Destination NSW announces CommBank partnership to unlock visitor economy insights

Destination NSW has partnered with CommBank iQ to harness de-identified transactional data from millions of consumer purchases across the state – unlocking powerful insights to support the growth of NSW’s visitor economy.

CommBank iQ, a data science and analytics joint venture between the Commonwealth Bank and Quantium, will provide Destination NSW and its Destination Network partners in regional NSW with access to Destination iQ - delivering insights to analyse and track aggregated visitor spending behaviour across regions and timeframes, based on CommBank iQ’s proprietary dataset.

The seven Destination Networks in NSW work closely with local government, tourism organisations and operators to support the visitor economy in regional parts of the state.

This rich data source will complement existing research from Tourism Research Australia by offering more detailed, localised and timely insights. It will help inform marketing campaigns, infrastructure planning and investment attraction and support operators in identifying and responding to emerging visitor economy trends.

The partnership will enable regions to use data from CommBank iQ to shape marketing campaign strategies and business decisions.

As part of the collaboration, Destination NSW is also preparing to publish regular data-driven reports on its corporate website, helping government, industry and local stakeholders better understand where visitors are coming from, who they are at an aggregate level and how they spend across NSW.

Providing stakeholders with faster and more granular data is a key recommendation from the NSW Visitor Economy Strategy review, aimed at ensuring NSW remains competitive in the global tourism market.

Announcing the partnership, Destination NSW Chief Executive, Karen Jones has “the next decade of growth for NSW’s visitor economy will be fuelled by innovation - and data is at the heart of that.

“This partnership with CommBank iQ gives us a new level of insight into visitor behaviour, helping Destination NSW and our partners across Greater Sydney and regional NSW make faster, smarter decisions. It’s a practical step forward in supporting businesses, attracting investment and driving toward our ambitious 2035 target.”

CommBank iQ Chief Executive, Makenna Ralston added “NSW is one of the world’s premier visitor destinations and we’re thrilled to be partnering with Destination NSW to support visitor economy growth.

“CommBank iQ’s unparalleled insights into visitor behaviour, combined with our deep analytical and data science expertise, will help empower the NSW tourism industry to make informed decisions and attract more visitors to the state.

“We are committed to leveraging our deep experience to drive enhanced economic outcomes for Greater Sydney and regional NSW.”

Image: Mudgee sunset. Credit: Destination NSW.