OUT NOW: STEPPING OUT OF THE CROWD

Encouraging visitors to leave crowded hotspots and go in search of more enriching experiences has never been more important for destinations looking to capitalise on the rising tide of visitors from Asia’s emerging outbound markets. This is especially the case in Europe, where local residents in some of the continent’s most popular tourist hotspots have already started calling for restrictions on visitor numbers and outright bans in some neighborhoods.

While better visitor management is clearly needed in some cities, we believe that not all solutions to this dilemma have to involve clamp-downs, restrictions, bans and penalties. Just as forward-looking cities are learning to integrate the sharing economy into their tourism ecosystem (something we’ve talked a lot about recently in countries such as Portugal and Croatia), they are also finding creative ways to spread visitor spending further away from the city centre, or even to surrounding towns and villages.

This is something that we make clear in the report ‘Stepping Out of the Crowd, Where the Next Generation of Asian Travellers is Headed and How to Win a Place on their Travel Itinerary’.

This comprehensive 150-page report draws on unique consumer research carried out among Asian Millennials, as well as expert opinion, case studies from leading travel brands and data from PATA’s own forecasts on cross-border travel. It also gives practical recommendations on where to start when putting a dispersal strategy in place.

Main features of the report:

• Unique consumer research from Millennials in 13 outbound markets across Asia on their attitudes towards trip planning, city visits and going ‘off the beaten track’.
• Data from the PATA five year forecast to show how international arrival arrivals will affect APAC destinations in the coming years
• Expert opinion from 14 market-leading tourism organisations, travel brands and influencers on how to set out an effective dispersal strategy.
• Recommendations to public and private sector organisations on how to create more effective and rewarding products that encourage dispersal for Asian Millennial travellers.

How to get the report:
Full report – PATA Store (free for PATA members, US$100 for non-members)
Executive Summary (free download)
PATA press release

Video & Case Study

TOPOSOPHY makes the best of what every place has to offer

As a destination marketing and management agency whose long-term commitment is to help destinations to ‘make the best of what every place has to offer’, TOPOSOPHY is delighted to have been part of such a groundbreaking project. We believe in smart planning that understands market dynamics, combined with innovative marketing that makes use of creative technological solutions. We also know that ‘hidden gems’ are what can put your place on the map. So if you’re interested to learn more about how to make the best of what your place has to offer, just drop us an email or come and meet us at our forthcoming events. We’d be pleased to talk with you!

Click here to watch the case study video 

A FEW INSIGHTS FROM PLACE MARKETING & BRANDING 2015+

Following the announcement of the latest report by Best Place, yet I am already looking forward to meet up again soon with good colleagues and dedicated experts such as Juan Carlos Belloso, Martin Boisen, Joao R. Freire, Raquel Goulart, Robert Govers, Björn P. Jacobsen, Mihalis Kavaratzis, Stefan Roesch, Gildo Seisdedos, and Sebastian Zenker, and discuss with them about conceptual issues and practical implications of place marketing and place branding.

On a personal note, this well-structured report gave me the opportunity to reflect on why strengthening the brand of Athens and bringing back actual results via integrated destination management & marketing efforts has probably been the most difficult project to be involved with. Together with academic knowledge and professional experience in tourism planning and development, ‘This is Athens’ project was a rather valuable asset. Above all, it helped me grasp the importance of a holistic perspective on the various elements that constitute and sustain the very essence of each place. To remember the accurate observation of Juan Carlos Belloso inside the same report, place brands incorporate emotional links and passions which are triggered by the managerial objectives and approaches of various stakeholders.

The key here is that a place brand must be true and enduring in order to be always part of changing marketing priorities. In this sense, place marketing is about ensuring that the brand message and the story of an area are strategically and methodically delivered to the right audiences through the appropriate channels, to successfully reach set targets and compete for a place in target visitors’ hearts. Interestingly, the generation of emotional links does not necessarily involve sales instruments, which is also why Stefan Roesch has a great point in identifying film productions as an ideal vehicle for place marketing.

All in all, Place Marketing & Branding 2015+ is both a great resource for practitioners and academics within the field and a call to action for more research and practical innovation.

In Toposophy, we are excited to be part of this ongoing effort and we are looking forward to add more interesting insights in the future. As such, we will certainly continue to count on the hard work of the Best Place Institute Board of Directors including Adam Mikotajczyk, Magdalena Florek and Jarostaw Gorski, whom we thank for their full commitment and ongoing assistance.

 

THE SHARING ECONOMY IN TOURISM AND THE HOSPITALITY SECTOR

LESSONS FOR TOURISM DESTINATIONS AND BUSINESSES

In recent years, the sharing economy has begun to transform many aspects of life. It is enabling individuals, companies and communities to re-imagine how they live, grow, connect and operate sustainably. Tourism has emerged as one of the leading sectors for growth in the sharing economy as visitors and residents share homes, cars, boats, four course meals and a whole lot else.

As the sharing economy has ballooned to attract users and providers of all ages and walks of life, it’s clear that sharing someone’s apartment or car isn’t always just about saving money. A multitude of drivers have pushed sharing to become the mainstream practice that it is today and there are many lessons that tourism destinations and businesses can learn from that as they grapple with reforming laws to keep consumers safe, and competition fair.

In the coming weeks you’ll be able to learn more as TOPOSOPHY’s experts release a groundbreaking report called The Sharing Economy in Tourism and the Hospitality Sector with lessons to be learned on all sides and many opportunities to share opinions as TOPOSOPHY plans Sharing Economy Workshops across Europe in 2015.

Here’s a sneak preview of the report. Enjoy!

http://prezi.com/embed/vksv9h6bhnxn/?bgcolor=ffffff&lock_to_path=1&autoplay=0&autohide_ctrls=0&features=undefined&token=undefined&disabled_features=undefined

WE’VE REBRANDED

WELCOME TO TOPOSOPHY

“TOPOSOPHY” set to become the leading integrated destination marketing agency in Europe.

Aiming to become the leading integrated destination management & marketing agency in Europe, TOPOSOPHY is celebrating its official launch today (30/10/2014) as a new corporate entity offering a full range of specialized, end-to-end solutions in destination management & marketing. With a broad network of experts around the world, the company is well-equipped to work with a diverse clientele base within the travel and tourism industry using an innovative approach, flexible operations and fully committed partners at all levels.

TOPOSOPHY is the totally reengineered and rebranded entity derived from ABOUTOURISM Destination Consultants. Founded in 2010, ABOUTOURISM has already received several distinctions in the consultancy arena. In just over four years, the company’s portfolio has boasted high-level projects and a global network of associates from some of the industry’s leading brands.

TOPOSOPHY’s CEO Manolis Psarros explains: “Having a clear overview of the international industry developments and the changing needs of our clients, we decided it was time to put our flexibility in practice and take a truly bold step. Over the past few months we have worked hard to redesign our entire set of services, and truly enrich our strategically driven solutions to make sure that we offer our DMO, tourism board, hospitality, airline, tour operator and all tourism industry clients,  top notch, creative and effective solutions with measurable results”. “We’re now drawing on a much broader base of expertise from across the globe, and that’s going to give a big boost to the services we offer” he added.

TOPOSOPHY’s top digital applications and marketing offering is powered by the ATCOM Group of Companies, the leading web agency in the Greek market, with an extensive project portfolio and unrivaled experience on the creation of portals, e-Shops and web and mobile applications. As a Business Unit of ATCOM, TOPOSOPHY will share resources with the whole group of ATCOM Companies & Business Units (ATCOM/Mindworks/UXLab) in web development and digital marketing services, enabling brands to obtain the visibility they need with a focus on delivering perfect integrated digital experiences.

“‘Toposophy’  means gaining an understanding of the whole place, not just viewed through the narrow view of a destination. That’s why we make the effort to understand the latest industry conditions, engage partners and the local community so that we can reveal a destination’s uniqueness in every form; online and offline. That’s the surest way to plan for a tourism destination’s future” explains Manolis.

TOPOSOPHY’S services focus on offering complete solutions in the following areas: destination strategy & planning destination marketing & branding, market intelligence, trade marketing, policy advice & government support, events & workshops, website & mobile solutions, content & social media marketing, performance marketing & search services, tailor-made to every destination’s distinct needs.

We are strategists and we have an in-house team of more than 150 designers, developers, imagineers, marketers, tourism consultants and magicians along with an elite international dedicated network of hand-picked associates and ensure that everything is possible!

Whether we have worked together in the past or not yet, or you simply want to tell us how much you just love our new website (we certainly do!), get to know us better by scrolling through each section and discover our ready-made reports, white papers, case studies and future plans.  Connect with us on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn or talk directly to one of our destination management & marketing experts on +30 2102419654 or email (info@toposophy.com).

We’re Hiring!

@boutourism is an international, boutique destination development & marketing consultancy offering specific solutions & implementation support in every stage of the destination’s development, management and marketing process. Our elite team of destination experts and tourism professionals combines extensive experience as practitioners, managing operations, with many years of consultancy experience working for DMOs and related organisations around the world.

By recently becoming a business unit of the ATCOM group, @bout tourism can also provide integrated marketing solutions, ranging from Marketing strategy and planning to Web Design and development and a full suite of Digital Marketing services, for Destinations, Tourism Associations, OTAs and Travel/Hospitality Organizations around the world.

We are now looking for an Integrated Marketing Manager to play a key role in the expansion of the company  in new markets and new services. The Integrated marketing manager should have experience in destination & travel marketing, be acquainted with digital marketing and social media and have a passion to grow at an international level.

 Desired Skills and Experience

Corporate Development

• Assist in strategic planning, implementation and delivery of the corporate marketing plan that complements the overall corporate strategic direction and brand.
• Build new and maintain corporate relationships with key international and national industry players.
• Liaise and network with a range of stakeholders including clients, colleagues, associates and partner organizations;
• Locate/propose potential business deals by contacting potential partners;
• Handle corporate communication with company associates, partners and clients, according to needs.
• Monitor competitor activity.

Campaign Management

• Manage the development and implementation of integrated marketing programs for the @boutourism clients.
• Develop e-tourism platforms, including websites, and constructing business databases by liaising with Web Designers,  developers and UX experts
• Work with all travel/tourism-related clients to explore and identify ways to integrate offline and online media into business strategies and marketing campaigns.
• Develop online content for clients’ social and digital platforms, including messaging, posts and other editorial content.
• Manage the production of online/offline marketing materials
• Manage marketing budgets & evaluate marketing campaigns;

Events & Workshops

• Run training courses to encourage networking and economic growth in the tourism industry.
• Set up and attend tourism fairs and travel trade workshops.
• Organize and attend events such as conferences, seminars, receptions and exhibitions;

Desired skills

• Bachelor/Masters Degree in Tourism or Marketing
• 3-5 years in Tourism/Destination Marketing ideally working with Digital media
• Ability to multi-task
• Proactive mindset
• Ability to work with international clients on various projects

Please apply via linked @ http://linkd.in/WHac3q