Hawke's Bay Tourism was able to put the region's tourism operators together, collectively.
And that made spreading the word outside the region much more effective.
"We couldn't go out to all the regions on our own," Mr Lindsay said.
"The tourist dollar is worth so much to our economy and so many people benefit — the other regions are all going out and selling their regions and we have to compete with them."
Doing that came at a cost but it was a cost which could be picked up through the financial input of tourists.
"All the other regions are upping their game."
Mr Lindsay said the cuts would affect his business, which has been running for 65 years and become a globally recognised attraction which effectively blended learning about the unique birds and the region they inhabit, with plenty of fun.
"It won't be straight away but it will affect us — it is hard to measure at this stage."
The decision by the regional council to cut the tourism spend came as a surprise, Mr Lindsay said, adding that if the council wanted to address the funding they could have simply capped the figure as it stands.
"Not reduce it — this needs a rethink."
Mr Lindsay said all the industries who operated under the Hawke's Bay Tourism umbrella did more than just push their own wares.
"It is about pushing Hawke's Bay — getting people to come here."
The benefits rippled out further than just food and drink and accommodation, he said.
Mr Lindsay said Gannet Beach Adventures had its own advertising budget but it was limited in terms of spreading the word widely.
He was putting a fair slice into attending the four-day TRENZ 2018 trade and travel event in Dunedin next month as it was the country's largest annual event of that kind.
Hawke's Bay Tourism was also setting up shop there to represent the region.
And they will be taking on every other tourism region in the country looking for a good slice of the holiday making dollar.
"We have to push the Bay and we have to get people to come here and they [HB Tourism] are doing that."
