The Work

The Phillip Island Penguin Parade is one of the most iconic tourist destinations in Victoria. The attraction is managed by Phillip Island Nature Parks (PINP) - alongside the Koala Conservation Centre; Churchill Island Heritage Farm; Wild Oceans Eco-boat Tours and the Antarctic Journey at the Nobbies Centre - who prides itself in finding a balance between their acclaimed conservation programs and quality ecotourism experiences. PINP is a non-profit organisation and all revenue generated through their ecotourism activities is invested back into vital conservation, education and research programs.

With ecotourism the primary source of revenue, it is imperative that customers who visit the attractions are satisfied with their experience and that they spread the word to others.

Our Approach

Since 2011, Survey Matters has been tracking visitor satisfaction for PINP, through multi-mode research involving online surveys after a customer visit and face to face visitor exit surveys conducted periodically throughout the year. Given the visitor profile of PINP, both online surveys and face to face interviews are conducted in multiple languages to ensure the diverse views of different visitors are captured and ensure the attraction remains relevant to international tourists.

Outcome

Survey Matters has collected a wealth of data and enabled the tracking of visitor satisfaction, perceived value for money and propensity to both re-visit and recommend the attraction to others.

The data has enhanced PINP’s ability to monitor and track visitor satisfaction over time, allowing them to adjust service provision to continuously enhance the visitor experience so they continue to attract new and repeat visitors. The research also provides evidence to important stakeholders, including overseas tourism organisations, travel agencies and government about the overall visitor experience.