NELSON MANDELA BAY TOURISM TO HARNESS POTENIAL BUSINESS FROM INDUSTRY TRADE SHOWS

Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism attends Trade Shows and sales meetings to market the destination.

Despite the global economic downturn and the fall in the value of the South African rand the UN World Tourism Organisation says 1.3 billion people travelled internationally. Statistics from South African Tourism (SAT) also indicate that tourist accommodation increased by almost 13% in January compared to the same period in 2015.

Although the increased number of visitors spells good news for the South African tourism industry, indications are that Nelson Mandela Bay is not getting their fair share of the visitors into the country. “From our interactions with the various tour operators at the trade shows we attended in the first quarter of the year, we have found that they only promote the Garden Route from Cape Town to George,” said Mandlakazi Skefile, Chief Executive Officer of Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism.

It is in line with these figures that Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism (NMBT) has embarked on a strategy to strengthen their participation in international trade shows such as Vakantiebeurs, ITB Berlin, WTM Africa and Indaba.

 “The insight gained from this exercise is the reason why it has become even more imperative than ever for us to increase our participation in international shows – to  ensure that we are strategically placed to educate the market about the ‘real Garden Route’,” she added.

According to Skefile, most of the tour operators and trade they met at the shows they have attended this year were already familiar with Cape Town and were bringing groups to the Garden Route and turning back in George.  However, they are not filtering through to Nelson Mandela Bay and surrounds and if they did they were using the city as a transit point for flying in and out of the province to other parts of the country.

To counter this situation, NMBT has not only collaborated with Cape Town Tourism to ensure that operators come to the destination and extend their stay to at least three nights in the city, but are actively engaging the international tour operators to include the city in their itineraries. An increase in their online presence is also essential as it has become apparent that with the easier access to technology travellers are increasingly managing their own travel arrangements.

“Our research into these international markets shows that they are particularly interested in the sea and safari experiences – and Nelson Mandela Bay can offer them this at value for money without them having to travel long distances,” said Skefile.

In addition to engaging tour operators at the trade shows attended, one of the other objectives is to create media opportunities and collaboration for Nelson Mandela Bay at a nominal cost. This included engaging the SAT UK office who have agreed to host media tours to the Eastern Cape with Nelson Mandela Bay being the focal point. Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism collaborated to host UK journalist on three occasions this quarter already that have proven to inspire and share the authentic and unique experiences of Nelson Mandela Bay.

Going forward, as part of their continued growth plan, NMBT will continue to attend trade shows with upcoming expos including Indaba, WTM and a Radshow in China from the 26 June 2016.

Skefile said that “Although the costs of attending these international shows may be prohibitive, it is important that NMBT continue to attend them so that we can ensure that the city remains top of mind for operators, is represented internationally, and included in South African itineraries. For this reason we have entered into collaborative efforts with various partners including Buffalo City, the Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency and South African Tourism where platforms such as information stands, information sessions and packs are shared amongst the partners to save on costs.”

Trade shows bring together industry, media, trade and thought leaders from around the world to do business, promote the destination, network and share learning’s. There is still a great need to educate and create more awareness about NMB offerings. Some of the destination marketing companies still have very little knowledge of what they can do in the area. Experiences such as the Algoa Bay Hope Spot- Penguin Experience, Route 67 and the Big 7 tours are unknown to the market, thus the need to further participate in trade shows until the city yields the desired results.