Immigration website a hit with Lions fans

Wednesday 13 July 2005

British and Irish Lions supporters have already made at least 3,000 attempts to find out about living and working in New Zealand, the Department of Labour says.

Department of Labour Marketing and Communications Director Richard Ninness said a website set up as part of a marketing campaign targeting tourists took more than 60,000 hits during June. At least 3000 of these are directly linked to specific marketing to Lions fans.

The Department of Labour campaign directs tourists to a website (www.nzopportunities.govt.nz) to find out more about residence and work opportunities in New Zealand.

The campaign included Lions-specific collateral and activity, including posters, fliers and drinks coasters in key tourist areas and a campaign on the InterIslander ferry to talk directly with Lions supporters.

“The number of visits to the website to date is an outstanding response, given these people are here on holiday. We hope that some of them will take us up on our offer and migrate here, but at the moment it’s too early to tell,” Mr Ninness said.

Department figures show almost 29,000 tourists from Great Britain and Ireland arrived in New Zealand during June 2005, almost two and a half times the number arriving in the same period last year.

As well as the Department’s campaign, tourists have been targeted by local authorities, private employers and recruitment companies.

“The UK is a traditional source of migrants for New Zealand and it’s been interesting watching as groups around the country have embraced the tourists and asked them to stay.”

Mr Ninness said marketing to visitors made sense as over 80 percent of approved residence applicants in the 2003/04 year had been to New Zealand temporarily prior to application, and that those that had visited were likely to settle more easily.

“We expected that our campaign would plant an idea that they would continue thinking about after they returned home,” Mr Ninness said.

ENDS