Posted by D'Arcy McKittrick on Thu, Aug 20, 2009 @ 12:35 PM
At first I was embarrassed. This was followed in quick succession with disappointment and frustration as I watched two U.S. visitors to our community walk out the door with ice cream cones in their hands, but without smiles on their faces.
It would have cost about 50 cents for a different outcome.
You see, I live in an Ontario community where tourism is a key part of the regional economy. A lot of time, effort and money is invested every year to market this area as a tourist destination; to attract visitors from Ontario, other parts of Canada and the U.S.A.
The last time I checked, our regional economy -- especially tourism -- was suffering with fewer visitors spending less. Although none of the tourism businesses in this destination can hope to influence the macro-economic forces driving the current recession, all of them are capable of making a difference at the micro or individual visitor level. So when important opportunities to do just that are botched, it is disappointing and frustrating.
At issue was the exchange rate on U.S. currency.
When presented with a US$5.00 bill, the counter person was clearly unsure what to do. A nearby supervisor responded to her "what do I do with this?" question with a "we don't do exchange" response delivered over her shoulder and without acknowledgment of the bewildered customer. The result was that these U.S. visitors to our community were ripped off -- in money and hospitality.
When it was my turn to be served, I inquired about the way that the tendering of U.S. currency was handled. The counter person said, "Oh, I think ours is worth more right now" (it wasn't). The supervisor on hearing the exchange, repeated her earlier message, but now with an edge to her voice.
As a tourism industry consultant I am disappointed for two reasons.
First, the staff of the business did not seem to be particularly well-trained in dealing with customers. There was a distinct lack of hospitality on display. Second, it seems that the policy of the business was (probably still is) to increase profits by ripping off U.S. visitors. Neither the business nor our destination's tourism industry will benefit from operating a tourism business that way.
And, as a tourism consultant I am frustrated for two reasons.
First, this weak link in the destination's tourism industry chain (do they know that they are in the tourism industry?) undermines the efforts of many at a particularly vulnerable time. Second, it reminded me that customer service remains the soft underbelly of tourism marketing. I was hoping we were getting past that.
Maybe this was an isolated incident and I am overstating its importance. Indeed, it may well have been an isolated incident ... but given the powerful influence of "word of mouth" on the tourism industry in general and destinations in particular, I am not overstating its importance.
It is all about developing a tourism culture that makes visitors feel welcome throughout the destination, and how some destinations implement this concept better than others.
Posted by D'Arcy McKittrick on Wed, Jun 24, 2009 @ 09:23 AM
"How was the trip" I said. "Well, part of it was good, but I wouldn't do it again" she said.
She is my 70+ year old
mother, and the trip was a day excurision by motor coach from her home to the steam train ride in Wakefield Quebec. The good part was the train ride ..."It was really good, I really enjoyed it". The not so good part was the transportation there and back -- the distribution part. "As soon as we got on the the bus they told us we wouldn't have much time for stops as the bus had to be back for another use that night. So we felt rushed all day!"
To me this is a classic case of distribution diminishing a tourism experience and hurting a tourism destination and buisness. Of course, the bus company lost big points as well as my Mother assured me she wouldn't go on trips with that company again -- nor would most of the folks who were on the trip.
On a larger scale, this recent online article -- "Skyway robbery: Fees on top of fees with fees on the side" -- underscores the problem for many destinations and tourism businesses. The traveling part of travel is getting in the way of enjoyable travel, creating an obstacle many destinations need to overcome, namely distribution.
In theory, close partnerships between destinations and transportation providers with shared goals to deliver the best travel experience possible -- from start to finish -- is the answer. And many large (read high visitor volume) destinations may have the leverage to influence transportation providers to the benefit of their visitors. However this option is not available to smaller (read low visitor volume) destinations. Vertical integration, or operating their own transportation services, is not often an option either.
Unless transportation providers understand that they need destinations and their tourism attractions as much as the destinations need them, and that working together to deliver superior visitor experiences is a shared business goal, destinations are vulnerable to the actions of transportation providers no matter how well they market and deliver visitor experiences at the destination. For the sake of the tourism industry, let's hope that such an understanding is not long in coming.
Posted by D'Arcy McKittrick on Fri, Jun 19, 2009 @ 04:08 PM
The other day a CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) Radio reporter from Atlantic Canada called to ask a few questions about experiential tourism. Her questions got me thinking about the relationship between leisure tourism – traveling because you want to rather than you need to – and experiential tourism.
When she asked if experiential tourism was growing, I answered first that all leisure tourism is experiential at its core.
Whatever our reasons or motivations for leisure travel, when we do it we are engaging in an experience. We are not just buying a product (although we may buy souvenirs) nor are we just buying services (although we buy transportation, accommodation, food service, etc.). We are buying an experience that comprises what and how we feel during and at the end of a trip – our emotional response to our journey through time and space that includes purchases of products and services, but also our interaction with people and places.
And secondly I suggested that what is growing is the realization among tourism providers and destinations that many of them need to do more to enhance the experiences of their visitors if they wish to continue to attract visitors. Most often this means developing and delivering programs that allow visitors to engage more fully with the people and places they visit, to immerse themselves in local culture and history. For example:
• Not just driving through the countryside looking at farms, but
stopping, maybe staying overnight, and participating in farm type activities and celebrations;
• 
Not just visiting and looking at a famous archaeological site, but getting your hands dirty and participating in ongoing digging and exploration at the site under the guidance and direction of skilled archaeologists; and
• Not just attending an outdoor festival and
listening to music and watching dance, but participating in workshops with the performers to learn how to play some of the music and perform the dances.
Today tourists can travel virtually anywhere in the world. Our choices of destinations are essentially unlimited – we have more choices than time or money and so we can’t possibly visit every destination available to us. Faced with this abundance, the expected or perceived quality of the experience takes on more importance as a choice factor. In a sense, the competition for our leisure travel time and money is intensifying.
For tourism destinations and operators, this is good news for at least two reasons.
First, any destination and business can enhance their visitor experiences without the need for iconic attractions such as the Eiffel Tower, Taj Mahal or Disney World. Lesser-known destinations and small and medium sized businesses can offer rich, engaging and compelling experiences every bit as good if not better than major destinations.
Secondly, offering richer experiences increases value for visitors. Increased value equates with increased price. In short, there is more revenue (and profit) in enhanced experiences.
If you are a tourism business or destination that wants to learn more about how to develop and offer enhanced experiences to leisure travellers, check out the The Edge of the Wedge program offered through the Gros Morne Institute for Sustainable Tourism. If you decide to attend the course, tell the course facilitators -- Celes, Nancy and Todd -- that their friends at the Tourism Company say hi.
Posted by D'Arcy McKittrick on Mon, May 04, 2009 @ 01:18 PM
Author’s note (full disclosure): I stole the title of this post from an article in my local newspaper. In my defense, I had the title developed but hadn’t gotten around to writing the blog post. So I was scooped, and that is my somewhat flimsy excuse for “reusing” the title.
If you are a small/medium sized tourism business operator, or a local/regional tourism destination marketer, there are 3 things that I know about you:
- You are convinced by now that “online” or digital marketing is critically important to the success of your business and/or tourism destination.
- You are struggling to stay on top of the latest and greatest developments in digital technology and digital marketing for tourism.
- You never have enough time to read everything that you would like to read, including information about digital technology and marketing.
In short, you have a problem that essentially is about how to allocate your scarcest resource: your time. Enter podcasts as a potential solution — specifically podcasts developed to help you stay current with all things digital.
Podcasts are audio and sometimes video content that you download from a website and listen to, or in the case of videos view, whenever you want. The really cool and useful thing about podcasts is that if you have an MP3 player, iPod or smartphone (iPhone, Blackberry, etc.), you can consume podcasts whenever and wherever you want. Think driving your car, on a train, on an airplane, in an airport or at a boring hockey game, to name just a few.
The good news — many, many freely available podcasts about digital technology and its uses for marketing. The bad news — many, many freely available podcasts about digital technology and its uses for marketing. In other words, you could spend large amounts of the time you don’t have sampling available podcasts to find those that will help you stay on top of the digital world.
To help you sort through the abundance, and in the spirit of Friday Finds, here is a list of 3 audio and video podcasts that I have come to enjoy. In fact I enjoy them so much, that i look forward to housecleaning on Saturdays so that I can put on my headphones, turn on my iPhone and get caught up while cleaning bathrooms, vaccuuming and washing floors. (I don’t dust or do windows).
Spark from CBC Radio — audio, 25-30 minutes in length, released weekly, host Nora Young, “… surprising and irreverant look at tech, trends and fresh ideas” with focus on Canada, available from the Spark blog or iTunes.
Marketing Over Coffee — audio, 20-25 minutes in length, released weekly, hosts John Wall and Christopher Penn, “…weekly discussion of what’s new in marketing …” with focus on U.S.A, availlable from website or iTunes.
Digital Planet – audio, 25-30 minutes in length, release weekly, host Gareth Mitchell and Bill Thompson, “how digital technology affects our lives around the world”, global reach, available from BBC website or iTunes.
As noted above, there are many others. If you have the time, cruise iTunes’ selections or type “tourism marketing podcasts” into Google search and follow the links.
In the next Friday Find, 3 video podcasts to check out.
Posted by D'Arcy McKittrick on Mon, May 04, 2009 @ 12:28 PM
Here is an eloquent and inspiring guest post from David L. Andersen, ecotourism planner and architect, poet, colleague and friend.
It is easy to find reasons to be distressed… the threat of H1N1 flu…the economic downturn…growing unemployment…the continuing conflicts in the Middle East…revelations of scandals…global warming…on it goes.
But think of that small tree seedling that takes root between two rocks, and begins its slow hopeful journey toward the sun…one such sign of hope occurred last week in Afghanistan. It received almost no attention in the midst of the never-ending abundance of more sensational negative news…
On April 22nd, as the war and turmoil in that country ground on, a remarkable thing happened. The Afghan government in Kabul announced that that it will create it’s first National Park!
It plans to dedicate 220 square miles in central Bamiyan province’s Band-e-Amir lake region to be set aside and preserved for future generations. It is an area of breath-taking blue water lakes and waterfalls flanked by a stunning, naturally sculpted landscape. Officials hope that it will serve as a springboard for future tourism development in the years to come.
Cynics may find this idea crazy considering the war-ravaged country has a long history of conflict. I believe it is a hopeful sign that, even with the sound of gunfire echoing through the mountains of Afghanistan, some can envision a peaceful future. While some say that humans are naturally inclined to be fighting each other, I submit humans are naturally inclined toward peace. We long for it. We plan for it. One does not create parks, build schools and roads, if there is no hope for the future. The incredible brave vision represented by Band-e-Amir National Park is compelling evidence of this.
David Andersen, May 1, 2009
Posted by D'Arcy McKittrick on Sat, Mar 28, 2009 @ 01:29 PM
Now I get it … thanks to the school March break, Barefoot Beach and old technology (a book).
A Google search of “the long tail of tourism” returns about 149,000 results, so I am not exactly finding something new or exploring new territory — just adding my take from the perspective of how regional/local destination marketing organizations (DMOs) can work with the concept.
First, from the oracle of Long Tail himself, Chris Anderson, the elevator pitch about what it is:
“The Theory of the Long Tail can be boiled down to this: Our culture and economy are increasingly shifting away from a focus on a relatively small number of hits (mainstream products and markets) at the head of the demand curve, and moving toward a huge number of niches in the tail.”
Now, keeping with the concept of Friday Finds, the 3 “finds” are the 3 powerful forces that are creating Long Tail demand curves:
- Democratizing the tools of production — in the tourism world, think about how it is getting easier for anyone with an idea to start a small or medium size tourism business, like a festival or event, a bed & breakfast, tour guide service, canoe/kayak/bicycle rentals, gift/souvenir/craft shop, etc.
- Democratizing distribution (cutting costs of consumption) — in the tourism world, distribution means moving the customer to the destination. No frills discount airlines, fuel efficient (including hybrid) autos, and for the human powered crowd, networks of bicycle trails are examples of declining distribution costs.
- Connecting supply and demand — in the tourism world, think web marketing in all its forms.
If you are a regional/local DMO, the Long Tail of tourism means you don’t have to be big or a “hit” to attract visitors. In fact, being off the beaten path, so to speak, is exactly where you want to be. Again, from the oracle:
“However, most of us want more than just hits. Everyone’s taste departs from the mainstream somewhere. The more we explore alternatives, the more we are drawn to them.“
So, here is what you need to do to capitalize on your position in the Long Tail.
First, encourage and support the tourism entrepreneurs in your destination to develop new and different experiences. In tourism speak, this is product development, and you have an important role to play. (More about this in a future blog post.)
Secondly, master the web. Connect supply and demand. Use all of its tools — search engine optimized websites, blogs, e-newsletters, Google maps, Wikipedia and Wikitravel, YouTube, Flickr, Facebook and Twitter — to make information about your destination and its experiences readily accessible to your ideal visitors.
Thirdly (and this is more difficult), do what you can to ensure that your ideal visitors can get to your destination as quickly and inexpensively as possible — both time and money are costs of distribution for your visitors. What you can do about transportation services may be no more or less than being a strong voice when transportation issues arise. But also remember in your web marketing communications to provide good information about how to get to your destination.
Although I was visiting a hit destination last week, it’s the ever expanding opportunities for niche destinations in the Long Tail of tourism that excite me as a consultant to regional and local DMOs.
Posted by D'Arcy McKittrick on Wed, Mar 11, 2009 @ 01:33 PM
Once upon a time in tourism land, it was very expensive for small and medium size tourism enterprises (SMtE) to promote their brands and offerings. The most effective media channels with the largest reach were expensive and usually more than the SMtEs could afford. So, a number of smart SMtEs decided to pool their resources for the purposes of marketing communications and place co-operative advertisements.
Over time, these SMtEs co-operated on more and more marketing initiatives to further leverage their resources. Soon they decided that there might be some benefit in formalizing their marketing collaboration and recruiting some assistance with the administration of their co-operative marketing activities. From this idea, most local and regional destination marketing organizations (DMOs) were born.
And the model worked well, for the most part. The SMtEs didn’t always agree on what a particular advertisement should look like, or which photos to use in the visitor guide, or which trade shows to attend this year. Nonetheless, on the whole the SMtEs were happy with their DMO creation, convinced that it was generating business for them even though they had little objective data to confirm that.
Life was good and the universe was unfolding as it should.
One day something called the internet and its sidekick the worldwide web showed up, and everything began to change.
The cost of getting messages out to large numbers of potential clients fell dramatically, almost to $0. It was still expensive to use traditional media and trade/consumer shows to broadcast messages, but now there were effective alternative approaches for communicating with potential customers — websites, e-mail and e-newsletters. Over time, the alternatives grew in scope and effectiveness to include pay-per-click ads, YouTube, Flickr, blogs, Facebook and now Twitter.
Suddenly, the primary reason that many DMOs existed had disappeared. Some tried to cling to their old model by creating web portals and creating homes for their less tech savy SMtE members. But as the SMtEs learned more about the internet and web tools, even this reason for being dissipated.
Now at this point the story ends sadly for some DMOs as they become more and more irrelevant focusing on SMtEs as their customers, because the customers stop buying.
The good news is that some DMOs understand what is happening (or has happened) and have reinvented themselves. They understand that while individual SMtEs are using the web to market their individual services and experiences within a destination, no one is effectively using the web to market the destination. And as potential visitors search, and plan and make travel decisions they want to know more and more about the destination.
- What is it like?
- What else is their to do if I go there?
- What experiences have other visitors had there?
The smart DMOs “get” that there customers are web savvy, information hungry, potential visitors.
So, to remain relevant, the smart DMOs are finally growing into their name — destination marketing organizations. And they are using the full arsenal of web tools to do it. Need proof? Have a look at these DMOs and their web innovations:
- Bay of Fundy — blog, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter
- Portland Oregon — e-newsletter, YouTube, Twisitor Centre
- Baltimore Maryland — e-newsletter, interactive map, video, Facebook, Twitter
- Chicago — e-newsletter, blog, hosted social network (GoSeeChicago), Facebook, Twitter
- Philadelphia — e-newsletter, web radio (hearPhilly), TripAdvisor
- Oregon (State) — e-newsletter, Travel Journal, blog, hosted social network (GoSeeOregon), Twitter
If you are a DMO, how will the story end for you?
Posted by D'Arcy McKittrick on Fri, Mar 06, 2009 @ 01:34 PM
I have furthered developed the format for Friday Finds, deciding that it will highlight three (3) related finds each week. When you are the author, you get to set the rules.
This week the theme is “Heros”.
Everyone has heros. These are the folks that inpsire us to be more or better, whether in our personal or professional lives, or both.
Today I will introduce you to my three professional life heros. More specifically my marketing heros.
#1: Seth Godin
Seth is one of those writers that can say really, really well in 10 words what others take 100 to say less well. The term pithy was defined with Seth’s writing in mind, I believe. On his blog, Seth shares his thoughts and insights about marketing in a thought provoking and incisive way. Some of my favourite recent posts include:
In his books — Tribes, the dip, Purple Cow, Permission Marketing – and others, Seth does the same but with more juice and in a format that is easier to read on the beach during spring break, in your bed late at night or on the commuter train in the morning. His books are like a short story collection, with each story good enough to stand on its own and collectively building a compelling case.
Bottom line: read Seth, on-line or on paper, every day.
#2: Don Tapscott
In Don’s own terminology he is a digital immigrant. As someone who has immersed himself and adapted to an unfamiliar culture (the web), Don sets the bar very high for other digital immigrants.
In his most recent books — Growing Up Digital, Wikinomics, and Grown Up Digital — Don has described the influence and importance of internet technology in our present and future lives in a way that is both exciting and terrifying. On a more personal level, he has helped me understand how my 15 year old daughter can listen to her iPod, surf the web, participate in 6-10 instant messaging chats and watch television all while doing her homework (see Grown Up Digital for the answer).
Don gets hero points for writing about a potentially dry subject in an entertaining way; giving presentations that are funny, content rich and riveting while showing the rest of us how PowerPoint was meant to be used; and being a Canadian … and Trent U graduate (note to Don: Great presentation at Trent U last Wednesday — thanks!).
You need to read Don’s books or listen to his presentations now to understand how today’s 12-30 year olds might just be able to clean up this economic, social and environmental mess my generation (Baby Boomers) created.
#3: Jackie Huba & Ben McConnell
Ok … so I cheated a little. Total number of heros is actually 4, but Jackie and Ben (J&B) are a team and I count them as one.
Church of the Customer Blog is where J&B hang out on a regular basis. You can also find them at The Society for Word of Mouth — a Ning (read: you can join and contribute) site they coordinate.
The best way to explain why I like them is simply to share some of their quotes:
- “There’s no recession when it comes to making special-edition items for your hardcore evangelists”
- “Based on the context of decades, I know that sometime soon, the Dow will right itself. Until then, I’m focusing on producing something of value every day.”
- “Tropicana spent $35 million learning that their customer evangelists matter.”
- “Trust is a bank account that can be quickly depleted. It’s almost impossible to refill.”
To me, their blog is brain candy that is also good for you… wish I had come up with the blog name first.
So, who are your marketing heros? Leave a comment here or tweet me @DArcyMcK
Posted by D'Arcy McKittrick on Tue, Mar 03, 2009 @ 01:35 PM
I am a huge fan of my handheld Garmin GPS unit. I like that I can use it on my bicycle as easily as in my car. I like that I can use it to find places near me when I am travelling in unfamiliar places — think hotels, restaurants, attractions, shopping, etc. I like that I can mark places I have been and then easily find my way back to them. But mostly I like that it allows me to be a discoverer, to explore, to get lost …. wait a minute, to get lost??? Yes, get lost on purpose, and that is what I think is the best thing about GPS from a touring perspective. Here is how it works.
Let’s say I am travelling from Peterborough, Ontario to Niagara Falls, Ontario — a distance of roughly 265.1251 km. I don’t need a GPS for this, because I can travel on well-signed 4+ lane highways all the way. It goes like this:
- Get the Tim’s Iced Cap
- Set the car on cruise control
- Crank up the tunes …
- and presto — in approximately 2.5 hours (depending of course, on the time of day) I am there.
Efficient, but incredibly boring. More importantly, by travelling Highways 115, 401, 403 and QEW, I am missing out on some great parts of Ontario to explore. Roads that take me through rural communities, past historic sites, road side fruit and vegetable stands, past wineries, etc., etc., etc. Like the man or woman said … “It’s about the journey as much as the destination”.
Before GPS, if I wanted to enjoy the journey by exploring the backroads, I would need a bunch of maps and the ability to communicate with my map challenged navigator(s) while trying to determine, after numerous twist and turns, where I am, which direction I am heading and how far it is to Niagara Falls …”Dad, this is really fun, but will we get there before midnight?”.
Now with GPS, just before I get the Iced Cap, I mark our final location in Niagara Falls and activate the route planning feature. Of course, it directs me to take Highways 115, 401, 403 and the QEW. But here is the really neat part. If I don’t follow this route, the GPS continues to plot a new route from whereever I happen to be, tells me how far it is to Niagara Falls and provides the estimated time of arrival. So, now I can explore by turning off Highway 115 and follow roads I don’t know or interesting signs to see where they take me. I get lost, but with the confidence that I am never really lost because the trusty GPS is keeping track of where I am and showing me how to get to my final destination.
So, the beauty of GPS units for destination areas that offer great touring opportunities, is that they allow explorers on wheels — car, motorcycle, bicycle — to truly explore as much as they want within the time that they have and still find their way back or to their final destination. It’s a safety net that permits exploring.
Now, here is the real point of this post. At least one destination (I am sure there are others) gets it and is using GPS to enhance visitors’ touring experiences. The Fleurieu Peninsula region of South Australia is now offering self-guided GPS tours through the rental of GPS units at their visitor centres. Brilliant!
Posted by D'Arcy McKittrick on Fri, Feb 27, 2009 @ 01:38 PM
Hardly an original idea. Every Friday (did I say “every” — that will be tough to live up to) we will share some “finds” with you. Most often these are likely to be websites or blogs that we have found in our web wandering.
So kicking off our first (modest) edition of Friday Finds is The “Good Tourism” Wiki, a wiki website that bills itself as “...a knowledge bank of updated theory, agreements & declarations, reports & guides, best practices, useful links and multimedia resources related to sustainable tourism and responsible travel (aka “good tourism”), contributed by travel and tourism stakeholders, (i.e. you!).“ We haven’t spent a lot time on the site yet, but our first impression is that if you want a forum to follow and participate, underscore participate (after all, it is a wiki) in some thoughtful discussion of sustainable tourism and related issues, this might be a good place to hang out from time to time. At the very least, it is worth a look.
Next up, a website called business helping business. A really simple and smart idea, with applications beyond tourism businesses. Essentially, if you are a businesses that needs something (other than customers, I presume) you post that need on the website and businesses who might be able to respond to that need will contact you. Or if you have something that you think other businesses might need, post that for businesses in need to find. As the headline on the site proclaims: “Businesses helping one another to survive and succeed by making needs known and favors available.” Check it out and let us know on Twitter (@DArcyMcK) what you think.
And finally, if you are scratching your head trying to figure out how to use all of the available web tools (ie. websites, blogs, e-newsletter, social networking, flickr, Youtube, etc.) to market your tourism business, give Steve Kayser’s “The End of Marketing and PR” a read. Don’t let the title scare you. It is a clear and concise explanation of what tools are available and how you might use them, complete with links to the tools.
Parting words of wisdom: “Technology is dominated by two types of people: those who understand what they do not manage, and those who manage what they do not understand.” (Putt’s Law).