AGENDA
Below you’ll find the agenda for this year’s conference. We’ll keep this page regularly updated with new speakers and sessions, so be sure to keep checking in!
Conference Timings
To assist with your travel timings, please be aware of the following activities. If you are arriving via the Adelaide Airport Domestic Terminal, please allow 20 to 30 minutes travel time from the airport to the conference venue.
Registration Desk Opens
Monday 22 October - 2:00pm
Opening - BIG4 Welcome Event
Monday 22 October - 4:00pm to 6:00pm
Day One
Tuesday 23 October - 8:30am to 4:00pm
Group Activity & Dinner
Tuesday 23 October - 4:00pm to 9:00pm
Day Two
Tuesday 23 October - 8:30am to 5:15pm
Gala Dinner
Wednesday 24 October - 6:30pm for 7:00pm to late
Day 1 - Monday 22 October 2018
BIG4 Welcome and Exhibition Opening
We kick off the conference with a lively networking event which is a great opportunity to mingle with the many conference exhibitors, BIG4 Board of Directors, NSO staff, Life Members and other park owners and operators. We will also launch our new digital Passport for you to complete and go into the draw for some great prizes drawn at the end of the plenary sessions on day two.The opening will be one of many occasions to spend time with our quality industry suppliers and to start exploring products and services that could benefit your park. To be in with a chance to win big, be sure to chat to each of the exhibitors to complete your passport.
Following this event, you will have free time to spend the evening exploring some of Adelaide’s best dining experiences and catch up with friends from across the BIG4 network.
Event Details
4:00pm to 6:00pm
Hall L
Neat Casual
Day 2 - Tuesday 23 October 2018
MORNING
BIG4 CEO, Marketing and NSO Update
Keynote Speaker: Carolyn Miller - Converting Holiday Park Atheists & Agnostics into Believers
How do you attract the enormous number of people that currently do not know what an amazing experience we offer? This group of atheists and agnostics represents a significant opportunity if we can educate them about the quality of experience in BIG4 parks. We need to dispel the myths about caravan parks being the low-end last resort option when it comes to accommodation and holidays.The session will explore content, social media and other strategies that you can employ to blow their misconception out of the water, attract these “agnostics and atheists” and turn them in to advocates.
AFTERNOON
Breakout Session: Maximising BIG4's Promotional Plan - Creating Offers that Stand OutIn this breakout session BIG4’s 2019 Promotional Plan with be revealed allowing you to identify how your park can leverage BIG4’s reach by participating in and supporting BIG4 sales campaigns. But creating the right deals that cut through the clutter can be a challenge. In this session we will also explore effective offers and packages that drive bookings and generate traffic for your BIG4 webpages. We will chat to parks that plan and run successful offers and packages and explore what they do and how they do it.
With stock now distributed across multiple sales channels what is the best mix for your business to maximise profit? Should it just be a set and forget or are you compromising yield? How closely do you really need to manage your distribution and what are the best platforms for your park and when should you use them? Gain insights from the recent BIG4 park OTA survey and other recent research about online channel management and maximising your revenue and yield. Hear best practice strategies tips and how-to's from some of your peers and an accommodation industry experts that you can apply right away.
EVENING
The Hahndorf Experience - enjoy the best of the Adelaide Hills
Group Activity and Dinner
For the first time ever, the entire conference will make a site visit. Buses will transfer you to and from BIG4 Hahndorf Resort where you will have the chance to see how this award-winning BIG4 park operates. Go on a complete tour and participate in interactive team-building activities around the resort, aptly finishing with a chance to dine on local food and wine from the world-renowned Adelaide Hills region.
Brian & Lynn Schirripa are looking forward to hosting you in their park.
Event Details
4:00pm to 9:00pm
BIG4 Hahndorf
Neat Casual - please wear comfortable flat shoes
Day 3 - Wednesday 24 October 2018
Blue Shirt Day
Wearing our blue BIG4 shirts as a demonstration of solidarity. You will be provided with a BIG4 shirt as you arrive and sign in at the conference.
MORNING
AGM and Member Forum
(Closed Session - BIG4 Full Co-Op Member park owners and staff only)
Join us for our Annual General Meeting and Members Forum. All directors and NSO senior management will be available to answer your questions.
Update from New Zealand: David Ovendale – TOP 10 Holiday Parks
Hear about trends and innovations happening in New Zealand from our cousins across the Tasman Sea. TOP 10 CEO David Ovendale shares with us his insights into the NZ industry and issues facing TOP 10 Holiday Parks.
The ongoing challenges to commercial caravan and holiday parks dealing with the impact of council sanctioned non-compliant camping is a hot topic to many BIG4 parks. In this session you will get the latest research, hear updates from your National and State Industry bodies and learn how some fellow park owners have been dealing with the issues in their areas.
AFTERNOON
Breakout Session: Keeping up with Industrial Relations Best Practice
In the ever more complex Industrial Relations landscape understanding legislation, how it applies to your business and your obligations can be time consuming and stressful. This session will look at best practice in IR and the tools and systems that parks need to have in place to be compliant. Additionally you will lean how you can take advantage of an external resource to provide expertise and assistance in this area.
Breakout Session: With the help of your park peers, let's solve your BIG issues
Being part of the BIG4 Network means being connected to a nationwide group of park owners, manager and staff all dealing with similar challenges, issues, target markets and customers. There is a wealth of knowledge, skills, perspectives, ideas and initiatives across the group. In this session we aim to tap into and share the networks knowledge base. Prior to the conference we will seek input from the network about the hot topics in your businesses, we will then facilitate this workshop to discuss and help resolve or learn how others have tackled the most common topics. You just might leave with a few Gems.
It's a truism, but change is the new constant. It can be unsettling, energising but create extreme fatigue. The caravan & camping industry landscape, and the BIG4 network in particular, has undergone significant change over the last 2 years and whether it’s embracing new tech, applying data analytics, a more evolved social media approach or just addressing growing guest expectation the one constant in our industry is change. In this keynote Rachael Robertson provides the tools to navigate this world of 'flux' that dominates business today. Self-leadership, resilience, and persistence are the keys to succeeding in a world of seemingly constant change.
EVENING
BIG4 Gala Awards Dinner
The pinnacle of our National Conference is the BIG4 Gala Awards Dinner.
It is an evening of fun, celebration and networking with a sumptuous dinner and premium beverages. We celebrate the successes of the past year and congratulate the award winners, including the most prestigious of the BIG4 Awards, the Des & Margaret Watts Supreme Award for Excellence.
Your Master of Ceremonies for the evening is Shane Jacobson.
Event Details
6:30pm to 11:30pm
Adelaide Oval (Ian McLachlan Room)
Black Tie/Formal Wear
Contact Us
Should you have any questions about the conference please contact our 2018 BIG4 National Conference Event Partner: