HONG KONG–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Tourism New Zealand today announced that it has signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) with Tencent Holdings Limited (“Tencent”, 00700.HK),
a leading provider of Internet value-added services in China, in
Shenzhen, China, to jointly support the growth of Chinese Free
Independent Travellers (FIT) with fresh, unique travel experiences, and
build New Zealand as a desirable, high-value international destination
brand for Chinese travelers.
The MoU makes the collaboration between Tourism New Zealand and Tencent
official, and will strengthen Tencent’s integrated marketing outreach in
mainland China, enhancing the overall travel experience of Chinese
visitors. It also deepens Tourism New Zealand’s understanding of Chinese
tourists through Tencent Social Solution, which includes WeChat
advertisements and WeChat Mini Programs.
Gregg Wafelbakker, General Manager Asia of Tourism New Zealand,
said, “China is New Zealand’s second-largest international tourism
market, and the number one market in terms of holiday spending. bring
the exceptional New Zealand experience to more Chinese tourists, Tourism
New Zealand has been seeking diversified, digitalized and innovative
partnerships. As a leader in China’s Internet industry, Tencent has a
robust technology platform and strong digital marketing service
capabilities. We are excited to leverage Tencent’s expertise to jointly
facilitate the development of the Chinese Free Independent Travel market
and provide high-quality travel experience to Chinese tourists.”
Poshu Yeung, Vice President, International Business Group, Tencent,
said, “We are excited about our collaboration with Tourism New Zealand,
one of the world’s most well-respected tourism boards. Fully utilizing
Tencent Social Solution and our innovative technologies as well as our
valuable insights into mainland Chinese consumers, we aim to help
Tourism New Zealand in better connecting with its Chinese tourists, and
further enrich the travel experiences of Chinese FIT visitors across New
Zealand. Through this new collaboration along with other joint
initiatives to come, New Zealand will certainly become a more popular
destination of choice among Chinese travelers.”
The collaboration also aims to further develop New Zealand’s tourism
industry through extending the country’s marketing outreach efforts to
the inbound Chinese market, with local merchants aimed to have a
deepened understanding of Chinese travelers’ consumption behavior via
WeChat user insights. Using the company’s expertise in Chinese consumer
engagement, Tencent will provide user insights for Tourism New Zealand
to widen their grasp of Chinese visitors’ consumption habits and
preferences, which will serve as basis for them to develop more
impactful marketing strategies.
WeChat and Weixin offer an excellent integrated platform to raise brand
awareness among travelers in China, as proven by its more than 1,082
million monthly active users. Through Tourism New Zealand’s influence
and network in New Zealand, Tencent hopes to promote its offerings, such
as WeChat and Tencent Social Solution, among Chinese tourists visiting
the country. Tencent will also offer recommendations for other local
stakeholders to open or improve their WeChat official accounts to be
able to more effectively build brand awareness.
Chinese tourists can access the newly launched Mini Program by Tourism
New Zealand to get the latest travel information about the country, such
as travel tips, visa policy, flight and hotel information, local
transportation and weather updates, etc. The Mini Program is a perfect
tool for Chinese FIT travelers.
To access Tourism New Zealand’s Mini Program, please scan the QR code
with WeChat.
About Tourism New Zealand
Tourism New Zealand is the crown entity responsible for attracting
high-value visitors to New Zealand and providing advice to the
government and the tourism industry. We do this by targeting visitors
from 15 key markets who we know will stay longer, visit outside of peak
season, spend more and visit more regions – spreading the benefits of
international tourism across the country and throughout the year.
About Tencent
Tencent uses technology to enrich the lives of Internet users. Every
day, hundreds of millions of people communicate, share experiences,
consume information and seek entertainment through our integrated
platforms. Tencent’s diversified services include QQ, Weixin/ WeChat for
communications; Qzone for social networking; QQ Game Platform for online
games; QQ.com and Tencent News for information and Tencent Video for
video content.
Tencent was founded in Shenzhen in 1998 and went public on the Main
Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2004. The Company is one of the
constituent stocks of the Hang Seng Index. Tencent seeks to evolve with
the Internet by investing in innovation, providing a mutually beneficial
environment for partners, and staying close to users.
Contacts
Tourism New Zealand
Emily Hookham
[email protected]
+64
21 908 528
Current Global, on behalf of Tencent
Irene Fung
[email protected]
+852
2533 9980
