Tourism continues to be one of the main engines of the world economy. According to UNWTO data, it is the third largest international trade sector, accounting for 10.4% of global GDP and generating a total of 313 million jobs.
However, the managers of tourist destinations cannot lose sight of a series of challenges that will mark the sector’s future:
- An increasingly globalized and connected world has led to the emergence of new tourist destinations, increasing the number of competitors that a territory must confront when it comes to attracting potential visitors.
- As in other sectors, we are facing changes in the consumer’s profile: more informed, more aware and freer. Consumers who interact directly, who seek new experiences and live destinies for themselves. Authenticity and experience are sought: no one wants to be a tourist, now we all want to be travelers.
- The impact that ICTs have had on the planning, purchasing and enjoyment processes of the tourist experience are undeniable. Mobile applications, social networks, virtual tours or online booking systems are already resources that are part of the traveler’s day to day.
- The irruption of online channels has also resulted in the disintermediation of the tourist distribution system, until recently dependent on tour operators. Online booking pages, metasearch engines or recommendation pages and user opinions now play a fundamental role in booking travel.
In light of this context, destinations must implement new strategies and tools to get the attention of an increasingly demanding consumer in a world saturated with products. The keys to tourism marketing in adapting to the new challenges of the sector are:
- First of all, know yourself: any tourist marketing strategy must start with a previous diagnosis that allows you to know the profile of potential visitors, their products and tourism offers and identify the strengths and weaknesses of the destination and competitors. To this end, market research and study techniques must be applied without neglecting the use of new analysis tools focused on Big Data or listening on social networks.
- Get recognized. Position yourself and create your brand: part of the success lies in the ability to exploit those differential elements that make the tourist decide to travel to one country instead of another: the brand place. The brand is something more than a logo or a claim, it must be a promise of value that responds to emotions and generates expectations for our visitors at the same time that it must also be faithful to our identity, rely on the reality of the place and be accepted by the local population.
- Define your way. through the strategy and tourist marketing plan, the long and medium term objectives and the lines of action, resources and structure to reach them must be set. It must have enough flexibility to adapt to changes, new trends, opportunities, threats and favorability.
- Opt for closeness and emotions. travelers look for different and positive emotions and adventures that allow them to get out of their routine. They seek to move away from a known reality and experience firsthand the authenticity of the destination through traveling. We must opt for tools, channels and contents that offer experiences, emotions and closeness.
- Destination digitalis: and with this we no longer refer only to social networks and digital strategies, without which tourism is no longer understood. The tourist marketing plans can no longer do without tools such as marketing automation, machine learning, ChatBots, TravelBots or Artificial Intelligence. Tools that not only allow us to improve the user experience but also generate, store and analyze a series of data that allow us to refine the profile and behavior of our clients by adapting the strategy to their needs more and more.
- If you walk, you will only arrive faster. If you walk accompanied you will go further: in an industry such as tourism, the definition and implementation of a brand is pointless, if it is not shared by the different actors. A destination must be built with the help of institutions, tour operators, the hotel and catering sector, without forgetting society and the local population. Therefore, methodologies of co-creation and citizen listening are fundamental.
