Tourism Australia rolls out Restaurant Australia campaign to key overseas markets

Wait have I missed something here? Isn’t there a bit of confirmation bias going on?- i.e. if you’re the user of a brand (or a visitor to a country) you’re automatically going to rate it more favourably than if you are a non-user (or haven’t visited). So it shouldn’t be surprising to anyone that Australia is rated favourably for food and wine after people have visited.
Still it’s a pretty TV commercial. Just wonder how many of the promised experiences are actually achievable by the average tourist.

What an opportunity wasted. It’s depressing, like watching money being burnt. Instead of the same old tired clichés, show the World the emotion Australia elicits.

Think this is brilliant. I worked in tourism on and off for over ten years and this is the best concept I’ve seen since “Throw another shrimp” … agree it could have executed in a more quickly paced way (I was like get to the good bit already) – but the essence of the campaign is absolutely brilliant. Well done …. although I didn’t see any kangaroo on the menu … which is actually delicious !!

Seriously. Yet another example of Tourism Australia pandering to the big end of town while us hardworking, smaller operators miss out. (Edited by Mumbrella for legal reasons)

LOOKS AMAZING AND NOW I’M HUNGRY.

WELL DONE TO ALL INVOLVED!

@Small Operator: sadly tourists don’t come to view chips on shoulders.

This is growing on me. I like that they focus on the food and wine and fresh produce, definitely a space that’s up for grabs in the destination marketing scheme of things

@Groucho spoken like one of the very likely candidates to have a snout in the trough. When you can show me some true ROI for the industry based on feathering the respective nests of the luxury end of town, your argument might sound less defensive.

Tourism Australia has been hiding behind this ‘aspirational marketing’ delusion for too long now. The industry is suffering. You probably know it yourself. But by the time it comes to pay the piper, there will probably have been a changing of the guard at the top and those on the payroll (possibly including yourself) will be well into your next gigs.

Have to agree with @JillAbbott, @CharlesRichards, and @SmallOperator. This Tourism Australia farce has gone on long enough. How long has this O’Neill managed to hang on to a job for? This is just another notch in his CV. At the expense of the industry. This isn’t a “poor me” cry. I have changed industry. I actually don’t care for myself. I have friends I the tourism trade I have left behind. Every now and then I check back in. (edited by Mumbrella for legal reasons)

Whooshka. Great to see passionate debate, quite rightly calling for some sort of accountability of substantial amounts of public money. My guess is that, unless they consider themselves like the royal family and too superior to comment, Tourism Australia will now haul out tired and flawed stats supposedly showing that the industry is not suffering and has never been in better shape. They’ll probably show current arrival figures which were doubtless the product of several campaigns prior. But some may well ask why they keep needing to redefine their *self-defined* goals of the Tourism 2020 disaster. What is it now $150bn? “Around $115bn”? I dunno every time I hear about it, it’s a new, downwardly-revised figure. So let’s have those misleading stats, TA, in 3,2,1….

@small operator small minds, bitter minds influence only themselves. Bigger minds become medium operators, some even big operators instead of blaming “the system” for keeping them small. Enjoy your conspiracy.

@Groucho Ah what a shame you resort so quickly to an ad hominem argument instead of attacking the issue I originally raised: namely show us actual evidence that showcasing luxury product will benefit the entire industry rather than just a few at the top. I was hoping for more of an intellectual response than a personal one , and your presumption that all small operators ‘should’ become medium or bigger is about as flawed as the original Tourism Australia campaign premise. No bitterness or conspiracy theories on my part: just sheer disappointment that, if left unchecked, TA will inflict a death of a thousand cuts to the industry. All on the tax payers’ dime. Enjoy your role in that. And probably a pay cheque. There you go, some ad hom backatchya! 🙂

@small operator I can’t see an ad hominem argument there myself but if you can see yourself in the comment then I don’t need one do I? The issue you raise is an accusation of backhanders. I quote “I wonder what back handers are being exchanged while luxury product gets showcased” Frankly I don’t think too many people will see that as an argument but rather some self perceived victim waving their arms about saying I’m a loser and someone else must be to blame. Perhaps you have other perception issues too, like the failure to spot the so called ad hominem in your 6:49pm and 10:27pm comments. That you think any one campaign can benefit the entire industry does rather undermine your opinion on all of it. (Edited for legal reasons) . And no I don’t earn any money from TA

Good to see some hard questions being asked. Having previously lead the consumer marketing for ‘Brand Australia’ in both Asia and Europe, I’m not sure some of the insights behind the food and wine direction are sound; or at least not sound globally.
For instance, it’s hard to see the French responding more strongly to this (or for some French travellers responding at all) than a myriad of other ‘selling points’ about Australia which would also be new news to them.
The question of whether a global luxury focus makes sense also has substance to it. For some markets looking for a ‘last frontier’ experience it could have a sanitising effect on what Australia is promising. It could also be somewhat distancing for family market, which is a significant proportion of Asian travel to Australia; or has been in the past.
Hate to say it, but I’d also like some further justification about how my tax dollar is being spent.

So @Groucho apart from tl:dr to your last comment, back to the original question: where’s that actual evidence showing that promoting luxury product (unattainable for most tourists) benefits anyone other than the luxury product itself?
No? Nothing? Thought so.

If I hadn’t already moved here, that would make me want to visit.

For me it sums up perfectly the differences between here and the rest of the world & experiences to be had in Australia that can’t be had elsewhere.

That’s the point: competition for $. For Europeans or Asians, there are plenty of attractions, beaches and cities elsewhere that are much much cheaper and easier to get to.

A trip to Aussie is an adventure of a lifetime for most and this shows it will be worth it the extra $ and travel time.

@small operator you really have a knack for naming yourself don’t you. Apt description of many aspects I’m sure. What matters is that people come and then even the little guys have a chance of picking up a tourist dollar. Show me where it says that TA set out to benefit everybody directly. (Edited by Mumbrella for legal reasons.)
No? Nothing? Thought so.

Oh @Groucho I’d like to buy you a beer some time. I think you’d carry on making me laugh. I don’t understand your first two sentences but parroting my own words “No? Nothing? Thought so.” is the schoolyard equivalent of “so is your face”, so I wonder if you’d actually be old enough to go to a pub.

Oh wait is this a phallic insult about being a ‘small operator’… Ahh bless you. Maybe a new variant of Godwin’s Law (look it up, champ). And by the way, if are you assuming I’m male and will be offended by you calling my dick small, I’m actually female and that would confuse my husband no end.

We’ve been running our restaurant in regional Victoria for 16 years now. You’re welcome to come and visit any time you like. I’d name it but that would be cheap, and I doubt our patient moderator would allow such blatant advertising.

I would be lying if I said our business was a cash cow of success. If that makes us a ‘loser’ or a ‘victim’ in your words. I’ll take it on the chin.

But we run a good, honest family business, and our TripAdvisor reviews attest that the few people who do find us are very satisfied with what they get. We’re reasonably priced. We have to be to get the patrons we do. Again, if that makes us a ‘loser’ or ‘victim’ etc.

It’s true we also run on very tight margins – so tight that we prefer paying our dedicated, stretched-to-the-limit staff before shelling out for advertising. Sorry if we put creating jobs above what you’ll probably say is ‘sensible business’ about promoting ourselves. I’ll predict your fingers are searching for the keys to type ‘martyr’ – but sorry, that’s just the way we are.

When you say Tourism Australia “doesn’t give a shit about” businesses like ours, what exactly gives you authority to comment on their behalf? And is this indeed true? Do they really not give a shit about local businesses like ours? [deafening silence from TA who appear to be Royal Family in their refusal to respond]

I actually am starting to think you have a desk in Darling Park. You do seem awfully intent on shooting me down on their behalf. That’d explain the deafening silence from them too. Throwing hand grenades from behind the bunker via you, maybe?
If you came to our restaurant I’d bet you will not have heard of the region we’re in. Tourism Victoria does a great job of helping their regional representatives promote our area, but they don’t have anywhere near the resource that TA does.

Where does it say that TA has to help everybody? Probably in their taxpayer-funded charter I’d say. Directly help everybody, no, but indirectly by showing people that there’s more to Australia than those capital cities (and Michelin-level product) would be a start.

Oh I already hear you say that that is a State or Regional tourism organisation’s job. Well yes, if they had the same budget, but also (and here’s another flaw in your argument) if we actually had the overseas arrivals to begin with. You glibly say that ‘people come’ and that gives operators like us to pick up the tourist dollar. But how exactly? Do people really come? When you come for a meal at our place you’ll see a lot of empty places. Not because we’re a bad restaurant, but because there isn’t the share of the international market for Tourism Victoria and my Regional Tourism Organisation to work with. That share of the tourist dollar is just not available to us at our loser/victim level.

Why is that? Oh, well it’s probably because overseas visitors will like an (admittedly beautiful – and presumably expensive) TV ad but think that they really can’t afford to come here with a strong dollar AND because there seemingly is only hatted restaurant product here). And besides, who is going to travel such a long way ‘just’ to have a meal in a hatted restau. Of course there’s more to Australia than that – but to our overseas visitors, you wouldn’t think so from that ad.

Our customers are mainly locals. Loyal locals who come here due to word of mouth. We’d love to have a share of that tourist dollar you talk about. But until people know there’s more to Australia than what’s in that commercial, our chances are practically zilch. It’s been the same for the last few years from Tourism Australia. They’re selling Millionaires’ Island you’d be forgiven for believing.

(Edited by Mumbrella for legal reasons)

The offer of a beer to chat about this (if you’re of legal age) still stands. My hubby (if he can tear himself away from washing dishes) would love to meet you too. And we’ll throw an FOC meal in our restaurant too. Just make sure you report back honestly to your colleagues at TA. We hope to disabuse you of our restaurant’s ‘victim/loser’ status. Cheers.

Respect your opinion Tim (and yours too @Groucho) – everyone’s allowed to differ.
But Tim – to your last point: “it doesn’t sound like you’d offer an experience a tourist would be inspired to fly 15 or 20 hours for”:
1) never said (or believe) that our restaurant (or any restaurant – even the hatted ones) would be the *only* reason to fly 15-20 hours: it’s always one of many things. Part of the package. Experience the other local product around us.
2) your suggestion is actually the complete opposite of what TA has set out in their “Nothing Like Australia” strategy where (supposedly) *any* good enough Australian product/experience is entitled to be part of the bigger picture. They promised us all that you don’t just have to be a big / niche / luxury player to be part of this campaign. And (I certainly believe) they have failed dismally in that regard.
Cheers

@small operator I have the greatest admiration for people who do what they do well and do it with passion particularly when it involves food, and hopefully wine. I also love rural Victoria particularly the North East. I hope you don’t regret the path you have chosen as people with energy and drive will propel their regions. Leaners and lifters and all that. You do rush in though – the small operator comment was made in reference to minds not genitals. Indeed I’m old enough to know that what defines people, and what makes them interesting rests on their shoulders not in their shorts. Back to the real issue which is I think is twofold. Firstly TA can’t be all things to all people and the spot is but part of a campaign which the regions can leverage if only they can get a few people to agree and do something rather than just criticize. (Edited for legal reasons). You are clearly smarter than that.
I reiterate I have no connection with TA though I have worked with airlines and travel in other countries. What I do now is pro bono work, travel and eat mostly in Australia and Asia.
And I am old enough to take up your offer of a beer but I probably won’t, I find that if I accept even a small inducement I feel like I am taking a backhander.

Small Operator has a point about what people will fly 15 or 20 hours for. There are some people that go to Denmark primarily to dine at Noma. But not the numbers that make a tourism industry.

Tim – it would be refreshing if the marketing media occasionally investigated things like the insights you mentioned rather than just take them on face value. Is the food and wine story a driver worthy of leading a campaign or is it a nice to know, value add that just adds an extra layer to Australia’s appeal? Is it a stronger focus than other options to lead with? Does this really hold up globally or is it more appropriate for particular markets?

Thanks @Glenn Myatt. You’re exactly on my wavelength here. Just a little bit of accountability through independent investigation would go a long way.
Looking back at this thread, it started with @Jill Abbott identifying (what I agree with) a fundamental flaw in the logic behind TA’s campaign. (Ie of course people love our food and drink once they’ve been. They are justifying their already-spent investment)

People don’t need convincing we have a great offer (generally). It’s that they need to know how it fits in with all else Australia has to offer.

Tim, with the greatest respect, have you been to a cobblestone street in Paris or Rome and thought (just for once) “I want to immerse in this entire experience. It may be a small operator. But hell, I will get the *full flavour* of the emotion by doing so. Drink what the locals drink. Eat what they eat
People watch etc etc ” I (respectfully) strongly disagree that people wouldn’t want to come to our restaurant (even if they knew where it was)
It’s not about the fact we’re not hatted. It’s not about the fact we’re a loser/victim restaurant.
It’s ABOUT the fact we’re a hardworking, honest, authentic Aussie dining experience blatantly relying on all of the wonderful brand Australia (product / experience) around us to make the whole a greater than the sum of the parts. True Australia.
We are NOT a hatted restaurant – or (respectfully) a “one trick pony” which relies on that alone.
No, we need our neighbours in the industry to combine with us. They need us. We need them.
No, people won’t fly 15-20 hours just to see us.

They ‘should’ fly 15-20 hours to see Australia of which we’re a part. And whixh Tourism Australia seems to consistently overlook at the expenae of ‘shiny hatted one-trick pony’ product.

Don’t take my loser/victim stance on this. Please pay heed to what the othera like Glenn and Jill have said about INVESTIGATING the idea that there is another perspective outside of the dogma, and outside of the schoolyard name calling.
Over and out.

I really like it. Of course it showcases the luxury/gourmet end of the market, it’s aspirational. But as you know if you live in Australia/visit here, you can still access those great food experiences on a budget and mid-price level, as well as experience the bars, the stunning natural environments, the harbour etc.
If only the State government would fix up the Sydney Fish Markets.

I’m just reading this entire entire thread now. In the case of @Small Operator vs @Groucho, I’m firmly with @Small Operator.

A great example of how not to rise to the bait of the petty namecalling and flawed logic of @Groucho (et al). @Groucho was OWNED through sensible, unemotional point making.

And yes, Tourism Australia, you’d do yourself a huge favour by coming off your high horse and listening to the voice of the people out there. The world – your marketing target – is not just high-flying hatted-restaurant patrons.

The vast majority (literally) would not be able / want to partake in that level of luxury. Portraying this luxury so consistently in your marketing is both misleading and alienating to prospective tourists.

@Small Operator’s point about Australia being greater than the sum of its parts is spot on. Tourism Australia should recognise that there are smaller players out there by showing them some love. Of course not directly, and not all of them. Just a representative few to show there’s more to Australia than luxury. Until you recognise that THIS range of product is Australia, TA, I’d say you’re royally screwed.

@James you might get a free meal for that. By all accounts the restaurant is good and Small Operator might be able to help you with your logic, she sure does a better job than you. Misleading and alienating to prospective tourists? Come on read Advertising 101.

@James where would this discussion be without your invaluable post. I’m sure everybody at TA is regretting the money spent on research, years of it, creative concepts, hundreds of them no doubt, when all along they could have just got off their high horse and consulted you. I bet even now they have put down their forks and are having a meeting to discuss how they can find you and tap into your brilliance so apparent from that post. They will particularly like your use of CAPS for emphasis not to mention that they have been found out misleading and alienating prospective tourists. Hold your breath until they call you. Please.

Charles – in answer to your question (how many of the promised experiences are actually achievable by the average tourist), well, plenty. If you’re talking about the TV spot, the eight scenes were chosen with direct input from each of our state and tourism partners and represent experiences they believe will best appeal to international visitors. They do unashamedly include some ‘high end’ experiences, but also some very affordable and accessible ones:

• Exploring Melbourne’s laneways before enjoying cocktails and dinner at Cookie, ending upstairs for drinks at the city’s popular rooftop cinema bar (Victoria);
• Sampling local produce at the Poachers Pantry in the Canberra countryside (ACT);
• Catching and barbecuing crayfish on Rottnest Island (WA);
• Visiting a winery in the Barossa (South Australia);

Small operator – looking at your comments, I’m not expecting to win you over, but to fill the ‘deafening silence’ from TA, here you go:

All I’ll say in response to your accusation that we’re ‘pandering to the big end of town’, is that this campaign has deliberately set out to make local businesses, big and small, the hero. The ‘Rally Cry’ phase was all about inviting local tourism, hospitality, food and wine experiences (like your own) to submit their stories, which we are now promoting and amplifying through our assets – Restaurant Australia campaign hub, paid for media buys, PR, social message etc.

More than 1600 businesses are currently featured on the hub, of which 700 have been written up into features. They include everything from hatted restaurants to family owned pickling and preserving businesses, small family run cafes and Sunday food markets. Certainly not all ‘big end of town’ as you claim.

As part of the domestic media buy, 288 Aussie tourism, hospitality and food and wine businesses have been featured in more than 300 advertorials published in News and Fairfax National, Community and Regional papers and Fairfax online.
The vast majority of these businesses are ordinary, just products doing great things in food and wine.

Through our social media channels, and the #RestaurantAustralia hashtag, we’ve also given thousands of Aussie tourism operators and businesses the opportunity to showcase their wares to millions of our fans and followers:

• Twitter: 15k tweets
• Facebook: nearly 50m reach; 1.3m likes; 16k comments; 90k shares
• IG: 13k posts; 2.4m likes; 26k comments

We’ve also commissioned photography: 200+ new images from recent RA shoots that have now been uploaded to our free image gallery. All States and territories have been shot in the last 8 months. These images are freely available to media and industry to help promote our country’s great F&W experiences.

Side line – it’s O’Sullivan.

In 3,2,1 – those ‘tired and flawed stats supposedly showing that the industry is not suffering and has never been in better shape’ aren’t produced by us. They are independent – compiled by Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and Tourism Research Australia (TRA). But for what it’s worth, the most recent (or least tired) figures indicate that international arrivals are up 8.3% in the past 12 months, to 6.7m. And that their spending is up 7% to $30.1 billion.

The industry’s Tourism 2020 goal has always been to increase overnight expenditure to between $115 billion and $140 billion by 2020. We’re currently tracking at the lower end of that range and need to do better.

Tim – thanks for contributing to the discussion and I look forward to reading the follow up piece by your senior reporter Steve Jones, who interviewed John O’Sullivan (TA’s MD) a few hours ago – and drilled him hard on most of the above points. Bon appetite!

Small operator – if @Groucho does ‘have a desk at Darling Park’ he is most definitely not working for Tourism Australia. We moved in December 2012 and are now on George Street.

Glenn – the research/insights upon which this campaign has been built are readily available, and have been for many months. Have a look at ‘Restaurant Australia’ on the Campaigns section of our corporate site http://www.tourism.australia.com. The research covered 13 of our key markets.

@Leo, love your work, keep it up. Glad I don’t work at Darling Park – the restaurants are unattainable!

James – this campaign, as with the majority of our campaigns, is research based. We not only try to ‘listen to the voice of the people out there’ but also try to give them a platform, as we’re doing in this campaign, to contribute.

More than 1,600 businesses have so far listed themselves. We’ve turned more than 700 of these listings into features, helping to promote their business.

1.3m ‘Likes’ on FB, and 2.4m ‘Likes’ on IG – suggests that there’s plenty of folk out there who think the campaign and focus on food and wine has some merit.

@Leo, Tim, @Groucho, @Pitch Doctor get a communal bed. There will probably be two of you in it.
Can anyone confirm if the pinnacle of the campaign – the biased showcasing of Tasmania- will happen as promised? My understanding is that MONA is otherwise engaged. Probably in an enigmatic (and probably ironic) smile.
So lots of international celebs jetted to Hobart, all dressed up and no place to go? All paid for by us taxpayers?
Will this be “edited for legal reasons” for asking a genuine question?
Screen grabs are valid for any enquiry btw.

@Leo, I am aware of the research behind the campaign. Or at least what has been made available in the public domain. Which is why I originally stated that further justification could be called for. I’m not going to go into all the technicalities here. But let’s take a top-line look at the two ‘insights’ used to support the strategy.

First, that travellers from Australia’s top 15 markets rank ‘Good food, wine, local cuisine and produce’ as their third most important factor in choosing a holiday destination. Interestingly the first two factors are hygiene points – ‘Safety and security’ and ‘Value for money’. If these top three points were taken on face value then all a destination would have to do to get the world beating a path to its door is be safe, reasonably priced with good food and wine. Sound exciting? I’m being flippant to illustrate a point that aggregated data like this (all people in all markets) needs to be treated carefully. Here are a few queries: How do the factors differ by market? By different segments of travellers? By short-break vs ‘trip of a life-time? By short-haul vs long-haul? By those that have Australia in their consideration set already vs those that don’t? (It’s also worth noting that this factor actually consists of four factors, which is problematic in itself – good food, good wine, good local produce, good local cuisine. So which one(s) were respondents actually rating when asked the question? For instance, it may be a different story if the weighting is on ‘local cuisine’ and their mental benchmark is Italian, French, Greek, Thai, etc.).

The second ‘insight’ is that while people from the same markets that had not visited Australia ranked it 6th for ‘good food and wine’, those that had been ranked it 2nd. And in jumping from 6th to 2nd it overtook Italy, Spain, Japan and Germany. So on that basis given that ‘everyone’ wants ‘good food & wine’, and that Australia is apparently underappreciated on this point, then we should focus our efforts on this. But had the same respondents also been to Italy, Spain, etc.? If not, then the rating is biased in our favour.

This aside, is the effort needed to raise potential travellers’ perceptions of Australia on this dimension from 6th (which isn’t too bad really, and ahead of Thailand!) to 2nd worth it? Is it effective as alternative strategies, such as say adding depth and emotion to the aspects of Australia that people already thinking about travelling from the other side of the world dream about? At least the campaign does use Australia’s great natural beauty as a backdrop and several of the dining experiences present ‘new world’ living. But the focus on food and wine as the lead theme rather than as a support point remains questionable based on the facts presented.

@Glenn Myatt I think you win this thread. Apart from being the only one – other than Tim – brave enough not to use a nom de plume (myself included) you argue not only a good position but an insanely logical one.
Transfer over to the “fish out of water” interview with O’Sullivan (today) in Mumbrella and your points still stand. Tourism Australia is panicked. And so they should be. They’ve taken an expensive gamble. On tax payers’ money no less. Instead of feathering the nest of the hatted restaus, they may well have lined their own coffin for the future (as well?).
Glenn if I ever am in a position to issue a consultancy brief, your organisation will certainly be asked to pitch – along with others (for fairness and transparency). I suspect you will call me on my bullshit, and argue from a standpoint of reasoned opinion rather than what you think I want to hear.

Ratsmeller – a number of people have raised legitimate queries and questions here, which I’ve tried to respond to, as best I can, providing where I can background, factual information and commentary. You’re entitled to your view, but why shoot me down for simply trying to put ours. And I’m certainly not hiding behind a nom de plume, as you admit to be doing yourself. If I was, I think I’d have come up with something a bit better than Leo!

Leo, your manners and logic are impeccable. Commentary environments like this often bring out the worse in others. Personally I enjoy a bit of vitriol, but it is more interesting to contemplate what reduces people to it. Oh, and I do love that spot.