Visitor Information Centres – Dinosaurs or Saviours?

Visitor Information Centres – Dinosaurs or Saviours?

The first stop for our guests to our regional towns.

Great to see the Visitor Information Centres reopening, but what are we doing to support them.

Recently my husband and I took a mini roadie to a small town we hadn’t been to just a few hours’ drive from home. Yes, we had Googled the area and had an idea of what to expect, but we still wanted that local knowledge, so into the Visitor Information Centre we went. As we entered the building, we grabbed a map and a brochure, then Bill (not real name) approached us. He hadn’t got the memo on social distancing space as he cornered me against a brochure rack.

“Can I help?” he said with a grin. “I have this brochure on the wineries is this all you have or could you tell us about which ones to visit?” I replied.

“I can’t say, I’m not allowed to favour one over the other?” My head swam and I wanted to scream. Did I really hear that old chestnut? I gathered myself together and asked quietly “Perhaps you could tell us of a winery close by where we could have lunch”.

“No, I’m not allowed to. Here is the list” and Bill handed me a much-photocopied wineries list. He walked away and returned with a clipboard to get the all-important data– name, postcode – you know the drill to feed visitation figures. There was no regard in any of this for our experience or more importantly driving business and grabbing the visitor spend.

This so easily could have been turned around and those valuable marketing dollars spent on campaigns to entice us to the region would have reaped the benefit.

There is so much going on in the digital space that we may be forgetting about our front line. Those first interactions made as a visitor arrives. Visitors may make the decision to visit regions in the digital environment, attracted by your Instagram and other online or mainstream media activity but visitors turn up in person and want to engage with the locals for a real-life experience. This journey often starting at a Visitor Centre.

Across our industry there is much debate about the role of the Visitor Information Centre in our tourism story. In the places that have placed a focus on Visitor Services and invested in training and updating facilities they are reaping the benefits. However more often in the regions, we simply ignore this valuable opportunity to engage with depth and purpose or any focus on the importance for our visitor economies.

Throughout regional Australia our industry is relying on an aging volunteer crew in various operational models with quite frankly, little love or focus. The Visitor Centres are wasted opportunities and can become vibrant hubs for visitors and the connection point for our tourism industry. It’s time to bring Visitors Services in from the cold. Embrace the teams and facilities that exist and bring them to life.

Face it – we spend huge amounts of market dollars to get the visitors to town. These campaigns are not about visitor numbers they are about visitor spend; we have a responsibility to the tourism industry to see this through. The Visitor Information Centre must be a place that actively spruiks the products and experiences of the region. The Visitor Information Centre should not be a passive environment of brochure racks and info on the free stuff with a ban on discussing products in fear of the favouritism myth. Our industry needs us, we need to be active and savvy and ensure visitors spend in the region. It is time to give Visitor Information Services the attention it deserves and when you do you won’t regret it – watch the ROI on your campaigns multiply.

As a tourist it is the interactions with humans that matter – a welcoming smile, a genuine interest in my experience and matched with a depth of knowledge of what’s on offer. Then as a visitor you will ensure I “stay longer, spend more and become an advocate for your region”!