HOSPITALITY AND SOCIAL MEDIA SKILLS BOOST FOR COOTAMUNDRA ELECTORATE VISITOR ECONOMY
Friday, 20 August 2021
The NSW Government has partnered with Restaurant & Catering Australia and social media giant Facebook to deliver a suite of free, new skills development and training programs for individuals and businesses engaged in the State’s visitor economy.
The programs, delivered by Destination NSW, will be offered to individuals and businesses in the Cootamundra electorate and beyond that wish to upgrade their customer service skills and enhance their social media capability.
Member for Cootamundra, Steph Cooke said this was a wonderful opportunity for operators to upskill.
“These targeted programs are free, easy to access and will build critical skills among local hospitality and tourism businesses,” Ms Cooke said.
“I encourage all eligible businesses and workers to take up these opportunities so we can thrive together and support the rebound and future growth of our region’s visitor economy.”
Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney Stuart Ayres said this support was needed to help address the current skills shortage across NSW and ensure business operators had the social media know-how to stand out in a crowded digital marketplace.
“We know that access to skilled workers and specialist social media skills are of great value to tourism and hospitality operators across the state right now,” Mr Ayres said.
“The NSW Government is committed to supporting business owners and workers to develop the skills they need to be successful and to help grow the State’s visitor economy.”
The hospitality training modules and registrations for the social media webinars both commence in mid-August. The programs, part of Destination NSW’s NSW First industry development program, involve:
- 1,400 micro credentials available to tourism and hospitality staff across three modules: Managing customer expectations in terms of COVID-safe practices, emotional awareness in customer service, and an introduction to customer service (delivered in partnership with Restaurant and Catering Australia)
- Five webinars about Facebook and Instagram for Tourism to help optimise a business’s Facebook presence; engage audiences on social media; create Instagram stories; capture social content on a smartphone; and inspire action on Instagram (delivered in partnership with Facebook, which also owns Instagram)
“Destination NSW’s industry development program, NSW First, is tailored to the unique needs of businesses engaged in the visitor economy through leveraging industry insights and partnerships for the benefit of operators,” Mr Ayres said.
“In addition to the NSW and Commonwealth Government’s $5.1 billion-plus COVID-19 support package, these NSW First initiatives will provide tactical support to business owners that is relevant to their industry so they are ready to ramp up again when travel restrictions are lifted.”
For more information and to register for either program, go to www.destinationnsw.com.au/NSWFirst.
