Port Augusta Tourism Forum

RDAFN held port Augusta's first tourism based Development Forum on Wednesday the 13^th of September, and the night was considered by all to be a great success.

Around 65 people attended the forum, with a large proportion of these being Port Augusta based tourism operators. This is a highly positive sign, as it is the engagement of these operators with RDAFN, council and industry bodies that will result in real change and benefit to the tourism industry of Port Augusta. Nothing can be achieved within an industry unless those who work within the industry are prepared to engage. Tourism is undoubtedly a busy business to be in however, so many thanks are in order those who took the valuable time to come along and have some input.

The workshop at the end of the evening was particularly productive, and was aimed at getting the public, including tourism operators and the community in general to start thinking about, and having some input into how we market Port Augusta as a city. It is likely that this will feed into an RDAFN-lead initiative on branding and/or marketing the city. This process would take place under the tourism framework, but would act as an 'umbrella brand' or destination message that would have applications across all industries, particularly in the areas of investment attraction, recruitment and economic development. Three broad questions were asked of workshop participants, and the amount of positive feedback and interesting perspectives was fantastic. A summary of results is included below.

The forum was held at Port Augusta Sporting and Social Club, which not only provided a great venue, but also showcased the future site of the Port Augusta Motorhome Park, as product being developed through a joint venture between Port Augusta Sporting and Social Club, Port Augusta City Council, RDAFN and the Campervan and Motorhome Club of Australia.

Sponsors and contributors to be thanked include AusIndustry, The South Australian Tourism Commission, Flinders Ranges and Outback South Australia Tourism, Port Augusta City Council, Business Port Augusta and the Port Augusta Sporting and Social Club.

The main guest speakers and topics for the night were:

Welcome - Heather Sweeting, Port Augusta Tourism Product Development Officer
Opening by Mayor Joy Baluch
John Stephens, City Manager, Port Augusta City Council Port Augusta City Council's commitments to Tourism - Past, present and future. Includes major contributions to the tourism industry through attractions, infrastructure, events, services and human resources.
Colin Sparrow, Acting Chair - Business Port Augusta Business Port Augusta's take on Tourism and the new Board structure.
Port Augusta Tourism Industry NetworkLaunch of an online communication network aimed at connecting tourism operators with important industry information and resources.
Meg Barker - Flinders Ranges & Outback South Australia Tourism Inc. - Tourism Branding - What is a brand?Why is it important? Details of 'Brand Australia', 'Brand SA' and the FROSAT brand. How can Port Augusta benefit from branding?
Port Augusta CityMarketing Plan Initial floating of the concept and what Port Augusta might achieve through a city branding and marketing strategy, as well as how this would be developed.
Workshop Starting point and public consultation on the seeds for a city branding or marketing exercise for Port Augusta. Workshop Results

Please feel free to view the photos from the Forum Download Zip