Three-Pronged

Advertising Campaign

Tourism Ballina is really pleased with the response to our multi-faceted Ballina Coast and Hinterland Promotional Campaign of the Television Advertisement, the websites and this Ballina Postcard Newsletter.

All of these are ‘epromotions’ as we believe this is our best and most economical way of reaching thousands of potential visitors to the region. And it is paying off with many positive responses and enquires for future visits and holidays.

The TV campaign is running this month in Toowoomba and Tamworth. Visitors to the website were over 7000 last month and it looks like we will beat that this month.

Victorian Bushfire Appeal

One of Tourism Ballina’s members,  Amaze ‘n’ Place, at Alstonville, is holding a Charity Maze Day and Dog Contest on Sunday, February 22nd to raise money for the Victorian RSPCA.

All proceeds from maze entry on Sunday plus entry fees for the dog contest, will go towards the care of animals injured in the bushfires.

“We saw animals on the news with burns and other injuries and the carers were obviously overwhelmed with the work and the shortage of feed and medications,” Lisa Dillon, proprietor of Amaze ‘n’ Place, said. “Many groups are collecting for the people so we decided we’d also help the animals”.

The maze is open from 10am and an all-day pass will be $8 per person or $36 for a family of up to five. The Dog Contest will start at 2pm with a $5 entry for each category. These categories will be “Best Dressed Dog & Owner”, “Best Behaved Dog”, “Best Dog & Owner Natural Look-alikes” and “Waggiest Dog”.

Please bring your friendly dog on a lead. Children will need to be accompanied by an adult.

For more information please phone 6628 7518

As Well…

Ballina Shire Council has been busy helping to organise the Northern Rivers Victorian Bushfire Fundraising Concert to be held on Sunday 1 March from 12 noon to 6 pm at the Ballina Amphitheatre.

The concert will feature acts such as Fossil Rock, Jessee, Ocker Rock, Glen Massey, Rochelle Lees Band, Dr Bob, Sophistication, and many more.

Other activities have been organised for the afternoon and include rides for the kids and face painting.

There will also be auctions held throughout the afternoon for plasma TV’s and a signed Titans football jumper.

Come along, enjoy the afternoon and help raise necessary funds for the Bushfire appeal. Bring a picnic lunch, or take in the delights of the Lions Club BBQ.

When: Sunday 1 March 2009
Where: Missingham Park Amphitheatre, Ballina
Time: 12noon to 6pm

Hoping to turn the tide

Gold Coast visitors lured to NSW North Coast

Visitors to Gold Coast Airport will be encouraged to travel to the NSW North Coast thanks to a new billboard promoting the region. The campaign marks the start of a new, ongoing partnership between the airport and Tourism NSW designed to drive international visitors to the NSW North Coast.

The billboard will be positioned at Gold Coast Airport until the end of March. It features stunning views of Mount Warning and the surrounding hinterland with the line The only high rises you’ll see. Turn right for the NSW North Coast. Gold Coast Airport is attracting a number of international carriers from New Zealand, Japan and South East Asia with airlines including Jetstar International and Air Asia X.

Hopefully during their stay or the next time these Gold Coaster Tourists visit they might venture down the coast as far as Ballina (less than an hour!)

Now if we could only do the same at Ballina Airport to redirect the Byron visitors to stay and look at the fantastic things that the Ballina Coast and Hinterland has to offer.

Maybe those minibuses could drive through downtown Ballina, along the magnificent coast road, through Lennox and then onto Byron … and maybe on the way back along the escarpment to catch some of those mighty rural and ocean vistas.

Ah the possibilities …

Remember be part of this region’s promotional campaign. Forward this newsletter using the link at the bottom or join Tourism Ballina s that you as well as the entire region might benefit from our promotional activities.

And Remember,

Half Price Membership

for the rest of this financial year.

Cheers

Dave Heggie
Secretary Tourism Ballina

‘Thinking Ahead?    We Are!’

It won’t be long before the Easter Holidays will be upon us and we need to get that message out there once more:

Ballina…..it will take your breath away!

Commencing from Sunday 8th February and running for four weeks, 110 TV Advertising slots will be broadcast into the Tamworth and Toowoomba Regions. The quantum leap in our Website visitation following a similar campaign in November 2008 provides sufficient evidence that this is a successful product and money well spent in encouraging people to Ballina Coast & Hinterland.

As well Tourism Ballina is assisting employment growth for the tourism industry in our region.
We are working with two of our members to provide future employment opportunities for our youth (and others) in a growing industry that is at present the biggest employer for the Ballina Coast and Hinterland..

Alstonville Ballina Community College is currently taking enrolments in Certificate III in Hospitality (Operations) .  ABCC introduced this course in to their program this year and it will begin soon. This course offers students a nationally recognised qualification with employment options across the hospitality industry.
Find out more …

Another of our members North Coast Institute of TAFE at Wollongbar runs courses suitable for the tourism industry, Commercial Cookery and Diplomas in Hospitality and Tourism Management.
Read more about these courses …

We at Tourism Ballina are also aware of the excellent prospects that exist for educational tourism with opportunities for students from outside of the region studying here.

A Tourism Networking Opportunity

A remarkable journey in business with John Anderson featuring the founder of Contiki Tours, John Anderson for the first time to the Northern Rivers!

John’s presentation will cover his successes and failures as well as offer valuable insights into Contiki’s initial and continued success that are truly enlightening, entertaining and jam packed full of personal and business messages.
Read more here …

Last week’s postcard on the effort to rid the shire of single use plastic bags certainly has hit the spot with other media following up with more stories and lots of website activity and emails for us. See our Ballina Postcard Blog for some of the comments and why not add your own support or comment there.

What do you think of this campaign or do you have something to say about our wonderful region?

Send your comments to Dave Secretary Tourism Ballina or post them on our POSTCARD BLOG www.tourismballina.com.au/postcards

And Remember,

Half Price Membership

for the rest of this financial year.

Cheers

Dave Heggie
Secretary Tourism Ballina

PLANS TO CREATE A GREEN SHIRE.

Well we are part of the ‘GREEN CAULDRON’, so we at Tourism Ballina Inc are fully behind the proposal to rid the shire of single use plastic bags.

Not really a tourism thing?

Well we believe it is!  Plastic bags are an eyesore when discarded and a danger to the marine, aerial and terrestrial animals that attract tourists to our region.

A turtle rescued by Seabird Rescue with some plastic that it believed was a jelly fishPlastic bags wash into our waterways and get mistaken for jellyfish and seaweed. This often results in a slow and painful death for seabirds and marine animals, including dolphins and turtles. This turtle rescued by Seabird Rescue with some plastic that the turtle believed was a jelly fish.
Luckily it was found and the bag removed. The turtle was later released unharmed.

Please support the campaign to replace the single use plastic bag with an alternative renewable one. When you visit our Beautiful Shire, please remember to take your reusable bags with you.

The environment and the community of Ballina thank you in advance.

One suggestion is a locally made reusable bag that is made from material that would otherwise have been thrown out.

At left is a picture of Cr Jeff Johnson with some members  of the Ballina CWA (Country Women’s Association) using Ballina CWA (Country Women’s Association)off cuts donated by a local curtain manufacturer are being made into reusable bags as part of the strategy to reduce the amount of plastic bags being used in the Ballina Shire.

The aim is to become a plastic bag free Shire. The first focus of attention is Lennox Head.

Tourism Ballina would also like to publicly thank the group of early morning beach walkers who regularly clean up the beach during their morning constitutional collecting bags and other pieces of plastic and rubbish that has been washed up during the evening high tide.

Why not give them a hand and pick up any plastic you see and dispose of it correctly.

We urge all local businesses to get behind the initiative to rid Ballina of the throw away plastic bag. Pictured at right is a finished reusable bag made by the group.

A small behavioural change could lead to significant environmental benefits, including reduced litter, carbon emissions, and a reduction in the number of animals and marine life that die do the ingestion of plastic bags.

Ballina has 3 endangered species of turtles that inhabit the river and coastal areas. Plastic bags often end up blowing or flowing (through the stormwater system) into our waterways injuring and killing endangered marine life.

There are alternatives to the throw away plastic bag and it would be great if local businesses could be proactive and provide their customers with an alternative at a small cost to the consumer.

Everyone has reusable bags; it’s just a matter of remembering to take them with them when they go shopping. How many times have you left them in the boot of your car and only remembered them while waiting at the checkout?

Why not put,

‘Remember the reusable bags’

as the first item on your shopping list to help jog your memory as you are leaving your car.

Perhaps if retailers start charging a small fee for a reusable bag, the only carry item available, then consumers will remember to bring their own.

What do you think of this campaign? Send your comments to Dave Secretary Tourism Ballina or post them on our POSTCARD BLOG www.tourismballina.com.au/postcards

And Remember,

Half Price Membership

for the rest of this financial year.

Cheers

Dave Heggie
Secretary Tourism Ballina

Wow, what a season …

well much better than last year.

COMPARED with last Christmas, these school holidays have proved Ballina Shire remains a popular seaside destination.

Paul Ferguson, president of Tourism Ballina, said there was a ‘substantial increase in families’ coming to Ballina these holidays.

As the owner of a motel and a cafe, Mr Ferguson has seen first-hand the rise in tourism this year, and figures from other business houses back that up.

A television advertising campaign aimed at families in the Toowoomba and Tamworth areas last July and again last November, appears to be paying dividends.

“We are starting to see the names of these places appear on our guest registers,” explained Mr Ferguson, who owns the Colonial Motel on Bangalow Road.

“Tourism Ballina felt that a lot of people would not be going abroad this year and that they would be looking at the traditional beach holiday.”

The tourism president said feedback was good.

“At one stage I ran out of beds,” he said.

“There’s the general view among business people that there are a lot more families around and that is good.

“After talking to others in the industry everyone is really positive. We believe it was advertising money well spent.”

Mr Ferguson said Tourism Ballina had spent about $2000 a month in the target areas of Toowoomba and Tamworth, with coverage also beamed to viewers in the Tenterfield area and east to Lismore.

He said many families traditionally travelled from Tenterfield to Evans Head, Ballina or Lennox Head.

“But we are capturing more than those traditional families,” he said.

As well, this season has gone on for longer.

Typically, Ballina’s peak tourism time is the 10 days from Christmas Eve.

“This year plenty of families are coming through until the end of January,” he said.
Mr Ferguson put this down to the fact Ballina now offered tourists many more things to do than in the past, with skydiving, trike riding, surfing, paddling and more all on offer.

“These are all activities that didn’t exist a few years ago,” he said.

Tourism Ballina would also like to thank the Ballina Council with assisting us financially ($2000 on a dollar for dollar basis) with our November and February television advertising campaign.

If you, your business or organisation would also like to assist us with promoting this region then please do not hesitate to contact Dave or Paul.

All of our television promotion leads to our websites www.tourismballina.com.au/ which this past month few months have broken all records.

A total of 7384 visitors have looked through over 24 000 pages during January alone. We are pretty proud of this achievement. And members are benefitting as well with lots reporting enquiries and bookings as a direct result of our TV promotions and website advertising.

To further help the region, we are offering half price membership offer till the end of June 2009 which includes a FREE Promotional DVD and Website listing on our site. You can take out further advertising for a cost savings as well. Please see our website www.tourismballina.com.au/ for details.

As you know from our Newsletters, this year’s Membership Fees have been used exclusively for the promotion of the Ballina Shire and Tourism Operators, through our TV Advertising Campaigns into Toowoomba and the Tamworth Regions.

We have already funded a February 2009 Campaign and are looking to repeat the exercise in May 2009, which will also include the Lismore Region, in time for the Winter Shoulder Period.

Your support is vital to maintaining our presence in the market and promotes the Ballina Coast & Hinterland.

Results of our Campaigns so far, speak for themselves, with visitation to our Website in December 2008 and January 2009 double that previously achieved.

You can make a difference!

We have just had a good season so we need to keep this going as high tourist numbers affect the wellbeing of all businesses within the shire.

With the downturn in the economy, we are hoping and expecting more people to stay within Australia for their holidays and we need to keep prompting the region to ensure the Ballina Coast and Hinterland is the choice for aussie holiday destinations.

As part of this campaign I am meeting on Tuesday with Alstonville Wollongbar Chamber of Commerce for their breakfast meeting at Lazy Beans Cafe Alstonville @7am to present our TV advertising, DVD and website to members to assist them with their promotion of the plateau region and hinterland.

We are offering Half Price Membership for six months to 30th June 2009, which will include a copy of the Promotional DVD and a free listing on our website. Contact Dave Secretary Tourism Ballina

Interested in the DVD but don’t want to be a member then it is available from our website www.tourismballina.com.au/

What do you think of our promotional efforts so far. Send your comments to Dave Secretary Tourism Ballina or post them on our POSTACRD BLOG www.tourismballina.com.au/postcards

And Remember,

Half Price Membership

for the rest of this financial year.

Cheers

Dave Heggie
Secretary Tourism Ballina