Tourism marketing

Lecture 4.
BBS 2021.09.27. Tourism destination
Marketing and branding of a Tourism destination
Destination(s) and tourist destination(s)
 Group of countries, country, region, subregion, area, city,
town, village, locality – DESTINATION
The main components of the destination as a
complex tourism product
 Attraction
 Acessibility
 Infrastructure
 Basic tourism services
 Other services
Sevices
 Safety
 Local community Attraction

 Organisations
 Prices
 INFORMATION ( of all kind )
The main components of the complex
tourism product ( sectorial approach )
 - Sector of attractions
 - Sector of transportation
 - Sector of accomodation Intermediaries

Attraction
 - Sector of intermediaries

(Tour operators,
Desztination
travel agencies )
 - Sector of the destination

( organizations, TDM )
Destination as tourism
product
Destination and the system of
tourism
Destination:
 (Dr. Roger Carter – Dr. Mike Fabricius, 2007) is a physical
location where the tourist is spending at least one night. It is
containing tourist attractions, products, relating services that are
necessary to meet the stay of a tourist on the place at least for one
day.
 Destination has physical and administrative limits, which are
determining its management, and has an image and perception.
It includes a lot of elements being concerned, it is capable for
constructing a network, a cooperation.
 The determination of destination is made from the point of
view of the tourist ( Perceptual „region” ).
Perceptual region
 A region that is reflective of human feelings and
attitudes.

 Perceptional regions are the way we view the world, and

our viewpoint may be very different from someone else's.
 Tourist destinations are perceptual „regions”.
Destination:
 According to Buhalis (2000) determinants of the destination
are as follows:
 Tourist attractions, e.g. natural factors, factors made by human
being, heritage, special events, etc.;
 Accessibility, e.g. the entire traffic system, including roads,
traffic means, etc.;
 Tourist services, e.g. accommodation, host services, other
tourist services, etc.;
 Product packages; (the destination is itself is a „product
package”)
 All kind of activities that can be run by the tourists during
their stay; public-utility services, e.g. banks,
telecommunication, hospitals, etc..
The characters of
destination
 Area that is chosen by the tourist as the target of her/his travel
 Receiving area that is providing services for the tourist and people living
on the spot
 It is defined from the point of view of the tourist (perceptual)
 A place/region that is confinable physically and geographically
 A place/region that is containing tourist attractions, products, services and
other background services being necessary for spending at least one day
 The tourist is spending at least one night here ( alternative )
 It is containing a lot of persons and organizations being concerned who
are cooperating with each other
 It has an image
 It has perception (it means that each of the tourists can form an opinion
about a destination), see the „perceptual regions”
 The characters of
destination

 It is providing integrated experience for the tourist

 In a wider sense it is a tourist product that is competing
with other tourist products (destinations) on the market of
tourism
 A kind of a complex and integrated system that is taking
the existence of a modern tourism controlling and
management system to the successful operation for
granted („to take something for granted”)
 It is a system being built from below and supported
from above
UNWTO publication 2007
 1. An Introduction to
Destination Management
 2. The Strategic
Foundations: Assessing the
Situation and Setting a
Vision, Goals and Objectives
 3. Marketing the
Destination.
 4. Positioning and Branding
the Destination
 5. Developing Destination
Products
 6. Organizing for
Destination Management
Destination experiences: basic elements

These basic elements can be broken down into

Attractions (the ‘must sees’ or ‘must dos’) and
the other remaining elements
Attractions
 These are often the focus of visitor attention and may provide
the initial motivation for the tourist to visit the destination.
 They could be in the public realm such as a nature park,
cultural or historical sites or could be community attractions
and services such as culture, heritage or lifestyle.
 Less tangible factors, such as uniqueness and emotional or
experiential triggers are also attracting tourists to destinations.
Amenities ( infrastructure oriented )
 These are the wide range of services and facilities which
support the visitors’ stay and include
 basic infrastructure such as
 utilities,
 public transport and roads as well as
 direct services for the visitor such as
 accommodation,
 visitor information,
 recreations facilities,
 guides,
 operators and catering and shopping facilities.
Accessibility

 The destination should be accessible to a large population base

via road,
 air passenger services, rail or cruise ships.
 Visitors should also be able to travel with relative ease within
the destination.
 Visa requirements, ports of entry, and specific entry conditions
should be considered as part of the accessibility of the
destination.
Image

• A unique character or image is crucial in attracting

visitors to the destination.
• It is not sufficient to have a good range of attractions
and amenities if potential visitors are not aware of
these.
• Various means can be used to promote the destinations
image (e.g. marketing and branding, travel media, e-
marketing).
• The image of the destination includes uniqueness,
sights, scenes, environmental quality, safety, service
levels, and the friendliness of people.
Price

 Pricing is an important aspect of the destination’s

competition with other destinations.
 Price factors relate to the cost of transport to and from the
destination as well as the cost on the ground of
 accommodation,
 attractions,
 food and tour services.
 A tourist’s decision may also be based on other
 economic features such as currency exchange.
 Human Resources

• Tourism is labour intensive and interaction with local

communities is an important aspect of the tourism
experience.
• A well-trained tourism workforce and citizens who are
equipped and aware of the benefits and responsibilities
associated with tourism growth are indispensable
elements of
 Tourism destination delivery and need to be managed in
accordance with the destination strategy (marketing
strategy)
 Unique Selling Propositions

 The key to differentiating the destination is finding a

Unique Selling Proposition ( USP or CA ) and promoting
this so as to “own” unique and valuable tourism attribute(s)
in the minds of your current and potential customers.
 In the new era of tourism, with a proliferation of new
destinations entering the market, it has become increasingly
difficult for destinations to base their positioning on
physical attributes and factors such as climate (the
subtropical paradise), geography (e.g. the river city), or
icons (e.g. landmark buildings, topographical features, etc.).
 Customer decisions are increasingly influenced by
emotional reactions.
/ools: Identifying Competitors and tracking the
Competitive Environment ( Scale rating )/
Destination product portfolio matrix
(adapted from Boston Consulting Group)
The Competitive Tourism Destination and
the Destination Marketing
Destination marketing
Marketing of a destination
 It should promote what is most attractive to potential visitors
and most likely to persuade them to come. The key functions
are:
 Destination promotion, including branding and image;
 Campaigns to drive business, particularly to SMMEs (Small
medium and micro enterprises);
 Unbiased information services;
 Operation/facilitation of bookings;
 CRM (Customer Relationship Management).
Destination and the system of tourism: The
product can be only one or several products as well, however destination can be
characterised as a set of complex services and attractions related to each other.
TDMO and DMC
 A Destination Management Company (DMC) is a term for a
professional services company possessing extensive local
knowledge, expertise and resources, specializing in the design and
implementation of events, activities, tours, transportation and
program logistics.
 A DMC provides a ground service based on local knowledge of their
given destinations.
 These services can be transportation, hotel accommodation,
restaurants, activities, excursions, conference venues, themed events,
gala dinners and logistics, meetings, incentive schemes as well as
helping with overcoming language barriers.
 By acting as purchasing consortia DMCs can provide preferential
rates based on the buying power they have with their preferred
suppliers.

.
DMC (DMSs) and TDMO
 DMCs can therefore be contrasted with other organisations:
 Travel Agent: a store offering travel products such as air tickets, hotel
bookings, cruises, tours offered by tour operators; the store-keeper – key skill
- product knowledge.
 Tour Operator: A company that amalgamates travel products into tour
itineraries; the tailor – key skill - product tailoring.
 Conference Bureau: An agency that handles conference and conventions
 DMC: An organisation that manages a tourism destination; the creator
(presently state tourism departments) – key skill - product vision. A DMC
providing DMSs (destination management services), is basically the Creator
who recognises the potential available in a place and creates the
infrastructure, both tangible (infrastructure, training) and intangible
(marketing, sales) to harvest the fruits of that potential.
 TDMO – Tourism Destination Management Organization (can be a company,
as well).
Positioning and branding a Destination
Branding ( the visible elements )
Destination branding
 Potential tourists are faced with a wide range of
holiday and business travel choices.
 To be recognised and to attract their rightful share of
the global tourism market it is of critical importance
for destinations to establish a recognised and valued
tourism position and brand image in the market.
 The differentiation and brand development are
cornerstones of the destination strategy.
There are three broad approaches destinations can
follow to establish an advantage over
competitors, namely

 Cost leadership: Consistently controlling and reducing

costs and improving efficiency of operations, thereby
out-pricing competitors.
 Differentiation: Offering clients a product, service or
experience that has a unique value and is different to
those alternatives offered by competitors ( USP ).
 Focus: Becoming specialists in a very focused area of
activity (CA)
Three approaches
Planning the Promotions Strategy of
Destination
The Promotional Mix
 Above-the-line: The highly visible, image driven and public advertising focused
elements of the promotional execution and include print (newspapers, magazines, trade
and professional press, etc.); outdoor (billboards, posters, etc.); television; radio;
cinema; web-banner; and e-advertising.
 Below-the-line: The less “in your face”, i.e. personalised elements of promotion
execution and include
 exhibitions and fairs; direct mail; direct e-mail
 point-of-sale (window displays, posters, banners, etc.);
 packaging (paper, electronic, and physical marketing collateral);
 e-marketing;
 sales promotions and special offers;
 personal selling (trade visits, familiarisation trips, workshops, etc.);
 public relations (newsletters, press releases, interviews, editorial for travel programmes
and magazines, etc.);
 media familiarisation visits,

Social media
Consumer Advertising
 For DMO’s with limited budgets the following practical
guidelines could be of assistance:
 - Avoid engaging in ad-hoc advertising,
 - DMO’s that have not planned their advertising initiatives as
part of a well-orchestrated promotional strategy or campaign
should consider applying scarce resources to below-the-line
activities such as e-marketing (?), trade and media
familiarisation visits, public relations and editorial support,
 For advertising to be effective DMO’s need to know that they
will be reaching their target markets and that the message will
not be once-off but that it will achieve a high degree of
repetition in target markets to ensure the highest possible recall
value and reaction.
Consumer Advertising
 Consider targeted and cost effective advertising investments in
focused media that are patronised by selected niche target
market segments, such as special interest magazines,
television and radio programmes, social media „groups”
 Invest in production : Superior conceptualisation, design,
imagery are critical elements of successful destination
advertising,
 The unique selling proposition and agreed brand identity
should be reflected through the images, design style, colours
and tone of voice used in advertising designs.
PersonalSelling
 Consumer exhibitions: Consumer exhibitions could range
from dedicated travel shows to participation in related exhibitions
(e.g. consumer lifestyle products, sport and cultural events, etc.)
and ad-hoc initiatives in public areas such as shopping centres.
 - DMO participation at exhibitions directed at consumers
should preferably be a component of an integrated promotional
programme and should not be ad-hoc, isolated initiatives.
 - Clear goals should be set for each occasion. When entering
new markets the aim may be awareness creation ( working
platform ), while attending consumer occasions in established
markets may be directed at achieving conversion and action
( market platform )
Consumer exhibitions
 If the focus is on conversion the DMO should ideally establish
co-operative marketing links or agreements with fulfillment
partners to be able to point consumers towards a purchase-
able package.
 In addition to co-operative marketing initiatives DMO staff
should be acquainted with commercial products in the
destination to be able to advise customers of product
opportunities.
 DMO staff should keep records of all contacts made and
follow through with customer communication. A customer
database should be developed to establish and build
relationships with potential customers.
Trade Fairs
 One well-established method of developing trade contacts and
relations is attendance of trade fairs, where destinations
create a branded exhibition stand which is often sub-divided
into smaller exhibition spaces for product exhibitors and sub-
regions and locations within the destination’s boundaries.
 The idea is to create a collective space that carries the
destination brand with the international travel trade coming
to a single location and being able to meet and interact with a
variety of products, attractions and destination organisations,
i.e. a “one-stop destination shop”.
 World Travel Market (WTM) in London and ITB in Berlin
 Trade Fairs are loosing importance due to the social media
Special Promotions
 Trade familiarisation trips and travel “academies”
 Ad hoc promotional drives focused around specific
themes (e.g. wine, golf, ecotourism, adventure, etc.),
which are often linked to high-profile events that take
place in the destination e.g. natural events (animal
migrations and breeding cycles, wind and weather
patters, botanical splendour, etc), cultural events (e.g.
musical festivals, historical dates, film launches, etc.),
seasonality (e.g. low season special offers), sport events
(e.g. world championships or series, etc.).
Public Relations and Communication

 Providing the various printed and electronic media with

interesting and newsworthy stories about the destination:
Continuous image and brand building
 Publicising positive news stories with strong emotional
pull and impact,
 Publicising visits by celebrities and know personalities
and arranging interviews with them,
 Sending out regular destination e-newsletters and product
updates,
 Influencers