July 6, 2010

Planning for FY 2012 - a message from Kevan J. Ridgway, President & CEO
Agreement with China a Great Opportunity for Canada’s Tourism Industry
New BC Field Reporter Videos
2010 BC Tourism Industry Conference - Registration is now Open!
GetawayBC.com – Marketing Opportunity
Submit Now for the New Product Bulletin – IT'S FREE!
Tourism Abbotsford seeks Sales & Marketing Coordinator
Industry Tracking Publications

Planning for FY 2012

I really can’t believe that I’m writing 2012 already, but we have always described our marketing year based on its end date. So, this year is April 1, 2011 to March 31, 2012. Between in-region meetings, conference calls, individual e-mails and, more recently, our first webinar, this plan will have more input from our business and community partners than ever before. That seems so right for many reasons, but mostly because this plan will see the most significant changes of any year. Here’s what we have learned from you, and from our own research:

1. Social Media, in its many forms, will play a significant role. Many of us are still on a learning curve, and we hope to launch a pilot project mid- to late July for a couple of months, guided by the experts at Think! Social Media. The critical question to be answered is social media’s ability to deliver sales, customers to your doors. Other aspects of social media will be explored on completion of this pilot. Expecting positive responses, social media will be integral to many of our other marketing tactics.
2. Increase tactics in Alberta, primarily Calgary
3. Influence the China market by focusing on the BC Resident Chinese market (we’re already exploring options for the current year with Approved Destination Status recently confirmed)
4. Increase attention on the Francophone markets in Quebec, Manitoba and Saskatchewan
5. The most requested “experience” for increased presence is family travel
6. The other top requests include trails (hiking), culture & heritage (including First Nations), cycling, mountain biking, wine & culinary (agri-tourism) and camping/RV.

We expect this plan to be more campaign focused, using a variety of appropriate tactics. These may include radio, television, social media, and, yes, still some print. We’ll also look at billboards, transit advertising and digital screens. Perhaps the key message from you is to increase the visuals. We certainly have an excellent library of still and video imagery to draw from, but may need to add in certain geographic or product areas.

All in all, this is an exciting time to be in destination marketing, and we thank you for your contributions to our thought processes as we begin to develop this plan. Our hope is to have this completed by mid-September.

Agreement with China a Great Opportunity for Canada’s Tourism Industry
Ottawa, June 24, 2010

With the official signing of the Approved Destination Status agreement with China, Canada’s tourism industry is now presented with an excellent opportunity for growth.

“This is a great day for tourism in Canada, and a great day for travelers from China,” said David Goldstein, President and CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC). “This agreement will create a greater openness between our countries, allowing Chinese visitors greater access to all of Canada’s iconic attractions while providing our travel industry with the opportunity to market to the world’s fastest growing outbound travel market.”

The agreement, which had been announced in principle in December 2009, was formally signed in a ceremony in Ottawa by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Chinese President Hu Jintao. Approved Destination Status will allow Chinese citizens to more easily obtain tourist visas to travel to Canada for leisure purposes, and will allow Canada to actively market its tourism products in China. The ADS agreement will also authorize Chinese travel agencies to market and promote leisure group tours for travel in Canada.

About the Tourism Industry Association of Canada
The Tourism Industry Association of Canada is the voice of Canadian tourism. Founded in 1930 to encourage the development of tourism in Canada, TIAC serves today as the national private-sector advocate for this $71.5 billion industry, representing the interests of the tourism business community nation-wide.

For more information, please contact:
Kevin Desjardins, Director, Communications
Tourism Industry Association of Canada
Phone: 613.238.6251
Email : kdesjardins@tiac.travel

2010 BC Tourism Industry Conference - Registration is now Open!

The 2010 BC Tourism Industry Conference will be held October 20 - 22, 2010 at the Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre Hotel. In the post-Olympic phase, the tourism industry in BC has achieved unparalled levels of international awareness, but also faces many complex challenges. The true test of our industry will be in how well we respond to new opportunities while addressing barriers to our shared growth and sustainability. While ensuring business viability in the short term at the same time strategizing for long term success, the industry must look to new faces, new tools, new ideas and new partnerships to ensure the on-going competitiveness of our destination. We really have arrived at Tourism: the Next Generation.

The 2010 BC Tourism Industry Conference is the best opportunity for British Columbia’s tourism business operators, marketers, academics and government stakeholders to be part of this critical discussion.

Register before September 13 to take advantage of the Early Bird Rate and save $100!

Click here for more information about, and to register for, the 2010 BC Tourism Industry Conference.

New BC Field Reporter Videos

As part of the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts’ 2010 BC Residents campaign, Vancouver, Coast & Mountains’ Kayla Seib worked with BC Field Reporter Michael Fountain to produce 2 new videos for the region. Michael visited the Sunshine Coast and Abbotsford and produced 3 minute videos for each area.

Check out the new videos -

Sunshine Coast - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15qWMQwTY5k

Abbotsford - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6A1VtKY2mP0

GetawayBC.com – Marketing Opportunity

Black Press, Canada’s largest independent publisher has teamed up with Cheryl MacKinnon, the foremost travel expert in BC on GetawayBC.com.

As editor and host, Cheryl will spotlight British Columbia travel destinations each week. The site will incorporate reviews, slide shows, video, interviews and contests. GetawayBC.com is supported by a huge network of writers and photographers from across the province. Weekly print ads will drive readers to the website for exciting reader contests and the best travel destinations in British Columbia. Cheryl’s GetawayBC.com will quickly become the number one travel niche!

With over 150 publications and websites including bclocalnews.com, flyerland.ca and now GetawayBC.com, Black Press has won more awards than any other Canadian newspaper group. Owned by Victoria entrepreneur, David Black, the strength of their online and print expertise will deliver a huge audience.

Cheryl is a highly respected travel journalist and media personality who brings her keen insights from over 25 years as a Canadian tourism service provider to her multi-award nominated television and print features, workshops and related ventures.

To submit or discuss relevant tourism information please contact Cheryl MacKinnon at editor@getawaybc.com

To advertise on Getawaybc.com please call Black Press National Sales 604.575.5800 toll free 1.800.363.2232.

Submit Now for the New Product Bulletin – IT'S FREE!

After a brief delay, the New Product Bulletin (NPB) is back! Don’t miss your opportunity to get noticed by the Travel Trade sector in this bulletin designed especially for trade operators.

Sent out by Tourism BC to their trade database, the NPB is available to the trade online or as a downloadable pdf format. To be included all you have to do is send the following information to jason@vcmbc.com:

• Choose a Category – new business or product/ new product from existing business/ improvements or renovations to existing business / name change or new owner
• Commissionable - yes or no
• Contact name – first last
• Contact details – phone # – toll free phone # – email – website
• Description- 100 words max

Don’t miss it, the deadline is Friday July 9. If you have any questions or comments, please contact Jason Knibbs at Jason@vcmbc.com.

Tourism Abbotsford seeks Sales & Marketing Coordinator

Tourism Abbotsford is currently hiring a Sales & Marketing Coordinator for a temporary, part-time position. The position consists of implementing established destination sales & marketing
programs, a press trip, and assisting with Tradex sales & marketing activities. The successful candidate will have a diploma or certificate in Sales & Marketing and/or 2 year work experience in sales and marketing.

For the complete job posting please click here.

Please submit resume to alongshore@tourismabbotsford.ca by July 12th. Only those
who will be interviewed will be contacted.

Industry Tracking Publications

Research, Planning & Evaluation, Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts has kindly provided us with an updated list of their most recently published research publications.

• International Visitor Arrivals March 2010 (contains data of overnight customs entries to BC and Canada for March 2010)
• Data Supplement Tables June 2010 (contains monthly & current YTD data on room revenue, occupancy and average daily room rate, restaurant receipts, visitor centre party volume, BC Ferries and airport passenger volume and other key industry tracking statistics)