Experience Development
Strategies
Guidelines for Australia’s National
Landscape Steering Committees
Second edition
MAY 2012
CONTENTS
Purpose of the document
3
Key terms
3
About Australia’s National Landscapes Program
4
Introducing the Experience Seeker
6
Destination Positioning and National Landscapes
9
Introducing the Experience Development Strategy
9
Essential partners in EDS development
12
Essential requirements of an EDS
13
A checklist for reviewing your EDS
14
EDS success factors – suggested prompts and checks
15
Where to from here?
16
Annual implementation plan and review
16
Appendix 1: Stages in the Experience Development process
17
Attachment A: Template for statement of requirements
22
Attachment B: Template for an EDS implementation plan
26
2
Purpose of the document
This document aims to provide guidance to the National Landscapes Steering
Committees as you prepare your Experience Development Strategies (EDS). The
Guidelines draw on lessons learnt from the EDS produced by the Australian Alps,
Australia’s Coastal Wilderness, the Flinders Ranges, Great Ocean Road and CairnsTownsville region.
Each National Landscape is at a different stage in its tourism development cycle and faces varying
challenges, issues and opportunities in a quest to deliver a strong destination and globally competitive
visitor experiences to the target market. Program Managers, Parks Australia and Tourism Australia
are available to assist with specific queries as they arise.
Key terms
Experience Development Strategy (EDS) – A planning tool to facilitate focused destination
development and marketing, based on the National Landscapes Destination Positioning. The EDS
aims to improve the stock of world class visitor experiences to the Experience Seeker market,
providing pathways to increase tourism’s contribution to conservation within the National Landscape.
Tourism experience – The emotions, feelings and sensations generated by the people met, places
visited, activities participated in and memories created by travel, through watching, tasting, smelling,
touching, listening and being part of a culture or lifestyle that is distinctly different from everyday life
and that reaches an individual’s deep needs and desires.
Tourism product – The commodities, goods or services (a tour, museum, attraction, hotel room or
restaurant) that are made available for sale to visitors by tourism destinations and businesses.
Tourism activity – Recreational activities, pastimes, exercise or pursuits (snorkelling, walking,
riding) affording relaxation and enjoyment that are commonly offered to visitors, yet may be
undertaken in a wide variety locations (ie: snorkelling may be done in your local pool or anywhere in
the world).
Signature experience – An experience that is authentic and unique to a National Landscape. It can
be a combination of activities, personal encounters or interactions within the Landscapes that connects
the visitor to the environment,
culture and heritage. Also referred to as a ‘hero’, ‘iconic’ or ‘distinctive’ experience.
Signature product – An authentic and unique tourism product (or service) that enables the visitor to
access the signature experience.
Positioning – The Destination Positioning identifies the National Landscape’s unique point of
difference and competitive edge in the market place. It is ‘experience’ driven and drawn from the
Landscape’s distinctive natural and cultural environment. It includes a positioning statement which
sets out the ‘emotional essence’ or connection to the signature experiences offered.
The Positioning is not about an advertising campaign, logo or
a tag line.
The Experience Seeker – A global target market, existing in both the domestic and international
markets that is identified by Tourism Australia as being the most responsive to Australia’s tourism
offering.
3
About Australia’s National Landscapes Program
Australia’s spectacular landscapes, encompassing unique ecological and cultural features, are our
greatest tourism asset. Combined with one of the world’s oldest living cultures and our enviable
Australian lifestyle, our natural landscapes make Australia one of the world’s most desirable visitor
destinations.
Australia’s National Landscapes Program is a partnership between tourism and conservation. The
program aims to:
•
Promote Australia’s world class, high quality visitor experiences;
•
Increase the value of tourism to regional economies;
•
Enhance the role of protected areas in those economies; and
•
Build support for protecting our natural and cultural assets
The Program was inspired by the need to make Australia’s wealth of over 9,000 national parks, protected areas,
and reserves “accessible” to our domestic and international visitors. It seeks to differentiate Australia’s iconic
natural and cultural destinations, and improve the delivery of quality visitor experiences throughout these areas
and their surrounding regions. By highlighting our natural tourism assets, the Program aims to promote and
support the conservation of some of Australia’s most distinct and rich environments.
Ultimately, this Program will provide customers with new and engaging tourism experiences within
Australia’s most remarkable natural landscapes in a way that not only encourages increased length of
stay and dispersal, but also actively contributes to their sustainability and protection for the long term.
Defined by the world class visitor experience on offer, each National Landscape extends beyond
protected area boundaries and jurisdictional borders. This focus on Australia’s natural and cultural
assets and world class experiences encourages collaboration across wide stakeholder interests.
Figure: Map of Australia’s National Landscapes
4
How does the National Landscapes Program work?
Australia’s National Landscapes program is not a funding program, nor is
it an advertising campaign. It is not about being all things to all people.
The program encourages FOCUS.
Success of Australia’s National Landscapes Program is based on the Landscapes actively pursuing ‘the
five Ps’:
Figure: ‘The five Ps’ of Australia’s National Landscapes
Partnerships
Essential to the success of the Program is stakeholder collaboration: tourism organisations and
operators working with protected area agencies, local councils, conservation groups, government
agencies, and Indigenous communities.
Australia’s National Landscapes Program advocates partnerships at all levels and challenges
participants to work together and ‘think big’.
Point of Difference
Each Landscape, through a series of workshops and research, uncovers their unique ‘point of difference’
and the experiences that make them world class. This piece of work, known as Destination Positioning,
is then used to form a strategic framework for planning, regional tourism development, and marketing.
Planning
Each Landscape must prepare an Experience Development Strategy (EDS), the Landscape’s key to
focused destination management planning.
As each National Landscape implements the actions from its EDS,
it creates ‘new news’ for Tourism Australia to promote to the world.
Protection
Protecting the natural and cultural values of the National Landscapes (the basis for the Positioning) is
central to ensuring the Landscapes’ economic sustainability. Protection of the natural environment is a
key aim of the Program, through increasing visitor appreciation of the environmental and cultural
values and encouraging contributions from the tourism industry to conservation initiatives.
5
Promotion
Opportunities associated with being a National Landscape are significant, and include a dedicated
marketing program led by Tourism Australia.
For more information on the National Landscapes Program visit Tourism Australia’s
website here or Parks Australia’s website here.
What does success look like?
Program participants have identified their vision for how the National Landscapes might look in
10 years time. This can be used as a guide to check if your EDS maps out suitable priority projects and
directions for the Landscape to achieve the vision. Click here for further information.
Introducing the Experience Seeker
The global Experience Seeker market has been identified as the most
responsive to Australia’s tourism assets by Tourism Australia. Searching
for unique and touching personal experiences, Experience Seekers are
more likely to disperse to regional areas, stay longer and spend more. The
focus of the National Landscapes Program and the EDS is attracting and
meeting the needs of the Experience Seeker market.
Constituting around 30 to 50 percent of all long haul travellers, Experience Seekers are well educated,
worldly, media and marketing savvy. Experience Seekers are a ‘global market’, and include
Australians who shop globally for their travel experiences. Experience Seekers are not found in a
particular demographic – they share a mindset and motivations.
The National Landscapes Program recognises that both the domestic market, and international visitors
will be attracted to ‘world’s best’ experiences within the National Landscapes. Visitation to Tourism
Australia’s National Landscapes consumer website highlights the appeal of this content to a global
audience, with Australians representing the second largest group of visitors to the site.
Experience Seekers are a particularly desirable market as they are opinion leaders and therefore likely
to influence other tourists to follow their lead in visiting the National Landscapes regions.
For more comprehensive information on the Experience Seeker market click here.
What is an Experience?
An experience is different to a product or location. An experience is formed by the combination of
activity, setting, social interaction and the personal connection that arises. An experience engages the
senses; it is physical, emotional or spiritual (or all three). An experience offers discovery and learning,
and creates strong memories.
A deeply touching and personal experience will lead your visitors to talk about the unique elements of
your destination, and grab the attention and imagination of future visitors. Experiences enhance the
basic products and services to add value and create higher yield opportunities. Experiences go beyond
nice places and good views, instead they connect visitors to the place – the environment and culture.
For more information and a guide to developing experience based tourism, click here
6
Experiences spectrum
The following diagram show the process for moving from offering just individual commodities,
products and services to offering compelling experiences:
Australia’s National Landscapes Program “Hierarchy of
Experiences” concept
The supporting visitor experiences (guided walks, 4WD tours etc) provide a variety of alternative ways
for the visitors to access elements of the signature experiences, at various price points. While a
signature product may offer exclusivity and be pitched at upper ends of the market, its marketing
profile helps build potential visitor aspirations and interest. The supporting visitor experiences and
product are then positioned to leverage off the interest created.
7
Case Study – Flinders Ranges signature experiences
8
Destination Positioning and National
Landscapes
‘Experience’ driven, National Landscapes Destination Positioning identifies your competitive
advantage in the market, capturing a sense of what makes your region’s natural and cultural
environment unique and meaningful in the eyes of your target audience.
Your National Landscape Positioning, developed in partnership with Tourism Australia and local
stakeholders, includes a Positioning Statement which sets out the “emotional essence” of your world
class offering. Your Positioning identifies an offering that is either unique in the world, or able to be
benchmarked against world competitors, and illustrates your competitive edge. The Positioning
Statement offers a point of connection for your whole region to hook into – consumers, tourism
operators, conservation organisations, media and government.
National Landscape Positioning acts as a framework for all actions and
communications. It is the foundation of your EDS. Your positioning is
the template for the delivery of your unique visitor experiences.
For more information on your National Landscape Destination Positioning and how to
use it as a strategic tool for your region contact Tourism Australia here.
Introducing the Experience Development
Strategy
An Experience Development Strategy (EDS) is a tool to facilitate focused destination planning,
development and marketing. It is based on the National Landscape’s Destination Positioning (your
competitive edge), and aims to improve the stock of world class experiences - the region’s offer to the
global Experience Seeker market - and provide pathways to increase tourism’s contribution to
conservation within the National Landscape.
The EDS is a core part of participating in the National Landscapes Program, and follows on from the
Destination Positioning work. It is the key to delivering the ‘core promise’ identified in the positioning
process.
Progression to an EDS
9
The EDS requires a collaborative process – the importance of developing the EDS through wide
consultation is fundamental as it will ensure you capture stakeholder ideas, priorities and foster
ownership of the Strategy. The EDS will use the destination’s positioning to define distinct visitor
experiences and then determine essential requirements for delivery. This may include: new or
improved products, partnerships, facilities, services, access, communication, interpretation, marketing
visitor management and infrastructure, and ways to better protect the environment or engage visitors.
The EDS does not work in isolation
The EDS will draw on existing plans and strategies, and influences all future planning.
Linkages between existing and future priorities, plans and strategies and the EDS
The EDS focuses solely on what is required to deliver and sustain
internationally competitive natural and cultural visitor experiences,
based on the Landscape’s positioning. These experiences will
appeal to Experience Seekers from Australia and international
markets.
The Experiences Development Strategy should answer the following questions:
•
What are the current and potential signature visitor experiences within your National Landscape?
•
How can delivery be improved to make experiences truly world class?
•
Where are the experiences best delivered? How can the experiences be linked and promoted
around
clusters / activity centres or journeys?
•
What facilities, services and infrastructure are needed to support the visitor experience?
•
What information should be developed to enhance delivery and connect with the target market?
10
The EDS does not aim to address all tourism or recreation
activities; nor is it a comprehensive approach to regional tourism or
national park visitation. It is important that the EDS draws on
existing plans and strategies and that it is used to influence future
planning processes.
The EDS needs to identify initiatives that will take National Landscapes ‘to the next level,’ towards a
clear vision for iconic and world class experiences. It should clearly set out what distinctive world class
experiences (existing or potential) can be offered to the target market to set the destination apart,
globally.
Identifying very clear and strategic priorities will result in National Landscapes being well positioned
to:
•
provide opportunities for visitors to experience, and contribute to the conservation of the best of our
environment and culture;
•
increase community appreciation and understanding of natural and cultural assets and how they can
be conserved;
•
Identify partnership opportunities between tourism, conservation and the public and private sectors;
•
identify product development and infrastructure opportunities that stimulate investment;
•
increase length of stay and regional expenditure through increased quality and distinctiveness of
Australia’s tourism product offering
An EDS - developed on a foundation of regional partnerships and stakeholder
consultation, resulting in clearly defined, agreed priorities - is a useful tool for
agencies and investors to prioritise their investments. A succinct list of priority
projects, highlighting the Landscape’s positioning and vision for the region’s future as
a ‘World’s Best’ destination, can be a powerful way of charting the future.
National Landscapes that have already developed their EDS can use their priority projects as a
'prospectus.'
The main purpose of the EDS, once developed, is to guide joint implementation of priorities.
Government agencies and private investors have increased confidence that their investments are
aligned with long term priorities, and can see the benefits of linking in with the marketing and
partnership opportunities provided by National Landscapes.
Not all priority projects will have funding allocated or be resourced within current budgets and
programs. However, by including a combination of ‘blue sky’ projects and projects that can be
achieved in the shorter term or within current resourcing, the Landscape will be able to make steady
progress while working towards a bigger picture.
Case Study – Australia’s Coastal Wilderness
Australia’s Coastal Wilderness (ACW) completed its EDS in November 2010. The EDS identified 21
Priority One projects, and a series of 25 Priority Two and Three projects. The region has found that the
process of bringing together a diverse range of stakeholders, and establishing firm cross border
partnerships, has focused stakeholder effort and greatly increased confidence in experience
development.
ACW regularly reviews its progress on implementation of the EDS and, as at early 2012, reports
significant progress in implementation of almost 25% of the Priority Projects. This includes significant
progress on projects that were included in the EDS as ‘blue sky’, unfunded projects.
11
Establishing and communicating consistent messages about the region’s priorities has led to success in
attracting investment in large initiatives such as: the Light to Light Walk; a Sapphire Coast Heritage
Study which has been used to identify key ‘stories’ and themes for the region, and; developing
experiences associated with The Bundian Way.
Essential partners in EDS development
An EDS is a blueprint for your region’s future as a world class destination. It is the planning tool that,
once implemented, will elevate your region’s status as ‘the best in the world’ for delivering the
experience outlined in your National Landscape Positioning.
Given the role your EDS will play in taking the National Landscape forward, it needs to be based on a
wide level of stakeholder support and commitment. Priority projects need to be agreed to and endorsed
by stakeholders responsible for funding and delivery of projects.
Stakeholders that should be consulted in the development of an EDS include (but shouldn’t be limited
to):
•
National Landscapes Steering Committee members;
•
Local government – planners, tourism and economic development officers;
•
Regional Development organisations;
•
State and Regional Tourism Organisations;
•
State Park and Natural Resource Management agencies;
•
Indigenous community / organisation representatives;
•
Non government conservation organisations.
Other organisations that may not be picked up through existing contact lists and networks, but may be
very important influences or sources of information within the local community include: Landcare
groups, ‘friends of’ groups, geological societies, local universities or research groups, art groups,
heritage associations, outdoor recreation / adventure associations and sectoral groups such as
backpacker associations or dive tour operators.
These community groups not only assist in maintaining the fabric of a local community, adding to the
ambience and quality of your Landscape, they can contribute significantly to telling the story of your
National Landscape – creating a depth to your region’s storytelling.
Case Study – Flinders Ranges
The Flinders Ranges EDS involved considerable stakeholder consultations across the region, including
workshops, meetings, field visits and presentations. Regional development agencies, councils, and
geoscientists, amongst others were all included in these consultations. To further open up opportunities
for stakeholders to contribute to the EDS, the Flinders Ranges Tourism Operators Association invited
comments on their website (http://www.frtoa.com.au/natlands). This generated over 70 comments,
including some from Germany and the UK, and provided a platform for some very useful debate on the
key issues and opportunities for the region.
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Essential requirements of an EDS
The National Landscapes Reference Committee (NLRC) has outlined the Essential Requirements of an
EDS.
Benchmarks the National Landscape against similar international world class experiences that
deliver on the brand promise to the Experience Seeker.
Provides an aspirational statement (vision) that captures an agreed sense of where the
destination will be in 10 years time.
Identifies iconic or signature experiences, and for each experience identifies actions to support
delivery of economic, environmental, social and cultural sustainability of the experience.
Identifies the environmental and cultural conservation values of the National Landscapes and
the threats to those values, and the potential partnerships that could be developed to protect
the values and address threats.
Identifies opportunities to develop signature or hero products that showcase the experience,
and projects that will deliver improvements to the experiences on offer.
Provides an agreed implementation plan that sets out priorities for experience delivery /
upgrade and who is responsible for delivery of the priority projects.
The EDS does not need to be an expansive document but it must lay out
the steps to deliver experiences in line with the Positioning to the target
market.
13
A checklist for reviewing your EDS
Does your EDS identify the experiences that are unique to your National Landscape? Are they
iconic or globally competitive? Do they reflect your destination positioning?
Does the EDS consider these experiences in light of global competition?
Do the iconic experiences allow for visitor immersion in the local culture, environment and
lifestyle?
Do the iconic experiences deliver on the preferences of the Experience Seeker - for example,
meeting locals, participating in living heritage, local events and using travel styles conducive
to a more engaging experience (such as horse riding, walking, cycling or kayaking)?
Does the EDS highlight opportunities for increasing contributions to conservation within the
National Landscape environment?
Does the EDS identify opportunities (include details) on how stakeholders will contribute to
the protection and enhancement of your National Landscape’s point of difference?
Does the EDS give direction for building on your existing strengths - improving existing
experiences?
Does the EDS consider what entirely new experience offers could be developed based on your
destination positioning?
Remember this is a quest to keep each Landscape true to its unique
combination of natural and cultural attributes and individual Positioning.
Ensure your EDS priority projects set your apart from other Landscapes
or regions.
14
EDS success factors – suggested prompts and
checks
If your Landscape has conducted an Experiences Audit, has this been used as a sound basis
for proceeding with Experience Development?
Did the consultation process result in agreement within the Steering Committee and with
regional stakeholders on the priority projects and support for implementation?
Did consultation include Local Government and economic development planning as well as
tourism contacts?
Have the local ‘visionaries’ and community leaders been engaged? Were small businesses
adequately represented in consultation phases / workshops?
Is the EDS report short, focused and ‘useable’?
Does your EDS clearly identify a small number of ‘signature’ experiences (as distinct from
individual products or businesses) within your Landscape?
Are your catalytic projects a shortlist of defined, specific, ‘hard’ (eg: bridges) and ‘soft’ (eg:
web content) infrastructure projects that the whole region can promote as key goals, knowing
there will be wider scale spin off benefits?
Does your EDS ‘mine’ other planning processes and policy commitments to highlight where
EDS catalytic projects would also deliver on other organisations’ KPIs?
Does the EDS look for opportunities to maximise existing infrastructure or capital intensive
assets? Can the identified catalytic projects add value to something existing rather than
requiring new developments?
Did development of the EDS follow a systematic, repeatable and objective analysis for
prioritising catalytic projects – e.g. weighted criteria / matrix?
Are your catalytic projects ‘game-changers’ for your Landscape region? Will they create new
momentum for your region, or new ways to deliver on the positioning?
Is your EDS SMART? Does it set Specific catalytic projects, Measurable outcomes, Agreed
upon priorities, nominating someone Responsible for implementation (with their agreement),
prioritising the projects with Timelines and identify Tangible outcomes?
Does your EDS include some level of economic / pre-feasibility / social and environmental
impact analysis and risk analysis to demonstrate that a catalytic project is potentially viable?
(It is useful to identify the opportunities early in the project and then test the reality of
opportunities.)
Are you aware of what is in other National Landscapes’ Destination Positioning and EDS?
Have you worked with the Program Managers to learn from the experience of other National
Landscapes?
15
Where to from here?
Once the EDS has endorsement from your Steering Committee, State Tourism and State Parks agencies,
the next step is to submit the EDS for review by the National Landscapes Reference Committee
(NLRC). The NLRC meet quarterly.
National Landscapes Program Managers can provide advice on how to submit the EDS to the NLRC
and timeframes for submitting your document and receiving feedback.
Please contact the Program Managers at:
Parks Australia
GPO Box 787
Canberra ACT 2601
Phone: 02 6275 9088
mailto:NationalLandscapes@environment.gov.au
Tourism Australia
GPO Box 2721
Sydney NSW 1006
Phone: 02 9361 1239
mailto:nationallandscapes@tourism.australia.com
Annual implementation plan and review
Following review by the NLRC, it is time to start the implementation phase of your EDS. It is helpful
to develop an annual ‘implementation plan’ which identifies the priority projects for that year,
milestones, measures of success and responsibilities. It will give focus to the work of your Steering
Committee, help with building stakeholder support, help draw attention to your successes and simplify
your annual review processes.
This plan could be a simple 1-page extract or summary directly taken from your EDS. A template that
could be used or adapted can be found at Attachment B.
Your EDS should be seen as a living document, one that continues to
grow, and improve as you get better at doing ‘what you do best’.
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Appendix 1: Stages in the Experience
Development process
STAGE 1 - Mobilising support
Development of an EDS is a collective responsibility, involving tourism, parks and infrastructure
agencies; tourism industry members; local government and local communities. Community and
stakeholder support is a critical success factor for developing and implementing the EDS.
Strong steering committee
Does your Steering Committee represent relevant tourism and conservation interests?
As part of its communications strategy, does your Steering Committee engage with:
State/territory tourism organisations, regional tourism organisations, local government
agencies, regional development bodies, Indigenous representatives, conservation groups and
land management agencies? It is useful to keep a wide variety of stakeholders up to date on
the work of your Steering Committee, and seek their input on relevant issues as they arise.
Are there peak bodies and organisations who should be involved –those who relate to the
signature experiences of your National Landscape, for example, heritage associations,
geological societies, art groups, bird watching groups, whale watching groups, dive
associations, skiing tourism bodies etc. ? These groups can be consulted where relevant, but
having them all on a steering group may make it hard to reach decisions.
How can your Steering Committee connect to existing processes and regional structures?
This might help with your consultation process or ensure your committee membership
effectively represents the National Landscape.
Effective governance arrangements
Have you identified how the project will be managed; how your Steering Committee will
review and input into the planning process and what approval steps will be required for the
final document? The EDS and its final recommendations should be ‘owned’ and supported by
all your steering committee members.
Will your EDS be developed ‘in house’ by Steering Committee members, by an external
specialist consultant, or a combination of both? This may be determined by what resources are
available.
Has your Steering Committee determined who can attend consultation and Project
Management meetings; where and how they will be conducted; whether or not subcommittees will be established and who will be responsible for carrying out any agreed
actions?
Parks Australia is available to provide advice in developing arrangements appropriate for your
region.
17
Forward planning for resources
If your Steering Committee chooses to use an external consultant to develop the EDS, you will require
financial and in-kind support from within the region. If the project is to be undertaken ‘in house’ by
the Steering Committee, the emphasis will be on securing significant in-kind contributions and
ensuring stakeholders have time and energy available to run the project.
Have you considered your resource requirements as early as possible to determine any one-off
contributions or ongoing contributions that will be needed? Work with stakeholders to
earmark resources in stakeholder budgets. Delays may be experienced in obtaining funding
support if specific allowances have not been made in forward budgets (often approved around
February to May).
Clear regional communication
Do you have a communications plan? Do all your stakeholders understand their own role and
that of others?
Communications plans also identify ways in which stakeholders can participate, encourage long term
commitment, raise awareness of the benefits arising from selection as a National Landscape and build
confidence in the region’s capacity to work together to attract the Experience Seeker market.
Tourism Australia has developed a Communications Plan template which could help you to review
stakeholder and communication networks that already exist in your region and think about how to
involve people in developing your EDS. To obtain a copy of the template contact Tourism Australia.
STAGE 2 - Scoping and project implementation
At the outset of your EDS development, consider your region in a broad context. You will have already
worked with Tourism Australia, your state and regional tourism organisations, and regional
stakeholders to develop a National Landscape ‘Positioning’ that clearly articulates the elements of your
region that appeal to the target market. This Positioning work needs to set the scene for developing
your EDS – the EDS focus will be on identifying opportunities to bring your Positioning to life for the
global Experience Seeker audience.
Your region will also have a wide range of strategic documents and plans in place. These documents
should be used to help guide and inform the development of your strategy.
Some elements of your EDS may already have been addressed in existing planning documents,
allowing you to focus on the gaps.
Identify key supporting documents
Have you gathered and reviewed existing state, regional and local planning (such as public
transport plans, heritage, tourism, or regional development plans) within the National
Landscape? Bring these to the attention of the project team, consultants appointed and
stakeholders.
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Develop consultancy briefs
If using a consultant, has your Steering Committee established a budget and developed a
project consultancy brief, which clearly scopes project objectives, key deliverables, level of
consultation, key relationships, reporting arrangements and selection criteria? A draft
statement of requirements is provided at Attachment A for your reference.
Parks Australia can provide advice throughout the development of your strategy. In particular, you
may like to consider inviting Parks Australia to participate in your project initiation meeting.
Appoint consultants and manage projects
As a Steering Committee, if you use a consultant, you will achieve the best results if you work closely
with them at all stages in the process. It is advantageous for the selected consultancy team to have
expertise in tourism planning, marketing and environmental / protected area management. Some
consultants are strong in some but not all of these aspects of the EDS. Ensure tenders address all the
requirements of the brief, particularly experience in the range of skills required.
STAGE 3 - Consultation
Consultation is fundamental to successful National Landscape planning and development. Projects
such as positioning workshops and EDS planning are vital opportunities to raise stakeholder awareness
and engagement. It is important for your Steering Committee to be involved in community engagement
and participate in community discussions.
Extensive consultation
National Landscapes are often large areas crossing traditional administrative and structural boundaries.
Have you identified and involved communities across the entire landscape? This will ensure
good strategy development and ongoing engagement. Short visits to many communities are
preferred to larger centralised stakeholder meetings, as participants may find it easier to
briefly visit dispersed locations rather than extended driving to central locations.
Have you thought about the length and timing of your consultation? You may need to
schedule consultation to avoid peak season or allow a staged consultation process to seek
feedback on draft recommendations. Consultants should also consider undertaking one-onone interviews with key players if required – some community leaders are very busy and not
able to attend consultation workshops.
Have you considered the possibility of using online options to facilitate discussion and
feedback on draft documents, concepts or promote opportunities for input?
It is critical to ensure your Steering Committee develops thorough contact lists for the consultancy
team, as this is a time consuming process.
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Involve regional leaders and interest groups
Have you identified all regional opinion leaders and interest groups that may not be picked up
through existing contact lists and networks? These organisations have considerable value to
add to your EDS. Take the time to identify organisations such as: Landcare groups, ’friends
of’ groups, Indigenous organisations, geological societies, art groups, conservation groups,
heritage associations, adventure associations and sectoral groups such as backpacker
associations or dive tour operators.
A successful EDS should be built on community support. These community members not only assist
in maintaining the ambience and quality of the landscape but contribute significantly to telling the story
of your National Landscape.
STAGE 4 - Agreeing strategies
The EDS should identify a number of initiatives and priorities that will take the National Landscape
beyond the existing visitor experience, and towards a clear vision for world class, signature experiences.
Strategies must be targeted and achievable, in terms of state/territory and regional capacity and ability
to attract support and funding from stakeholders.
Focus! Focus! Focus!
(on experiences and strategies that reflect your positioning)
National Landscapes planning is different from most other tourism planning. When
working with a wide range of organisations, particularly with those not specifically
targeting a world class experience, it is easy to get distracted. Don’t try to be all things
to all people – focus on the Experience Seekers. Get it right for them and you will be
attracting the most influential and discerning tourism marketing – the rest will follow.
Focusing the strategy on the Experience Seeker does not result in exclusion of other visitors. Making
Australia ‘accessible’ to all, including Australians, is one of the benefits of Australia’s National
Landscapes.
STEP 5 - Agreeing catalytic projects
Many project ideas will be identified through the planning process – not all of them should be included
in your final strategy.
Have you prioritised projects to ensure your resources are focused on critical outcomes? In
determining projects, funding priorities of local government and state agencies are a key
consideration. Also consider projects in terms of stakeholder support, capacity to successfully
implement and ability to deliver on the National Landscapes positioning (your point of
difference).
Have you documented a simple annual implementation plan that will help the region progress
the EDS? Once your EDS is complete, your Steering Committee is responsible for
encouraging specific stakeholders or stakeholder agencies to progress projects identified by
the EDS. An example annual implementation plan template is at Attachment B.
Involve key organisations in determining priorities
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Traditionally, tourism plans are the responsibility of the state tourism agencies, regional tourism
associations or councils. The EDS recognises that the delivery of visitor experiences isn’t just the
domain of tourism organisations but occurs at multiple touch points.
To make the most of partnership opportunities, where possible, reflect existing funding priorities
within your EDS. Early successes in National Landscapes with an EDS in place show that well
planned and clearly prioritised projects can secure resources.
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Attachment A: Template for statement of
requirements
Purpose of the services required
1. An Experience Development Strategy (EDS) is a strategy focused on identifying and developing
world class experiences for the Experience Seeker target market. An EDS should complement and
inform destination management planning. It needs to draw from existing plans (the region’s current
priorities) as well as provide guidance for future planning.
2. A consultancy team is required to work closely with the [NAMED] National Landscape Steering
Committee to produce an EDS. This strategy must identify existing and potential world class visitor
experiences for the [NAMED] region. The key existing and potential experiences identified will
include development / enhancement of the area, and integration of product and delivery of the
experience to the visitor. The existing and potential experiences should also protect and enhance
the Landscape’s ecological and cultural values.
3. To identify key experiences for the Experience Seeker target market it is necessary to consider
issues related to products, facilities, services and information. The EDS should identify commercial
opportunities, access issues, investment potential, skills and labour requirements, conservation
opportunities, marketing needs, visitor management issues, product development and infrastructure
requirements as they relate to a small number of signature experiences.
National Landscapes
4. Australia’s National Landscapes is a partnership between Parks Australia and Tourism Australia
that aims to identify and promote up to 16 of Australia’s exceptional natural experiences to the
international market to achieve environmental, social and economic outcomes for each region.
5. Thirteen National Landscapes have been launched to date: Australia’s Red Centre, the Australian
Alps, the Great Ocean Road, Kakadu, Australia’s Coastal Wilderness, Greater Blue Mountains,
Flinders Ranges, Australia’s Green Cauldron, Kangaroo Island, the Kimberley, Ningaloo-Shark
Bay, Great South West Edge and the Great Barrier Reef. The Wet Tropics, Tasmania and Sydney
Harbour are actively seeking recognition as future National Landscapes.
6. Australia’s National Landscapes Program program’s aims to:
•
Promote Australia’s world class, high quality visitor experiences;
•
Increase the value of tourism to regional economies;
•
Enhance the role of protected areas in those economies; and
•
Build support for protecting our natural and cultural assets.
The program was inspired by the need to make Australia’s wealth of over 9,000 national parks,
protected areas, and reserves “digestible” for our domestic and international visitors. It seeks to
differentiate Australia’s iconic natural and cultural destinations, and improve the delivery of quality
visitor experiences throughout these areas and their surrounding regions. By highlighting our natural
tourism assets, the program aims to promote and support the conservation of some of Australia’s most
distinct and rich environments.
Target market: the Experience Seeker
7.
Tourism Australia has identified the global Experience Seeker market as being most receptive to
Australia’s tourism offering. Experience Seekers are, by definition, looking for unique, involving
and personal experiences for their holidays. Common across different cultures, this target market
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is more likely to disperse to regional areas, stay longer in the region and have a higher than
average spend.
8.
Experience Seekers are well educated, worldly, media savvy and marketing wary segment
constitutes around 30-50% of all potential long haul outbound travellers from Australia’s key
source markets. Currently, it is estimated the Experience Seeker only constitutes between 5-15 %
of total inbound visitors to Australia, representing an economic and development opportunity for
National Landscapes.
9.
Research has shown that the Experience Seeker has a number of key ‘wants’ to satisfy their travel
experience:
•
authentic personal experiences
•
social interactions
•
meeting and interacting with the locals
•
experiencing something different from their normal day-to-day life
•
understanding and learning about different lifestyles and cultures
•
participating in the lifestyle and experiencing it, rather than observing it
•
challenging themselves – physically, emotionally and/or mentally
•
visiting authentic destinations that are not necessarily part of the tourist route
•
exposure to unique and compelling experiences
10. More information about the Experience Seeker market is available on Tourism Australia’s website.
http://www.tourism.australia.com.
11. Initial focus on the global Experience Seeker will serve as an important indicator for identifying
experiences that would also appeal to valuable domestic target markets that compare their holiday
options globally.
The National Landscape Positioning
12. The National Landscape Positioning statement sets out the essence of the world class offering.
This point of difference provides the foundation work for the EDS and should guide the delivery
of unique visitor experiences across the entire landscape. The positioning identifies unique selling
points that showcase and differentiate this location, giving a real competitive advantage in the
market place.
13. The Positioning Statement for the [NAMED] National Landscapes [INSERT].
14. Every element of the EDS must, in some way, deliver the Positioning promise.
The region
15. [INSERT A DESCRIPTION OF YOUR NATIONAL LANDSCAPE]
16. For further details visit http://www.australia.com/nl
The Experience Development Strategy
17. The EDS should clearly communicate the existing and potential signature experiences on offer that
are distinctive in world terms. Each visitor experience should deliver on your positioning and
outline what is required to deliver the experience.
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18. The EDS will support the development of high quality tourism products and services that provide
new world class experiences. The strategy will assist stakeholders to understand the world class
experiences that characterise and underpin their region’s positioning. The identification of gaps
and opportunities will enable stakeholders to use this strategic focus to their competitive advantage.
The strategy should consider how to improve and renew the experience offering to remain
competitive.
19. The EDS will also assist investor awareness of the opportunities in each National Landscape.
Investors will be able to actively explore projects in the National Landscape. The destination
positioning and EDS provide the framework to make decisions on infrastructure investment,
marketing and product development. The strategy should identify barriers and impediments to
further development of experiences aligned to the Positioning.
20. The EDS should include an executive summary that identifies the key opportunities for the region
and a table highlighting priority projects, how they deliver on the positioning, timeframe for
implementation, who would be responsible for implementation, whether it links to existing
regional plans and strategies, and whether resourcing is currently available for the project.
Specific deliverables
Detailed project plan
21. A detailed project plan must be developed following a project initiation workshop with the
[NAMED] National Landscape Steering Committee.
22. The detailed project plan must outline timeframes, proposed methodology, process for engagement
with the [NAMED] National Landscape Steering Committee, consultation details and a
communication plan for the region that engages stakeholders during and after the development of
the strategy.
23. Consultants should detail their relevant experience in similar projects, personnel and expertise,
project budget and time allocated to various phases and tasks, insurances.
Production of EDS- draft and final report
24. The EDS must include:
•
an analysis of the strategic context for the region with reference to existing tourism, social,
economic and environmental priorities and planning and policy documents;
•
a review of challenges and opportunities for the destination;
•
a brief analysis of competitor experiences with similar attributes for the purposes of
benchmarking world class experiences;
•
a positioning-aligned aspirational statement that captures an agreed sense of where the
destination could be in 10 years time;
•
identification and description of the existing and potential iconic or signature experiences;
•
identification and description of the National Landscapes environmental and cultural
conservation values, and threats to those values;
•
an implementation plan for the strategy, agreed to by stakeholders that sets out clear priorities,
resource requirements (human and financial), timeframes, milestones and responsibilities for
delivery. In developing priorities, consider feasibility, capacity to deliver and a focus on
projects that will improve competitiveness and make the biggest difference. The EDS will need
to be consistent with and supportive of existing destination management and regional
development plans for the area;
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•
a simple performance monitoring framework for implementation of the strategy.
In addition:
•
a report on the consultation process;
•
a short summary of the Strategy outlining key elements for policy makers, commercial
operators and investors;
•
Microsoft Word and PDF versions of the final EDS, and separate Microsoft Word and PDF
versions of the Executive Summary and Priority Projects table. In addition, [SPECIFY
NUMBER] hard copies of the Executive Summary for distribution to key stakeholders.
For each existing and potential iconic or signature experience (note that the following dot points
are the key elements of the EDS):
•
Identify opportunities to develop existing and potential signature products/packaging that
showcase the experience;
•
Recommend actions to support economic, environmental, social and cultural sustainability of
the experience (for example, a focus on extending season, length of stay, visitor education,
visitor management, monitoring of visitor impact or appropriate environmental or cultural
accreditation of products);
•
From all of the above recommendations or identifications, list actions that will deliver
improvements to the experience. For catalytic projects in the region, develop a short project
summary.
Consultation
25. The EDS should be prepared in consultation with state and local government, community groups,
Indigenous stakeholder groups, conservation organisations, tourism operators and other relevant
parties. Significant regional engagement, including (but not limited to) interactive workshops,
online communication and face to face meetings will be required to inform the strategy and test
and build understanding of recommendations with the region. Smaller regional forums that
maximise operator participation are preferable to larger centralised consultation.
26. The EDS proposal should include significant stakeholder consultation and the consultants must
demonstrate appropriate methodology. Outcomes of the strategy will need to be communicated to
the region and therefore the consultancy will need to include a communications plan. It is
expected that a draft EDS will be released within the region for public comment and then finalised
under direction of the [NAMED] National Landscape project management group.
27. Consultants are advised to refer to the Experience Development Strategies- Guidelines for
National Landscape Steering Committees document at www.tourism.australia.com/nl_EDS.
Project plan and EDS approval process
28. The final EDS will require the following clearance process:
•
approval by the [NAMED] National Landscapes Steering Committee;
•
approval by the state/territory tourism and parks agency;
•
endorsement by the National Landscapes Reference Committee.
Timing of deliverables
29. [INSERT TIMETABLE FOR DELIVERABLES]
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Attachment B: Template for an EDS
implementation plan
Competitive Advantage
[INSERT POSITIONING STATEMENT]
Inspirational Vision Statement (10 years time)
[INSERT VISION STATEMENT]
Signature experiences
[INSERT ICONIC OR SIGNATURE EXPERIENCES]
Stories
[INSERT STORY THEMES]
Hero or signature products
[INSERT AS APPROPRIATE]
Actions/Implementation Plan Goals for the year
Project name
[INSERT
PROJECTS]
Theme / priority
level
(Link to EDS)
Milestones
Key Outcomes
(What are the key
stages and
milestones of this
project? Eg:
Project brief
written, funding
secured, phases
of
implementation)
(Description of
outcomes when
milestones are
met, including
tangible
outcomes and
other benefits
such as regional
capacity building)
Responsible
party
(Which
Stakeholder/s are
responsible for
implementation of
this project)
[INSERT
PROJECTS]
[INSERT
PROJECTS]
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Further Information
If you have any questions regarding the use of these guidelines, or if you would like to contribute case
study material to further editions, please contact the Program Managers at:
Parks Australia
GPO Box 787
Canberra ACT 2601
Phone: 02 6275 9088
mailto:NationalLandscapes@environment.gov.au
Tourism Australia
GPO Box 2721
Sydney NSW 1006
Phone: 02 9361 1239
mailto:nationallandscapes@tourism.australia.com
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