Interesting article in USA Today that was written by an American tourist that recently took a trip to New Zealand equipped with an iPad2 and used the impressive movie making functionality to record his experience. (Hat tip to John the Bavarian).
We would hazard a guess this recent intrepid traveller to our shores is fairly typical of the gadget distracted overseas visitor that we host on a regular basis.
The videos he has created used the iMovie app that is incredibly intuitive, cheap and the results can be very professional. Our "Motella Intro" video on the top right of this blog was made using iMovie on an iPhone 4 and uploaded to YouTube in less than 15-minutes (OK I admit that this is not the best example to the prowess of iMovie).
So as we enter a new digital age along with the economic realities of necessitating austerity, here's a bright idea: Close all overseas offices of Tourism NZ, cut the vote tourism budget in half and at the main New Zealand entry points start renting devices and/or incentivising overseas guests to digitally capture their New Zealand visit. Some of the mass user generated content will prove to be compelling viewing and will sell New Zealand as a visitor destination....
Can we foresee a time when our visitors will become our advocates and public funds will be deemed unnecessary to promote New Zealand as a destination?
Tomahawk
