Thirty-one Bundaberg Region tourism experiences have been identified among the top operators in the state, with the Best of Queensland Experiences Program announced today.
The program was developed by Tourism and Events Queensland in partnership with Regional Tourism Organisations, Queensland Tourism Industry Council and the State Government.
Bundaberg Tourism general manager Katherine Reid said it identifies and recognises experiences that best bring the Queensland story to life and consistently deliver a high-quality visitor experience.
“Out of the 55 operators assessed for the Bundaberg and North Burnett regions, 64 per cent of experiences were identified as meeting the criteria, with four of our experiences receiving top accolades in the program,” Ms Reid said.
“The program is based on an independent set of criteria that incorporates online customer reviews, responds to consumer expectations and reflects industry best practice.
“All operators in the program receive a personalised benchmarking report, which will be assessed on an annual basis.
“This gives the region and our experiences the opportunity to continually deliver and improve our experiences, striving for higher scores and a greater number of businesses recognised.”
A key component of the assessment process has been Review Pro, a software that pulls in a range of online guest reviews from more than 175 different global platforms (such as Trip Advisor, Google, Facebook, Expedia and Booking.com) to produce a “Gross Review Index (GRI)” number to score the consistent delivery of an exceptional experience.
“Our region’s Review Pro GRI score of 89.53 is slightly above the Queensland average, which is awesome to see, however does present more work to do,” Ms Reid said.
“I’d love to see our region really unite and concentrate on increasing our scores, delivering extraordinary visitor experiences at every touch point and being known as a region that delivers consistent exceptional experiences.”
Brett Lakey, owner of Lady Musgrave Experience, said he was proud of the results.
“As a Best of Queensland Experience on the Great Barrier Reef, we want the visitor to remember spectacular reef and sensational customer service,” he said.
“To receive a score of 100 is an absolute credit to the support we receive across the region, and also our crew and their passion and commitment to their roles with Lady Musgrave Experience and being custodians of the Great Barrier Reef.”
Accommodation house on the coast, C Bargara, has been recognised in the program, with manager Dale Summers saying the initial report released 12 months ago provided clear insight into areas for improvement.
“The Best of Queensland program has provided real incentive to grow and set our sights at a very high level right across everyone involved in our resort,” he said.
Receiving one of the highest scores in the region, Suzie Clarke of Bundy Food Tours, said the program had given her the platform to focus on improving her business.
“The exposure will be very good for the tours and the Bundaberg region,” she said.
“The program not only highlights the customer service side of the business but also the importance of an engaging digital presence.
“Social media is an essential part of my business, keeping up to date with new platforms and online reviews is challenging, but also very rewarding and helpful to the growth of Bundy Food Tours.
“The Best of Queensland Experience makes me feel part of something wonderful that our state has to offer visitors and will hopefully make Bundaberg region locals proud of where they live.”
Bundaberg Rum among the best
Regional icon and 2018 Australian Tourism Award Winner Bundaberg Rum Visitor Experience was also highlighted in the program.
“It’s exciting that our Bundaberg Rum Visitor Experience has been selected to be part of the Best of Queensland Experiences Program,” brand manager Duncan Littler said.
“Offering a world-class experience for visitors only happens when you consistently over deliver on their expectations.
“I’m proud of our distillery, our people and their passion.
“It enables us to deliver that world-class experience every time. We look forward to continuing to raise the bar in collaboration with the Best of Queensland Experiences program and contributing to a strong tourism economy here in Bundaberg.”
The Best of Queensland Experience Program will be assessed annually, with those identified as meeting the criteria being included in TEQ’s preferred operator database accessed by staff when planning marketing and activity.
About the program
- It's a world-first approach to delivering a consumer-led, experience focused strategy.
- The objective is to guide industry to deliver exceptional customer experiences across Queensland, which will lead to positive word of mouth and an increase in visitation, overnight visitor expenditure and market share.
- The program is based on an independent set of criteria that acknowledge online customer reviews, respond to contemporary consumer expectations and reflect industry best practice.
- The program measures consumer expectations among operators who engage with TEQ’s consumer audience through the Australian Tourism Data Warehouse.
- All operators assessed receive an individual report providing valuable insights on consumer perceptions of their experience and how to improve the delivery of customer experiences to drive business performance.
- The BOQE are included in TEQ’s preferred operator database accessed by staff when planning marketing and activity. The BOQE will receive prioritisation across all TEQ marketing and activity.
- The Best of Queensland Experiences are assessed annually.
