The Learning Destination: Developing productive relationships between higher education and destination management

Transcription

1 The Learning Destination: Developing productive relationships between higher education and destination management Dr Phil Long, Dr Philip Alford, Dr Debbie Sadd, and Lisa Ashurst School of Tourism, Bournemouth University Anthony Climpson, New Forest Tourism Graham Richardson, Poole Tourism Mark Smith, Bournemouth Tourism

2 Relationships between universities and destination management: observations and opportunities Need for critical reflection on professional practice (in both universities and destination management!) Some academic research is of direct relevance to professional practice and development Some academic research is (or perhaps should be) of interest to practitioners Academics are increasingly required to engage with our sectors Funding opportunities exist 2

3 School of Tourism Events, Hospitality, Leisure, Retail, Sport & Tourism Bournemouth University Approx students, 1600 international students from 130 countries Six Schools England s Best New University 2009; 2010 (The Guardian League Tables) Significant Period of Investment in Buildings and People Ambitious Research & Enterprise Agenda for 2012 and Beyond

4 School of Tourism Events, Hospitality, Leisure, Retail, Sport & Tourism School of Tourism Budget : c 16m (R & E income c 1.2m) Over 100 Staff (77 Academics, high % Professorial) 1500 Undergraduate Students; 200 Postgraduate Students 45 PhD Students Strong international profile students, staff and partners

5 School of Tourism Events, Hospitality, Leisure, Retail, Sport & Tourism Indicators of quality Rated excellent by the QAA Research of national and international excellence (RAE / REF) Strong graduate employment rates High application rates UNWTO accreditation TMI recognition of BA (Hons) Tourism Management and MSc Destination Marketing and Management

6 School of Tourism Events, Hospitality, Leisure, Retail, Sport & Tourism Research Centres

7 School of Tourism Events, Hospitality, Leisure, Retail, Sport & Tourism Tourism Research Expertise includes: Tourism Development and Planning Economic and Econometric Impact Modelling Tourism Sector Management, Marketing and e-tourism Destination Management and Marketing Sustainable Development and Tourism Employment, Human Resources, and Education in tourism Health, well-being and social tourism

8 School of Tourism Events, Hospitality, Leisure, Retail, Sport & Tourism Tourism Research Projects include: Accessibility and Tourism Wildlife and Eco Tourism Slow Travel and well-being Tourism, Climate Change, Crises and Disaster Management Generational Change and Patterns of Consumer Behaviour Managing World Heritage Sites Real Ale Tourism

9 School of Tourism Events, Hospitality, Leisure, Retail, Sport & Tourism Recent Staff Publications:

10 School of Tourism Events, Hospitality, Leisure, Retail, Sport & Tourism Journals Edited in the School include:

11 School of Tourism, Bournemouth University: Partners and networks Tourism Management Institute England Tourism Research and Intelligence Partnership International Festivals and Events Association WTO / UNESCO / UNEP ATLAS (Association for Tourism and Leisure Education) European Union of Tourism Officers. 11

12 Funding relationships between destination management and higher education: The Bournemouth case Acronyms explained: NTBA HEIF funded DDP (inc. DIF,DIG, FAME) ESRC / AHRC NCTA 12

13 The Impetus Regional Growth Fund application to fund the development of the UK s first National Tourism Business Academy (NTBA) Driven by private business Guided by academics Supported by destination management professionals 13

14 The NTBA concept Aimed to: Offer blended learning to support tourism businesses Pioneer the formation of a whole destination as a shared learning resource Improve business performance for Bournemouth, Poole and the New Forest tourism sector Be fully operational as a national tourism business resource from

15 Disappointment! Regional Growth Fund bid rejected.. BUT. Funding secured from Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF) for The Destination Development Programme (DDP) 15

16 The Destination Development Programme: Working Towards a National Tourism Business Academy By 2015 Bournemouth University will be the pre-eminent institution for the study of tourist destinations in the UK and overseas and the home of a state of the art knowledge exchange to facilitate research, study, employer engagement, professional development and networking for all destination stakeholders. 16

17 Destination Development Programme Research Frameworks Destination Intelligence Framework (DIF) Framework for the Assessment of Major Events (FAME) Destination Innovations Group (DIG) Profile and Reputation Integrated Bidding New Venture Development 17

18 Destination Development Programme: Objectives To develop an exemplary model of destination-wide interaction and engagement among private and public sector tourism organisations, academic institutions (staff and students), destination management organisations and related external networks to foster and enhance the growth prospects of tourist destinations in their entirety and become the custodian of a knowledge repository of best practice in destination marketing and management. To offer a programme of blended learning to support professional development across tourist destinations to include lectures, workshops, seminars, webinars, peer-to-peer networks etc. 18

19 Destination Development Programme: Objectives To develop, and then market, robust and innovative research frameworks to underpin decision making in destinations and inform the development and testing of new products, events and markets. To enhance BU s profile and reputation as the pre-eminent institution for the study of tourism in the UK and provide an environment in which student recruitment (undergraduate, postgraduate, professional and PhD), internships and placements, consultancy, volunteering, graduate employment and academic research can flourish and raise the external profile of the destination and all destination stakeholders. 19

20 Destination Development Programme: Objectives To create a proactive culture of integrated bidding among destination stakeholders for external funding (e.g. EU, ESRC, AHRC) and growth opportunities. To collaborate with BU s Centre for Entrepreneurship and Business Engagement to facilitate new destination-related venture development. 20

21 Destination Development Programme: Elements Physical and Virtual Destination Knowledge Exchange Professional networking and mentoring External lectures and events Self-help facility and professional development Information repository Student hub for internships, placements, consultancy, volunteering and graduate employment Blended Learning MSc Destination Marketing & Management emarketing Strategies, Destination Marketing & Management, Managing the Visitor Experience Bite-size learning Collaboration with VisitEngland, TMI and Tourism Society 21

22 Destination Development Programme Elements: Destination Intelligence Framework (DIF) Development of research frameworks / models in collaboration with the University Market Research Group Collection and analysis of robust data to support operational and strategic planning 22

23 Destination Development Programme Elements: Framework for the Assessment of Major Events (FAME) Framework for assessing the viability of major events for Bournemouth to build on the expertise of the Air Festival Potentially transferable Framework developed and informed with key stakeholders and independent expert facilitation Need to tie in with wider destination development programme 23

24 Destination Development Programme Elements: Destination Innovation Group (DIG) To identify and harness the most dynamic Emerging Talent from the 18,000 strong tourism workforce in Bournemouth, Poole and the New Forest 24

25 Destination Innovation Group (DIG): Objectives To realise opportunities for: product and service innovation greater market differentiation a sharper competitive edge increased market share and: to inform a research and development programme that will draw on national and international examples to underpin ideas 25

26 HEIF as catalyst for successful bidding ESRC Knowledge Exchange Digital Destinations: Exchanging Digital Technology Knowledge in Local Tourism Economies Crown Estates/Coastal Communities National Coastal Tourism Academy 26

27 Some points arising from yesterday The destination brand = the sum of all the stories The DMO as the enabler in a destination Passionate communities Lifestage is key to influence buyer behaviour Big data how to mine it? What to do next Put 50% into CRM Where in the funnel can you influence? 27

28 Digital Destinations Recruit 60 visitor economy businesses diverse membership in terms of size, sector, skills and knowledge - divided into six clusters Aim: to discuss, develop, test and share best practice in online marketing focused on the development of an effective and measurable online marketing strategy Empower businesses in the destination Overall focus on co-production and co-delivery of knowledge End product - more effective individual business online marketing = greater online presence for the destination as a whole 28

29 Greater than the sum of the parts 29

30 What do the businesses get? An online marketing strategy developed, tested and critiqued over a 12-month period Expert input via face to face seminars, online webinars and access to materials via the project website A final year student is placed with the organisation and works alongside them on their online marketing strategy An opportunity to benchmark against peer group Insights into leading edge measurement and tracking of online marketing to get that all-elusive ROI data! Peer support 30

31 Poll Question: How do you measure your ROI from social media? a) New traffic to your website? b) New sales leads generated? c) The number of Likes / Fans / Views? d) Increase in brand sentiment? e) Collection of profiling data? 31

32 Results Question: How do you measure your ROI from social media? 32

33 Why Digital Visitor Digital Visitor specialise in the Travel, Tourism and Leisure sector both for: Social media technology Application for easy integration into websites providing review and social media capability Social media marketing Relevant experience for social media campaigns and channel management in the industry 33

34 Reviews increasing conversions Potential customers expect to see reviews 60% of consumers say they re more likely to make a purchase from a website with ratings and reviews Jupiter Research and iperceptions Why let customers leave your website to find these 34

35 Driving organic traffic Search engines love reviews Regularly added user generated reviews, including images and videos, will help to drive organic traffic 35

36 Increasing traffic from social media channels Sharing content with social media channels Company s profile Sharing content to your own profiles will drive traffic Customers Use your customers to tell other like minded individuals by sharing to their own profiles 36

37 Gathering content How can you gather content for your own website Ask customers to add reviews Make it easy for them Show reviews and media content against relevant products and services 37

38 Measurement is key Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted 38

39 Customer engagement value LTV CKV CEV CRV CIV 39

40 Crown Estates/Coastal Communities: National Coastal Tourism Academy (NCTA) The NCTA is a ground-breaking knowledge transfer initiative, designed to accelerate tourism growth in destinations and businesses across Britain. Its aim is to coordinate an entire coastal tourism destination as a centre of excellence that will provide a unique combination of practical and academic support. 40

41 S Shared vision Primary purposes of the NCTA To increase economic performance of tourism in Bournemouth, then more widely To establish the NCTA as a viable centre of excellence internationally. 41

42 NCTA Programme Elements Coastal Activity Park and programme Developing resort wide world class visitor experience programmes Coastal tourism product research and development programme Informed by and informing national and international research and best practice 42

43 NCTA: How is it funded? Two years funded support from the Coastal Communities Fund, administered by DCLG, with support from Bournemouth University and commitments from Bournemouth Tourism Management Board and Borough Council Key aims of securing long-term sustainability and longitudinal, funded research programmes and securing national and international profile and participation 43

44 A destination manager s perspective: Tony Climpson Benefits of delivering student lectures Value of student placements/secondments Students are the future we re the present (often the past ) Learning never stops It s a two way street 44

45 Relationships between universities and destination management: Issues and challenges What are your experiences and observations on working relationships between destination managers, the wider tourism sector and higher education? 45

46 Questions and Contacts: Lisa Ashurst School of Tourism, Bournemouth University