For the second year I have had the pleasure of participating as a mentor in the Queensland Tourism industry Council (QTIC) Young Professionals Mentoring Program.

This year I had the absolute pleasure of working with Tennille Wendt from the Ironman Group, a young passionate events professional

For those that missed out, here are our key take outs and learnings from the conference.

We are so proud of all the regional tourism operators who entered the NSW Regional Tourism Awards. It is exciting to follow along on social media to celebrate their successes!

Image by Regional Tourism Awards

New accreditation, category descriptors, marketing and sustainability sections, NSW Regional Tourism Awards now include all regional Destination Networks, and a hall of fame for the People’s Choice in the Queensland Tourism Awards.

(We couldn’t help sharing the photo from our local Australian Tourism Award winner, Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers!)

I get to see many state and regional structures and strategies. It always boggles me to see so much duplication and inefficiencies going on in regions, so I think it’s time for me to share what I believe needs to change…for what it’s worth!

Twelve months ago, I was very fortunate to be selected as one of 100 Rare Birds to receive a 12-month business mentoring program.

I cannot believe that it took me ten years to finally get myself a business mentor. Now I keep kicking myself for not doing it as soon as I started in business.

What happens when 180 regional tourism professionals get together?

Here’s a taste of the Australian Regional Tourism Convention…

Yes, that is a 7m waterfall!

A photo blog of the adventures of Team Tilma in NZ, celebrating ten years of Tilma Group!

The marketing campaign that Tilma Group developed and implemented for Edward River Council won bronze in the Destination Marketing category at the 2018 NSW Tourism Awards!

Missed attending DestinationQ?
Want to know how to make your tourism event more manageable?
Want to know how to maximise benefits from your region's events?

Here are Tilma’s key take-outs from the recent events conference.

10 learnings about regional tourism for 10 years as Tilma Group!

Finding enough volunteers is a huge challenge for many regional festivals and events. Here are some tips from us - but we want to know: what has worked best for your event to recruit and keep volunteers?

I've just been to Vanuatu to help judge the biennial Vanuatu tourism awards for the third time. The friendliest and happiest people on earth live in Vanuatu. The Ni-Vanuatu (the local Melanesians) are the most beautiful people that you will ever meet. Every time I visit I feel more and more at home. This place has certainly taken a piece of my heart (maybe a Tilma office in Vanuatu is on the cards!).

Linda shares the human story behind one of our state's diverse small businesses highlighting her unique business experience and inspiration as Tilma Group turns ten years old!

As a small business and working in tourism which is made up of small businesses, of course we are celebrating Queensland Small Business Week 28 May-1 June with two tourism industry workshops: How To Plan Your Marketing To Generate Sales and Optimising Your Digital Assets and Online Listings.

Ever thought to use an event to activate your destination’s brand? 

Or use an event to attract visitors from the city?

Here we use Taste Riverina festival to showcase one model of event management that spreads the load amongst many partners - and leverages a city event to bring visitors to the country! 

There is a new guide of specific simple actions rural and regional communities can take to gain more benefits from tourism. 

What does a roomful of rural tourism experts talk about?
We found out when we attended a Rural Tourism Forum recently...

...and we found out their advice for rural tourism destinations

Sometimes an awful lot of money is wasted in regional tourism.

Here are some examples of the kinds of waste we see, and a couple of ideas on the benefits of critically considering choices and seeking out more options.

Picture this: you've just walked up a good size peak through beautiful bushland and granite boulder country, you've taken the requisite selfie with the world-renowned view from the top, you've tripped down 900 steps (glad you asked advice on which direction around the walking track loop you should go!), and you're lying on pure soft white sand, gazing at the turquoise bay before you... Now, what's going through your mind?