Air N.Z. prods Aust. travel agents

Press, 8 April 1978, Page 4

Air N.Z. prods Aust. travel agents

NZPA Sydney A new approach to the promotion of New Zealand as a holiday destination is being made in. Australia after surveys for Air New Zealand and the Government Tourist Bureau.

In an aggressive first step, Air New Zealand has accused Australian travel agents of being ineffective in the selling of New Zealand holidays.

At the same time, tour companies are being told that their packaged coach holidays have a limited future.

The basis of the new ap- • proach is a survey of Aus- • tralian consumer attitudes to New Zealand made by the Sydney-based market researchers, McNair Anderson Associates. Details of the survey have been given to travel industry leaders in both countries.'

The new emphasis will be on “do-it-yourself” holidays, and publicity is likely to concentrate on specific New Zealand attractions rather than the wide-ranging generalisations found in many brochures. McNair Anderson’s director of creative research, Mike Larbalestier, said the packaged-tour market would decline.

“At best, we could hope to keep the market stable,” he Said. He said there could be a place for “a modulated tour” in which a short, guided coach trip of the South Island was followed by a drive-yourself holiday in the North Island. Air New Zealand’s mar» keting research manager, Mr

Hajo Topzand, said New Zealand had developed a reputation among Australians as a pice where they would not be “ripped off” when on holiday.

“It gives them a feeling of security,” he said. “They no longe need the cuddly blanket that organised coach tours provide.” Nearly 60 per cent of tourists vis.jnj New Zealand come from Australia, and a steady growth in the trade received a setback last year when the number dropped.

The McNair Anderson survey found that most Australians had an intention to visit New Zealand at some time, but that they regarded • the count, j as “overseas” rather than “foreign.” Their desire to visit New Zealand lacked immediacy: in the words of Mr Larbalestier, New Zealand is an “I will go” place, not a “must go” place.

The survey found that Australians had very limited knowledge of New Zealand, and people who had already visited the country were the best salesmen both for repeat visits and as referral points for their friends. Mr Larbalestier said Australians liked to travel in small groups of friends, andone of his recommendations is that some concept of a “convoy safari” of selfdrivers is worth investigating. He said New Zealand rated low excitement, and that most Australians simply summed up New Zealand as “a nice place.” Brochures tended to overwhelm the I reader with the variety and • choice of “nice” places, con-

fusing them and making difficult. He was critical of brochures which quoted New Zealand content prices only and did not make it clear that the Tasman air fare had to be added.

During the Sydney presentation, one tour firm said it would be easier to quote an all-in price if Air New Zealand reintroduced a special low fare favourable to tour companies only, instead of offering a variety of fares available to any member of the public.

Air New Zealand made its own survey on Australian travel agents, and Mr Topzand said one of the main difficulties for would-be tourists was that tour receptionists tended to load the inquirer with brochures.

He said while agents neither encouraged nor discouraged would-be visitors, they did not enthuse about the country and therefore were not selling New Zealand as a tourist destination. Air New Zealand is planning its new marketing strategy on the outcome of the survey, and has appealed to others involved with the New Zealand tourist industry to take greater note of what the public are saying, rather than rely on intuition.

The new approach is also marked by closer co-oper-ation between Air New Zealand and Qantas in the promotion of Tasman travel. The two airlines pool traffic on the route, and in recent years have been facing increasing competition, particularly from Pan American World Airways.