Innovative Online Education Programme Open to the Global Tourism Industry

Brisbane, Australia, 2014-03-27 — /Travel PR News/ — The Tourism e kit is the highly successful self-help, online education programme that enables tourism businesses and operators to make the most of digital marketing opportunities.  Australian tourism businesses have had exclusive access to the Tourism e kit since its launch in 2008 and now, for the first time, the rest of the world can benefit from this valuable resource.

An Australian Government innovation, the Tourism e kit has been downloaded hundreds of thousands of times and earned many prestigious tourism awards.  It is considered a very valuable learning tool by the Australian and International industry.

Following numerous requests from international Destination Marketing Organisations (DMOs) and industry bodies to purchase the resource, the Tourism e kit is being licensed so that it can be utilised, translated and re-branded by other destinations! Therefore, the Tourism e kit is now available for the benefit of tourism businesses and industry bodies across the globe.

“This free online training tool has been more successful than anyone could have predicted. It has been downloaded more than 350,000 times and earned National and State awards including recognition at the recent Australian National Tourism Awards held last month,” said Liz Ward, CEO of the Australian Tourism Data Warehouse (ATDW) who manages the Tourism e kit on behalf of Australia’s DMOs.

Designed specifically for tourism operators who are keen to improve their digital presence and develop their online distribution strategy, the Tourism e kit features:

*  high quality, comprehensive content with more than 60 tutorials covering nine main topics, ranging from developing a website and using social media effectively to implementing online bookings and promoting your tourism products in China

*  content contributed by leading industry experts in Australia, North America and China

*  a self-paced adult learning style and tone to suit the target demographic – time-poor, small to medium business operators.  The average tutorial completion time is 20 minutes

*  content is customised to the tourism industry, featuring tourism specific examples throughout such as online bookings and distribution

*  information which is easy to understand – ‘plain English’, no jargon and extensive use of diagrams and graphics to simply explain technical and complex concepts

*  impartial and unbiased content – there is no advertising or endorsement

*  information suitable for both beginners and more experienced e marketers

*  tutorials in logical sequence, which can be used sequentially or operators can select the topics they are interested in

* up-to-date and constantly evolving content – all tutorials are updated twice a year and new tutorials are regularly added as a result of industry consultation and feedback.

 

For individuals who are interested in acquiring the Tourism e kit for personal use, click here.

International DMOs interested in aquiring Tourism e kit content for the purpose developing their own industry education programme can contact Wendy Smith  wendy.smith@atdw.com.au.

— ENDS —

For further information about this media release, please contact Antoinette Lloyd at antoinette.lloyd@atdw.com.au.

The Australian Tourism Data Warehouse (ATDW) is Australia’s national platform for digital tourism information on Australia. Incorporated in 2001, it is jointly owned and managed by Tourism Australia and all Australian State/Territory Government tourism bodies.

The ATDW collects information via its partners then stores and distributes this information.  Data includes high quality, consumer relevant product and destination information from all Australian States and Territories, with more than 35,000 listings. This content is compiled in a nationally agreed format and is electronically accessible by tourism business owners (operators), wholesalers, retailers and distributors for use in their websites and booking systems.

ATDW also plays an important supportive role in industry education, helping tourism operators make the most of online opportunities and allowing them to attract and facilitate more online bookings.