Relevancy in Research:
What’s Important for Your Destination
By John Kelsh and Jane Brooks
If you’re planning a vacation to somewhere you’ve never been before, perhaps Tibet, you’re sure to do plenty of research before you decide where to stay and what to do while you’re there. You’d want to find out about security issues, language barriers, health concerns, transportation, monetary exchange rates, local customs, technology in terms of cell phones and internet access, and voltages for your electric gear. Without doing ample research, your vacation wouldn’t be nearly as enjoyable; in fact, it could be disastrous.
But, in doing all your research for a trip to Tibet, you probably wouldn’t feel the need to find out about lodging in Paris, or the exchange rate in Brazil. That type of research just wouldn’t apply to your needs.
The same principles apply to branding and marketing your community as a destination. Solid research must be the foundation for developing a community brand, but the research must be relevant. When you purchase data, statistics or trends, you should know how those numbers apply to your needs, how those statistics affect your planning, and how those trends will influence your decisions. If you’re going to spend time and money on research data, you want that data to help you reach your goals.
Many communities feel that hiring an advertising firm to develop a new logo and slogan is all they need to create a new brand for their community. They might use local focus groups to come up with a concept that makes everyone feel good. But a brand is what other people think of you – the image and promise you convey to the outside world. To develop a community brand that is successful – one that repositions your community in a favorable light, sets you apart from other communities, and attracts visitors and business investment – your brand must be built on the right research. The opinions of your market are more important in this regard than the opinions of your community.
When thinking about hiring firms to help you through the branding process, you’ll want to consider their familiarity with the following basic components:
The assessment – community research
This step paints a picture of what your community looks like today in the eyes of your customer, in terms of product as well as marketing.
Evaluate your marketing efforts – not just the local chamber’s marketing, but all the marketing pieces from the community. A physical drive-through and walk-about of the community by an objective third party can reveal an accurate picture of how the community presents itself and what it has to offer visitors.
Community outreach
No one knows your community like the people who live there. Your consultants should meet with a score of key residents in your community to begin an on-going dialogue about local assets, problems, past efforts, strengths, personal opinions, local attitudes, funding sources, and the profile of visitors. These interviews should be followed up with phone calls, e-mails, and correspondence that keep the communication open during the full planning process.
Consider the option of developing an Online Resident Survey, to seek additional feedback and ideas from citizens throughout the branding process.
Review of previous plans, studies and research
Doing the same thing over and over again generally gives you the same results. The consultants should review and summarize all previous plans and studies produced by the community related to tourism, economic development, and marketing. It’s important to know what’s been done in the past that works or doesn’t, and to understand the goals the community has already laid out for itself.
Reviews should include current tourism statistics – not to be restricted by the current visitor profile, but to understand the trends. Consider the physical elements of the destination as well. Review planning maps, GIS and CAD drawings, looking for logical ways to improve the destination.
Competitive research
One of the most important factors for a successful brand is its sense of being unique. Knowing the competition is critical to this effort. Research neighboring towns, similar brand concepts regionally and nationally, and how best to develop various brand concepts. If these destinations are within your market area, they would be competitive, but if they aren’t, they provide great case studies of what you might accomplish.
Product research
Your visitors’ experiences are a direct reflection of what your community has to offer for them to do – and that is your product mix. If your visitors’ experiences don’t live up to the brand image you promise them, then your branding efforts will fail. Your community needs the product that fulfills the brand. Good consultants bring this knowledge to the table and seek out product development options and experiences that can be added to your community’s attractions to help build your successful brand.
Market research
Your marketing efforts should focus on your customers’ wants and needs. Research your market area for local residents, day visitors, and those spending the night. Consider demographics of the market areas, travel times and distances. Is your market upscale or blue collar? Singles or family-oriented? These factors will help determine your focus.
There are many commercially available market-profiling systems you can acquire to provide information about the selected market, spending by retail category, socio-economic segment, and cross-participation activities of visitors. If you are not familiar with them, your consultants should know how to use them.
Great brand development plans are based on solid research and feasibility, not simply “feel-good” sentiment. Just as you wouldn’t research lodging in Paris for your vacation in Tibet, your planning team should focus on research efforts that bring you real, useful knowledge. At Destination Development, the research we use is intimately connected with the goals of the plan, providing a concrete foundation for specific actions and recommendations that will make your community branding efforts successful.
