2018 is almost upon us, and with the arrival of a new year comes everyone’s favorite thing, the impossible task of coming up with resolutions for the next 12 months. We have a few B2B suggestions for you to start the New Year proactively.
- Be co-dependant! Your business isn’t meant to operate in a vacuum. Think about who in your community you could work with to create some powerful partnerships and share ideas for area business growth. Talk to your region field manager about how to get a Community Tourism Plan rolling and mobilize your area to focus on tourism planning capabilities at the community level. Central Counties also offers Tourism Now presentations to region communities. These community group sessions are designed to provide the resources you need to get tourism ready. Contact your region field manager to get more information.
- Plan your marketing refresh. Upgrade your images, add video, get social by posting a blog on your website about your business, its history and what you love about it. How tourism ready are you? Find out by taking the Tourism Readiness Survey. Increase your social exposure by making it a priority to tag and follow Central Counties on our social media accounts for your chance to get promoted online. Follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/visitydh, Twitter https://twitter.com/YDHtourism, and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/yorkdurhamheadwaters/. Don’t forget to ensure your information is current by updating your free listings on ontariotravel.net and at www.centralcounties.ca
- Be a tourism ambassador and ensure your staff are too! Being an ambassador means that you are a proud promoter, supporter and advocate of what you love about your business, your unique product and the area your business is located in. In doing so, you will create memorable experiences for your customers and they will tell others! OTEC provides Service Excellence Training for the tourism industry. Watch for more information on Tourism Ambassador training through Central Counties in 2018.
- Explore your learning potential. Check back here at centralcounties.ca for workshops and new courses in the LearningLab. Don’t forget to read the B2B e-news for more opportunities every month.
- Consider why you need to go green for your guests and investigate ramping up your environmental business practices. Check out the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario’s “green” page to find out “What Travellers Want But, Aren’t Telling You” to get the inside scoop on green tourism from the traveller perspective. Check out how Green Tourism Canada can assist you on your sustainability journey.
Implementing any of these tactics will open up more opportunities for you and your business. We wish you all the best in the new year as you work toward increasing your business growth and tourism readiness.
