The question has been raised as to whether the Martinborough i-SITE Visitor Centre is in the best
town given that visitors entering Martinborough had already driven through one
or more other Wairarapa towns.
An additional observation suggests that visitors to Martinborough will have already made
up their minds of what they will do while in the Wairarapa.
This signals an excellent time to have a look at why we have our i-SITE Visitor Centres where they are. In assessing where a visitor centre should be located I have had a look at:
- Other i-SITE locations in New Zealand
- Wairarapa product
- Consumer motivators
- Capacity to accommodate
As the Regional Tourism Organisation (RTO) for the Wairarapa, Destination Wairarapa is charged with bringing more visitors to the region and getting them to spend more during their stay. One of the
mechanisms used by Destination Wairarapa to get visitors to stay longer and
spend more is the two i-SITE Visitor Centres located in Masterton and
Martinborough. These i-SITE Visitor Centres are operated these in a professional manner
with paid staff and targets for increased revenue through the visitors and
locals which enter them.
The i-SITE
Visitor Centres are effectively operating as agents for the tourism operators
located in the Wairarapa and throughout New Zealand. Through sales questioning
techniques the staff are able to ascertain the current and future needs of
visitors and sell them products which will meet their needs and enhance their
overall New Zealand experience.
Apart from
the obvious service provided to international and domestic travelers, the i-SITE
Visitor Centres are also there for locals needing to make travel bookings
elsewhere in New Zealand. Several corporate organisations also use the services
of the i-SITE Visitor Centre for the personal service they receive and their
understanding that a booking through a Wairarapa i-SITE Visitor Centre helps
keep some revenue in the region through the commissions derived from each sale.
DESTINATION WAIRARAPA
MARKETING
Through the many media and the many messages
Destination Wairarapa uses to try and attract leisure visitors, there are
considerably fewer themes. Hanmer Springs, for example, uses Hot Springs in its
messaging, even though there are many more things to do there.
Destination Wairarapa’s key themes are:
- Wine
and Food
- The
Coast
- The
Outdoors – Rimutaka Cycle Trail
- Towns
and Villages
- Events
Destination Wairarapa believes that these are
the main things which will attract visitors to the region. We all know there
are many artists, shopping, museums, war memorabilia, vintage aircraft,
gardens, Stonehenge Aotearoa, golf, surfing, fishing… The i-SITE Visitor
Centres help direct people to these additional things to see and do.
NEW ZEALAND i-SITE VISITOR
CENTRES
i-SITE is a product of Tourism New Zealand
(TNZ) and each outlet must operate in accordance with the TNZ prescribed
standards. There are currently more than 80 i-SITE Visitor Centres located
throughout New Zealand.
This number of outlets adds value to each
individual site knowing that there are locals all over New Zealand who can
assist with questions asked by their clients. It would not be unusual, for
instance, for an i-SITE staff member in Wellington to contact the Martinborough
i-SITE Visitor Centre to answer a question or get advice on behalf of a client
they have in front of them.
All of these i-SITE Visitor Centres are located
in destinations which attract the greatest volume of visitors. Martinborough is
unusual, but not alone, in being a destination which is pretty much at a
terminus. That is Martinborough is not on SH2 and you must choose to go there.
Other i-SITE Visitor Centres in a similar
geographical cul-de-sac include:
- Waiheke
Island
- Motueka
- Akaroa
- Te
Anau
- Hanmer
Springs
- Methven
VISITOR MOTIVATORS
i-SITEs are located where they are because they
can capture the most possible visitors and assist them to spend more money and
stay longer. Visitors do go to a place because they have seen something which
attracts them. But they do not necessarily know of everything to do in that
place and this is where the i-SITE Visitor Centres can assist.
Hanmer Springs for instance would have the vast
majority of people going there because they have seen the wonderful photos of
the hot springs. However you can be sure that the Hanmer i-SITE Visitor Centre
books many people on the rafting, jet boating, bungy jump, whale watching and
cycling tours and points them to the golf course, vineyards at Amberley or the
other lesser known hot springs closer to Lewis Pass.
The majority of people going to Martinborough
are there because they have heard about the vineyards, seen the beautiful
pictures of the village and/or read about the events. Like Hanmer Springs,
these visitors are also helped to enjoy the other lesser known experiences like
a cycle hire, a horse ride, a walk, a trip to the south coast or a spa
treatment. They will also be assisted to get further into the Wairarapa to
Featherston, Greytown, Carterton, Masterton and then beyond that to their next
destination.
A town that a visitor passes through en-route
to their destination is of less attraction to stop for information as the
visitor isn’t yet to their destination and therefore hasn’t yet satisfied the
thing that motivated them on this travel in the first place. En-route to their
destination they still have that beautiful picture which they saw in a magazine
and more importantly they have a corresponding image in their minds of how they
will fit into that picture. Until they arrive at their destination, that
picture and corresponding image is the sole emotionally motivating driver.
After the visitor has satisfied that emotional
motivator, the i-SITE Visitor Centre is the place to find that next emotional
motivator which will keep the visitor in the region longer and help them to
spend more money.
WAIRARAPA VISITOR
CAPACITY
It is clear that i-SITE Visitor Centres are
located in destinations that attract visitors so as to maximise their
experience in the destination. The status of a place as a destination is
important when considering whether to have an i-SITE Visitor Centre located
there. But consideration for the destination’s capacity to accommodate visitors
there is just as important. In considering the best locations for Wairarapa
i-SITE Visitor Centres, the capacity to accommodate visitors must be assessed.
The main options for visitor centre locations
in the Wairarapa are:
- Featherston
- Martinborough
- Greytown
- Carterton
- Masterton
These towns have the following guest room volumes:
- Featherston - 61
- Martinborough - 261
- Greytown - 75
- Carterton/Gladstone - 57
- Masterton - 344
Featherston
A wonderful town full of potential as the
Rimutaka Cycle Trail grows. But at the moment the town is not a destination and
does not have the capacity to hold visitors and create opportunities for them
to do other activities and make that additional spend.
Greytown
A destination in itself, Greytown would be a
strong candidate for an i-SITE Visitor Centre. But once again the capacity to
hold visitors just isn’t there. Many visitors go to Greytown but they are day
visitors or are staying in other Wairarapa locations.
Carterton
Again a town with great potential for more
visitors given that they have one of the top attractions in Paua World and
Stonehenge is a strong visitor attraction too. The Carterton Events Centre is
the best in the region but again, the capacity to hold visitors in town is not
there.
So to answer the question and observations...
Is Martinborough the best town for an i-SITE
Visitor Centre?
Yes
Martinborough is the most suitable town because:
- It
is a destination
- It
has the capacity to accommodate visitors
And
therefore has the best opportunity to capture visitors in the i-SITE Visitor
Centre to assist them with doing something else and staying longer in the
Wairarapa.
Visitors to Martinborough will have already
made up their minds of what they will do while in the Wairarapa.
It is true
for all visitors that they will know of at least one thing that is motivating
them to go to Martinborough. That image of vineyards and the beautiful town is
in their minds and they can see themselves doing that. But most visitors will
not know about many of the other things to do around Martinborough. And the
vast majority will not know about the other towns and activities in the
Wairarapa.
Until the
visitor has satisfied that motivating factor of vineyards, village or event, it
is pointless to try and give them a new motivator. But it is vital that the
i-SITE Visitor Centre is there and able to give that new motivator when the
visitor is ready.
Visitors have driven through one or more other
Wairarapa towns on their way to Martinborough.
It is true
that visitors will have driven through one or more towns on their way to
Martinborough. Visitors drive through those towns en-route to Martinborough because
those towns are not the destination and these visitors need to:
- satisfy
their emotional motivator to go to that destination, and
- have
the opportunity to satisfy that emotion, then
- have
the opportunity to stay in the destination, then
- have
the opportunity to find that next emotional motivator, through an
- i-SITE
Visitor Centre
David Hancock is general manager of Destination Wairarapa, the regional tourism organisation for Wairarapa, New Zealand and would be delighted to receive comments on this or any other topic.
http://www.wairarapanz.com
