Image: Tourism Australia Facebook (Via Scott Jon Photography)
Tourism Australia’s Instagram page has now secured over one million followers, making it the most popular national tourism account on the social media service. For comparison, the Canadian Tourism Commission has roughly 136,000 Instagram followers, while Tourism New Zealand holds around 31,200 at the time of writing.
As News Limited have reported, a group of social media experts employed by Tourism Australia are largely to thank. The team sift through thousands of photo submissions each day, and decide which snaps best highlight Australia’s tourist locations and wildlife. Cute pictures of Aussie animals – such as the quokka above – have the ability to reach up to 100,000 likes, pulling at the heartstrings of travellers around the globe.
John O’Sullivan, Tourism Australia’s Managing Director, told News Limited the Instagram account has a definite impact on people’s travel decisions. “The page actually plays an important part in increasing holiday preference for Australia,” O’Sullivan said.
According to Tourism Australia, a recent survey of their Instagram followers saw 88 per cent of Australians say the page had also made them consider travelling around Australia more, with 91 per cent of international followers saying the photos of scenic coastline and sleepy koalas had made them investigate Australia as a potential holiday destination.
“This is great for Australian tourism and particularly for those operators who are positively embracing social media and using platforms such as our Instagram page to promote their own tourism business,” O’Sullivan has said.
View a number of Tourism Australia’s choice Instagram shots below, and bask in the glory of social media done right.
