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NLIS 1 March 26, 2004 (Tourism, Culture and Recreation) Atlantic Canada Tourism
Partnership boosts tourist spending by $78 million The Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership (ACTP) announced today that its efforts in 2003 succeeded in bringing more tourists from the United States, Europe and Japan to Atlantic Canada, generating $78 million in tourism revenue. This represents a return of $16.36 for every dollar invested in the ACTP�s international marketing campaigns. The strong results were identified in an evaluation of the ACTP�s efforts in 2003 conducted by Tourism Synergy, an independent consultant. The ACTP brings together the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), as well as the tourism departments and tourism industry associations of New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. "The ACTP is a powerful example of the federal and provincial governments working together with industry to help grow tourism in Atlantic Canada," said Joseph McGuire, Minister for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency. "The excellent results for 2003 mark another successful year for the ACTP despite many challenges to the tourism industry such as the weak U.S. economy, concerns about SARS and the conflict in Iraq." The ACTP undertakes detailed market research to focus its efforts on promoting Atlantic Canada in areas and market segments that offer the most benefit. "Being a partner in the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership provides Newfoundland and Labrador the opportunity to strengthen our tourism marketing efforts in international markets, particularly in New England," said Paul Shelley, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation. "Joint marketing efforts through the partnership complement our provincial marketing strategy while continuing to build a level of awareness about Newfoundland and Labrador as a part of Atlantic Canada. These increased efforts are beneficial for the continued development of our tourism industry." The ACTP has two distinct international marketing programs that support and complement the tourism programs of each of the four Atlantic Provinces. The first focuses on the United States, particularly New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. The second focuses on the United Kingdom, German-speaking countries in Europe, and Japan. The marketing programs include consumer advertising campaigns designed to attract visitors to Atlantic Canada, participation in trade and consumer travel tradeshows, familiarization and media tours, editorial programs and tour wholesaler partnerships. In addition, dedicated consumer marketing Web sites for Japan and the United Kingdom and German-speaking countries were launched in 2003. In the United States, conversion studies on toll-free inquiries concluded that the ACTP generated $11.05 in tourism-related spending in Atlantic Canada for every dollar invested in consumer advertising. This rose to $19.98 when Internet inquiries were included in conversion estimates, far exceeding the partnership�s 10 to one goal. These figures are even more impressive when the reduced number of U.S. visitors to Canada in 2003 due to a weak U.S. economy, SARS and the conflict in Iraq are considered. The overseas marketing program is part of a longer-term strategy to draw more visitors from key developmental markets. While the bulk of the ACTP�s resources are logically directed to the strong growth potential of the neighbouring New England states, the overseas marketing strategy also produced impressive results, generating $5.12 for every dollar invested in consumer advertising, exceeding its five to one goal. "In Newfoundland and Labrador, we were very pleased with our tourism performance in 2003. There is no doubt that the efforts of the ACTP and its marketing campaign has been an integral part of that success. The ACTP partnership has been very strategic in focusing its marketing efforts in conjunction with our provincial marketing campaign," said Stan Cook Jr., president of Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador. About The ACTP For information: Danielle
Gauthier
Jeff Waterfield Don Cudmore BACKGROUNDER Since it was first launched in 1994, the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership (ACTP) has worked to grow Atlantic Canada�s tourism industry by promoting the region in key U.S. and international markets. The ACTP is a collaboration of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) and the departments of tourism and tourism industry associations of New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. The ACTP�s marketing campaigns support and complement the marketing efforts of the four Atlantic Provinces. United States Marketing Program The ACTP maintains U.S. interest in Atlantic Canada by continually profiling the Atlantic Provinces in American media. While the U.S. marketing program builds on each province�s existing brand, the ACTP realized significant savings in advertising costs through bulk print media buying. This cooperation resulted in a total savings and added value of US$687,400 in 2003. In addition to advertising, the ACTP works to secure editorial coverage of Atlantic Canada as a top tourist destination. Thanks to the ACTP joint efforts with provincial tourism departments, the four Atlantic Provinces were featured in dozens of publications including the Boston Globe, New York Times, Washington Post, Yankee Magazine, Golf Digest Magazine, and Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel. The $100,000 invested in media relations in the U.S. by the ACTP in 2003 generated media coverage worth an estimated $8.4 million. The ACTP also boosted Atlantic Canada�s presence in the U.S. through partnerships with select tour operators, generating more than $1.6 million in sales through an investment of $196,789. In 2003, the ACTP also developed a database of U.S. companies operating group tours in Atlantic Canada. This database is available to tourism operators to use for their own marketing efforts. Overseas Marketing Program The objectives of the ACTP�s overseas programs are to increase Atlantic Canada�s market share of visitors and revenue and to increase consumer awareness of the region as a destination of choice. While the ACTP�s U.S. marketing program works to build on each province�s existing brand, the ACTP�s overseas strategy presents Atlantic Canada as a region. This strategy has led to the Canada�s East Coast campaign in Europe and the Atlantic Canada, Where Canada Begins campaign in Japan. To support these campaigns, two dedicated consumer marketing Web sites were launched in 2003 - www.AtlanticCanada-Japan.com for the Japanese market, and www.CanadaEastCoast.com, an English and German language Web site for the European market. Consumer advertising is a primary component of the ACTP�s marketing programs in both Europe and Japan. Many of the ACTP�s overseas activities involve partnerships with the Canadian Tourism Commission, which has an established presence and expertise in these markets. In addition to advertising, the ACTP also supports travel trade initiatives to develop this key sales channel for overseas markets. Several partnerships with tour wholesaler/operators in the U.K. and in Germany/Switzerland were negotiated in 2003. The ACTP�s media relations program is a particularly important tool for generating awareness of Atlantic Canada in overseas markets. In 2003, investment in media relations activities totaled $29,540 and yielded coverage valued at $2.3 million in a variety of European and Japanese newspapers and travel and general consumer magazines. For information: 2004 03 25 10:30 a.m. |
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