In this episode of Digital AF, our digital marketing specialists discuss the anticipated opportunity the 2032 Olympic Games bring to the Sunshine Coast and how your business can maximise the benefits.
In this episode of Digital AF, our digital marketing specialists discuss the anticipated opportunity the 2032 Olympic Games bring to the Sunshine Coast and how your business can maximise the benefits.
Welcome to Digital AF.
Our digital marketing specialists here at April Ford were lucky enough to attend an event hosted by SCA, which focused on how businesses can capitalise on the 2032 Sunshine Coast Olympics and the projected influx of tourism. The outstanding guest speakers were Olympic swimming legend Leisel Jones, Sunshine Coast Mayor Mark Jamieson, and Queensland Premier and Minister for the Olympics Annastacia Palaszczuk. Madi and Kyle, two of our Account Executives here at April Ford, sit down with me to discuss how you can benefit from the 2032 Sunshine Coast Olympics.
After the 2032 Sunshine Coast Olympics announcement, it was evident that businesses and people located on the Sunshine Coast and surrounding areas, such as Brisbane and the Gold Coast, would benefit from this event due to the spotlight put on these areas.
Annastacia Palaszczuk was also very excited about the fantastic tourism opportunity the Olympics offers to showcase these locations with stunning mountains and beautiful beaches to the world. Palaszczuk also reminisced how the 1992 Barcelona Olympics directly influenced her later visiting Barcelona to experience the beauty showcased by this event. As well as this, the Tokyo Olympics engaged 3 billion viewers and over 6 billion social media channel engagements. Hosting the 2032 Olympics allows the Sunshine Coast to become a global tourism destination.
The Premier also stated that 2032 opens the estimated opportunity for $20 billion in tourism, $8.6 billion in trade, and 130,000 jobs. “There has never been an opportunity like this before”, Kyle mentioned while suggesting businesses should capitalise on this opportunity by setting themselves up for success. Additionally, the assets required for the event will be purchased from suppliers, with Queensland suppliers as the priority. Madi discussed the considerable impact the Olympics will have on local businesses due to “Queensland suppliers and trades and everything else along the supply chain being a priority”. Businesses must start preparing for this opportunity in the lead-up to 2032 to ensure they have a chance to become a supplier for the Olympics. Madi explained, "You’ve got ten years to prepare, and if you can get to a position where you're a contender to be a supplier, that's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity”.
Madi mentioned that obviously, “all of your restaurants, cafes, hotels, other accommodation, and recreational activities” will be businesses within the best position to leverage off the incoming tourism, but also “everything else up the line”. This includes the fresh produce required to supply increased tourism on the coast and any trades contracted to prepare infrastructure; “almost every single industry along the way” will be impacted, suggested Madi. “Smart businesses in this area and this region who want to grow to a point where they’re in the running to get business from the Olympics, they’ll come to us” at April Ford, said Madi. Madi also stated it is essential that businesses put in “really strong business growth plans” as you want to be prepared for the Olympics, you may even want to “make some connections with people who might be in the Olympics Committee” and make sure you are prepared because “once you’ve got the opportunity to submit for that work, it’s go time”. Kyle added to this and mentioned, “if you’re going to be involved in the Olympics, you need the brand equity to be recognised once you get there. It’s ten years away; you can start building that brand equity now. If you’re doing all the marketing activities that put you in front of your relevant audience before the Olympics, you’re laying the foundation to succeed when they’re here.”
Leisel Jones, the Olympic Australian swimmer, also provided insight into the importance of the Olympics experience for the actual athletes and event attendees. Kyle was surprised by Leisel’s comments that Olympic athletes from other countries always felt welcomed by our Australian culture. Therefore, Madi added that we must leave a positive impression because “people will want to come back here. And that’s also a good point to think about; it's not only the ten years before and then the year of, but it's also the ten years after and beyond. Once we get this publicity and tourism, it's there, people know about us, and people won't forget about us. It changes how things are here, in a good way.”
The Olympics also provides an incredible opportunity for sports in Australia. The “Premier spoke a lot about how they're starting their search for Olympians now and how they're putting a huge focus on making sure they go to the wider reaches of Australia, to some of the more rural communities that maybe didn't have the chance before to get picked for a state team or a national team or the Olympics”, commented Madi. This will positively impact the importance of sports for school kids now who are being looked at to train for the Olympics in 10 years, increasing the motivation to participate in sports and improving sports culture in Australia.
Kyle also mentioned that he was intrigued when the “Premier was speaking about focusing on both virtual and augmented reality methods of viewing the Olympics. She also mentioned that you'll be able to buy cameras that follow certain athletes in events.” This appealed to Kyle as there will be “advertising opportunities to put your brand in between events, both physically at grounds as well as digitally on the different streaming channels they'll be using to display these events.” Madi added that we are looking into this as an agency as “we are rolling out new services like digital TV advertising”.
If you have a business on the Sunshine Coast, it is crucial that you start strategically planning for the opportunities that the 2032 Olympic Games will provide. Also, if you want to get ahead in your digital marketing, please do not hesitate to enquire now. We are always happy to chat and discuss how you can grow your business and improve your digital marketing.
Jessi Cox
