocates. Harry has travelled all over Australia for more than 50 years and Tourism Australia says “in terms of expertise, it literally doesn’t get any better than Harry.”
Mr McEvoy believes that social media makes sense from a business perspective as it’s much more affordable than a traditional marketing campaign.
“78% of our industry is made up of small to medium sized enterprises, and a lot of them just don’t have the time or the resources to fund traditional marketing campaigns. Social media has levelled the playing field for everyone and is a proven and effective way to secure endorsement.
“If I own a hotel and someone tweets or posts about it on Facebook, they’re advocating for my business. This makes everyone who comes through the door a potential fan and advocate. We see the same opportunity from everyone that visits our shores and the industry can help itself by embracing the power of social media,” Mr McEvoy said.
So get out the smart phone camera, snap away, talk about your experiences, recommend where to go and join the 'Team Australia'. Visit:
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