What Does Destination Management Mean and Look Like in Practice?

Written by Thomas Hinkel on January 5, 2023. Posted in Blog, Uncategorized.

Destination management is the process in which Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) work with stakeholders to increase development of the tourism sector, gain more tourists, address challenges, and bring more benefit to the local community. In the case of Solimar, this is also done while ensuring that this development is conducted sustainably, both from an economic perspective as well as an environmental perspective. This practice sounds simple in theory, but it can be a complicated process that requires coordination with a large group of people with diverse interests. Solimar is currently working in the Sugar River Region of New Hampshire to help develop a DMO from the ground up, as well as establish a website and marketing plan for the destination.

The Sugar River Region of New Hampshire is a picturesque New England destination that is made up of fourteen towns and one city. The region has hiking trails with scenic views, historic covered bridges, as well as quaint small-town charm as you travel from town to town. Solimar is partnered with the Sugar River Destination Council, the existing organization concerned with tourism, to assist in creating a Destination Management Plan that will benefit all the local stakeholders. The first step in this process was to create a DMO, and the Sugar River Region Destination Council (SRRDC) was established to coordinate and create, as well as conduct Destination Management.

Engaging Stakeholders in Destination Management & Understanding the Destination

To successfully manage a destination, it is important that the DMO fully understands the unique challenges and opportunities of the place. To understand your destination, you have to understand the tourists that are interested in visiting, as well as how to keep local residents satisfied. This holistic approach makes it very clear that different stakeholders and industries that are involved in tourism must be unified in their efforts in order to create a seamless experience for tourists.

Outside of the Sugar River Region example, Solimar has also created comprehensive Destination Management Plans in other regions of the world. Solimar’s work in Timor-Leste established a network of businesses that were key to the tourism sector of the island, and also assisted the community in creating a DMO. This community-based approach has yielded a lot of success for the local businesses throughout the island and has helped Solimar to hone its framework for creating and managing DMOs.

In the case of the Sugar River Region, Solimar and the SRRDC worked together to consult with a wide variety of organizations and individuals to better understand the needs of the community, as well as the goals these stakeholders shared for the community. These talks were held with local governments, tour and transport operators, accommodation providers, educators, business owners, as well as residents from across the region. Once common goals for the region are established, the DMO can guide the Destination Management Plan in the direction it needs to in order to reach these goals. This is an important part of community-based tourism, which is crucial to creating a sustainable Destination Management Plan.

Understanding the goals of all the stakeholders involved in the destination is critical, but it is also important to understand exactly what the destination has to offer as well as its capacity to host tourists. Conducting research on tourism, as well as the impacts it will have on the region is vital in order to stay true to the holistic approach. For one, this research can underscore the potential pitfalls that could occur if destination management is not done incorrectly. These downsides could pertain to environmental, economic, or social concerns. These concerns must be addressed in the Destination Management Plan to ensure that the destination is developed in a sustainable manner. These studies can also identify key opportunities to further develop attractions to bring success to the destination.

When background research was conducted in the Sugar River Region, key opportunities for collaboration with local stakeholders were highlighted. For instance, they found that cultural events in the region could be expanded to attract more visitors while partnerships between local businesses and residents of the region could be enhanced to make decision-making and strategizing more collaborative.

Considering Infrastructure and Logistics in Destination Management

Once goals are established, it is important to evaluate the region’s capacity and infrastructure in order to determine how best to move forward. For instance, where are the closest airports to the region, and is it easy to get there from the airports once tourists have arrived? In less developed tourism industries abroad, this step is very important to destination management.

Luckily, in the case of the Sugar River Region, the area is close to three airports in Boston, Hartford, and Burlington. There are shuttles that run from two of these airports, but the most scenic way to see the area is to rent a car and use it for travel! The Destination Development Plan aims to encourage this, as it is an easy way to get around the area while still getting to see all the breathtaking sights before you. In fact, the Sugar River Region plans to promote designated Sugar River Region Scenic Routes, which will connect the towns and bring you near historical markers.

There are many moving parts within destination management. As previously mentioned, understanding the region and its residents is necessary to ensure that the DMO is promoting equitable and sustainable practices in tourism development. Tourism is a fast-paced industry, therefore coordination and constant communication among stakeholders is the name of the game. Some examples of these coordination efforts within the Sugar River Region project are:

Ensure that campgrounds in the New England woods are properly prepared to host guests
Organize with local accommodations and restaurants to boost their visibility to tourists
Cooperate with cultural groups, such as the Claremont Arts Council to ensure that there are a myriad of events to encourage tourists to visit
Work with local governments to establish a Visitor Center for tourists.
Ensure that hiking trails are maintained and promoted

The DMO responsible for destination management also must ensure that the destination becomes successful, as this will bring more profits to the area and sustain the Destination Development Plan. Sustainability necessitates processes that are environmentally, socially and financially maintainable. Achieving this can be very difficult, but incredibly beneficial process to ensure that a destination’s tourism sector is developed sustainably.

Marketing & Destination Management

It is the role of the DMO to manage and coordinate with various organizations in the local tourism network. While this is the case, another important aspect of destination management is digital destination marketing. Digital marketing can change the reach of marketing campaigns for a destination from a local audience to a global one. Especially today, it is important that a destination has a strong digital footprint. With a strong digital footprint, it is easier for people to discover your destination and learn more about it.

The first step to building a strong digital footprint is to create a tourism website. This website should aim to not only promote the region, its attractions and its people, but also to encourage others to visit. In the case of the Sugar River Region, Solimar is currently working in conjunction with the SRRDC to make a website that will fit the destination’s needs. The website must ensure that campgrounds are listed online, as well as restaurants, and that events are properly listed and up to date. This requires a significant amount of information from the various stakeholders.

Creating a website itself is a significant undertaking, and it requires the same coordination between stakeholders that is necessary for the other aspects of destination management that have been previously discussed. The DMO must also ensure that social media posts are created which boost interest in the region and let tourists know that the destination has much to offer. Social media is a very powerful tool in increasing how much attention your destination gets, and destination management should account for utilizing social media to receive these benefits.

Destination management is an all-encompassing process that ensures that a Destination Management Plan is created and followed. The DMO responsible for destination management must ensure that all stakeholders are consulted, and that the destination is developed in a way that will help achieve these goals.

This is not an easy process, and one that requires careful coordination. However, by properly addressing these concerns, the Destination Management Plan will ensure that the destination becomes both sustainable and beneficial to all members involved, including the local government, the businesses and the community. The Sugar River Region is a great example of Solimar’s destination management process being put into practice. We encourage you to visit the area and see all that it has to offer!

Liked learning about Destination Management and want to hear more? Take one of our courses to learn more about destination management! Visit our Institute for Sustainable Destinations website today: https://institute.solimarinternational.com/

destination branding two kayak sunsetters

How to Brand Your Destination: a Complete Guide

Written by Caitlyn Marentette on June 6, 2022. Posted in Blog, Uncategorized.

Want to learn how to successfully make your destination stand out from the competition? This article tells you all about destination branding and how to build your own original brand!

How to Build a Successful Destination Brand

The tourism industry is one of the most universally robust industries in the world. Hundreds of thousands of people travel every year, and there are many types of travelers who feed into the industry. Even more people work in the tourism sector. So, how do you attract potential visitors to your tourism destination?

There are plenty of approaches to attract potential customers to a tourist destination. Social media, marketing campaigns, and word of mouth are just a few ways to achieve this. You might see photos of dazzling landscapes on Instagram, see a hotel ad on TV, or read a post about a famous tourism destination in a magazine. What these things have in common is a recall to what makes a destination unique, important, or appealing to a specific audience.

Bringing these features out through tourism marketing is a tactic called destination branding. Think about a famous city—Berlin, for instance. There are a number of images that you probably think of when Berlin comes to mind: the (in)famous Berlin Wall, the unmatched cosmopolitanism, the tall-standing TV Tower, and the authentic Brezeln. A collection of cultural markers like these produces a profile that is unique to Berlin. These markers can then be used to produce and to employ a marketing strategy that attracts potential tourists to Berlin. Of course, this is not specific to just one city; any site can have a brand identity.

So, the question remains: how do you produce a successful brand for your site? Below, we have compiled a short list of items to get you started on building a successful destination brand.

Berlin TV Tower (Fernsehturm) has become an iconic piece of Berlin’s identity, completing the panorama of the city alongside Brandenburg Gate or the Berliner Dom

A Brand is the Most Valuable Tool in your Marketing Strategy

A brand goes far deeper than a logo or company slogan. These are simply considered marketing tools. A brand is defined by the public perception and the emotion it makes you feel. It is the promise being made to the target audience that is derived from the product or destination’s uniqueness. Your branding efforts are the process of creating brand messaging and experiences that attract visitors. These should be as compelling and memorable as possible, in order to draw in potential customers. Successful branding occurs when this experience remains in the hearts and minds of the target audience.

Developing a Valuable Destination Brand Identity

Developing your brand identity, or brand personality, revolves around three main axes:

Destination uniqueness;
Stakeholders’ and travelers’ perceptions; and
Consistency in the marketing campaigns.

A strong brand identity is essential when you are trying to reach potential tourists and attract them to your destination. We could define the brand identity as a summary of the destination’s main traits, the words your main audience would use to describe the destination.

Does your destination offer a wide array of cultural experiences? Are most visitors coming to your destination to relax, or do they come to challenge themselves and take on new adventures? Is your destination mostly suitable for families, groups of friends or romantic getaways?

Developing your brand identity starts by auditing your destination and identifying your main target. It is recommended to involve stakeholders to better understand how they perceive the uniqueness of your destination. Start a conversation with small tourism businesses, travel agents and tour operators promoting your destination, local authority or former visitors and gather their emotions about your destination.

Including the consumer perception of your destination will ensure that the appropriate types of travelers are targeted in your brand messaging. Do not neglect to take a look at competition – locally or internationally – and to think it through: “What do I offer that is different?”, “What is our added value?” You can read an example of destination branding through consumer perceptions from Croatia.

The wide open Namibian landscape – understanding the consumer perception of your destination’s uniqueness is key to build a strong brand identity

Understanding the travel motivations of your visitors, as well as their decision-making process, will support you in building a suitable brand messaging. Associate experiences with your destination which are as distinctive, compelling, memorable and rewarding as possible. Take the example of Namibia’s online marketing campaign which Solimar ran between 2011 and 2013 that emphasized the breathtaking and seemingly endless natural landscapes of Namibia.

Once this message is clear, your marketing campaigns will help spread your identity and reach your targeted audience. The key in the marketing campaign is consistency! Make sure the brand messaging perceived is coherent on all the elements of your integrated marketing communication. Each support and channel should represent the same brand identity.

Moreover, the consistency of the brand identity continues on the spot where it is important to build brand value at each point of contact, from signage at the airport to landscapes while driving to the hotel or between parts of a destination. The experience of the traveler must reflect your brand identity.

Finally, keep track of the success of the campaign and reassess your strategy every year, or if a major event has disrupted your campaign (Covid-19 anyone?).

In short, developing a powerful brand identity consists of:

Running a destination audit
Clarifying who is your target
Building your destination SWOT
Identifying your competition, their location, and your added value
Involving local stakeholders in your branding process and assess their perception of the destination
Reassessing your Marketing Strategy annually

Using the Brand Pyramid for a Strong Destination Brand

One of the most effective ways to produce a powerful destination brand is by using a brand pyramid. Brand pyramids are models that distill the important elements of a site down to an advertising essence. Brand pyramids are important for destination branding, because they clarify the most important aspects of the destination. This helps produce a tagline that markets the message of a destination to potential visitors.

There are five tiers in the brand pyramid, which are organized from a wide base to a narrow top. The first tier, labeled rational attributes, are tangible destination characteristics. In other words, rational attributes are the markers that can be empirically observed. The physical, quantifiable features of a site are listed here. These features can be diverse, ranging from unique products and services to local cuisines to historic landmarks.

The second tier is labeled emotional benefits. These are the feelings associated with a site. This tier plays a crucial role in creating a destination brand, because it addresses the tangible emotional experience(s) of visiting a site. The first two tiers work together to create a strong brand image by listing tangible attributes alongside the emotional sentiments that the site produces.

The third tier of the brand pyramid is brand personality. This lists a group of adjectives that describe the personality of the site. This is how a target audience will describe a site in a few basic words. The brand personality can describe atmospheres and resources, and they can also attract specific audiences. As the public health situation evolves, a brand personality can illuminate how amenable a site is to a specific audience.

The fourth tier, the positioning statement, describes the one-of-a-kind site attributes. Here, brand developers ask which characteristics are seen or experienced only at that site. This is an especially important step in the brand development process. Knowing what makes a site stand out will give shape to a strong brand identity.

The final tier is brand essence. The brand essence is exactly what it sounds like: it distills aspects of all the tiers below to produce an essential brand identity. This is what the brand means, described in a few words. This is the tier that creates a destination brand, usually in the form of a tagline. A great example of the destination branding process was successfully implemented in Solimar’s Jamaica Community Experiences project from 2015-2018.

Brand Pyramid model to build a powerful destination brand – Solimar DMO Development Program

Looking for more destination development strategies? Check out Solimar’s Institute for Sustainable Destinations program on DMO Development. Or Contact Us directly for information!

Authors: Caitlyn Marentette / Célia Hulin / Thomas Kalchik

WE DEVELOP, MANAGE, AND MARKET SUSTAINABLE TOURISM DESTINATIONS

Tag: dmo marketing