Anna Leask

Destination marketing: future issues - strategic challenges

Although pivotal to the travel and tourism system, the destination is widely acknowledged to be one of the most difficult products to manage and market. Over the coming decade, the challenges facing destination marketers are likely to be even greater with a whole host of issues likely to impact on the future marketing of destinations. This paper seeks to utilise an exploratory framework that brings together those issues deemed to be of significance to the future marketing of the destination product and examine the extent to which the framework can be applied to the marketing of two major destinations in the UK: London and Edinburgh. Both London and Edinburgh represent significant destinations for both domestic and international tourists and have been impacted by forces external and internal to the UK in recent years. For example, externally, 911 in the United States and SARS in South East Asia have both impacted on international travel patterns while the outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease in 2001 and the devolution and ‘regionalisation’ of tourism within the UK has impacted on the management and marketing of destinations within the UK at the local, sub-regional, regional and national levels. In addition to conducting a thorough review of the relevant literature and organising focus group sessions within their working environments, the authors also conducted a series of face-to-face interviews with appropriate stakeholders in the two destinations to identify and explore those future issues and strategic challenges facing those marketing destinations in the future generally, and specifically to the two destinations representing the focus of enquiry in this study. The one consistent finding — and the one that perhaps best encapsulates those 15 challenges identified in the proposed framework — is the issue of collaboration and the need for those within the destinations to work together in solving problems deemed too demanding to solve in isolation. For collaboration to succeed in the context of destinations, the destination management organisation needs to act as a strong unifying force that is able to bring all component parts of the destination together and develop the wider destination in its entirety. To conclude, both London and Edinburgh have ambitious growth targets for the future. Collaboration is key to the achievement of such targets as is the need to continue to diversify markets. The need to be cognisant of all those issues and forces impacting on their future direction is, however, vital if both destinations are to keep abreast of competing destinations; both at home and overseas.

Scottish visitor attractions: managing visitor impacts

The visitor attraction sector in Scotland plays a vital, if often overlooked, role in the wider Scottish tourism industry. Yet the sector presently faces a host of internal and external threats. In terms of external threats, the sector is currently experiencing heightened competition not only from overseas tourism markets but also from domestic leisure activities such as sport and shopping. Meanwhile the sector is widely acknowledged to have an oversupply of visitor attractions. In terms of internal threats, it is increasingly being recognised that the sector is susceptible to a range of negative visitor impacts. Even at current visitor levels such impacts could seriously compromise the resources upon which the sector draws and ultimately depends. This paper presents the findings of a postal survey of all of Scotlands 510 paid admission attractions in 1999. The survey explored perceptions of the range and severity of visitor impacts, relating these impacts to factors such as attraction type, admission prices, visitor numbers and ownership status. The paper concludes that predictions of future external trends do not bode well for the Scottish industry in its current form, and that an internally focused, quality-oriented strategy is required if the majority of attractions are to survive and prosper in the coming decade. This, in turn, means developing more effective ways of managing visitor impacts. While the focus of this study is on Scotland, some important lessons are identified for visitor attractions more generally.

Progressing socio‐cultural impact evaluation for festivals

The research project reported in this paper set out to advance the knowledge base of socio‐cultural festival evaluation and, through industry and academic liaison, produce a robust, comprehensive set of indicators. The purpose of this paper is threefold: first, to offer a summary of the synthesis of literature relating to methodologies for evaluating the socio‐cultural effects of festivals; second, to identify the emerging themes resulting from the existing literature; and third, as part of an evaluation of stakeholder perception, to present a comparative rating of a UK‐wide cross‐section of festival leaders (n = 60) of core impacts and their significance. The methods adopted were based on a comprehensive review of secondary literature in relation to the evaluation of socio‐cultural impacts of festivals, followed by telephone interviews with a sample of UK festival directors. Keywords: festivals and events; socio‐cultural benefits and disbenefits; indicators; festival directors; aggregative synthesis Abstract El proyecto de investigación se propone avanzar en el conocimiento base de la evaluación socio‐cultural de un festival que, a través de la conexión entre el entorno académico y la industria, produzca un conjunto de indicadores robustos y exhaustivo. El objetivo de este trabajo como componente significativo del proyecto es triple: primero, ofrecer una síntesis de la literatura relacionada con las metodologías para evaluar los efectos socio‐culturales de los festivales; segundo, identificar los temas emergentes en la literatura existente; y tercero, como parte de la evaluación de la percepción de las partes interesadas, presentar una clasificación de una sección cruzada de los líderes en festivales en el Reino Unido (n = 60), de los principales impactos y su significación. Los métodos escogidos están basados en una revisión exhaustiva de la literatura secundaria sobre la evaluación de los impactos socio‐culturales de los festivales, junto con entrevistas telefónicas a una muestra de directores de festival en el Reino Unido. Keywords: festivales y eventos; beneficios y perjuicios socio‐;culturales; indicadores; directores de festival; sí;ntesis global Résumé Ce projet de recherche envisage d’approfondir la base de connaissances de l’évaluation socioculturelle des festivals et, par l’intermédiaire de liens avec des universités et des industries, de produire une série complète et solide d’indicateurs. L’objectif de cet papier, en tant qu’élément significatif du projet est triple: premièrement, proposer un résumé des synthèses de la bibliographie relative aux méthodologies de l’évaluation des effets socioculturels des festivals; deuxièmement, identifier les thèmes émergents résultant de la bibliographie existante; troisièmement, dans le cadre d’une évaluation de la perception des parties prenantes, de présenter une évaluation comparative des directeurs de festivals (n = 60), des impacts fondamentaux et de leur signification, à l’échelle de la Grande Bretagne. Les méthodes adoptées étaient fondées sur une revue complète de la bibliographie secondaire relative à l’évaluation des conséquences socioculturelles des festivals, suivie d’entretiens téléphoniques auprès d’un échantillon de directeurs de festivals britanniques.

Generation Y: opportunity or challenge - strategies to engage Generation Y in the UK attractions' sector.

This study examines the extent to which Generation Y (Gen Y) serves as an opportunity or challenge for visitor attractions in the UK and the corresponding strategies adopted to seek engagement with this generational segment. A multiple-case study design was adopted with face-to-face interviews undertaken with senior personnel at leading visitor attractions across the UK. The paper advances a number of marketing and experiential strategies before advocating that further research is required to explore the growing pains of Gen Y from ‘adolescence’ to ‘adulthood’ if the industry is going to be able to understand, meet and hopefully exceed their needs, wants and expectations in the challenging years to come.

Exploring the relationship between visitor attractions and events: definitions and management factors

The growing definitional debate on the terms ‘visitor attractions’ and ‘events’ highlights the need to compare their key determinants and management factors. The article elaborates on this definitional debate, by exploring existing definitions and developing an illustration of a continuum between visitor attractions and events. This is followed by a comparison of the management factors and key criteria in the effective management of visitor attractions and events. The findings indicate that while there are many similarities between the sectors, aspects such as spatio-temporality and levels of integration with the visitor attraction nucleus are identified as factors that differentiate them. In conclusion, the article determines that events should be examined separately from the visitor attraction sector due to their differing perspectives, measures, and management needs.

Researching the management of visitor attractions: International Comparative Study Issues

The paucity of literature in the field of visitor attractions, combined with the virtual vacuum of literature on international comparative research methodologies in tourism generally, and more specifically within the visitor attractions sector, together serve as the catalytic focus for this paper. Where studies have been completed on visitor attractions in the international arena, they have often been practitioner-led and lack the depth of analysis and rigour required for academic scrutiny. This paper will begin to fill this gap, by evaluating the methodological options available to academics when researching visitor attractions in different countries. Reference will be made throughout the paper to an international comparative study undertaken by the authors at visitor attractions in Scotland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The paper concludes with a synthesis of those methodological issues deemed to be of benefit to future researchers wishing to advance their understanding of the management of visitor attractions in different countries around the world.

Engaging the multi-generational workforce in tourism and hospitality

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to present strategies that hospitality and tourism organisations might adopt as a means of encouraging employee engagement, thus enabling the more effective management of an increasingly multi-generational workforce. This paper evaluates current strategies being adopted that might encourage employee engagement by a selection of hospitality and tourism organisations and develop recommendations for organisations wishing to more effectively engage the multi-generational workforce. Design/methodology/approach – This study adopts a mixed methods approach and presents findings based on a series of semi-structured interviews with management and self-completion questionnaires aimed at employees. Findings – The relationship between the supervisor and the employee remains a key enhancer regarding engagement and employees are increasingly demanding more contemporary methods of communication. Employers should take note of generational characteristics and adopt flexible policies attractive to all employees. Practical implications – This paper contributes no t only to the debate regarding generational differences in the workplace but it also identifies that the various generations evident in tourism organisations are desirous of similar working conditions and benefits. Organisations should consider the development of a range of packages that focus on linking employees with their purpose, their colleagues and their resources as a means of encouraging employee engagement. Originality/value – This study contributes to the debate regarding employee engagement and compares and contrasts initiatives that various tourism and hospitality organisations are adopting as a means of encouraging employee engagement. The study also elicits the views of the organisations employees to understand the extent of the effectiveness of such initiatives and makes recommendations regarding the most effective initiatives from both a management and employee perspective.

Managing Visitor Impacts at Visitor Attractions: An International Assessment

This paper presents the findings of a study designed to extend and develop a previous study conducted by the authors on the management of visitor impacts at visitor attractions in Scotland. This follow-up study sets out to discover the extent to which attractions in other countries experience similar impacts, with comparable management challenges to those already identified in the Scottish visitor attraction sector. In order to provide a direct comparison to the Scottish study, a replication of the research methodology employed in that study was considered necessary. A self-completion survey was thus mailed to managers of paid-admission attractions in Canada, Australia and New Zealand: three ‘leading-edge’ destinations selected for comparison. Findings suggest that although many impacts are perceived to be similar across the four countries, a number of important differences are evident. Given that the reasons for such differences vary, the paper concludes that the development of a generic strategy for the management of visitor impacts internationally remains something for the future. In the meantime, the sector should rely on the identification and adoption of best practice on a case-by-case basis. The sector’s diversity and fragmentation suggest that qualitative research holds the key to identifying appropriate techniques for managing visitor impacts.

Managing revenue in Scottish visitor attractions.

Revenue management is often identified as a potentially valuable tool for addressing some of the challenges currently facing visitor attractions. This article sets out to investigate the adoption of revenue-management practices by Scottish paid-entry attractions and examines how this usage has changed over the period 1999–2009. It begins with a review of the literature published over that decade and then outlines the research methods used to gather the data used in the study. Key findings indicate that while there is significant potential for Scottish visitor attractions to employ revenue-management practices, their current use is limited both in terms of scope and sophistication. Greater adoption of revenue-management practices, such as price differentiation and the management of revenue information, is evident across the sector. However, attractions charging higher admission prices and with greater levels of turnover tend to be those adopting the more advanced revenue-management practices. The range of revenue-generation streams employed by Scottish attractions has widened over the decade, as has the range of pricing mechanisms employed. The findings indicate the value of longitudinal research and indicate the need for further work in this area.

The role of heritage tourism in the Shetland Islands.

Purpose – This paper aims to determine the role of heritage tourism in Shetland Island destination development and how this links to tourism public policy in island communities.Design/methodology/approach – The study is conducted in the Shetland Islands, located off the north coast of Scotland, UK. Descriptive and inductive approaches are utilized to enable the researchers to recognize multiple social structures and draw conclusions from observations and specific information. Primary research focuses on semi‐structured interviews with key informants. Data is analyzed via a mix of content analysis and interpretation of the responses through a connected narrative approach.Findings – Seasonality is a key feature of Shetland Island tourism, alongside other key limitations to growth including transport links and climatic conditions. Potential conflicts exist between tourism stakeholders and their perceptions of the effectiveness of the heritage tourism public policy in Shetland, though overall stakeholder coll...