For local government and destinations
Reviews, Workshops & Stakeholder Engagement
For councils and destination organisations that need a specific piece of work done well — a visitor servicing review, an industry workshop programme, or engagement that actually brings the local sector along.
The problem this solves
Not every piece of work needs a full strategy. Sometimes the question is narrower: is the visitor centre still the right model? Why does the local industry not engage with us? What do our operators actually need from us that we are not providing?
These are answerable questions, and they are usually answered badly — either internally, where nobody can say the uncomfortable thing, or by a consultant with no operating experience who reports back what the brief implied.
Andy has run a visitor centre day to day, sat on a regional tourism board, and been an elected member. The uncomfortable finding gets stated.
What's included
- Visitor servicing reviews — model, location, staffing, commercial performance and alternatives
- Industry workshop programmes, designed and facilitated, on marketing, digital and visitor experience
- Stakeholder engagement — interviews, workshops and structured feedback with local operators
- Membership and engagement reviews for regional tourism organisations
- Written findings with recommendations, sequenced and costed at an indicative level
- Facilitation of industry forums and presentations to council or board
Typical timeline
Four to ten weeks depending on scope and the amount of consultation required. Workshop programmes run to your calendar.
What it costs
Quoted per engagement. A single workshop and a full visitor-servicing review sit a long way apart, so the fee follows the scope.
- How many sessions, and how many locations
- How many stakeholders and operators are being brought in
- Whether you need a written report at the end or facilitation on the day
- Whether findings have to be presented to a council or a board
For a piece of work you are still scoping, a short call first usually saves a round of revisions to the brief.
A visitor centre run day to day, not reviewed from outside
Day-to-day management of a visitor centre, member engagement across a local tourism industry, and delivery of member workshops on marketing, retention and social media are all documented in the Tourism Rockingham and Clubs WA case studies.
Common questions
Can you facilitate a workshop for our operators?
Yes. Member workshops on marketing, member retention and social media have been a regular part of previous engagements.
Will operators be honest with an external consultant?
Generally more honest than with council staff, which is much of the value. Findings are reported in aggregate unless a participant agrees otherwise.
Do you deliver findings we might not want to hear?
Yes. A review that confirms what the brief assumed is not worth commissioning.
Can this lead into a larger strategy piece?
Often it should. A review is a sensible way to scope whether a full strategy is warranted before committing the budget.
Do you travel to regional areas?
Yes. We are based in Manjimup and work across Western Australia — being regional ourselves is rather the point.
Scope a piece of work
A short call to work out what the actual question is before anyone writes a brief.