Tap into China via social media


Singer Steve Smith tours Spain in the promotional  lm Route o ate


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ravel brands hoping to court the booming China market were told during an Asia Inspiration Zone session not to underestimate the importance of word-of-mouth via social media. Chinese travellers use social media more heavily than their Western counterparts, with 0 posting three to fi ve times a day while on holiday, said speakers from specialist digital marketing agency Dragon Trail. Travel companies and hotels were advised to check out their existing online reputation by employing a Chinese speaker to search review sites and to encourage feedback from their Chinese guests – ideally via a QR code. “Use user-generated content as part of your marketing strategy,” said Dragon Trail’s managing director EME oy raff . While the Chinese have only been able to travel widely in recent years, still closed-off orth orea is being embraced by the acifi c sia Travel Association (Pata), which will next year launch an initiative called Peace to Tourism. “With the support of our agencies, we hope we can help in the reunifi cation of orth and outh orea and help alleviate poverty,” said Pata’s chief executive Dr Mario Hardy.


Poon Tip: ‘Tourism can e a a o iin a


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Adventures founder Bruce Poon Tip urged travel companies to change their business models to “transform lives”, using travel as “a force for good”. Speaking at WTM London, Poon


Tip said he believed tourism, set to become a $10 trillion industry in 10 years’ time, “could be the greatest form of wealth distribution the world has ever seen”, adding that going on holiday “can be a way of giving something back”. Poon Tip was critical of companies who sell travellers the “creature comforts off ered by bigger is better cruise ships and all-inclusive holidays located in some of the poorest


Bruce Poon Tip


dubbed all-inclusive ‘an unsustainale model


countries, stating: “This is so far away from


the experience of what travel should be; if you can’t leave without feeling like you’ve left home, stay home.” He said all-inclusive hotels bring little to local economies, and push value for money over experiences for guests. Poon Tip dubbed the all-inclusive “an unsustainable model”, and said he hoped there would be a “tipping point, where people match their values with how they travel”. The founder of the adventure travel company said change was inevitable, since people are beginning to live more responsibly at home. He added that selling experiences would bring more fulfi lment to travel companies and their clients. “Seeing other cultures leads to a greater appreciation of who we are,” he added. Poon Tip advised businesses to change their brand positioning and business models to refl ect this upsurge in responsible living, becoming social enterprises because “people buy from people, not brands”. He said travel was especially suited to driving change, as those in it are passionate about their jobs. G Adventures recently conducted a travel agent survey that he said demonstrated a passion to make a diff erence. f those questioned, 1 were “purpose-driven”, meaning they wanted to help change the world through travel.


W 6 wtm insights winter 2018


estern African nations are to exhibit in one pavilion at next year’s WTM London as


they seek greater collaboration.


QUESTION TIME Travel bosses gathered to hear infl uential businesswoman


EET R


Susan Hooper interviewed on stage at the exclusive Leaders’ Lunch on the opening day of WTM London at ExCeL. Hooper sits on the board of the Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) as well as on the boards of several major travel and leisure companies including ber , The ank Group and Wizz Air.


wtm.com


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