To�help you determine your own�strategy Tourism & More presents the following ideas and possible future�trends always emphasizing that we�live in a highly fluid situation and what might appear logical today might be invalid tomorrow.

Do not run from a problem, recognize it and start to seek solutions.��

After 2020 there are very few tourism communities or businesses that are not suffering.� The year 2021 will require creative changes and solutions.� Marketing without real change is nothing more than placing a bandage on an open wound.� Tourism professionals will have to face reality, begin to prioritize problems, and seek solutions one at a time.� Be dignified and honest with both employees and customers. The worst thing to do is to lose credibility.

Think of your tourism industry as an integrated whole rather than as a series of independent components.�

Additional travel costs mean that visitors will be seeking ways to economize. Visitors do not see each part of their tourism experience (hotel, transportation, food, attractions) as separate experiences but rather as a unified experience. The tourism industry needs to do the same.� Each of tourism's components needs to work with the other sectors of the industry to find ways to increase the quality of the tourism experience despite higher prices.� If visitors do not see the total experience as worthwhile, then all of the tourism industry's components will suffer.

Remember that your local community has also suffered due to a downturn in tourism revenues.

Tourism does not only directly impact those who work in the industry, but the secondary and tertiary effects are felt throughout the community.� In major cities it is estimated that a dollar (peso, euro) spent on a tourism product has a multiplier effect of at least 7. Although the effect is less in smaller communities, any community with a tourism industry is feeling the slowdown's impact both economically and socially. By taking the lead, tourism professionals can demonstrate that they are part of the community and that they care about the total community's wellbeing.

Think local! Consider expanding your market by finding more visitors closer to home.

This solution will help not only the local hotel industry, but also permit retailers to weather the storm by adding to the community’s economy as tourism revenues from outside of the local region begin to fall. Buying and featuring local products adds a unique quality to the travel experience.� In areas where there are geographic limitations, such as many island destinations, develop creative pricing, along with creative airport hospitality.

Be appreciative!� All too often tourism businesses act as if they are doing the customers a favor.

This is the time to develop creative ways to show appreciation. For example, locales may want to develop “welcome passports” to be used at restaurants and hotels where visitors are provided with a free “extra” as a way of showing appreciation.� Showing appreciation is especially important in an era where long-haul travel may decline.� Tourism businesses will become dependent on local, short-haul and regional travel if they are to survive during the initial recover phases.� Follow-up letters may also be sent in which the local tourism industry thanks people for visiting. The letters can even be e-letters and used as a way to encourage visitors to return for another visit.

Get to know your product again!�

Tourism professionals need to rethink what they are selling!� Ask yourself: Are we selling experiences, leisure, rest, or history? Are we selling basic transportation or the travel experience?� How does our business fit into the total travel experience in this post-Covid-19 world?� Do our past marketing efforts reflect current realities?

In the post-Covid-19 world of tourism freebees will be more important than ever.�

Even when people are feeling good about their economic situation travelers still love to receive something for nothing, even if they have to pay for it!� In these challenging times, a welcome drink or cookie, a small gift or souvenir can turn a simple experience into a memorable one. Combine basic costs into the cost of an admission ticket or a free night's stay.� �If hospitality is based on the idea of being taken care of and pampered than charging for extras may be a poor strategy.� Avoid extra sur-charges. In the new world of travel, personal service is essential.

The last impression is often the lasting impression, so consider being creative when people leave a destination.

For example, hotels can give a restaurant coupon to departing guests, passport controls can hand out a come-back soon brochure or gas stations can offer a free cup of coffee-for-the-road.� The cost of the item is a lot less important than the memory and positive word of mouth advertising that it will create.

Source: www. tourismandmore.com