Business Plan

Digital Tourism Business Plan - Whats your view?

The business plan is made up of 3 major themes, these are:-

1. Business/Industry engagement

Improving the way tourism businesses and organisations market themselves and Wales in the digital environment.

This part of the business plan can be summed up as training, support, and facilitation for online sharing of ideas enabling the tourism industry in Wales to share knowledge more effectively. Everyone agrees it’s needed, but what is required and when it needs to be delivered are key discussion points.

Potentially, a Tier or e learning ladder system where highly specific training opportunities are defined and provided for tourism business needs – from the most sophisticated online marketing and trend information to entry level provision for those embarking on digital marketing. Not just in person but also ‘virtually’ as well using e-learning packages that fit into a way operators do business i.e. don’t involve taking physical time out of offices/attractions/restaurants/accommodation.

And all supported by online networks with resources /discussion groups/communications and dissemination of good practice and new techniques and advances i.e. part of a Wales tourism communication network and a step towards establishing a ‘digital business ecosystem’ to it’s fullest extent

Have a look at Visit Britain’s Accommodation Knowhow site to give you an idea of how this could work.

So, in summary;

• Support and Engagement that is industry specific
• Flexibility that will allow businesses to move from training level to level specific to their business over the lifespan of the project
• Potential of ‘tourism specific digital relationship managers’ and peripatetic specialist teams
• Online support and exchange forums
• Clear line on how tourism industry support sits with other SME support out there

2. Developing the Digital Network

Making sure that content and information is developed and accessible not only to people but also to networks (Search, Social Media etc).

Countries like Norway have done this successfully over the last few years. Their BIT Reiseliv Project developed by Innovation Norway and rolled out with assistance from the Norwegian Hospitality Association to ’develop more efficient business processes within specific industries by developing information technology solutions and increasing the level of professionalism within individual enterprises’

It’s concentrated not only on training but also by looking at systems and applications that make businesses and the country overall more competitive and rolling out that knowledge to industry e.g. BIT Reiseliv presentations

In Wales the project will look at all aspects that affect how people use the digital medium , from ‘looking to booking’ to how developments in mobile search, WiFi and content creation that assists in search engine ranking.

It will be essential that systems in place speak to one another and that it is very clear how platforms such as Visit Britain’s National Tourism Open Platform (NTOP) integrate with what Wales’ needs and develops.

3. Demand Creation

Continuing to inspire people to visit Wales

Put simply, All of this project should assist in demand creation e.g.

• Public and private sector acquiring more knowledge as regards online customer behaviour and the corresponding digital opportunities to attract them

• improved systems for best practice exchange and new mechanisms/platforms for aggregating content that will benefit Wales
• Potential centres of excellence that could act as pilots for trialling new digital applications and tecniques

The project will look at aspects such as;

E customer Relationship Marketing (ECRM) e.g.

• protocols
• communication of who is being targeted/spoken to and when data cleansing and sharing where that can be done

Online PR e.g

• who is doing what, when and in which forums/networks/communities
• what messages and mediums play to different interest groups and customer targets
• Social networks and communities

Content Gathering and Distribution e.g.

• Content (focussed on enriching experience) created and maintained as close to source as possible that will boost results in arenas such as Google’s universal search which uses blogs, images, videos, podcasts etc. and with the underlying premise of Create content locally, distribute globally