As Barbados seeks to rebuild its tourism industry after one of the worse global health crises and local tourism officials complain of some rough summer months ahead, two industry experts are warning of the need for a more strategic approach.
Agreeing that there is need for a more diversified economy, they made a case for greater innovation and sustainable practices to be incorporated in the tourism industry while at the same time, ensuring that residents benefit more.
In this first of a multipart series that examines the way forward for the sector, tourism industry veterans William Griffith and Dr Kerry Hall shared insights with Barbados TODAY on how they see the island’s bread and butter industry shaping up as it emerges from the ravages of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr Hall said coming out of the pandemic one of the key lessons was the need to become more crisis-resilient, with a more proactive approach.
“We can ensure this occurs by creating a Crisis Resilient Task Force which will conduct frequent environmental scans to track trends and scenario modelling to plan effective and proactive crisis management modules, policies and programmes,” she said.
Moreover, Dr Hall, who has written several policy papers on ways to develop the industry, called for the development of a “comprehensive domestic tourism policy” with a year-round partnership created between tourism and the Barbadian people.
Pointing out that industry operators should not just seek the patronage of locals during times of crisis for “their economic salvation”, Hall said tourism should be practiced in a way that the Barbadian people feel “included, welcomed, valued and appreciated” on a year-round basis, so that as domestic tourists, they will naturally step in and protect and sustain the industry when the next crisis strikes.
Hall also recommended that officials develop and showcase more “authentic, immersive, unique, memorable and off-the-beaten-path experiences” and things to do that travellers will share with the world.
“One of the most cost-effective ways to market now is to get the consumer to do the marketing for you. This is how we reach ‘Generation Next’ who is wedded to their mobile phones. Everyone is looking for that Instagram moment,” said Hall.
“Travellers are also looking for personalization and convenience, so we have to start to better utilize digital personalisation to cluster special interest activities in order to tailor the experience to match personal preferences, which would result in increased loyalty and repeat visits,” she said.
Calling for the continued building out of an e-commerce capacity, Hall said the pandemic had highlighted the need for Barbados to have a more diversified economy. She pointed to the strength of the tourism industry over the years with its “sand, sea and sun proposition”.
“The island’s over-reliance on an industry as fickle as tourism for its economic survival is too risky and reinforces the urgent need to institute a system of national economic diversification as a protective mechanism for Barbados.
“It is estimated that the level of global volatility and instability is forecasted to increase and the world will continue to face increased levels of risk and uncertainty. As a consequence, this is the clarion call for Barbados, that we can no longer once again become complacent after COVID passes, but must urgently discover and implement new revenue models that do not depend on tourism to sustain the Barbados economy and quality of life of the Barbadian people when, not if, the next crisis strikes,” said Hall.
Meanwhile, Griffith told Barbados TODAY while the island has traditionally enjoyed significant awareness for decades, especially in the UK market, it would naturally continue to be in demand with a “solid repeat factor” especially since the COVID-19 pandemic had resulted in a “huge” pent-up demand for travel among individuals.
However, he quickly pointed out that the tourism landscape was becoming increasingly more competitive and Barbados’ efforts should be more strategic.
“Many destinations will be vying to attract new visitors. Barbados’ efforts will likely continue to be more focused and targeted to the customer who has the propensity for a holiday on the island. Programmatic advertising, digital marketing and social media will be key strategies in this approach,” he said.
Griffith said if the COVID-19 pandemic had taught anything it should be that “the world is smaller and more connected than we thought previously, as one virus can literally disable the entire world”.
“As a predominantly tourism-dependent economy, we have learnt that our crisis management plans can be improved on, despite the fact that everyone was impacted in the same way,” said Griffith.
marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb
