Cape Point Route does it for the South at Indaba 2010

Article in the People's Post - Tuesday 19 May 2010

The Tourism Trade Show, Indaba 2010, held in Durban, has been and gone in a mad tourism flurry of visual displays, stand set ups, meetings, talking, activity, noise, vuvuzelzas, networking, selling and fun – which is exactly what Cape Point Route went to Indaba to achieve.

The organizers said that 13 856 people has passed through the exhibition turnstiles at 14h30 on May 10th, with a full day and a bit left of the show, so there is a good chance that Indaba 2010 attendance figures would top those of 2009.

Indaba 2010 celebrated the World Cup (as it should) with lots of footballs, vuvuzelas, makarapas and diski dances, but Indaba 2010 played an important role in destination promotion for 2011 and 2012 – just the thing that is required to build a strong tourism economy. Cape Point Route worked strongly on this aspect of promotion with packages set up to teach Tour Operators how to package the area as a minimum 3 day destination and not a peninsula day trip. “Getting the Tour operators to relearn their classic trips and take on alternatives is a long process,” says Barbara Elshove-Schmidt of Cape Point Route. “This is not a shift that happens overnight. The impact of highlighting the south peninsula in a bold effective collective is working though, with international visitors returning to the Cape Point Route stand for more information”

“Getting your message across quickly is imperative,” says Sally Grierson of Cape Point Route, “that is why the visual display is so essential. We are so grateful to Mr Eichel from Fish Hoek Galley who sponsored a plasma screen for the show. The images from the area go such a long way to make the impression required in a short space of time”

Other activations are networking events. Exhibitors compete for the attention of the tour operators and industry personnel, by hosting functions. Cape Point Route hosts a wine evening every year and Indaba 2010 was no exception. Attended by about 350 people, the Cape Point Route event was a massive success. One of the drawcards was the quality of the wine, which was sponsored entirely by Cape Point Vineyards. Snacks and platters were sponsored by Pick ‘n Pay and almost R60,000 worth of prizes were given away in various weekend packages in the area. These prizes become educationals as the tour operator experiences the area personally to sell the region to his/her clients. Gavin from Cape Xtreme says, “The Cape Point Route function is THE network function to attend - it’s the busiest, most vibey function with superb prizes and you get to meet great contacts.”

“Working as a collective, Cape Point Route has made a name for themselves,” says Steve Thomas from Daytrippers. “The orange t-shirts, flashdrives, vibrant stand, their boundless energy and the product knowledge of all the participants who attend Indaba with Cape Point Route has made the destination stand out in a crowd of incredible tourism destinations in South Africa”

Barbara adds, “I am so proud of the Cape Point Route group – working as a team for the region is critical and every participant was out there showcasing this beautiful destination in which we live and work and most importantly turning those contacts into business”. Grete Hollenbach from Southern Right Hotel confirms this, “I have already made a post-Indaba booking for later this year, which is a direct return on investment”. Bev Stacey of Boulders Beach Lodge, attending her first Indaba says, “It was phenomenal for me. I strongly believe that if you are in tourism and you do not attend, you are loosing out big time.” Dumisani Sakuinje of Monkey Valley Resort, commented “Going to Indaba with Cape Point Route made it so easy. I definitely managed to get meetings with people who might not have spoken to me because of my orange Cape Point Route t-shirt!”

Sally concludes, “As a group we offer good value packages with a difference. The south peninsula is a collective of like-minded businesses which operate ethically and professionally. The face of Cape Point Route extends to the people who work with us and these principles have been the recipe of our success. Whilst marketing methods might change, the essence of good marketing in tourism is about nurturing relationships, honesty, integrity, consistency and transparency and of course meeting expectations of the clients by under promising and over delivering.”