Glaciers in New Zealand
Maori children
Northland, New Zealand
Queen Charlotte Sound
Routeburn Track
Boating in Taupo
Tongariro, New Zealand
Wellington, New Zealand

Newsletter : June 2005

brought to you by New Zealand Tourism Online www.tourism.net.nz

In this May Newsletter:

NZTO Comment

by Garry Bond, General Manager, New Zealand Tourism Online

It's certainly been a busy week for tourism in New Zealand. Trenz has just been and gone with over 400 tourism operators spending three days showing their products, talking to international buyers and for many, negotiating the finer points of future business. While this is great for those companies that have the potential to meet the needs of the wholesale travel market, many operators in New Zealand aren't at this level of business. Overall the vast majority that make up the 16,000 odd operators in New Zealand tend to be in the small business sector. For these people catering predominantly for the FIT market, the most effective way to reach their target audience is via the Internet.

Unfortunately it's also getting much more competitive on the Web and the days of simply having a Web site and expecting to gain extra business through search engines are tougher. Typically in the past, a tourism Web site may well have performed well in search engines but these days many operators are finding their rankings are slipping. Why is this? Basically it's because there are so many more tourism Web sites now than there were a few years ago and because many of the newer sites have been optimised to maximise the chances of them being found. It's no longer just good enough to put a Web site together, you need to market it effectively.

Besides optimising your site, tourism directories now play a larger part is getting quality traffic through to tourism Web sites. This to a certain extent is due to the fact that the size of a site like ours enables massive coverage in search engines and are able to be found quite easily.

Overall, the first thing you need to do is make sure you have a Web site that's visitor friendly, next make sure it's getting traffic, thirdly market yourself effectively and finally monitor the results you are getting. The Internet is a big place, just make sure you use it to your advantage.

Tourism Awards - Second Year In Finals

As some of you may already know, New Zealand Tourism Online has been selected as a nominee in the Tourism Services category for the New Zealand Tourism Awards 2005. In 2004 New Zealand Tourism Online won the Telecom People's Choice Tourism Award.

Our company was one of only 23 nominated after judges rigorously assessed, critiqued and scored the applications. We are now looking forward to an in-depth site visit by industry judges in early July and the winners will be announced at the September Tourism Industry Conference in Auckland.

Fingers crossed...

Conversion Rates

There are two main ways to generate more results from your site. The first is to generate more traffic; the second is to improve your conversion rate.

Most Web site owners are switched on to the need to drive more traffic to their site. It involves methods such as search engine optimisation, paid listings and general Web site marketing. It's all about thinking over where your target market is looking for your type of business and making sure that your site pops up in all the right places.

This month we'd like you to think more about your site's conversion rates. Many Web site owners are totally focused on driving more traffic to their site, they don't realise that they have some major holes in their sales bucket.

International surveys have concluded that retail Web sites have an average conversion rate of around 2%. This contrasts with brick-and-mortar retail outlets' conversion rate exceeding 50%.

Obviously there is huge scope for Web site conversion rates to improve. If you're sitting on a 2% conversion rate, then by simply taking that up to just 4% you'll have a 100% increase in your site's return. This should be easily achievable for most sites.

So what can we do better online?

Here are a few ideas:

  • Build credibility with professional design, great writing and testimonials
  • Reinforce your competitive advantage with your unique selling points clearly located on key pages
  • Remove perceived risk with service and/or quality guarantees
  • Encourage viewers to act with compelling calls to action. Make them an offer they can't refuse!

Although there are dozens of techniques that can be used, and this will only give you a few ideas to ponder initially, keep in mind that the art of conversion doesn't just apply to retail sites. Most business sites have specific actions that they'd like their viewers to take and how to persuade viewers to perform these actions should also be carefully considered.

Contact Avatar if you'd like assistance in improving the conversion rate of your Web site and mention that New Zealand Tourism Online sent you.

Link, Links, Linking?

Providing a link on your Web site to New Zealand Tourism Online not only looks good but provides an extra service for visitors to your site. Additionally and perhaps more importantly it can also aid your search engine status by connecting your Web site with a major New Zealand tourism network.

Do You Have A Listing with Us?

If you have a Bronze, Silver or Gold listing with New Zealand Tourism Online then you are entitled to use one of our exclusive member shields.

They are exclusive for our members and they not only look great on your Web site but help aid your search engine status by connecting with a major NZ tourism portal. To check your member status with us, visit our site and pull up your listing. If you have a gold star by your name the you can use the gold member shield. If you have a silver or bronze star by your name then use the official member shield.

It's a simple matter to add one of these shields to your Web site. Just visit our Member Shield Web page for more information.

No Listing With Us?

If you don't have a Bronze, Silver or Gold listing then drop us a line to find out more about these high profile options. Email us or calling toll free on 0800 14 65 48 now.

No Listing But Just Want To Link To Us?

If you have a Web site and simply want to link to us to get the benefit of linking to a major Web site then we have 8 options for you to choose from. Click here for more information.

We welcome any feedback or contributions for our next newsletter - just email our team web@tourism.net.nz

Regards,

The Team
Ph. 0800 14 65 47
https://www.tourism.net.nz
New Zealand Tourism Online Limited
Head Office: 208 Cashel Street, Christchurch

Featured
 
New Zealand Coach Tours

New Zealand Coach Tours

The largest range of escorted & small group tours

New Zealand road trips - Let's go on an adventure

New Zealand Road Trips

Let's go on an adventure

New Zealand self-drive tours

NZ Self-Drive Tours

Explore NZ on a custom self-drive package holiday

Bluebridge Ferry

Bluebridge Cook Strait ferries

Cross Cook Strait and enjoy Kiwi hospitality.

World Nomads Travel Insurance

Get Travel Insurance

Travel insurance for independent travellers.

Featured
 
New Zealand Coach Tours

New Zealand Coach Tours

The largest range of escorted & small group tours

New Zealand road trips - Let's go on an adventure

New Zealand Road Trips

Let's go on an adventure

New Zealand self-drive tours

NZ Self-Drive Tours

Explore NZ on a custom self-drive package holiday

Bluebridge Ferry

Bluebridge Cook Strait ferries

Cross Cook Strait and enjoy Kiwi hospitality.

World Nomads Travel Insurance

Get Travel Insurance

Travel insurance for independent travellers.