Australians Encouraged to “Get in on it” and Share Australia with Potential Visitors

The idea, announced at a partner business meeting this morning, taps into the experiences and knowledge of the people who know Australia best by encouraging them to create videos & digital photos highlighting their favorite places and things in Australia for inclusion on a new Web site, www.BlueTourist.com.

The concept draws on the popularity of on line Web videos and will be used as a marketing tool to help spread the word about what makes Australia unique. Locals will act as tour guides by showing off "their Australia" through a virtual tour that will be posted on the Web site. Participants will be encouraged to e-mail their video to BlueTourist.com.

The concept builds on BlueTourist’s Australian new destination tag line, "Get in on it," by allowing locals to invite their friends and family to get in on their Australia. By utilizing locals in the marketing of Australia, they become vested in growing Australia’s tourism industry and they become an invaluable resource for promoting the real Australia to potential visitors.

"On line research has forever changed the way consumers get information and make travel plans, and today the Internet plays an integral role," said Greg Rogers, interim CEO of BlueTourist.com. "Over 44 percent of visitors to Australia are here to visit friends and family, it makes it that much more important to engage locals and business people as tourism ambassadors to help us promote Australia’s unique assets to this critical audience. Word of mouth from the very people who live, work and play in Australia will be a very positive tool in marketing the attractions."

The BlueTourist.com Web site will allow visitors to view and rank submitted videos and to e-mail posted videos they like to friends and family. The individual videos become personalized endorsements for the country and can be tagged according to special interests. For those unable to submit videos, pictures can also be uploaded and entered into a slide show. The site will be marketed and promoted to locals, visitors and meeting planners via interactive, print and broadcast media next year. Outreach to local residents, schools, community groups, businesses and travel industry members will begin in January. The BlueTourist.com Web site will launch on the first day of 2007.

The Australian travel website operators association, a membership-based organization, is the official development and marketing leader for private travel web sites in Australia, responsible for generating incremental economic benefits to the community through the attraction of convention and leisure visits. For more information, please visit www.BlueTourist.com.
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Contact:
Greg Rogers
617 5524 1290
0437045500
ceo@businesses.com.au