Gold Coast as a Destination for Short-Break Holidays in Brisbane Market - Case Study Example

An RTO report for development of a new marketing strategy to position Gold Coast as a destination for short-break holidays in Brisbane market [Name] [Unit] [Date] Executive summary Gold Coast is an attractive premier tourist destination in Australia which attracts more than 10 million days trip and overnight visitors annually. Its core appeals are its natural and built resources which provide visitors with a wide range of opportunities to share, engage, and relax in various active recreational pursuits. Its natural and built resources significantly contribute to the competitiveness and growth of tourism sector in Brisbane. Regional Tourism Organisation (RTO) which is responsible for marketing this destination has embarked on an ambitious program. This program involves development of a new marketing strategy for positioning the region as a short-break holiday destination in Brisbane market. The report represents a research based, market oriented strategy for development as well as promotion of a competitive destination. The target market is focused on the short-break holiday destination features and motivation factors for promotion of local tourism businesses. Based on these factors, the target market is found to be the young families and couples as well as their teenagers. Following research and situational analysis, a new positioning strategy is developed which adopt a market focus and a competitive approach to provide a quality and competitive short-break holiday destination to local tourism business for the next three years. Positioning statement reads: “Gold Coast is an attractive, modern and diverse leisure destination at the doorstep of Brisbane where visitors are welcome to enjoy and share a wide range of relaxing and engaging coastal experiences. The destination is renowned for its friendliness and relaxed character. It is a costal as well as a country visitor precinct for both short-break and long holidays based on customer focus and high value services. Gold Coast is a place where every visitor really counts.” The implementation of the positioning strategy involves various objectives which are achieved through a wide range of marketing communication tactics. Table of contents Executive summary 2 1.0 Introduction 4 2.0 Target market 5 3.0 Situation analysis 5 3.1 Competitive environment 5 3.2 STEP analysis 6 3.3 VRIO Model 7 3.4 SWOT Analysis 8 4.0 Positioning strategy 9 4.1 Perceptual Map 10 4.2 Positioning statement 10 5.0 Objectives and performance indicators 11 5.1Objectives: 11 6.0 Marketing communication tactics 12 7.0 Budget and action plan 12 8.0 References 13 1.0 Introduction Gold Coast is considered as one of the Australian premier tourist destination which attracts more than 10 million days trip and overnight visitors annually. Gold Coast Tourism is an official organisation of regional tourism (RTO) is in charge of marketing of this destination. Gold Coast has a wide range of natural attractions which range from beaches that are internationally celebrated to world heritage subtropical rain forests. It has an excellent tourism infrastructure as well as services and skilled operators in tourism industry. It has been attracting a wide variety of visitors due to its numerous assets in combination of favourable subtropical climate, location as well as quality lifestyle. It has wide range of natural and built attractions. Natural attractions include 70 kilometres of beaches which have average water temperatures, five major systems of rivers and large broad water, tropical rain forest with numerous bush walks as well as a variety of wildlife, gold coast seaway which offers safe access to the ocean and more than 270 km navigable water ways, and rural hinterland with numerous natural wetlands. The built tourist attractions include major shopping centres such as Australia fair and pacific fair among others as well as speciality shops, boutiques and markets, a variety of cafes and restaurants offering cuisine from all over the world, nightlife entertainment. Theme parks such as Dream world, Warner Bros and wildlife parks, world-class recreational and sporting facilities, and a wide range of accommodation from camping grounds to international hotels (Huybers, 2003). This report is prepared by RTO for the development of a new marketing strategy to position Gold Coast as a destination for short-break holidays in Brisbane market. 2.0 Target market The target is focused on prioritisation of segments that will lead to optimum potential growth. The main focus is building demand in short-break travel and achievement of better penetration of day trip markets. The most preferred short-break destination features include a wide range of attractions and activities, socialisation and seeking of relatives and friends, easy access, quality accommodation, and events and festivals. They are interest with adequate variety of things which they can do and see during their short-break, a range which will be appealing to various tastes with the travel party. Others seek for good time with friends and relatives during their short-break visits (Pike, 2002). Based on motivation factors, most take short-break holiday in order to get away from everything, others are motivated by the desire to change scene. In addition, most also prefer doing something new as well as exciting during short-break holidays while others seek to change weather. Based on such factors, most of people in Australia who ask for a wide range of activities and attractions are usually associated strongly with middle-aged adults which usually have demanding teenagers. In terms of events and festivals, the young group is the most interests. Hence, the primary target market includes young couples without children, young parents with children, and middle-life families (Wang, William, & McGuire, 2005). 3.0 Situation analysis 3.1 Competitive environment The chief domestic competitive strengths of gold coast for short-break holidays are variety of theme parks, variety of opportunities for sightseeing, beaches, vibrancy, a range of dining options as well as restaurants, accessibility, nightlife, shopping, quality accommodation, ability to accommodate children, and tropical climate. In addition, gold coast is a holiday destination that is well established and is supported by a distribution network of a strong industry which boosts the availability of products. The destination is also advantaged by relative safety and proximity (Barney, Jay, & Hesterly, 2011). Its competitive difference is attributed to unique and stylish world-class beaches, abundance of a wide variety of quality attractions and activities, a wide range of theme parks which take care of teenagers and young people, varied experiences in shopping, and wide range of options in accommodation. In addition, behind the dunes, gold coast provide a variety cultural background which include country villages and towns, art galleries, wineries and craft centres as well as pristine forest as a World Heritage. 3.2 STEP analysis Socially, the changing population demographics are impacting on the needs, travel choices and interests leading to various affordable and efficient means of transportation. A strong urban growth has led to a continual creation of more consumers to the products and services provided in gold coast. Increase in number of people also creates an opportunity for development and maintenance of the attractions. Presence of a wide range of attractions makes gold coast a suitable place for young families, and their teenagers as well as young couples (Yannopoulos, P., & Rotenberg, 1999). Politically, the gold coast is also viewed as the safest place to enjoy life through protection of visitors from both internal and external factors. However, the state as well as the local government mechanisms for planning is usually not coordinated well. Economically, based on local and national markets, gold coast is positioned as a microcosm of the lifestyle of Australia with glorious weather, life, health and vitality. This promotes gold coast as a vibrant destination for most exciting holiday experience. The population growth within the region will enhance the potential of source market. Technologically, innovations in communication technologies such as interactivity and convergence create highways for customers to reach gold coast directly. However, slow take up of communications and distributions may negatively impact competitiveness (Dess, et al., 2004). 3.3 VRIO Model One of the most preferred destination resources for short-break holidays is wide range of unique attractions. Being one of the major destinations for holidays in Australia, gold coast has unique beaches, theme parks, surf, and nightlife among others. Such unique resources are valuable to gold coast and provide a great opportunity in the Brisbane market. Such resources are considered strength to the company. Due to uniqueness of the combination of these resources, gold cost has a competitive advantage. The combination of such resources is difficult to imitate by the main competitors especially the naturally occurring ones such as beaches and forests. Gold coast in a better condition of managing these resources and as a result, its competitive implication in regard to a wide range of attractions is a sustainable competitive advantage (Bowman, &Ambrosini, 2007). The second preferred destination resources for short break-holidays are a wide range of resources that enhances our target market to meet their relatives and friends. These resources include theme parks especially for catering the teenagers with parents, hinterland which attracts many Australian families as well as nightlife to cater for young couples and young adults. These resources are valuable to gold coast and their combination to take care of our target population presents an opportunity or strength in the market place. Compared with the competitors, the combination of hinterland, theme park and nightlife makes the resources unique. However, some of these resources such as themes parks and nightlife can be imitated, the combination of these resources as well as the capability of the organisation make these resources valuable, costly to imitate, rare leading to a sustainable competitive advantage (Hitt , Ireland, & Hoskisson, 2001). However, presence of other resources which make the destination preferred by the target market which include accessibility, security and quality accommodation are valuable, but are rare and are easy to imitate by the competitors. However, the organisation has the capability to exploit them. Due to their lack of rarity and the low cost of imitation, their competitive implication is competitive parity (West, & DeCastro, 2001). 3.4 SWOT Analysis Strengths Wide variety of attractions and activities (the unique combination of various attractions makes it a better place for a short-break holiday) High level of profile and awareness in both domestic and international market (thus due to a wide range of destination features) Proximity to Brisbane Reputation of a leading tourism destination Sub-tropical climate Entrepreneurial investment culture Size as well as the profile of tourism industry Emerging sectors of economy such as sport, environment and food industries Weaknesses Misperception of the city by domestic visitors as too touristy (it uniqueness makes it an international destination holding a variety of tourists) Transport issues such as traffic congestion due to proximity to Brisbane Limited awareness about tourism experience in the hinterland Concentration of accommodation facilities as a result of wide range of accommodation and proximity to Brisbane Reliance of weathers experiences Disjointed approach to issues of management and planning of tourism Opportunities New and innovative tourism icons and products (with a large number of visitors and revenues from various parts, more ideas are generated) Tourism in the gold cost is nature-based due to presence of coastal regions and hinterland Hinterland/scenic edge linkages Emphasis between gold coast and beach culture Increased awareness of dining as well as food experiences in gold coast Development of products that are cultural and lifestyle oriented Growth of business tourism in Brisbane. Threats Urban sprawl (proximity to Brisbane is causing encroachment from infrastructure ) Population growth Environmental degradation (as a result of population growth and increased volume of visitors) Remaining competitive from other destinations Uncoordinated approach to development and planning of tourism 4.0 Positioning strategy The positioning strategy for the destination is to adopt a market focus and a competitive approach to provide a quality short-break holiday destination to local tourism businesses for the next three years. Main attributes A wide range of attractions and activities Highly social place for friends and relatives Affordability and quality value Destination image Natural and clean Safe and friendly Welcoming and engaging Modern coastal style Benefits of destination experience Relaxing and refreshing Social, engaging and friendly Real value for money (Neal,2003) 4.1 Perceptual Map Source: Chadha & Kapoor (2008). 4.2 Positioning statement “Gold Coast is an attractive, modern and diverse leisure destination at the doorstep of Brisbane where visitors are welcome to enjoy and share a wide range of relaxing and engaging coastal experiences. The destination is renowned for its friendliness and relaxed character. It is a costal as well as a country visitor precinct for both short-break and long holidays based on customer focus and high value services. Gold Coast is a place where every visitor really counts.” 5.0 Objectives and performance indicators 5.1 Objectives: 1. Increase the number of young couples on short-break holidays by 40% in the next three years 2. Increase the number of young adults and their teenagers on short-break holidays by 30% for a period of three years. 3. Advertising the destination’s tourism attractions and the importance of short-break holidays for domestic tourists for the next three years 4. Creating programs training programs on the destination on development and planning of tourism in the next 6 months 5. RTO will develop domestic tourism promotional strategies in the next 6 months 5.2 Key performance indicators In objective 1, key performance indicator will be the measure of the number of young couple arrivals at the destination for short-break holidays daily, monthly, quarterly or annually and growth rates In objective 2, it will involve a measure of the number of young adults and their teenager arrivals at destination for short-break holidays and growth rates (PWC, 2007). Performance indicator for objective 4 will be measured by growth rates in advertising In objectives 4 & 5, performance indicators be effective coordination in development and planning of tourism 6.0 Marketing communication tactics Objectives 1 & 2 will be achieved using loyalty programs by rewarding the short-break holiday visitors to the destination. In addition, social media will be very important given that the target ground is teenagers and young parents. These will include facebook, twitters among others. Objective 3 & 5 will involve advertising using different media which include TV adverts, print adverts, online display adverts, social media and RTO website. RTO will be the most important toll for marketing. Objective 4 will be achieved using seminars where different stakeholders will be educated on the effectiveness of development and planning of tourism. Public relations will also be effective since the success of this industry is dependent of good communication. 7.0 Budget and action plan Item Cost ($) Advertising 30,000, Training programs 20,000, Reward programs 15,000 Transportation 20,000, Monitoring and evaluation 10,000, Contingencies 5,000, Total 100,000 The RTO will be in charge of the entire process and its functions will include overseeing the entire implementation process. The management of hospitality industry within gold Coast will be fully involved in training programs and sponsorship of the advertisement and implementation of the process. The training program will be completed within the first six months after the commencement of the implementation process. Other activities such as advertisement and rewarding will be continued for a period of three years. 8.0 References Barney, J. B., & Hesterly, W. S. (2011). VRIO Framework. In Strategic Management and Competitive Advantage (pp. 68-86). New Jersey: Pearson. Bowman, C. & Ambrosini, V. (2007). Identifying valuable resources, European Management Journal, 25(4), 320-329. Chadha S.K. and Kapoor D. ( 2008) , An Attribute Based Perceptual mapping of the Selected Private Life Insurance Companies: An Empirical Study in Ludhina , Vision, (12)3 , 53-59. Dess, G.G., Lumpkin, G.T., Taylor, M.L., Thompson, A.A. & Strickland, A.J. (2004). Strategic Management, Boston: McGraw Hill, pp. 141-148. Hitt, M.A., Ireland, R.D., & Hoskisson, R.E. (2001). Strategic Management: Competitiveness and Globalization, (4th ed.), Cincinnati, OH: South-Western College Publishing. Huybers, T. (2003). Domestic tourism destination choices—a choice modelling analysis, International Journal of Tourism Research, 5 (6), 445 – 459 Neal, J. D. (2003). The effect of length of stay on travellers’ perceived satisfaction with service quality, Journal of Quality Assurance in Hospitality and Tourism, 4 (3/4), 167 – 176 Pike, S. (2002). ToMA as a measure of competitive advantage for short-break holiday destinations, Journal of Tourism Studies, 13(1), 9 -19 PWC (2007). Performance indicators: Communicating the measures that matter, accessed on 20 October, 2012, http://www.pwc.com/gx/en/corporate-reporting/assets/pdfs/UK_KPI_guide.pdf Wang, Y., William, N., & McGuire, F. (2005). A comparative study of leisure constraints perceived by mature and young travellers, Tourism Review International, 8 (3), 263 – 279 West, G. P. & DeCastro, J. (2001). The Achilles heel of firm strategy: resource weaknesses and distinctive inadequacies, Journal of Management Studies, (38) 3, 417-442. Yannopoulos, P., & Rotenberg, R. (1999). Benefit segmentation of the near-home tourism market: the case of Upper New York State, Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing, 8 (2), 41 – 55 Read More