How to attract tourists to the country. How to attract tourists? – We create a beautiful story. Promising niches for the next few years

Currently, the most promising types of tourism in the global tourism market, growing at a faster pace, are:

– cultural and educational tourism, covering 10% of the total international tourist flow and characterized by a high average rate of tourist spending;

– active species tourism, such as sports and adventure, which are becoming increasingly popular in the world;

– specialized tourism, implying such varieties as environmental, scientific, educational, event, medical and recreational, etc.;

– cruise – sea and river cruises, in which more than 12 million tourists participated in 2006;

– business tourism, covering the so-called MICE industry (business meetings, events, conferences, incentive trips).

Yacht tourism in Russia as a whole is just beginning to develop, and the number of tourists is no more than 0.5% of the domestic tourist flow; it is most popular in Leningrad region and Karelia, although it could develop in all of the named coastal regions.

One of the pressing problems is the problem of the transport component in providing further development tourism in Russia. This applies to aviation, rail, water and road transport, and the construction of highways.

An important aspect of shaping the image of Russia as a country open to the world is its visa policy. Currently, strategic importance is attached to the dialogue with the EU on the abolition in the long term of visas for mutual trips of citizens of Russia and the EU. Issues of simplifying visa formalities are beginning to be successfully resolved at the bilateral level. Examples of this are the Agreements between the Governments of Russia and Thailand, as well as Russia and Israel on visa-free travel for citizens. At the same time, the issues of facilitating access for foreign tourists into inland waters Russian Federation, to the northern regions, which have significant potential for the development of inbound tourism.

Non-commercial advertising abroad is currently carried out in a number of European countries, such as Germany, Great Britain, Austria, Spain, Italy, France, as well as in Japan and China, using outdoor advertising and media advertising. The scope of this work is limited by existing budget funding.

There is widespread promotion of holidays in the country for Russian citizens on all-Russian and regional television, stories about the benefits of holidays in Russia are posted on radio and television, in major print publications, and in Russian cities.

Advertising and information products on printed and electronic media are published in large print runs in 11 languages of the main destination markets and are intended for non-commercial distribution at international tourism exhibitions, through Russian foreign missions, the World Tourism Organization and other international organizations, at official meetings with the leadership of national tourism organizations foreign countries and similar events.

International events of an event nature stimulate the promotion of Russia as a country of business tourism, which has the appropriate infrastructure, personnel and tourism product. These include annual international conferences, seminars and other forums devoted to the most pressing problems of tourism development. The Days of Russian Tourism held in countries that are the main destination markets, as well as thematic expositions within the framework of national general exhibitions abroad, have proven their effectiveness.

5. Russian company, working in the field of receiving foreign tourists (domestic international tourism), plans to enter new segments - American and Japanese. It is necessary to identify the differences between Japanese and American tourists and take them into account when developing advertising campaigns.

Features of Japanese tourists:

Japanese tourists are very attractive to many countries because... during their travels they spend quite large sums, on average 2-3 times more than any other foreign tourist, which is very beneficial for the host country. In this regard, a struggle is heating up between host countries to attract Japanese tourists. In order not to remain aloof from these changes in the global tourism market, it is necessary to conduct a deep and comprehensive marketing analysis of the main trends in the development of tourism in Japan. To increase the influx of Japanese tourists to Russia, it is necessary to study both the internal factors influencing the Japanese choice of tourist destinations and the capabilities of the Russian side to receive Japanese tourists.

Attracting foreign tourists to the country depends on many different factors: economic, political, environmental and, of course, related to the problem of tourist safety and the level of development of services. This, first of all. quality of service for foreign tourists in hotels, transport, tourist excursion enterprises and cultural and entertainment institutions, level of information services, etc. Japanese tourists demand a high level of comfort from accommodation, transport, information services, not inferior to Japanese. At the same time, they want the pleasure they receive to correspond to the payment and do not adhere to the principle “the cheaper, the better.” In addition, Japanese tourists are considered very specific tourists in terms of food habits, customs, and are very sensitive to safety and sanitation issues, so their reception must be prepared in advance.

Among the factors that determine the choice of a travel destination by a Japanese tourist are the following: safety of travel, popularity of the destination, attractiveness from the point of view of the purpose of travel, reasonable price, comfort and ease of travel, ease of movement. When choosing a means of travel, the Japanese first of all pay attention to flight safety and the possibility of using preferential fares, the so-called FFP (Frequent Flier Program) mile cards. Not on last place The service in the aircraft cabin also costs, including logistical aspects of the service (hard) and organizational aspects (soft). Additional services include the provision of tourist goods.

An analysis of preferred travel purposes shows that over the past 5 years there have been no changes in the top five travel purposes, which indicates that these purposes are stereotypical. It can be noted that the trips have a strong excursion focus; in particular, admiring nature and landscapes, as well as getting to know historical and cultural attractions, come first.

Japanese tourists, especially women, love shopping. The Japanese have a national custom: from a trip they should bring a lot of gifts for relatives, neighbors, and colleagues. Handicrafts are especially popular, so developing souvenirs that suit the tastes and inclinations of the Japanese leads to increased tourism income. Japanese tourists love souvenirs that can be used in everyday life. Therefore, national Russian souvenirs are well suited for the Japanese, and they are also lightweight, easy to pack and do not break. The existing problem of the language barrier requires a special approach to sales technology; in particular, it is recommended that the sale of goods be carried out at prices that are reasonably set and clearly indicated on the price tags. You should also consider issues related to packaging and removal of souvenirs.

Japanese tourists are extremely inquisitive, and when traveling they strive to see and hear as much as possible. They eagerly and joyfully get acquainted with the folk art of the host country, which cannot be seen anywhere else. Based on this, to get acquainted with the history and culture of the host country, a developed information service about museums, exhibition halls, a well-selected exhibition, etc. is necessary. It is advisable to have guides/translators in Japanese and booklets in Japanese. Considering that the services of Japanese-language guides and translators pay off only with a certain number of Japanese tourists, sometimes it is advisable to limit ourselves to publishing booklets in Japanese or English.

For many Japanese tourists, the purpose of travel is to experience foreign cuisine. When meeting Japanese people, you should remember that the dishes are suitable in taste and portion size for the Japanese: less oil, more vegetables and not so large portions. It would be better if you could add salt and pepper to your taste, and the presence of soy sauce on the table should be considered a mandatory wish of every Japanese tourist. It must be non-carbonated mineral water. In terms of their behavior patterns, tastes and preferences, Japanese tourists are in many ways similar to tourists from East Asia. In this regard, success in attracting Japanese tourists to Russia will correspondingly lead to an increase in the flow of tourists from East Asia.

For American tourists:

In turn, Americans have similar requirements for tourism as the Japanese, but the peculiarity is the Americans’ love for a wild lifestyle on vacation, extreme species sports For Americans, the ALL INCLUSIVE system is very important, and even more so, since Americans love to steal from hotels.

By “insight” we mean a certain hidden or explicit need, based on which a marketing offer can be made. Offer tools for finding insights for the target market using a specific example (for example, creating a hobby center in which they select, model and organize the hobbies of city residents).

Any messages distributed on behalf of the brand should be based on the needs of the audience and serve as a kind of response to consumer requests. Needs, only more universal, determine the core idea underlying the brand positioning. Without identifying needs, it is impossible to build any effective communications with the audience.

There are several levels of needs: from quite obvious to hidden, which are sometimes not advertised and are not quite clearly understood by the consumers themselves. It is the implicit, but very significant needs for the audience that often become the basis of the most successful advertising messages, which have a great motivating effect on the audience. Such needs are usually called insights - from the English insight, which literally means “the ability to penetrate into the essence.”

It is often believed that insights are the fruit of intuition, sudden insight or illumination of outstanding businessmen and marketers. This is true to some extent, but, fortunately, as marketing science has developed, approaches and techniques have been created that provide a high level of formalization of the process of studying needs. Thanks to modern marketing technologies, it is now possible to deeply dive into the needs of the audience, providing a high probability of identifying insights.

For example, let's consider the search for insights using the example of creating some circles (a beer lovers club circle, night fishing, medium-rare oysters, etc.). The idea is to create a place where people will come, communicate with each other, bring in new ideas that can be used for further positioning of the product, increasing its competitiveness, etc. The method of searching for insights in hobby centers represents in-depth work with a relatively small number of consumers - on individual level or as part of microgroups, the format of which allows for an individual approach to each participant. The studies are designed to provide fine segmentation, e.g. dividing the audience into small segments whose needs may vary. This approach ensures that all the nuances that manifest themselves in the requests of different consumer groups are taken into account, and as a result, a set of insights is formed, on the basis of which carefully tuned messages are built.

7. Nowadays, before producing something, marketing finds out what a person needs. At the same time, in general, marketing does not take into account how beneficial what is offered to a person is. While marketing gives a person the tools of social and socially oriented existence.

In order for the Russian province to become tourist attractive, full cooperation between the authorities and business and the population is necessary.

This was discussed by the participants of the Interregional Tourism Forum “History of Russia in Small Towns” held in Kostroma.

Today there are about 700 small towns in the country, but only a few can be considered interesting for tourists. The Association of Small Tourist Cities, for example, includes only eight members: Azov, Dmitrov, Elabuga, Kungur, Myshkin, Suzdal, Tobolsk and Uglich. In addition to those mentioned, there are, of course, other tempting “small” points on Russian map, but in any case, these are crumbs in comparison with the total array of opportunities that have not yet been used.

Meanwhile, tourism for the periphery is the most serious, and sometimes the only source economic development. A representative of the small French town of Provins near Paris, Bruno Baron-Renaud, who participated in the conference, named figures that were absolutely fantastic by Russian standards: this town of 10,000 people receives 700,000 tourists annually. Such a record is still unattainable even for the leaders of domestic provincial tourism.

It is well known what problems prevent the Russian tourism industry from soaring and forcing it to crawl. Probably only the lazy did not talk about the poor development of infrastructure. But along with the lack of normal hotels even in the “originally tourist regions,” we have, for example, the problem of lack of standardization of hotel services.

Arriving at each subsequent hotel of a similar star rating, you are not sure whether there will be shampoo and slippers. “Everything is completely unexpected and different every time,” noted Svetlana Razvorotneva, a member of the Commission of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation for regional development and local self-government. A separate problem, in her opinion, is the high cost transport communication. Tickets to Baikal or Altai are more expensive here than to London or Rome, which is why tourist flows are redistributed in favor of abroad.

But the main problem that seriously impedes the development of the tourism business in municipalities, according to Svetlana Razvorotneva, is the banal disinterest in this of the heads of municipalities. This is one of the consequences of existing inter-budgetary relations, which have greatly narrowed the revenue base of municipalities, since taxes from business activities almost do not reach local budgets.

Cultural and educational tourism brings little return. The most profitable trips are on vacation

The current inter-budgetary system gives rise to dependency, since more than half of the income of municipalities is generated through assistance from higher budgets, the expert believes. - A persistent stereotype is acquired: the worse you work, the more you get. Accordingly, the incentive to do and develop something ourselves disappears.

We are now preparing a serious package of proposals for the redistribution of powers and financial resources in the structure of interbudgetary relations in such a way that a significant share of the revenue side of local budgets remains local. This is an extremely important task,” said Evgeny Markov, president of the Union of Small Cities of the Russian Federation.

But, even if there is initiative and the head small town struggles to find creative solutions to attract tourists; he often prefers to implement large projects, forgetting that a small city first of all needs small programs.

The head of one of the municipalities, which has a unique tourism potential, explained to me this way: if he delivers a plant or large hotel company“, this will be clear and tangible,” said Evgeny Pisarevsky, deputy head of Rostourism, at the forum. - And if you develop entrepreneurship, small hotels, folk arts and crafts, agricultural enterprises that supply products for tourists, the financial result will not be noticeable immediately. All this is true. But we must understand that the development of small and medium-sized tourism businesses primarily leads to the social well-being of the region: people will be busy and employed. They will ensure stability in the region. That is, material and intangible indicators must be harmonized with each other.

According to Evgeniy Pisarevsky, it is necessary, of course, to build large hotel complexes, but the advantage of small cities is that citizens living in urban centers come here to enjoy relaxing holiday in an environmentally friendly and uncluttered space. And these advantages must be emphasized.

However, the pastoral, which is sweet to the eye, especially in its often squalid form today, is in fact very fragile. According to Evgeny Markov, the current processes of concentration of financial and labor resources in several largest cities countries can lead to the depopulation of the periphery and the outflow from there of the most promising, energetic and, most sadly, young personnel who could develop tourism there:

Every effort must be made to prevent the build-up of this colossal process that destabilizes the development of the country - the concentration of resources, globalization, which even threatens the disappearance of the Russian province.

At the same time, small towns themselves must stick together: developing tourism together is much easier and more convenient. Evgeniy Markov is confident that for this purpose it is necessary to form intermunicipal groups of small cities and create transport clusters around them.

Svetlana Razvorotneva also considers weak intermunicipal cooperation to be a hindrance to provincial tourism. According to her, if some town decided to develop as a tourist center, they rarely think about uniting in this endeavor with neighboring municipalities and creating a single program.

And yet, the main thing in the tourist development of the territory, according to the editor-in-chief of the magazine “Territory and Planning” Anna Kurbatova, is a clear understanding of the potential capabilities of the municipality and a clear idea of what they can bring.

When you draw up marketing strategies for your cities, you must clearly understand what category of tourists you are targeting, how much money these people have and what they will spend it on, she advised regional representatives attending the conference. - Because, judging by the presentations we saw, a very average approach is developing in the regions in terms of the hospitality model.

According to the expert, tourism is, first of all, an economy, and if people come to one place or another, but do not spend money there, then the costs borne by the municipal and other budgets practically remain unrecoverable.

Today we are waiting for government investment in cultural and educational tourism, where we receive relatively little return,” says Anna Kurbatova. - Guests spend much more money on holidays (event tourism), but the most profitable type is travel for recreation. And it is in the entertainment and relaxation industry that private funds most willingly go. Therefore, it is necessary to create conditions that encourage investors to invest.

Although a good marketing program, as it turned out, is not a panacea. Solving any one problem out of several inevitably leads to imbalance. An example of this is the city of Tver Vyshny Volochek. Moscow investors and architects were attracted here, large amounts of money were invested, and significant intellectual resources were brought in. As a result, the city received a tourism marketing program, and then even an award at the Venice Architecture Biennale as a city where our historical future is shown based on the Russian context.

But this is a city with a completely degraded urban environment. It does not have any services in terms of recreation, entertainment, or infrastructure. Therefore, starting with communications, the authorities did not achieve results in terms of increasing the economic attractiveness and, in general, the attractiveness of the city as a display object, says Anna Kurbatova.

According to Svetlana Razvorotneva, “one gets the impression that the abundance of monuments in the regions simply turns off the brain” and that our embryonic tourism suffers from targeting a very narrow target audience - “such intelligent ladies of Balzac’s age who know something from history, literature, art and I enjoy seeing churches and museums." Meanwhile, there are practically no offers on the market for children and youth. And where can they come from, if most of the small historical towns have an unpresentable appearance. Unfortunately, the restoration and maintenance of their monuments, including federal ones, at the proper level is carried out mainly by the municipalities themselves within the framework of their meager budgets.

So, according to the deputy head of the administration of the Uglich region Yaroslavl region Elena Kaneva, there are 167 historical and architectural monuments in Uglich, but over the decade the federal budget invested 17 million rubles in them, the regional budget - a little less, and the local budget and investors - more than 300 million.

And this - despite the obvious underfunding from higher budgets - specific example celebration of initiative. You can always achieve success if you have the desire. Why, for example, in Ryazan city Kasimov, standing on the banks of the Oka, with architectural ensemble no worse than in Suzdal - as a forum participant put it, “emptiness: no souvenir shops, no restaurants, everything is closed”? And in Yaroslavl Myshkin, on the contrary, every ship is greeted with songs and dances, trying to attract tourists to the city. The federal budget is certainly not to blame for this...

The development of tourism programs in cities and regions cannot be achieved only through the efforts of the authorities, sums up Svetlana Razvorotneva. - For these programs to be implemented and work, full cooperation with the business community is necessary and, of course, the public must be involved in these processes. Where this happens, the tourism industry begins to develop. Where this is not the case, all programs developed by administrations remain a stillborn product.

Where to get tourists from? For an individual entrepreneur who has decided to start receiving tourists, it is advisable to start his business by looking for a tour operator to whom he can offer his services for accommodating arriving tourists.

Owner guest house offers accommodation services for tourists, and also provides voice-over services Additional services selected tour operator. The tour operator, in turn, enters into a joint activity agreement with the owner of the guest house, which specifies the form of remuneration for the tour operator for finding tourists for the guest house. In this case, the owner receives the right to enter into an agreement with other tour operators and travel agents for the supply of tourists. It is recommended to go into detail on these details, since often rural residents are unaware of the responsibilities associated with working with people. Contractual work with an experienced tour operator disciplines the owner of the guest house and provides the opportunity to improve skills in the field of tourism.

Work on creating a tourism product for rural tourism.

In order to attract tourists to a rural family on vacation, it is necessary to offer them a range of services necessary to meet the needs of vacationers. A tourism product is a set of services consisting of accommodation, food, excursion services, insurance and delivery. By the beginning of the year, the organizer accumulates information about what services each guest house can provide. In addition, the tour operator usually develops additional special tours to make the villagers’ offer attractive.

Work to promote tourism products on the travel services market.

Now it is necessary to make sure that potential consumers know about the villagers’ proposals. For this purpose, the tour operator produces advertising information (brochures, descriptions, photographs). The main advertising material is the catalog of objects rural tourism, which describes and shows each guest house. The catalog is published in sufficient circulation so that travel agencies various cities could clearly show guest houses to clients. The tour operator also bears the costs of participating in tourism exhibitions and working meetings of travel companies in different cities of Russia. The tour operator is recommended to publish a website about rural tourism on the Internet. Thus, information about a rural tourist site can reach a resident of any country. The tour operator is also engaged in external advertising of rural tourism objects, finds funds for advertising on billboards and in various information service centers for tourists.The owner of the property can attract tourists to his guest house himself. To do this, he can put a sign on the road to his house.

Organization of reception of tourists.

Meeting, registration, acquaintance with local conditions. Reservations for a guest house are usually made in advance by a tour operator. Therefore, it is necessary to meet the guest at the agreed place and escort him to the guest house. If a guest arrives on own car, then, having placed his car on a personal plot or in a garage, you should begin the registration procedure. If the guest arrived through a tour operator, then he presents a voucher (developed by the tour operator), filled out by the travel agency and certified by a seal, and a ticket. These documents contain enough information necessary to issue your own receipt - Strict Reporting Form. One copy of the receipt is given to the guest, one copy remains with the owner. Based on this receipt, the owner makes a later entry in his income book. If the guest arrived on his own, the owner asks him to present documents and issues a receipt (BSO), indicating the necessary information. A clear written agreement included in the binding relationship between the guest house and the tourist will significantly facilitate future relations. Next, the owner introduces the guest and his group to the guest house, the rules of residence, fire safety requirements, shows where the keys, trash can, etc. are located. It is also recommended to inform guests about local conditions, travel schedules regular buses, natural objects, cultural and other events.

What is meant by the ability to treat guests attentively and kindly?

The ability to be a flexible Host and quickly make changes to the equipment of the house depending on the composition of the group of guests (install a child’s bed, make ramps for moving a wheelchair, install or remove sleeping places, provide skewers, etc.)

Having an agreement with other villagers to provide additional services to their guests, if these services are not provided centrally

Ability to resolve conflict situations (search for and find the cause of trouble in oneself)

Maintaining a joyful atmosphere in your guest house.

Attention to the slightest request of guests (change a towel once again, dry laundry soaked by a child, make a phone call, etc.)

Ability to take into account any comments made by guests

Striving to improve the quality of services

Accommodation.

Temporary accommodation is the main service provided by all guest houses. Comfort and convenience are the main criteria for the quality of services in the field of rural tourism. Guest rooms and other residential and utility rooms must be kept clean and free of unpleasant odors. If it is not up to the owner of the guest house to eliminate external and internal sources of noise and odor, then guests should be warned about this. IN summer time Windows and vents must have insect screens. Be sure to warn the guest that smoking is prohibited in the guest house. It is advisable to have internal rules for using the guest house (Appendix No. 1), drawn up by the owner.

Nutrition.

For self-cooking, guests are provided with an equipped kitchen. The kitchen must be impeccably clean and necessary equipment(kitchen furniture, refrigerator, cabinet for storing food and dishes, electrical appliances). Cooking by the homeowner is not a rental or short-term accommodation service.

Resolution of conflicts and controversial issues.

In any business, conflict or near-conflict situations may arise. Tourists are, first of all, consumers who pay to have a pleasant, interesting, most comfortable and tireless pastime. Near-conflict situations are generated by a significant difference between the expectations of the tourist and his specific impressions received from the trip and accommodation. For example, the cost of guest house services seemed overpriced to the tourist in the absence of the necessary household sanitary and hygienic conditions (no hot water, cold toilet in the yard, etc.). Such situations may arise when the owner himself receives guests. They do not arise if tourists come from an experienced tour operator or travel agent, who warn the tourist in advance about all the nuances of the guest house. Conflict situations are associated with so-called “difficult” clients, which include overly demanding guests. But the practice of receiving guests in “green houses” in Altai shows that such situations happen very rarely, because the owners of “green houses” treat guests attentively and hospitably.

Guest house owners need to remember that their economy is not a separate entity of the tourism industry. It, like any other hotel, is in close cooperation with the tour operator and travel agent, who are also responsible for their obligations. Maintaining the reputation of a good and reliable partner is the key to the further prosperity of the guest house owner’s business.

Additional guest house services.

The standard set of services in rural guest houses usually includes only accommodation. To attract tourists on the territory of the Altai Republic, a basic set of guest house services has been adopted, the provision of which by the owner is mandatory: accommodation, provision of an equipped kitchen, provision of a bathhouse once (if paid for at least three days of stay), car parking on the territory of the personal plot, greenery from the garden. All these services are included in the price of your stay. The remaining paid services are considered additional, which are necessary to increase competitiveness. The composition of additional services is determined by the owner independently, depending on the demand from the client. It is recommended to use such services as “Firing a bathhouse with the provision of a broom”, “Horse riding”, “Sale of farm products”, “Transport services in the owner’s own car (car rental)”, “Use of firewood for cooking barbecue and fireplace” , “Providing a telephone for long-distance calls”, “Placing a guest’s car in the home owner’s garage”, “Accepting dogs (pets)”.

Pricing and mutual settlements.

Prices for guest house services are divided into retail (final for the client) and wholesale (for intermediate links).

Retail prices

If a tourist contacts the owner of the guest house directly, the retail price may fluctuate depending on their agreement.

Retail prices must remain consistent at any point of sale if tourists are attracted through travel agents or tour operators. In other words, if the client arrived through intermediaries (from travel agencies, from a tour operator), he should receive the same price information as he received from the intermediaries. In this case, contractual terms are observed and business partners are not “set up.” This is the main condition for all participants in the chain. Subject to the agreement to maintain a single price for the services of the guest house, the flow of tourists is not cut off, since they are systematically dealt with in the cities.

Bulk prices(net prices) for guest house services are billed to tour operators and travel agents who include guest house services in their tourism product. Since it is these partners who are engaged in expensive advertising, they must have income when selling accommodation in guest houses that covers their expenses. This income is called tourism agency fee or commission. This is usually 10% of the placement price. Wholesale prices fluctuate depending on the season, on the partner’s contribution to advertising rural tourism, and on sales volume. If the owner of the property has established a strong business relationship with any travel agency that does not forget him and constantly sends clients, then it is possible to increase the reward from 12% to 30%.

This approach is most appropriate: the owner of the guest house develops flexible retail prices for different seasons and includes an intermediary commission, which can be 10 - 30%. These prices are then offered to different firms. In this case, the owner will not get confused, and all his guests will receive the same information from him.

Important: if the owner of a guest house tells guests that he is ready to accept them at a lower cost next time if they come directly, then he is depriving his partners of income, who will eventually find out about this and stop working with him.

Therefore, each guest house owner must decide for himself how he will attract tourists: through intermediary partners or carry out independent advertising activities. A choice needs to be made here. If both types of work are used, then one must firmly fulfill one’s obligations to partners.

As long as the owner of the house is an entrepreneur who does not have a safety certificate for tourist accommodation, he does not have the legal right to advertise his services. Travel agencies that care about their reputation will not enter into contracts with such an entrepreneur, since in this case the safety of tourists is not ensured and, as a result, if an accident occurs with the client, the company that sent the tourist to such a vacation spot will be responsible.

Mutual settlements are made as follows:

If a tourist has paid for a trip at a city travel agency, then the tour operator receives money at the cash desk or to his bank account by depositing or transferring Money and also pays the owner.
If a tourist comes directly to the owner of the guest house, then the owner is obliged to transfer the due portion of the income to the tour operator.

The basic principle is that payment occurs at the beginning of the tourists’ vacation. The owner should take into account that the money received finally becomes earned after the tourist’s departure, if his vacation ended successfully. If the vacation is long, then it is better to take payment in installments. Payment for additional services of the guest house remains entirely at the disposal of the owner of the property; the organizer is not responsible for their quality. This circumstance must be specified in the agreement between the guest house and the tour operator.

Pricing issues are complex and controversial. Therefore, they must be completely clear for both parties. There is a law in economics: whoever earns more bears greater responsibility. When hosting guests through a tour operator, the owner's share is usually much larger than the tour operator's share. Therefore, if a tourist files a complaint (a complaint about service with a demand to compensate for damage), the owner of the guest house will reimburse a large share.

Nadezhda Makatrova

How to attract tourists and become a tourism brand in Russia

If you want the world to change, become that change.

Mahatma Gandhi

Every obstacle is overcome with perseverance.

Leonardo da Vinci

Preface

How can we attract tourists? How not to get lost among thousands of proposals from other cities and countries? How to convince Russians that you can relax in comfort in Russia, and that a small town far from the Russian capitals is not necessarily a “hole”?

As practice shows recent years, these questions can be heard at all conferences, round tables and forums dedicated to the development of tourism in Russia. They are also heard during our conversations with representatives of local and regional administrations from different parts of the country. And these questions concern not only officials, but also heads of travel agencies, hotel and restaurant owners, directors of museums, sanatoriums and even local residents who rent out their living space to vacationers...

So what to do? “Take an example from Myshkin!” – this dangerous advice is repeated, like a broken record, by various “gurus”. Myshkin is a wonderful city, but, firstly, its strategy is not suitable for everyone (Myshkin has about 6 thousand inhabitants), and secondly, it is pointless to copy the tip of the iceberg without seeing and understanding everything that is hidden from view in thicker than water.

Three or four years ago, participants in tourism exhibitions representing Russian cities and regions said: “All we need is money for advertising, and people will come to us!” Money was allocated, tourists did not come... Today there is a more professional understanding that attracting tourists is not so much advertising, but a whole task system, which need to be addressed at the territorial level. And this book is a story about who should solve these problems and how, what mistakes and pitfalls there may be, what resources can be used in the work and how to place emphasis. And of course, examples of success.

The book “How to attract tourists and become a tourism brand in Russia” is based on an analysis of the experience accumulated in Russia and the CIS, both successful and unsuccessful, as well as the experience of some foreign countries in developing tourism and promoting the territory in the tourism market. In addition, some observations and conclusions made while working on projects of the consulting company “Konkretika” served as material for the book.

This book is methodical, sometimes unpleasant and even offensive, since it tells not only about the opportunities and hidden potential of Russian cities and regions, but also about their typical mistakes and shortcomings. But the main value of the book, in my opinion, is the specific practical recommendations, explaining WHAT need to be done and HOW do, as well as 420 examples from real practice, providing rich soil for your own ideas and solutions.

I hope the book will become your assistant in your work. Have a productive reading!

Nadezhda Makatrova,

Director of the consulting company "Konkretika"

Tourism brand: to be or not to be?

Fate leads those who want to go, and drags those who do not want to go.

Cleanthes, ancient Greek philosopher (IV-111 centuries BC)

In the Soviet Union they had not heard of brands. But at the same time, all citizens of our huge and multinational country firmly knew that:

If you want to go to the sea, then you need to go to Black Sea coast Caucasus or Crimea. With small children - to Anapa or Evpatoria;

If there are no vouchers to the Black Sea, then to the Azov Sea, to Yeisk;

The intelligentsia preferred the Baltic states;

If you need treatment, the direct route is to the Caucasian Mineral Waters sanatorium;

For lovers of excursions and cultural and historical values - Moscow, Leningrad, the cities of the Golden Ring and, perhaps, Pskov and Novgorod;

Military-patriotic education - Volgograd with its famous Mamayev Kurgan.

All Soviet people also knew about Baikal and Kamchatka, but they didn’t even dream of getting there - the flight was too expensive for a simple Soviet family to afford. Here they are - real tourism brands, created, by the way, with strong support from the state...

Of course, there were many others in the USSR interesting places and routes - “hits” on a district and regional scale, where they were constantly sent excursion groups from schools, universities, enterprises and institutions, but they could not compete with the all-Union “grandees”.

25 years have passed since perestroika...

Today, if you look at the MITT or Intourmarket exhibition in Moscow, you can see hundreds, if not thousands, of new tourist sites and routes across the country on stands. One is better than the other, with intriguing descriptions and amazing photographs. It would seem that new times mean new names.

No matter how it is!

Ask an ordinary Russian which cities or resorts in our country he considers the most popular among tourists, and you will most likely receive the same list. True, Crimea and the Baltic states (as foreign countries) will have to be deleted from it, and St. Petersburg will take the place of Leningrad. Allow your interlocutor to include foreign resorts in the list, and Türkiye and Egypt are guaranteed to be in the first place. I'm talking about mass routes. Skiers will usually call it Elbrus, fishermen will call it Astrakhan.

"How so? Why? Tourist potential Russia is not limited to 10–15 popular routes?! We have two orders of magnitude more of them!” – one of the readers will be indignant. The potential may not be limited, but the perception of tourists, according to the laws of marketing, is, alas, not rubber. The law states: the number of bright, memorable images on the market is limited. I recommend that you re-read the highlighted phrase two more times.

It is only at first glance that it seems that it is enough to come up with “something original” and you will be noticed. You can come up with anything you want, but here’s the question:

– Will they remember this (against the background of competitors’ proposals)?

– Will they buy it (by comparing different offers)? And buy not just one season, but at least ten years in a row.

For clarity, I will give two useful analogies.

1. Each class has its own “excellent student,” “low student,” “clown,” “athlete,” and its own “beauty.” And sometimes - your own “outcast” (remember the film “Scarecrow”). It is very problematic to characterize all other children in terms of their role in the class.

2. In the 90s Russian cities A lot of different stores and shops opened, and today most of them have “died”, giving way to online players. By the way, in Europe about 80% of goods are sold through chain stores.

What is the conclusion from this in relation to tourism?

In five years, a new pool of tourism brands of all-Russian significance will be formed in Russia. It is clear that Moscow and St. Petersburg will automatically retain their leadership positions due to their exceptional starting opportunities (just as there are three main TV channels in the country and... all the others). Our resorts will also be in a privileged position. warm seas(unless sudden climate change occurs). And who else will be included in the list of the strongest remains in question for now...

If the heads of the cities and regions mentioned at the beginning had actively developed during the 25 years of perestroika, and had not relied on the tourist resources accumulated over previous decades, then everyone else would not have been destined to catch up with them in the foreseeable future. However, they remembered the development only 5-7 years ago, thereby giving their neighbors a chance.

The importance of getting into the leader pool is illustrated by the Zipf curve (Zipf)

Picture 1

Zipf distribution (Zipf)

Those cities and regions that find themselves at the tail of this curve may not count on anything serious... Perhaps they don’t need this, and tourism for them is like birch sap in a regular grocery store: they hardly take it, but they have it for assortment .

At the same time, our conversations with representatives of local and regional administrations indicate that in many parts of Russia they take tourism seriously, hoping with its help to give a new impetus to the development of the territory and replenish the budget. For this purpose, short-term and long-term programs are being developed everywhere, new tourism brands are announced, advertising catalogs are printed, exhibitions and presentations are held, journalists are invited, etc.

Why can’t many cities and regions make a breakthrough and significantly increase the tourist flow? What needs to be changed at work? Subsequent chapters of the book will be devoted to a detailed answer to these questions, but here I will only outline the key points.

Instructions

The easiest way to attract customers is word of mouth. When you open it, tell your friends about it. Some of those who come will use your services. If the clients are satisfied, they will recommend them to friends, since people have been using the services of the same travel companies for years. In a few years you will form a group of regular customers.

Create groups in in social networks and blogs where interesting and profitable offers will be posted. Attract users who are interested in . This can be seen in their interest lists. It is important that someone constantly, almost 24 hours a day, looks at these groups and blogs, responds to comments, gives advice, invites new clients. Analyze their requests, because this can provide food for thought on new ways to attract clients. Some travel agencies offer big discounts. Is it worth becoming one of these companies? Take a different route: inform that you have new interesting routes for excursion tours. Clients think that the offers of travel agencies differ mainly in price, and not in content. Prove that this is not so.

Work on the name of the travel agency. Not everyone attaches great importance to naming, but the name works on your image around the clock. Some travel agencies are named too banally. As a rule, this is something with the prefix -tour. If you create a bright, memorable name, this will already give you an advantage.

The attractiveness of a travel agency to clients sometimes depends on its location. It should be convenient to approach her - both in person and by car. public transport. If the tour agency is located in courtyards, draw arrows on the asphalt or hang signs on nearby houses so that you can be easily seen. This also applies to companies that open in residential areas. Don’t be afraid to locate a travel agency where it has competitors: the specifics of people’s choice of tours are such that they usually visit at least 2-3 companies to decide on the choice of trip. It’s good if your company is surrounded by its own kind.

Instructions

Actively interact with tools mass media: Serve as an expert or submit your own releases regarding development trends. The published materials will definitely contain a link to your company.

Video on the topic

Sources:

target audience of the travel agency

The number of travel agencies today is so large that a reasonable question arises: do such companies find a sufficient number of clients? Unfortunately, big number travel companies close within the first year of operation. After all, attracting customers is becoming increasingly difficult.

You will need

- Internet.

Instructions

Create a unique offer that will distinguish you from your competitors. Despite the oversaturation of the tourism services market, you can always find a narrow niche that has not yet been occupied. Event tourism, eco-tourism, trips to championships and superstar concerts - there are a lot of options to attract attention to your services. Of course, it is extremely difficult to invent something fundamentally new in this area. In this case, try to do what everyone else does, but a little differently.

Develop a corporate culture of communication with clients. In this case, we are not talking about basic politeness and impeccable service, which are undoubtedly also important. Consider the technical organization of work with potential consumers of services. This includes promptness of calls, high-quality telephone consultations, speed of selection of tours. Very often, clients are eliminated at the initial stage only because managers make them wait on the line for a long time or do not call back on time. Eliminate such shortcomings.

Increase trust in your company. As a rule, a potential tourist chooses a company that has been operating on the market for a long time. Of course, a newly created travel agency may look suspicious due to the increasing frequency of scandals with numerous fly-by-night companies. If your company has been operating for a short time, actively create a positive reputation for it. Use public relations, charity events, topical online forums and blogs.

Develop a customer loyalty program. Every traveler should be 100% satisfied with your service. Try to anticipate all the client’s needs, warn about possible difficulties, remind about the departure date, and upon return, be sure to ask about their impressions. It is in this case that he will tell his friends about you and recommend you as a reliable company.

Helpful advice

Develop a discount program for regular customers. This is especially true for package tours, in which the price is the same in different agencies.

Beginners and professionals in the travel business are constantly looking for new ways to promote their business. They tend to use the Internet, their contacts, and other creative methods. So, what do you need to do to successfully promote a travel agency?

Be clear about your target audience. Have a clear idea of what class of people your travel agency is targeting. Your success will fundamentally depend on this. If, for example, your company is located in residential area, then your target audience will be families who want to relax on. Use mainly local marketing mechanism, i.e. work with those people who are nearby.

Study thoroughly the work of your closest competitors. Be sure to scout out the work of companies that are located near your office or in the same area. Ask third parties why clients go to this particular agency, what is their advantage over you. After that, work on the shortcomings in your organization and offer your customers more profitable terms. Be different from others, bring something new.

note

It might be useful to read: