The world’s most widely circulated magazine, Reader’s Digest, has really done us proud by publishing an eight-page article on Barbados in several of their December 2011 European editions, including Germany, Finland, Poland, Slovenia and Romania.
With a worldwide readership of over 40 million across 79 countries, it’s advertising that we could never really afford to pay for.
The feature originally appeared in the National Geographic Traveller last January and was written by American veteran travel writer Charles Kulander. Credit must also be given to Susan Siebert, the fastidious photographer who captured many of the wonderful images used in both publications.
These incredible cost-free opportunities would not have been possible without the time freely given by a number of people in the private sector who helped mold the contents to enable hundreds of thousands of readers across the globe to learn or discover more about Barbados, perhaps even for the very first time.
It is not just about the numbers but the demographics of the average reader. If you use the American edition as a barometer, 63 per cent of its readers are women (overwhelmingly the travel decision makers), 59 per cent have an annual income over US$50 000, with the average being US$60 756, and the median age is 54 years.
In fact, according to Mediamark Research, its audience reaches more people with household incomes of US$100 000 than Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, Business Week and Inc. – combined.
Simply put, rather than throw a marketing budget against a wall and hope that some sticks, you are identifying far more precisely, exactly the target population that could become regular visitors.
One headline leapt out at me from the informative industry website Travelmole – “Traditional tour operators in terminal decline”.
The conclusion was gleamed from a so-called red flag alert reported by Britain’s leading business rescue, recovery and restructuring specialist: Begbies Traynor.
Quoting from the report, accountants KPMG stated that a staggering 74 per cent of consumers in Britain are “more likely” to buy flights and vacations on the Internet.
Following the failure of 24 British operators in 2011, KPMG went on to warn that 2012 could be one of the most challenging years yet. Their head of travel, leisure and tourism Richard Hathaway said more and more travellers are opting for self-packaging online and niche solutions, pointing out that “the total number of overseas holidays taken by [British] travellers has seen a 20 per cent decline between 2008 and 2010’, a level last seen in 1999”.
Hathaway added that “operators who do not adapt their business model to meet the demands of today’s holidaymakers will face increased risks in [2012], including takeover or business failure”.
Among the company’s recommendations to the remaining operators are:
• Ensure a spread of strong brands in high-margin spaces.
• Invest in a strong online and mobile channel.
• Offer products that are dynamic and adaptable.
I really hope that our tourism planners are taking these observations into account when they decide how and where the marketing budget is spent.