CVB speaker: Focusing on customer service will lure new visitors to area
April 23, 2009
The featured speaker at Wednesday's West Virginia Convention and Visitors Bureaus conference at Stonewall Resort said the 2009 outlook for tourism is bleak, but said the storm could be weathered if the industry gets back to the basics.
"It's harder now than ever to lure new visitors," said Berkeley Young, a 20-year veteran of marketing in the tourism and travel industries. "Now is the time to focus on customer service. We have got to get in the business of working with every guest on a one-on-one basis."
The slumping economy has forced travelers to rethink their plans for the foreseeable future, he said. Trends indicate that people will be taking shorter trips, and recreational vehicle trips are expected to increase because of lower fuel prices. He said more people are planning their trips at the last minute.
But those who promote weekend getaways and other packages should pay attention to current events.
"You have to pay attention to the news cycles," Young said. "Nobody is listening to travel plans when the news is bad."
Young said even though the economy is in a downward trend, people will still be traveling. He said that is different from 30 years ago when vacation travel was considered a luxury.
"Travel is no longer a luxury," he said. "Travel is much needed therapy, so many will keep traveling. We do it because we have to get away.
"Traffic jams are still out there. The spending may be down, but they are still out there. It's an activity."
He told those who promote destinations and attractions that they have to change the old ways of thinking. He illustrated his point by asking people who now longer wear a wristwatch to stand up.
"The world's watchmakers may be in trouble, as teenagers look to their mobile phones rather than their wrists to tell time," he said. "Watches have become a fashion accessory. They are selling more of the (high-end, higher cost) watches than ever before."
Young said the first step would be changing the ever-popular visitors centers into sales centers.
He said those centers should offer services such as restaurant reservations to mapping out routes for daily jogs.
Informational services have been a staple for the centers, but he said those facilities should also offer electronic banking terminals, food, gift shops and other items travelers search out on a stop.
He also urged those operating the centers to be more traveler friendly.
"Do people quit traveling after 5 p.m.?" he said. "Then why do we close the center at 5 p.m.? It becomes a selling place for the whole community."
Young also urged for the marketing agencies to learn more about who is coming to a community and why. He said if people are visiting a destination because of business or educational travel, there should be a plan in place to deal with that aspect.
"You can't be all things to all people, so you should match your product to your area," he said.
He said the industry needs to embrace technology and better monitor travel review sites.
He said no matter how hard a staff works to make a visitor feel welcome, a bad review on an Internet travel site could put things into disarray.
Bad reviews could make for fewer visitors, meaning less money coming into the communities. He said the travel industry should work hand-in-hand with the economic development authorities across the state.
"We're here to make money for our communities," he said. "We're not cheerleaders putting up balloons for everything."
