Destination Marketing & Local Communities

The Story So Far ...

In September 2011 I posted a blog, "Destination Marketing Revisited", that reviewed the history and development of destination marketing and its affects on the accommodation sector, especially in traditional resorts and rural areas. From the mid-19th Century and through most of the 20th Century accommodation providers relied heavily on third parties to promote holiday destinations, a state of affairs that has persisted in some quarters down to the present day. Progressive businesses have been more active, both in promoting their local area and in using pro-active marketing to engage with existing and potential customers. The opportunities for individual proprietors to incorporate the 'destination sell' into their marketing have increased massively since the advent of the World Wide Web. To begin at the beginning click HERE.

In "Destination Marketing & Micro Businesses", posted in October 2011, I showed, in some detail, that even the smallest business can establish and maintain a flexible presence on the Internet, easily and at no cost. The more active and varied small businesses are in their approach to the Internet, the more cumulative will be the effect of destination marketing in a multi-channel, multiple platform, communications environment. As importantly, an Internet presence creates new strategic and tactical opportunities for the individual business and for local communities, some of which are examined in this third blog.  To view the second blog in this series, click HERE. Now read on ...

Local Communities - Bringing It All Together
By now it should be obvious that accommodation providers, however small the operation, can create their own personal online space and exercise full control over content. Personalised content differentiates one business from another, addresses the pre-occupations of selected market audiences and opens up lines of communication, to the benefit of individual enterprises. But there is a local multiplier effect in direct correlation with web site numbers. Here the numerical dominance of SMEs in the accommodation sector, at one time a constraint on destination marketing through disproportionate influence on policy, translates into an asset through the proliferation of online outlets and rich local material.

The accommodation sector is not the only beneficiary of tourism in local communities. The advantages of an Internet presence are applicable to other components of the tourism product. Heritage and cultural attractions are founts of specialised knowledge: history, maritime and industrial history, art and literature. Historical societies bring focus to bear on the very local. Day activities such as trekking or watersports not only offer visitors things to do, they create awareness of the natural environment in which they take place. Local festivals offer visitors the chance to participate in the vibrancy of community life. Even restaurants, if they are strong on locally sourced produce, can add to the overall ambience of a destination by highlighting their chain of supply: farmers, fishermen and the rest. Taken together, multiple sources of information from differing perspectives contribute to the identity of a particular destination: the spirit of place. The whole is greater than the sum of its individual parts. And although the ways of the Internet are often subtle and unpredictable, the judicious use of reciprocal links can go some way towards steering Internet surfers around a local area. We are talking about a local community of information.

The Pub's the Hub
The traditional pub, at the heart of every village, is the place where visitors come into close contact with host communities and the authentic ambience of neighbourhood life. Over and beyond the formal infrastructure of tourist information the pub is an invaluable source of local knowledge, a public place that can play a key role in engaging visitors with the holiday destination. The pub has the potential to stimulate interest with archive photographs, memorabilia and artifacts, a mosaic of community memories. These are the talking points that ease the stranger into conversation with the natives: farmers, inshore fishermen, outdoor activists, wildlife enthusiasts, amateur historians; and into the remembrances of declining industries preserved by the shrinking generations of one-time quarrymen, miners, foundry workers and the rest.

The Sloop Inn, Porthgain, North Pembrokeshire. One of the best examples I know of informal interpretation in a small community. The web site? Not so much! (Sorry Matthew.)

An Internet presence that is structured to reflect the intrinsic qualities of a destination and the pre-occupations of visitors gives the local hostelry a route to the web with more than the usual inventory of real ales, menus and wine lists: an extension into cyberspace that becomes part of the community of information. This should be borne in mind in all that follows.

Destination Marketing & Social Networks
At this point it is worth repeating the warning from my previous blog: "It is better to develop a few channels effectively than to spread effort thinly over a wide spectrum". There are a large number of social networks available. Some function in similar ways, others offer more specialised kinds of interaction. Every business must select the networks that are most relevant to its overall marketing strategy, but the social realm should always be approached with a fundamental objective: to create an online community that will drive traffic to primary sources of information. Wherever possible, postings on social networks should direct readers to an Internet anchor point. In most cases this will be the dynamic 'Home' page of a blog or the 'News and Events' page of a web site, either of which will have recently updated information on special offers, local events, news stories and the rest. But whichever social networks are chosen, business use should not be indiscriminate. A little forethought goes a long way and a little creativity and innovation goes even further.

Time and space do not allow more than a cursory glance at the range of social sites and I leave it to readers to decide whether You Tube or Twitter or the rest have a place in their marketing strategy. Two social networks, similar in operation but with slightly different applications, will suffice as an introduction to social networking. In both cases the most effective use is to allow public access to your content and to choose material accordingly.

'Facebook' is one of the most populated social sites (more than 30 million users in the UK alone) even though frequent structural changes continue to cause frustration. Facebook, even at its most basic, is an extremely useful tool in B2C [Business to Consumer] marketing. Facebook allows you to present personal and business information to the world at large. Customers can be encouraged to become Facebook 'Friends', and the accumulation of Friends is exponential as users review the 'People You May Know' facility. Your Friends may choose to 'share' your Facebook postings and, better still, share their own experiences, photo albums, etc., on your Facebook pages following a visit. The mix of customers and social Friends on Facebook, if carefully selected, can create an online community with a focus of contact - your business - and a feeling of involvement with all things local. If you wish to separate business from purely social activity, Facebook has the option of creating a dedicated business 'Page' where visitors can show their approval by clicking 'Like' - an action which shows up on their own Facebook status. A recent winner of the Wales Marketing Awards used Facebook as a platform to show videos of their services with the intention of overcoming negative perceptions of boarding kennels. The result was a 25% increase in business over twelve months with 'Like' clicks passing 2,000 over the same period.

 'LinkedIn' operates in a similar way to Facebook but within a professional environment that is more appropriate to B2B [Business to Business] marketing. Users in the tourism sector include hotels that offer conference facilities and outdoor centres used for out-of-office training - businesses with a significant corporate client base. As with Facebook, LinkedIn offers the facility to create a profile for your business and professional skills. But LinkedIn adds to this profile by exposing your network of connections to public view: discrimination should be used in requesting or accepting contacts that will build your credibility and reflect your marketing aspirations. As with Facebook, LinkedIn connections can grow exponentially through the 'People You May Know' feature, and through connections sharing your LinkedIn posts. Although I am a recent and by no means the most active user of LinkedIn, a very recent post was shared with more than 800 subscribers and produced an immediate spike in web site visits; new contact requests have begun to trickle in. Must try harder!

Finally, linking to your social networks from elsewhere on the Internet increases the possibility of capture and, by cross-referral, creates a virtuous circle that can only amplify the viral effects of the online social environment.

Mobile Platforms - Welcome to the Dark Side

In the beginning was the computer, the size of a house and used by large institutions for arithmetical calculations, data storage and data manipulation. Where the few go, the many follow: in the late 1970s and into the 1980s affordable self-contained computers were becoming available for business use, supported by word processing, spreadsheet and database software. On the domestic scene mass production and mass marketing stimulated the spread of personal computers beyond a small circle of enthusiasts and hobbyists. Research at that time showed that a high proportion of PC purchases were by parents intending that their children should acquire computing skills; the same research showed that regardless of intent, most home installations were used for gaming, marking a discernible split between business and entertainment applications.

The split between business and entertainment use increased in the 1990s with the advent of dial-up access to the World Wide Web, a process that continued into the new Millennium as broadband connectivity increased download speeds. Home 'computer' use for most people now revolved around the Internet: online shopping, communication (e-mail, social sites, Skype, etc.), web surfing, film and music downloads and, as always, gaming.

For a new generation the development of smartphones and 'tablets' has introduced a new dimension: Internet access no longer requires a desktop or laptop PC. Internet services are compacted into a small device that allows communication (phone, text, mail, social networking) and web functions, alongside digital functions such as still and video photography, MP3 player and the rest. Smartphone consumerism is visible in every public place, driven by supply-side competition, aggressive marketing and planned obsolescence - the latest upgrade or 'App' is an indispensable fashion accessory for the young. From the viewpoint of destination marketing this age demographic allows penetration of replacement markets where there is an ageing visitor profile.

The shift to mobile platforms is irreversible and signals new opportunities for destinations at local level. Immediacy of access can be exploited to drive visitors to the Internet from guesthouses, pubs, attractions and other focal points within a holiday area. And communication technology places each mobile device at the hub of its own information community.

Before examining some of these opportunities it is worth noting the following:

• Check that your site is suitable for mobile viewing. This should not be a problem if you choose the blog route, with its simplified format. For conventional sites it may be necessary to add a dedicated 'landing page' for mobile access.
• Direct mobile traffic to current content that will generate interest and stimulate dissemination through the personal information network.
• Anticipate connectivity problems. Make your premises a wi-fi 'hotspot' that allows direct public access to the Internet. Hotspots are an alternative where mobile connectivity is poor or absent and will also speed up downloads from complex landing pages. Make sure that this facility is prominently displayed.

BT Fon: Free to BT Broadband subscribers. Allows venues to register as BT Hotspots and gives UK-wide access to the BT wi-fi network.

Making the Most of Mobility - Check-Ins
Among the vast number of mobile Apps (Applications) two examples are noteworthy. (There may well be more of the same, but I have yet to be seduced by the smartphone culture so have no way of embarking on detailed research. Life's too short and getting shorter!)

In August 2010 Facebook launched the location-based 'Facebook Places'. This was discontinued in August 2011 and replaced by a simple 'Check In' App, which operates on similar principles. Facebook Check In works in conjunction with GPS to identify the user's location. Visitors can then 'check in' to the location and add comments that will appear on their Facebook status.

Foursquare is a more sophisticated location-based App. Merchants are able to 'claim' their venue and add information, offers, etc., to a dedicated Foursquare slot. There is a system of incentives to encourage regular check-ins to Foursquare: for details go to https://foursquare.com/business/merchants. Once signed in to a Foursquare venue, users can add comments via the App or share location and information via Facebook, etc.

As with wi-fi hotspots, participation in location-based Apps should be displayed on the premises.

 Making the Most of Mobility - QR Codes

Quick Reference codes are free and easy to generate, and appear as small intricate black and white boxes that can be scanned by smartphone Apps such as Qrafter for iPhones. The App opens a direct link to an Internet page. QR codes are proliferating at an incremental rate and now appear on utility bills, bank statements and other business correspondence. As with many innovations, the technology is often employed for its own sake without any particular thought for the content of the landing page. But, as always, content is king: the landing page should be designed to engage the interest of the user. QR codes can be used on printed response material, stationery, etc., to direct customers to your web site or blog Home Page; or on-site, where they might link to information of local or current interest: in the latter case, the purpose/content of the QR link should be clear so as to encourage use. (As example, see the BFA Photo Itineraries QR code below, where the content of the link is clearly presented.) It is now quite common for larger companies to use a QR link to a temporary micro-site when running short term competitions and promotions.

QR codes can be saved for future reference, a useful function where the destination sell is concerned. An interesting QR link is a handy memento of a visit, to share with family and friends and promote viral activity. The opportunities for imagination and creativity are endless - and the possibilities for historical or environmental interpretation too diverse to be touched on here.

Stop Press, 28 October 2011: I have just watched a customer in my local pub painstakingly photographing each page of the menu to send to guests at an upcoming function. A single printed QR code on the menu, linked to an online menu page, would have done the business with much less effort and much less chance of illegibility through flare or soft focus!

Generate Your Own QR Codes

I have received reports of design companies charging clients £2,000 or more for QR codes. Follow these steps to create your own QR code(s) in less than a minute, free of charge:

• Select your preferred landing page.
• For an industry-standard QR generator, click HERE.
• Select 'Browse to a Web Site'.
• Enter your page URL.
• Click on 'Generate Code'.
• Save the resulting QR code image to your hard disc.
• You will now have a Bitmap image that can be converted to any format (Jpeg, etc.). The image can be scaled to any size in whatever application you choose. Recommended minimum size: one inch square with white surround.

QR Codes - Every Little Helps

In 2008 I added a selection from my photo library to the BFA web site in the form of galleries that cover sections of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path in line of march from Eglwyswrw to Solva. In 2011 QR codes were generated for each of the six pages of photo itineraries. Printed QR codes were distributed free of charge for display by local businesses.

BFA: Pembrokeshire Coast Path Photo Itineraries: Pwllderi to Abercastle

A final example of the flexibility of QR codes appeared on LinkedIn recently. An American company has used the flat roof of its premises for an outsize QR code that will appear on Google Maps!

In Conclusion
This series of blogs is intended primarily for small tourism operators, especially those at Internet entry level. I have stressed the contribution that local hospitality providers can make to destination marketing, not least by embracing the opportunities afforded by the World Wide Web. The mechanisms suggested on these pages are cost-free, and the ability of the 'blog' option to accommodate a great deal of content and functionality is demonstrated by example. Businesses and communities that embrace some, if not all, of the suggestions outlined here will transcend a mere information network; the result will be a tight mesh of destination marketing. All of this is, however, the tip of a very large Internet iceberg. Further research, allied with creative marketing thinking, will reveal new possibilities; and technology is always evolving to open up new opportunities. Finally, it is important to emphasise that the Internet activity which has been the main subject of these blogs is only one element of strategic marketing. Ignore this at your peril - and always remember that marketing is a process, not an event.

Porthgain Harbour: 360 Degree Panorama