Tourism Australia will help lead the marketing push on quality tourism products with a new initiative involving TripAdvisor to better market T-QUAL Accredited Australian tourism operators.

Launched yesterday,( December 7)  a new TripAdvisor micro site will feature Australian tourism product carrying the national symbol of accreditation – the T-QUAL Tick. It will also be backed with a raft of other activities including a ‘T-QUAL Tick Tour’ hosted by renowned chef Matt Moran.

Tourism Australia managing director, Andrew McEvoy said the initiative with TripAdvisor will increase awareness of Australia’s quality tourism products.

“The TripAdvisor site is visited by 44 million consumers globally so it makes sense to use this platform to highlight Australia’s quality tourism experiences at the point where people are researching and making their holiday plans,” said McEvoy.

“From today consumers have the added assurance of quality when they visit the TripAdvisor site and choose Australian tourism products with the T-QUAL Tick.

“Word-of-mouth advocacy is incredibly powerful in destination marketing – whether it is the endorsement of high profile celebrities or grassroots advocacy through channels like TripAdvisor, Facebook, Twitter or Wiebo in China.

“The highest quality products will be promoted through the best form of advocacy – visitors who have experienced the products, and will further get the message out to Australians that the best holiday experiences are in their own backyard,” said McEvoy.

The T-QUAL Tick will also be promoted to consumers and industry on a ‘T-QUAL Tick Tour’ in early 2012.

McEvoy said renowned Australian chef and ‘Friend of Australia’, Matt Moran will travel around Australia, experiencing the very best T-QUAL Accredited tourism products on offer and sharing these experiences with others, primarily online.

“It is fantastic to have Matt Moran on board with the T-QUAL Tick Tour,” said McEvoy .

“As one of the most well-known and celebrated individuals in the hospitality industry, Matt has proven to be an outstanding advocate for Australian holidays as part of our Friends of Australia program.”

TQUAL Accredited products will also receive preferential listing on australia.com, Tourism Australia’s website for travellers planning an Australian holiday.

T-QUAL is an industry led initiative supported by the Department of Resources Energy and Tourism (RET).