QTIC seeks out innovative tourism businesses

 

QUEENSLAND tourism businesses can share in more than $40,000 in prizes through the 2014 Queensland Tourism Industry Council (QTIC) Prize for Innovation in Tourism.

QTIC chief executive Daniel Gschwind said encouraging innovation within the tourism industry was imperative for the ongoing sustainability of businesses and future growth of the sector.

“The QTIC Prize for Innovation in Tourism is an opportunity for Queensland tourism businesses to be publicly acknowledged for their dedication to drive the industry forward,” Mr Gschwind said.

“Tourism directly and indirectly accounts for 241,000 Queensland jobs and contributes $23 billion to Queensland’s economy. The QTIC Prize for Innovation in Tourism reinforces the value of continually innovating in order to cultivate industry prosperity.”

Last year, the inaugural 2013 QTIC Prize for Innovation in Tourism was awarded to Longreach-based family business Kinnon & Co., for Starlight’s Spectacular Sound and Light Show, a 25-minute outdoor multimedia production. 

The 2013 runner up prize was awarded to Cairns ZOOm, a wildlife dome located on top of the Cairns-based Reef Hotel Casino. The 2013 judging panel also presented a highly commended to Surfers Paradise Alliance for development of a two-part event analysis measurement instrument.

The QTIC Prize for Innovation in Tourism program is open to micro and small to medium sized Queensland tourism enterprises that have developed and adopted innovative products, services and processes in Queensland between January 2013 and June 2014.

Mr Gschwind said ‘innovation’ was defined by the Australian Bureau of Statistics as ‘the process of introducing new or significantly improved goods or services and/or implementing new or significantly improved processes’.

The 2014 QTIC Prize for Innovation in Tourism first prize is made up of:

• Courtesy of the Department of Tourism, Major Events, Small Business and the Commonwealth Games, the winner will receive a prize package to the value of $30,000 of business support. The prize package will comprise of stages one and two of the Velocis program which will be delivered by the Australian Institute for Commercialisation (AIC). 
• Other elements of first prize include $3,000 worth of travel and flights to undertake a business familiarisation as well as development and distribution of a dedicated Public Relations (PR) Case Study in partnership with EC3 Global.

The runner up receives free membership to the EarthCheck International Certification program (value $3,800) and will also be included in media releases, QTIC communication and the QTIC website.

QTIC’s award program partnersare  the Department of Tourism, Major Events, Small Business and Commonwealth Games (Queensland Government), EC3 Global and EarthCheck.

http://www.qtic.com.au/

 

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POSTED MAY 25, 2014.