The full program has been announced for the 2024 NSW Visitor Economy Forum.
Industry leaders, experts and stakeholders will gather at the ICC Sydney on 3 October 2024 for the event, which will feature the theme ‘Experience NSW’ and focus on the rising interest in authentic, interactive experiences that enable visitors to connect with local culture, natural landscapes and vibrant communities when travelling.
Attendees will hear from keynote speakers including former Executive Director and Chief Technology Officer of Lonely Planet, Gus Balbontin on ‘Adapting to a new world of experiences’.
Cultural forecasting and research agency Fiftyfive5 will present on ‘Consumer Macro Trends, delivering a resilient tourism future’.
Two feature panels will explore 'Building our visitor economy workforce' and ‘Cutting Through the Clutter: Storytelling in the Digital Age’.
'Building our visitor economy workforce' panellists will include Service & Creative Skills Australia CEO Natalie Turmine, Tafe NSW Executive Director Creative and Services Skills Cluster Raf Marcellino, SEEK Senior Account Manager Michelle Hayes and Get Skilled Access Co-CEO Zack Alcott.
They will discuss topics including how to grow the visitor economy workforce pipeline, how to access, engage and retain workers, where businesses can seek out new workers and how to prepare businesses for onboarding appropriately skilled workers.
‘Cutting Through the Clutter: Storytelling in the Digital Age’ panellists will include Tiktok creative strategist Ankita Shetty, Leo Burnett Chief Strategy Officer Catherine King and content creator at Brightworks and owner of Sierra Escape Cam Darcy.
The discussion will focus on the evolving role of storytelling and how to cut through growing competition and fragmented digital channels to stay relevant, reach your target audience and grow your business.
The 2024 NSW Visitor Economy Forum is free to attend and open to all visitor economy stakeholders including operators, trade partners, industry representatives and government colleagues.
Places are limited. Register here.
2024 NSW Visitor Economy Forum program
8am: registrations open
9am: Welcome
9.10am: Message from Minister for Jobs and Tourism John Graham MLC
9.20am: Keynote address - Destination NSW CEO Steve Cox
9.55am: Keynote address - Adapting to a new world of experiences – Gus Balbontin
10.45am: Morning tea
11.15am: Consumer Macro Trends, delivering a resilient tourism future presented by FiftyFive5
12.15am: Building our visitor economy workforce
1pm: Lunch
2pm: Concurrent session 1
International market insights - North Asia
International market insights - South East Asia and India
International market insights - Western
Connecting with visitors through culture
Leveraging world-class events
The high-yield opportunity: business events and corporate travel
3pm: Concurrent session 2 (repeat of session 1)
3.45pm: Afternoon tea
4.15pm: Cutting Through the Clutter: Storytelling in the Digital Age
5.15pm: Networking commences
6.30pm: Event close
