The significance of events for regional destinations
Tourism and events are symbiotic.
Events give people a reason to travel to destinations
Successful tourism strategies increase attendees at events, and broaden the reach and boost the reputation of events
The benefits of events
Destination managers want events to increase overnight visitor expenditure.
Check out the powerful economic impact of events like Parkes Elvis Festival and Birdsville Big Red Bash in the video below.
Events offer so much more for communities than just economic benefit!
Events build optimism - when our hometown hosts an event we feel proud to be part of the community, positive and optimistic – this is the emotional power of events.
Events build resilience – through volunteerism, events connect community members in collaborations
Events build ditizenship – through volunteerism, events help people develop skills
What destinations want from events
BRAND AND MARKETING SUPPORT
Destinations want events that bring to life the destination’s brand, and reinforce local values and the destination’s strengths. Events can change people’s perception of a destination - and can be used purposefully to do so.
Destinations need great events that are reflective of the destination and those who call it home.
VISITATION AND ECONOMIC IMPACT
Destination managers want quality events that
give people a reason to visit
support the tourism industry in the low or shoulder seasons
provide opportunities to increase visitor length of stay, drive repeat visitation, and increase visitor expenditure
SOCIAL BENEFITS
Destinations want events that
connect people, place and local culture
leave lasting legacies such as upskilling local residents, and permanent infrastructure
create community pride and liveability
foster loyalty and advocacy for the destination
What events want from destinations
BRAND APPEAL AND ALIGNMENT
Events organisers want destinations with brand appeal and that alignment with their values. For example country and roots music festival CMC Rocks is better suited to its home in Ipswich in southeastern Queensland than the Sunshine Coast, and an Ironman event is better suited to Cairns than Ipswich.
Event organisers prefer destinations with strong digital presence to support marketing.
They would love marketing advice and support to drive attendance, visitation and ticket sales.
SUPPORTING INFRASTRUCTURE
Event organisers need relevant event infrastructure to host their event e.g. trails with spacious trailheads for sporting events, and event-friendly parks with power, water, toilets, open space, and event-friendly noise regulations.
They also need sufficient services and facilities that support the event, such as enough accommodation, public transport, and waste management services that enable them to meet their sustainability goals.
EVENT-FRIENDLY COUNCIL AND TOURISM INDUSTRY
Event organisers want
to work with a positive, supportive and collaborative Council
tourism products and experiences that add value to the event program, for example mountain biking event Crankworx and adventure tourism experiences
partnerships and networks that enhance the visitor experience including sponsorship and local partners that help support the event
a supportive business community that at least has businesses open during the event! (A common problem in rural areas - you can’t get local economic impact from an event if attendees can’t spend money!)
HOW TO LOSE A MAJOR EVENT
The annual music festival CMC Rocks used to be held in the Hunter Valley until the hotels together decided they would enforce a minimum four night stay at $390 per night ($1,560 total).
With additional barriers put up by the state and regional tourism organisations, CMC Rocks looked for a new home and found it in Ipswich, QLD, which is super supportive of it because it values everything the event delivers for the region - $11 million of economic benefit, 19,000 visitors to Ipswich, 61,000 visitor nights in Ipswich, and national exposure for the destination.
What a loss for NSW!
LOCAL EVENT AMBASSADORS
Events need
community advocates and a local fan base. Connection with the community is critical - visitors want to live like locals and feel connected!
volunteers and event support resources
Loyal event and destination advocates
Collectively, the #1 goal for destinations and events should be to work together to create loyal event and destination advocates who love both the event and the destination, come back again and again, and tell their friends and family to come with them!
Events play a critical role in introducing visitors to a destination...they are a hook that get people to decide to travel to a destination.
The opportunity is for the destination managers to turn them into loyal advocates so that they return and they tell others about it!
Over to you
Does your destination know what it wants to gain from events?
What is the purpose of events for your destination?
Is your destination realising the full potential of its events?
Councils should really consider focusing on their region’s champion events and investing in them to not just keep them afloat but helping them to thrive and kick goals!
Pick those that have potential to provide real benefits for the community and can support Council’s achievement of its tourism and community objectives.
Which events in your region offer the biggest potential return?
Leverage them!
Just because Council has always supported a certain event or always done things this way (e.g. shared funding equally amongst all the community-run events), does not mean that it can’t change direction to get better outcomes.
How can rEVENTS Academy help?
We are passionate about ensuring the long term viability of regional festivals and events to drive tourism outcomes for regional and rural communities across Australia. We work with event organisers, Councils and tourism organisations to grow the benefits from events.