DCBA Strategy 2016-17 FINAL - Destination Cape Breton Association

Transcription

Destination Cape Breton Association
Strategy 2016-17
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Section
Title
I.
Situation Analysis
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
Page
2
Introduction
Doubling Nova Scotia Tourism Revenues
2015 Season Results
2015 Overview of Activities
PESTLE Analysis
2
4
7
10
19
Strategic Direction
23
Guiding Principles
Goals and Objectives
Highlights
23
24
26
Research
27
Research Overview
Research Tactics
27
31
Product Development
32
Product Development Overview
Product Development Tactics
32
32
Brand
35
Brand Overview
Brand Tactics
35
35
Marketing – Leisure
37
Marketing – Leisure Overview
Marketing – Leisure Tactics
37
39
Marketing – Niche
45
Marketing – Niche Overview
Marketing – Niche Tactics
45
45
Industry and Community Mobilization
51
Industry and Community Mobilization Overview
Industry and Community Mobilization Tactics
51
51
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I. SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS
A. INTRODUCTION
Over the past five years, Destination Cape Breton Association (DCBA), in conjunction
with the Cape Breton Island tourism industry, has made huge strides in the marketreadiness and promotion of the destination. Following is an overview of the successes:
•
Research
Beginning with visitor research conducted for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities
Agency (ACOA) Tourism Strategy and complemented with key research
conducted by Tourism Nova Scotia (TNS), Parks Canada, DCBA and other
analytics and sources, a comprehensive profile of the visitor to Cape Breton
Island has been developed with data on the experiences they are seeking, the
optimal messaging to deliver to them, and the most effective channels to reach
them. As a result of this research, DCBA makes all of its decisions based on
evidence.
•
Product Development
With a focus on market-readiness, DCBA employed the ACOA Toolkit to conduct
a wide range of product development initiatives including best practices missions,
the Accelerated Market Readiness (AMR) for operators, the Sustainable Tourism
Expansion Plan (STEP) for communities, and numerous other programs. The
result is that the vast majority of the industry has achieved market-readiness and
is striving toward the development of world-class experiences.
•
Brand
A powerful and emotive brand has been developed for Cape Breton Island with
the slogan, “Your Heart Will Never Leave”. This brand image, which is designed
to complement the Nova Scotia branding, has been supported by a significant
investment in high quality photography and video that has been designed to
appeal to the target Explorer Quotient segments, Authentic Experiencers and
Cultural Explorers.
•
Marketing
From the establishment of a strong Maritimes base for the Cape Breton Island
brand, the marketing campaign then aligned with TNS to target key out-of-region
markets including Ontario, Quebec and the Northeastern United States. The
marketing program has been continually enhanced to focus on traditional and
leading-edge channels with the strongest proven return on investment.
•
Niche Products
DCBA has taken a strong leading role in the development and promotion of key
niche products for the Island, including golf, marine (cruise and boating), and
meetings and conventions. In addition, DCBA has supported the development of
strong product clubs for the Gaelic/Celtic, Mi’kmaq and Acadien cultures.
•
Visitor Servicing
In partnership with local tourism associations or municipalities, and with
Provincial funding, DCBA has provided training, supervision and management for
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the operation of visitor information centres (VICs) across the Island. In addition,
DCBA has operated VICs in Sydney River and the Sydney Marine Terminal, and
kiosks on the Halifax Waterfront and Port-aux-Basques, to ensure the visitor is
fully informed on the Island’s tourism experience.
•
Partnerships
Strong partnerships have been developed for the advancement of the Island’s
tourism industry that include TNS, ACOA, Destination Canada, Parks Canada,
the Island’s municipalities and First Nations, Bay Ferries, Marine Atlantic, and
cultural ambassadors such as Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy. These
partnerships have added tremendously to the overall investment in the industry
and extended the reach of the Cape Breton Island brand.
•
Financial Stability
With the successful implementation of the Cape Breton Island Marketing Levy
and the establishment of funding contributions from ACOA, TNS, Parks Canada,
and the Island’s municipalities, DCBA has a stable financial base to continue to
develop and promote the Island. The organization strives to maximize the return
on investment of all of its activities, thus ensuring continued stability and growth.
This systematic approach and strong track record has delivered tangible results for the
Cape Breton Island tourism industry. The chart below shows the five-year trend in total
room nights sold on the Island during the tourism season from May to October. The
numbers certainly indicate a growth trend with 20,000 more room nights sold during the
tourism season in 2015 compared to 2011. This is a strong indicator of industry growth.
Source: Tourism Nova Scotia
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As well, when viewing room night sales growth in all regions of Nova Scotia, Cape
Breton Island has performed very well comparatively. With the exception of Yarmouth &
Acadian Shores whose numbers are skewed by the re-introduction of the ferry service,
Cape Breton Island has seen the strongest increase in room night sales on a percentage
basis.
* Yarmouth & Acadian Shores results reflect a return of ferry service.
These results illustrate that Cape Breton Island is on the right track in terms of
destination growth and development. As a result, the 2016 Strategy is designed to build
upon this proven approach, while seeking opportunities to elevate tourism revenues.
B. DOUBLING NOVA SCOTIA’S TOURISM REVENUES
Tourism Nova Scotia has embraced the goal to double tourism revenues by 2024, as
stated in the One Nova Scotia “Now or Never” Report:
Goal #14:
As Nova Scotia’s leading source of service sector exports, gross business
revenues from tourism will reach $4 billion (approximately double the current
level).
This target was based on the 2010 tourism revenue figure of approximately $2 billion. In
2015, tourism revenues have been estimated to be $2.472 billion and projecting this rate
to 2024, TNS has determined that the status quo will not achieve the target. As a result,
they have adopted a new strategy that is designed to move “outside the box” to achieve
the $4 billion goal.
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This new TNS strategy has four pillars:
1. Invest in markets of highest return;
2. Focus on world class experiences;
3. Attract first-time visitors to Nova Scotia; and
4. Build Nova Scotia’s Tourism confidence.
Each of these strategic pillars is further explained below.
Invest in Markets of Highest Return
To invest in markets of highest return, TNS will be seeking to attract those who will
spend the most money while visiting, with a longer length of stay not necessarily a
requirement. To do so, they will focus on priority Explorer Quotient (EQ) types, as
defined by the award-winning Destination Canada segmentation program. In the shortterm, this will include Authentic Experiencers and Cultural Explorers, the segments that
have been targeted by DCBA for the past five years. DCBA selected these two EQ types
based on a strategic process of matching the EQ types to the existing product, as
determined through the core experiences research in the ACOA Tourism Strategy. This
decision has been reinforced through the recent TNS Visitor Exit Survey and Travel
Intention Survey, which determined that these segments are the largest EQ segments
for Nova Scotia with Authentic Experiencers representing 26% of visitors and Cultural
Explorers representing 16% of visitors. TNS will also be focusing on the Free Spirit EQ
type (currently 8% of visitors) from a product development standpoint, with the intention
to market to this segment in the medium term.
In addition to the new EQ focus, TNS will be supporting niche marketing opportunities,
including meetings and conventions, events and cruise. With the construction of the new
Halifax Convention Centre, the province will be poised to attract incremental meetings
business. This will include increased opportunities for pre and post packages. A focus on
attracting events will also likely focus on Halifax, but could include spinoff benefits for
Cape Breton Island. By continuing to promote Nova Scotia as a cruise destination, the
Port of Sydney and the Island’s small ports will have continued opportunities to grow.
This pillar will include a focus on air travel. Research conducted by TNS shows that air
travelers spend more per day on average than road travelers. The Halifax Stanfield
International Airport will continue to be the main focus for air travel, which is beneficial to
the entire province; however, some initiatives may also be aimed at increasing traffic to
the J.A. McCurdy Sydney Airport.
Focus on World Class Experiences
World class experiences have a number of important facets for growing the tourism
industry. They build upon the cachet of Nova Scotia as a vacation destination, as visitors
will want to share and talk about the experience. They have the potential to be primary
motivators for travel to the province, thus providing additional reasons to visit. They
leverage the Explorer Quotient market segmentation tool, as experiences may be
designed specifically for target EQ types. They may also align with Destination Canada’s
Signature Experience criteria, which is utilized in working with travel trade.
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In the case of Nova Scotia, TNS envisions that world class experiences will be
developed to reinforce the seacoast positioning of the destination. They have recently
launched a new World Class Experience Excellerator program that will aim to develop
new experiences that have the potential to meet the world class level.
Attract First-time Visitors to Nova Scotia
TNS believes that first-time visitors are more likely to be direct influenced by marketing,
so focusing on this audience is aimed at having the maximum impact for the marketing
spend. This does not mean that repeat visitors will be ignored, but TNS sees the delivery
of a quality visitor experience, mainly by the tourism industry, as the key to repeat
visitation.
Build Nova Scotia’s Tourism Confidence
TNS seeks to collaborate with industry to educate Nova Scotians about their approach to
growing tourism and why tourism growth matters. In doing so, it is hoped that Nova
Scotians will get behind the $4 billion goal. In educating Nova Scotians about who is
coming, why they are coming, and why the destination brand is special, TNS believes
that the public will see that they can play a role in delivering on visitor expectations.
By focusing on these four pillars, TNS has forecasted target revenues and visitation to
reach the $4 billion goal. This is outlined per year in the table below.
Projected Tourism Revenues and Visitation for Nova Scotia: 2015-2024
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Projected Revenues*
$2.47
$2.50
$2.61
$2.68
$2.78
$2.93
$3.12
$3.32
$3.52
$4.01
Annual Increase
2.5%
1.2%
4.4%
2.7%
3.7%
5.4%
6.5%
6.4%
6.0%
13.9%
Projected Visitation**
2.05
2.08
2.13
2.15
2.19
2.26
2.36
2.45
2.53
2.57
Annual Increase
4.8%
1.5%
2.4%
0.9%
* $ billions
** Non-resident visitors (millions)
1.9%
3.2%
4.4%
3.8%
3.3%
1.6%
By estimating the portion of overall tourism revenues and visitation attributed to Cape
Breton Island, similar projections may be made. Currently, the portion is based on the
percentage of provincial room night sales on Cape Breton Island (16%), as that is the
only figure available; however, a more accurate figure is expected with the release of the
Nova Scotia Visitor Exit Survey report. This current estimate is based on the assumption
that the portion of room night sales (using January 2015 to November 2015 figures) will
be the same as the portion of tourism revenues and non-resident visitation.
Projected Tourism Revenues and Visitation for Cape Breton Island: 2015-2024
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Projected Revenues*
$395
$400
$418
$429
$445
$469
$499
$531
$563
$642
Annual Increase
2.5%
1.2%
4.4%
2.7%
3.7%
5.4%
6.5%
6.4%
6.0%
13.9%
328
333
341
344
Projected Visitation**
Annual Increase
4.8%
1.5% 2.4% 0.9%
* $ millions
** Non-resident visitors (thousands)
350
362
378
392
405
411
1.9%
3.2%
4.4%
3.8%
3.3%
1.6%
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As illustrated in the following chart, the rate of tourism revenue growth is projected to
increase at a higher rate than visitation.
To maintain alignment with Tourism Nova Scotia in pursuit of the $4 billion goal, DCBA
must strive to ensure that Cape Breton Island hits the annual growth targets for both
visitation and tourism revenues.
C. 2015 SEASON RESULTS
The 2015 season was strong for both Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Island. In the
primary tourism season months of May to October, Nova Scotia experienced a 2.4%
increase in room night sales over 2014 while Cape Breton Island experienced a 4%
increase.
The chart below on the following page shows the room night sales per month for Cape
Breton Island over the past five years. The 2015 season produced the best June, July
and September in the five-year period, along with the second best August, which was
only bested by August 2013 which benefitted from the Louisbourg 300 celebrations and
a significantly larger marketing budget.
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While the room night sales results were strong for the season, another positive sign was
a significant increase in marketing levy revenues. While preliminary, levy revenues are
projected to be 10-12% higher than in 2014. This provides an indication that tourism
revenues on the Island have likely grown higher than the 4% growth in visitation during
the May to October tourism season.
In terms of visitation by market, the provincial stats from TNS are provided in the table
below.
Nova Scotia 2015 Performance by Market (Full Year Estimate)
Market
Atlantic Canada
Ontario
Quebec
Western Canada
Northeastern US
Rest of United States
United Kingdom
Germany
Other International
2015 Visitors
1,052,440
485,400
99,700
154,200
68,800
124,300
29,800
9,300
43,500
Change vs. 2014
+49,000
+32,000
+10,000
-5,000
+9,000
+5,000
+10,000
+500
+1,000
% Change
+5%
+7%
+11%
-3%
+10%
+6%
+49%
+5%
+3%
The markets shaded in green (Atlantic Canada and Ontario) were primary markets for
DCBA, while the markets shaded in blue were secondary markets for DCBA.
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While visitation by market data is not available for Cape Breton Island, Google Analytics
from the cbisland.com website provide an indication of growth in interest in the
destination by market. This is illustrated in the table below.
Cape Breton Island 2015 Website Visitation by Market
Market
Atlantic Canada
- Nova Scotia
- New Brunswick
- Prince Edward Island
- Newfoundland and Labrador
Ontario
Quebec
Western Canada
Northeastern US (New England)
Rest of United States
United Kingdom
Germany
Other International
2015 Visits
102,325
85,005
9,823
5,074
2,423
56,916
18,468
20,441
17,749
59,340
3,808
2,279
13,467
Change vs. 2014
+20,394
+15,919
+1,996
+1,640
+839
+18,027
+6,478
+4,418
+3,537
+13,524
+725
+382
+5,426
% Change
+25%
+23%
+25%
+48%
+53%
+46%
+54%
+28%
+25%
+30%
+24%
+20%
+67%
Source: Google Analytics for cbisland.com
As indicated in the table above, the highest traffic increases came from Nova Scotia and
Ontario, the two primary markets where the majority of marketing resources were
employed. The two secondary markets, Quebec and Northeastern US, had strong traffic
increases with modest resources employed in those markets. Although not target
markets, Western Canada and the Rest of the United States showed strong growth in
website traffic.
According to the 2015 Conversion Survey for Cape Breton Island, conversion rates (i.e.
those who visited Cape Breton Island in 2015) were highest among survey participants
from Nova Scotia (76%), Ontario (75%) and Alberta (75%). While Americans showed
lower conversion rates on average, New York (67%) and Massachusetts (66%) were the
highest.
The provincial visitation data and the Google Analytics for cbisland.com clearly
demonstrate that Atlantic Canada and Ontario continue to show the greatest potential in
terms of visitation volume. However, in terms of spending, the following table indicates
the average on-Island spend per travel party per key market:
Market
Nova Scotia
Ontario
Quebec
Alberta
Massachusetts
New York
2015 On-Island Spend/Travel Party
$817
$1,208
$861
$1,603
$1,008
$1,130
Source: 2015 Cape Breton Island Conversion Survey
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As a result, while still important to target markets within the Atlantic region due to the
visitation volume, an increasing emphasis should be placed on the markets of higher
return to maintain alignment with the TNS strategy. That said, steps can also be taken to
increase the on-Island spend per regional travel party by increasing length of stay and
spending.
D. 2015 OVERVIEW OF ACTIVITIES
Following is an overview of activities undertaken by DCBA in the past year.
Product Development
Over the past five years, DCBA has led a research-based approach to product
development that has been based on the ACOA/Tourism Atlantic Strategy that defined
the core experiences for the region and the accompanying ACOA Toolkit for product
development. This was complemented by specific product development initiatives led by
TNS and its predecessor organizations.
As a result, the following map demonstrates the breadth of programs and the vastness
of industry participation across Cape Breton Island over the past five years.
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The product development process has followed a systematic approach from Assessment
and Inventory of the product, to Market Readiness, to Packages and Itineraries, and
finally toward World Class Experiences. The chart below provides an overview of the
current product development status for various product types along that progression.
As the chart indicates, the product development work of both DCBA and industry over
the past five years has taken most of the product types to the Packages and Itineraries
phase, with some at the point of progressing toward World Class Experiences. Following
are highlights of the activities undertaken in 2015:
•
Locals Know Initiative
This initiative designed to promote tourism as an economic driver throughout
Cape Breton Island and to increase the awareness of the tourism product was
continued in 2015. It included weekly electronic distribution of festival and event
information throughout the tourism season to 1000+ businesses and the
distribution of tri-fold information cards to all restaurants and accommodations
across Cape Breton Island.
•
Cultural Product Clubs
Following the success of the Celtic Heart of North America product club, DCBA
facilitated the development of similar clubs for the Acadian and Mi’kmaq cultural
products. In partnership with Experience Acadie, DCBA contracted Harvey
Sawler to conduct a product assessment and opportunities analysis of the
Acadian product offering. In partnership with the Unama’ki Tourism Association,
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DCBA contracted a consultant group, under the leadership of Maureen Carroll, to
conduct a product assessment of the Aboriginal product offering.
•
Packages and Experiences Inventory
As part of the product assessment process, inventories of experiences continue
to be compiled. This included the aforementioned Acadian and Aboriginal
experiences, as well as an inventory of trails. Subsequent inventories of
performing arts, outdoor product, and winter product were initiated in 2015 with
delivery expected in early 2016. This inventory process was complemented with
a compilation of packages and experiences that were in-market during the 2016
season. This inventory development has led to the concept of an experience
calendar which is being incorporated in the new cbisland.com website.
•
Culinary Tourism
Given the growth in culinary tourism and the emphasis on culinary experiences
by TNS, DCBA contracted Alicia Lake and Icon Communications and Research
to develop a culinary roadmap for Cape Breton Island. This identified the vision,
unique selling proposition and next steps for enhancing the culinary offering on
the Island.
•
Industry Communication
As part of the collaboration with industry to enhance the overall product offering,
DCBA maintains two main communication channels: the Tourism Connect enewsletter and the dcba-info.com website. In 2015, a total of 48 e-blasts were
sent to industry to provide educational and training opportunities, as well as key
pieces of regional industry news. This information was also added to the dcbainfo.com website. A review of the e-newsletter process was conducted in 2015 to
ensure that it is enhanced to meet the needs of industry members and follow
best practices. In addition to these ongoing channels, DCBA once again hosted
Industry Day, which engaged members of the industry in a valuable information
sharing and networking event.
Brand
The brand for Cape Breton Island, with the “Your Heart Will Never Leave” theme, was
enhanced in 2015 by DCBA’s creative agency, Vibe Creative Group. The emotional
trigger was maintained, but a creative imperative was to align the brand with the Nova
Scotia brand. By doing so, the Cape Breton Island marketing activities would support the
broader provincial sell, while also leveraging the larger budget of TNS for greater impact.
This approach would position Cape Breton Island as a must-see region within Nova
Scotia.
The comparison of print ads between Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Island is illustrated
on the following page.
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As these ads show, a similar creative approach was taken with a large iconic image and
a simple message. The shade of blue was selected to match the palette of the Nova
Scotia blue, while being slightly lighter. On ads, Cape Breton Island was positioned with
a map image that located it within Nova Scotia. This creative approach was replicated in
others ads for television and online.
In terms of the brand voice, a decision was made to be as authentic to Cape Breton
Island as possible. Music for the primary television ad was sourced through a local
composer of Celtic music, Jason Roach. A highlight was securing renowned national
journalist and Cape Breton native, Linden MacIntyre, to provide the voiceover for the
television ads.
To complement the brand and the top ten core experiences searched for on
cbisland.com, a series of professional videos were developed by NovaStream to
highlight the top unforgettable experiences of Cape Breton Island. A number of gaps
were addressed in image and video capture to support the brand identity.
Marketing
The marketing program for 2015 was designed to achieve the main goal of increasing
room nights sales on the Island by 2% compared to the 2014 season. As previously
stated, room night sales actually increased by 4% during the tourism season months of
May to October, the period toward which almost all marketing is devoted.
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Of course, the marketing campaigns of TNS and other industry partners contributed to
this growth, as well as the favourable Canadian exchange rate and lower gas prices;
however, a number of key performance indicators point to the success of the Cape
Breton island campaign:
•
A 32% increase in website traffic to cbisland.com to a total of 293,022 sessions;
•
A 50% increase in website traffic to Cape Breton content on NovaScotia.com to a
total of 347,539 sessions;
•
Approximately 800,000 views of Cape Breton Island’s top unforgettable
experiences videos, with about 50% of those for the Cabot Trail video;
•
A 44% increase in Facebook followers to a total of 11,300 with an 18%
engagement rate in posts and a 135% increase in conversion to cbisland.com;
and
•
A 27% increase in Twitter followers to a total of 5,058 with 51% increase in
conversion to cbisland.com.
The chart below provides a breakdown of advertising recall rates for the various
marketing channels as captured in the 2015 Cape Breton Island Travel Intention Survey.
TV and online advertising have the highest recall rates and these rates are even higher
in target geographic markets. For example, TV ad recall rates were 63% in Ontario and
65% in Nova Scotia where dedicated TV buys were placed.
All of these indicators provide clear evidence that the 2015 DCBA marketing campaign
was highly effective.
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To effectively drive demand, the marketing strategy was structured around a visitor
engagement process, which brought the target audience through the marketing funnel:
Awareness, Engagement, Conversion.
Awareness
To generate awareness to pique the visitor’s interest and lure them to want to know
more about the destination, a number of channels were utilized, including advertising,
online marketing, media relations, and a consumer show.
As with the brand, the marketing campaign was designed in alignment with TNS. A
greater portion of the marketing budget was allocated out of region to place a primary
emphasis on the Ontario market, with a secondary emphasis on Quebec and the
Northeastern United States. In these markets, advertising was placed to align with the
TNS media buy. In Ontario, this included television, newspaper, Google AdWords,
Facebook advertising, programmatic online advertising, and TripAdvisor. In Quebec and
the Northeastern United States, online channels were utilized included Google AdWords,
Facebook advertising, and TripAdvisor. An ad was also placed in the Nova Star Ferry
guide to target ferry passengers from the Northeastern US.
Regionally, DCBA continued to maintain a strong media presence in the Mainland Nova
Scotia market, with an emphasis on the Metro Halifax area. This included television,
newspaper, Facebook advertising, and TripAdvisor. As well, DCBA participated with
industry partners in the Saltscapes Expo and advertised in Saltscapes Magazine.
Randy Brooks was maintained as a media relations consultant and a number of media
fam tours were organized, either through DCBA’s direct efforts or in partnership with
TNS or Destination Canada. In total, 34 members of the media toured the Island with a
variety of media focuses, including the Cabot Trail, Celtic culture, the Celtic Colours
International Festival, the Fortress of Louisbourg, outdoor experiences, etc. Media
requests for information and imagery were also fulfilled.
A significant achievement in 2015 was securing the 2016 Travel Media Association of
Canada (TMAC) conference, which will bring approximately 200 delegates, and key
members of the travel media, to the Island.
Engagement
Awareness was translated into greater interest in the destination by sampling the
experience and bringing potential visitors into a deeper level of engagement.
The primary channel for the sampling process is the website. In this case, there is the
dedicated Cape Breton Island site (cbisland.com) and the Nova Scotia site
(NovaScotia.com). A refresh of creative design and content was conducted on the
cbisland.com site. A review of Cape Breton Island content on the NovaScotia.com site
was conducted and new content provided to TNS. A number of suggestions were
provided to TNS, such as re-organizing the top 25 attractions by popularity, which
resulted in the Cabot Trail moved to the top line in the list. As previously noted, these
changes and a dedicated Google AdWords campaign to drive traffic to those pages
contributed to a 50% increase in traffic.
The social media presences were maintained for Cape Breton Island on Facebook,
Twitter and YouTube, the three most popular channels. Key performance indicators for
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social media show that the plans and tactics outlined for 2015 were successful in
engaging potential visitors and converting to visit the website for more directed planning.
Social media efforts in 2015 were successful in both achieving the quantifiable goals and
integrating the messaging with the rest of the marketing campaign. With the integration
of video content and cross sharing of visuals correlating to newsprint ads, the
consistency of our message across different marketing channels was strong and
effective.
Conversion
The next step in the process is to take potential visitors from engagement and interest in
the destination to taking the step to visit Cape Breton Island and buy the experience. For
the 2015 season, this included providing packages and experiences on the website,
providing assistance in trip planning through the concierge service, converting interest to
clicks through to operator websites, and facilitating online booking. A wide variety of
packages and experiences were promoted on both cbisland.com and NovaScotia.com.
A call to action was placed in a prominent location on the website to encourage use of
the concierge service.
Visitor Servicing
The following visitor comment is one of many received over the course of the season,
and sums up the hard work of travel counselors across Cape Breton Island:
“I learned more in five minutes listening to her than I did in six months studying
the travel guides. I stood around for over 45 minutes listening to her answer the
visitors’ questions and was totally amazed at her knowledge of the whole island.
Because of her, I saw things I never would have otherwise.”
New travel counselors in Port-aux-Basques, Sydney, and Margaree were trained by
seasoned and effective counselors. A weekly conference call served as a great vehicle
for information sharing, team building through the sharing of successes and challenges,
and fostering a collaborative approach. The call was also used to reinforce the message
that visitor servicing is everyone’s business, and that research proves visitors and
community members benefit from increased knowledge sharing. Furthermore, staff were
apprised of any new marketing/communication initiatives and feedback was sought.
The weekly visitor information centre (VIC) calendar, updated within each location,
continued throughout the 2015 season, and proved helpful to all. Some locations had
greater success with the calendar function than others, and we will continue to build on
the perceived successes.
Island-wide, VICs reported a 5% increase in visitation in 2015 over 2014 (from 104,193
to 109,372).
Niche Markets – Golf
The 2015 golf season saw the introduction of Cabot Cliffs to the marketplace. Although
only open for limited play in 2015, the new course garnered tremendous media attention
and buzz. It was recently ranked #19 in the world in Golf Digest’s World 100 Greatest
Golf Courses list, along with its sister course, Cabot Links, which was ranked 93rd on the
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list. Accolades from influential golf media flooded in, including these powerful
statements:
“In all of my travels and all of the courses I’ve played, I can’t say I’ve seen such a
consistent set of ‘Wows’ as it related to routing, design, setting, topography,
charm, challenge and fun.” – Matt Ginella, The Golf Channel
“Cabot Cliffs will eclipse Cabot Links as Canada’s best course.” – Rob
Thompson, National Post, SCOREGolf
The two Cabot courses, along with Highlands Links, Bell Bay Golf Club, The Lakes Golf
Club, and Le Portage Golf Club, have elevated Cape Breton Island to be considered the
best golf destination in Canada and on it’s way to becoming one of the best in North
America.
Based on key market intelligence on golfers who travel, Golf Cape Breton placed an
emphasis on the following tactics:
•
Golf media fam tours, which resulted in millions of dollars in media coverage;
•
Building relationships with PGA professionals and golf influencers, who actively
lead groups on golf trips;
•
Targeted advertising in golf-specific channels;
•
Search engine marketing, through Google AdWords;
•
A website and social media presence (Facebook, Twitter) that promotes the
courses and golf packages; and
•
A concierge service that assists in travel planning and books golf vacations.
The program was very effective in 2015. Not only was the brand of Golf Cape Breton
elevated as a golf destination, but interest was also converted to vacations. Cabot Cliffs’
limited opening was virtually sold out and resulted in Cabot Links Lodge operating at
near full capacity for most of the season. The Golf Cape Breton concierge service
directly sold approximately $205,948 in golf packages, a 119% increase over 2014, and
facilitated many more trips being planned.
Niche – Meetings and Events
Since its inception in 2013, Events Cape Breton has transitioned into a progressive sales
organization that has secured major group business for Cape Breton Island, resulting in
positive economic impact for its communities. Initiatives in years one and two were
primarily focused on sales efforts targeting the regional meetings and convention
markets directed specifically to the government, corporate, and association segments. In
consideration of the lengthy sales cycle required to secure business in this market,
Events Cape Breton has established a qualified database, and has established healthy
relationships with many organizations that will entertain hosting future events on the
island. Many challenges facing the organization during its growth have been overcome
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with the development of a strong product, brand, and a supportive industry stakeholder
sector.
Ongoing research, market trends, positive relationships with Destination Halifax and the
World Trade Centre Ltd., and market intelligence gained through sales initiatives to date
have assisted in the identification of three core pillars of business for Events Cape
Breton:
• Meetings and Conventions;
• Customized Corporate and Incentive Groups; and
• Sporting Events.
For Meetings and Conventions, Events Cape Breton focuses on generating quality leads
within the regional market. In 2015, this included coordinating two Halifax events for
industry stakeholders from the accommodation and event facilities sector, developing a
strategic partnership with Progress Media and sponsorship of their Top 101 Summit, a
mini trade show luncheon and presentation for event planners, development of
proposals and following up on leads, and continued relationship building. This activity
has led to the confirmation of six meetings coming to the Island in the next two years,
totaling over 1350 delegates.
In addition to regional meetings, Events Cape Breton has developed a program to sell
Cape Breton Island as a pre and post meeting destination. It worked closely with
Destination Halifax and the World Trade Centre Ltd. to target delegates they have
secured for meetings and conventions in Halifax.
For Customized Corporate and Incentive Groups, Events Cape Breton has developed a
targeted approach, in consultation with resort and golf course operators on the Island to
reach this lucrative segment of the market. The focus of the plan will be on golf, outdoor
adventure and culture and cuisine.
For Sporting Events, Events Cape Breton has joined the Canadian Sports Tourism
Alliance and has been working on market readiness initiatives to bid on events. A team
of stakeholders from the key facilities and organizations has been assembled and are
now ready to actively submit bids.
Niche – Cruise and Boating
DCBA led the development of a Ports Cape Breton committee (comprised of
representatives from the ports of Baddeck, Louisbourg, Chéticamp and Sydney; Boating
Cape Breton; and ACOA). DCBA has mobilized development efforts, established a
communications plan, and conducted preliminary research on existing and target cruise
lines coming to Atlantic Canada. As a new associate member of Atlantic Canada Cruise
Association (ACCA), DCBA represents the Island’s three niche ports for all promotional
activities and initiatives.
In 2015, a niche ports strategy session was conducted and each port was given a
workbook to complete as part of a market readiness toolkit. DCBA provided ACCA with
content for its website and promotional tools, so that these ports may not be actively
marketed to smaller cruise vessels. Through these efforts, two vessels have been
secured, including one for Cheticamp in 2016 (Le Ponant’s Le Soleal, a 296 passenger
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ship) and one for Louisbourg in 2017 (Adventure Canada’s Ocean Explorer, a 198
passenger ship).
DCBA has also worked supported Boating Cape Breton to promote the Island, and in
particular the Bras d’Or Lake, as a sailing and boating destination. This has included the
hosting of an annual event, Race the Cape, which attracts sailboats to a multi-leg race
that includes ocean and Bras d’Or sailing.
E. PESTLE ANALYSIS
A PESTLE analysis is a tool that is used to analyze the environment within which an
organization operates. The analysis looks at the following factors within the PESTLE
acronym:
• P – political
• E – economic
• S – social
• T – technological
• L – legal
• E – environmental
Each of these factors is explored below for Cape Breton Island.
Political
With the election of a Liberal government federally and the existing Liberal provincial
government, there is an ideological alignment that has the potential to provide benefits
for the tourism sector. ACOA continues to provide significant federal funding to the
tourism sector, as well as operating Tourism Atlantic, which provides strong support to
the development of the sector development. The federal government is planning to make
a significant investment in infrastructure over the course of its mandate, which will likely
include transportation infrastructure such as roads and ports, which may have a positive
benefit for transportation infrastructure that is used by tourism. As well, changes to the
Employment Insurance program that were made by the previous Conservative
government may be reviewed, thus providing support to the seasonal workforce that is
employed within tourism.
In terms of the provincial government, the decision to establish Tourism Nova Scotia as
an industry-led agency has resulted in changing to the operating environment for the
tourism sector. Some programs have been discontinued, while others are being
reviewed and, in the short-term, this has created some transitional issues. The agency is
placing a much greater emphasis on marketing as a means of achieving the $4 billion
revenue goal. As a result of this re-alignment of priorities, the funding of some tourism
projects, such as municipal tourism plans, have been declined. While challenging, the
industry is taking steps to deal with the fiscal reality for the province as best it can.
DCBA has strong relationships with the five municipal governments on the Island, each
of whom invests annually in DCBA and administers the Marketing Levy. DCBA also has
strong relationships with the five First Nation communities on the Island, who have
united to form the Unama’ki Tourism Association to develop the Aboriginal tourism
experience. Membertou First Nation is a significant player in the meetings and
conventions niche market with its trade and convention centre.
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Economic
International financial market volatility and weak oil prices have had a significant impact
on the 2016 forecast for the Canadian economy. CIBC World Markets is projecting a
very modest GDP increase of 1.3% for 2016; however, they project a stronger 2.3%
increase in 2017. It is important to note that the economic projection varies considerably
by region, as the oil producing provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland
and Labrador will face slower growth or even decline. British Columbia and Ontario are
expected to have the strongest GDP growth of 2% or better, while Quebec, Manitoba,
Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and New Brunswick are expected to have GDP
growth in the 1-2% range (source: TD Economics, Provincial Economic Forecast,
January 26, 2016). As a result, a continued focus on Ontario, Quebec, and the Maritimes
as targets markets should not be significantly impacted by the economy.
For the US economy, CIBC World Markets is projecting a GDP increase of 2.3% in 2016
and 2.1% in 2017. Regionally, the Massachusetts economy has been outpacing the
national economy, but is projected to slow in 2016 to be closer to the national rate. While
not as strong as Massachusetts, New York’s economy has also been outpacing the
national economy. This regional economic data suggests that Northeastern US will
continue to be a positive market for tourism spending.
The exchange rate of the Canadian dollar has been trending downward in comparison to
the US dollar over the past three years to approximately $0.70. This provides additional
incentive for US travelers to visit Canada, while also providing incentive for Canadian
travelers to stay within the country, rather than traveling to the US.
Low oil prices, while having a negative impact on segments of the Canadian economy,
can have a positive impact on tourism activity, as the costs of road and air travel are
reduced.
Social
A social phenomenon that has an impact on tourism is the hectic pace of modern life,
particularly for people living in urban areas. In addition to the pace, these urbanites are
subjected to a highly commercialized culture, where they are exposed to thousands of
marketing messages per day. These two phenomena create a need for escape and a
desire to engage in authentic life. This is not likely to change in the near future and
bodes well for the visitor experience that Cape Breton Island provides.
Skift’s Megatrends 2016 Report states, “…culinary travel experiences are now the most
popular method for driving tourism business. Food has an unmatched ability to
communicate a unique sense of place. Local cuisine provides a direct connection to the
history of a region, the soul of its people and the rhythm of daily life.” With a TNS focus
on culinary and the recent completion of a culinary tourism roadmap for Cape Breton
Island, the destination is preparing to capitalize on this social trend.
In terms of demographic trends, Cape Breton Island is well positioned to continue to
capitalize on attracting the baby boomer generation who are currently in the primary
target demographic age range. As this youthful generation ages, it is possible that the
average age of visitors to Cape Breton Island may skew older along with them. While
Generation X (born between 1965 and 1977) has a much lower population, which could
impact visitation numbers, the good news is that the Echo Generation (children of baby
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boomers, born between 1978 and 1990) is starting to enter the lower end of the target
demographic. This generation, though not as large as its parents’ generation, is still
significantly large.
Technological
One key technological trend for tourism is the widespread use of mobile devices, the
number of which now outnumbers the people on earth. The average person has their
mobile device within reach for 14 hours of every day. Mobile is enabling faster decisionmaking, as 90% of mobile searches result in action within one hour (Source:
Socialnomics). As a result of this trend, DCBA must ensure that its website and online
presence is optimized for mobile.
The strong use of mobile has also contributed to a significant rise in video consumption.
According to Cisco Video, streaming video will account for more than two-thirds of all
consumer Internet traffic by 2017 (Source: Skift Megatrends 2016). Travel brands have
learned that video is a key tool to build the brand.
The power of data has been growing in recent years and companies have been
harnessing that power to provide increasing personalization in connections with
consumers. New technologies, such as Wayblazer, which uses IBM’s Watson computing
solution, are evolving to allow destinations to customize the delivery of content to a
potential visitor’s interests. From an advertising perspective, programmatic online
channels enable videos or ads to be targeted to a very distinct audience, and then allow
for re-targeting to deliver timely, targeted reminder messages to those who have visited
a website.
Online booking, for accommodations in particular, has become ubiquitous for travelers
and operators who do not offer online booking do so at a risk to the loss of business.
This trend has resulted in a tug of war between online travel agencies (Booking.com,
Expedia, Priceline, etc.) and hotel brands or operators who would prefer that the booking
goes directly through them to avoid paying a 15-20% commission. The online travel
agencies invest heavily in Google AdWords and search engine optimization to secure
the top real estate in accommodation searches. This is a local and global phenomenon
that is projected to continue through the near future.
Legal
There are a number of regulatory issues that have a significant impact on tourism that
need to be addressed to remove barriers to the $4 billion in tourism revenues goal. Nova
Scotia’s Utility and Review Board (UARB) has implemented a number of regulations that
are archaic with respect to the motorcoach industry, which are in turn having an impact
on the Cape Breton Island cruise experience. These regulations prevent motorcoach
operators from “dead-heading’ vehicles across the Causeway, meaning that they cannot
send an empty motorcoach to Cape Breton to service cruise excursions. This has
resulted in a virtual monopoly for one motorcoach operator on the Island and a limited
number of coaches to properly service the Island. Without competition, this operator has
not had the incentive to continually invest in upgrading its fleet, resulting in vehicles that
do not meet the level of quality that is being demanded by visitors and cruise lines. If not
addressed, these archaic regulations may contribute to a downturn in cruise business for
the Island.
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For example, there is provincial legislation that provides restrictions for abattoirs that
food producers have stated is detrimental to the growth of local food production.
Regulations such as this may have an impact on culinary tourism and provide a barrier
to industry growth.
Environmental
Currently, Cape Breton Island does not have any significant environmental concerns, as
the natural environment is largely pristine and former industrial sites have largely been
reclaimed. However, it is an area to continue monitoring for potential impacts.
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II. STRATEGIC DIRECTION
A. GUIDING PRINCIPLES
The 2016 strategy for DCBA is based on the following guiding principles:
1. It is developed in alignment with the Tourism Nova Scotia strategy.
In a concerted effort to meet the One Nova Scotia Goal #14 to double tourism
revenues to $4 billion by 2024, the Cape Breton Island strategy should support
the provincial strategy as much as possible. This will include placing an
emphasis on the four pillars of the Nova Scotia strategy – investing in markets of
highest return, focusing on world class experiences, attracting first-time visitors,
and building Nova Scotia tourism confidence. In doing so, this approach will
ensure that the investment in the Cape Breton Island plan supports the broader
goal, while also leveraging the investment and reach of the Nova Scotia strategy.
The results from the 2015 season support this alignment approach.
2. It adheres to the Research/Product Development/Marketing Continuum.
The Research/Product/Marketing Continuum is a process that was formulated by
Harvey Sawler of Forerunner Creative and Tourism Strategies, an Atlantic
Canada-based tourism specialist who has worked extensively within the region’s
tourism industry. Sawler defines the Continuum as follows:
The Research/Product/Marketing Continuum is a never-ending process of
investigation, invention and intervention. All three of these energies must work in
concert to achieve optimum results in order to arrive at a true tourism economy.
The Continuum illustration elaborates on the fact that tourism operators and
organizations too often leapfrog from research to marketing without thinking the
product challenge through. Forerunner believes that it is product – not marketing
– that generates true demand: Product Drives Brand, which Drives Marketing,
which Drives Demand.
3. It continues to build on the established core experiences/motivators.
ACOA/Tourism Atlantic conducted extensive research to identify the reasons why
visitors choose to come to Atlantic Canada. DCBA subsequently adopted the
following key core experiences as they aligned with Cape Breton Island’s current
product offering:
• Coastal/Seacoast Experiences
• Sightseeing and Touring
• Culture, Entertainment and Heritage
• Outdoor Activities
• Major and International Events
• Experiential Accommodations
Further to the ACOA-led research findings, the Nova Scotia conducted an
extensive visitor exit survey to understand travel motivation and trends. The
findings identified cuisine as a key core experience, and henceforth, DCBA
adopted cuisine as a seventh and final key core experience for visitors to Cape
Breton Island.
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4. It continues to utilize Destination Canada’s award winning and proven
Explorer Quotient (EQ) psychographic profiles.
Destination Canada invested significant resources in understanding the
psychographic profiles of various traveler types, which resulted in the Explorer
Quotient segmentation process. In 2011, DCBA began utilizing this work to
define and understand its target audience and make strategic decisions based on
its target EQ types, Authentic Experiencers and Cultural Explorers, for the past
five years. This year, TNS has adopted the EQ model, which provides
opportunity for further alignment.
5. It bases all decisions on the best evidence, wherever possible.
All product development, marketing, and other activities are driven by research,
analytics and available data to make the best informed decisions.
B. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
In contributing to the $4 billion goal, and following the growth schedule that has been
outlined by TNS (see page 6), Cape Breton Island should strive to achieve the following:
• A 1.2% increase in tourism revenues to reach an estimated $400 million; and
• A 1.5% increase in non-resident visitation to reach an estimated 333,000 nonresident visitors.
While the data required to establish key performance indicators (KPI) for these two
targets is not yet available, the following targets can provide an indication of those
targets:
• A 2% increase in Marketing Levy revenues; and
• A 2% increase in room night sales.
The Cape Breton Island Marketing Levy is collected on 82% of the accommodation
inventory on the Island and an increase in revenues from the Levy strongly suggests an
increase in overall tourism revenues. Similarly, an increase in room night sales on the
Island strongly suggests an increase in visitation. While slightly lower targets were
scheduled for tourism revenues and non-resident visitation, setting both targets at 2%
allows for the potential to surpass the scheduled growth rate.
In addition to these overarching goals, a number of strategic objectives have been
defined using the Research/Product/Marketing Continuum and other elements of the
DCBA mandate:
Research:
1. To work in collaboration with TNS to gain deeper market intelligence on the target
EQ segments.
2. To work in collaboration with TNS to establish a key performance indicator to
effectively measure tourism revenues on Cape Breton Island.
3. To monitor and enhance existing KPI tracking.
Product Development:
1. To work through the TNS World Class Experience Excellerator program to identify
and develop a collection of experiences that meet the ‘world class’ standard.
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2. To develop a menu of market-ready packages, experiences, and itineraries for
promotional use and purchase through an established concierge service.
3. To prioritize and implement next steps based on niche product inventories and
assessments.
4. To explore new opportunities for industry development and innovation.
Brand:
1. To enhance the brand, thus strengthening Cape Breton Island’s position as a mustsee region within Nova Scotia.
2. To explore opportunities to extend the brand.
Marketing – Leisure:
1. To align with TNS to target key markets of high return.
2. To grow Cape Breton Island’s market share within the regional Maritimes market with
a 20% increase in regional website traffic on cbisland.com.
3. To increase qualified website traffic on cbisland.com by 100% and Cape Breton
Island content on Nova Scotia.com by 20%, while maintaining current bounce rates
and average time on site.
4. To increase Facebook followers by 40%, while maintaining an 18% engagement rate
and doubling the conversion rate to cbisland.com.
5. To increase Twitter followers by 30%, while reaching a 10% engagement rate and
doubling the conversion rate to cbisland.com.
6. To drive conversion and establish strong benchmarks for package and experience
sales.
7. To convert visitors into advocates for Cape Breton Island.
Marketing – Niche:
1. To increase the value of golf media coverage by 20%.
2. To increase website visitation to the Golf Cape Breton site by 20%.
3. To increase package sales through the golf concierge by 20%.
4. To support the growth of Cape Breton Island’s three niche ports through Ports Cape
Breton.
5. To evaluate the strategy for Boating Cape Breton and facilitate the transition to a
new operating model.
6. To grow the regional meetings and conventions business on Cape Breton Island,
and explore targeted opportunities in the national market.
7. To initiate entry into the customized corporate and incentive groups market.
8. To explore and encourage the development of Sport Tourism as a secondary
market.
Industry and Community Mobilization:
1. To maintain and enhance existing communication channels with industry to ensure
active engagement and mobilization.
2. To build confidence in the tourism industry by promoting tourism as an economic
driver for the Island and increasing awareness of the tourism product.
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C. HIGHLIGHTS
Cape Breton Island will have the advantage of a number of significant highlights
throughout the 2016 season, including:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Hosting the Travel Media Association of Canada (TMAC) Conference;
Hosting the East Coast Music Awards Show and Conference;
75th Anniversary of the Keltic Lodge and Cape Breton Highlands Links;
20th Anniversary of the Celtic Colours International Festival;
Full opening of Cabot Cliffs; and
16 in 16 signature events.
Where possible, these events should be highlighted in the marketing program.
In addition, the tremendous awareness that has been garnered through the
CBIfTrumpWins website and subsequent flood of media interest provides a truly unique
opportunity. From its launch date on February 15, 2016 to March 4, 2016, less than
three weeks, the cbisland.com site received over 450,000 website visits – an increase
of 54% over the website traffic for all of 2015. Approximately 83% of this traffic has
been from Americans. While much of this traffic is from curious people who may have no
intention of visiting, a significant portion can be defined as “Converters”, which means
anyone who has done one of the following on the website:
• Stayed on-site for more than 5 minutes;
• Visited more than 5 pages;
• Watched a video;
• Clicked off to an operator website;
• Clicked on a book now button;
• Singed up for a newsletter; or
• Added to an itinerary.
To date, there are over 102,000 Converters. This group is deemed to be qualified leads
as they have indicated serious interest in visiting Cape Breton Island. This audience may
be targeted
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III. RESEARCH
A. RESEARCH OVERVIEW
The Continuum begins with research to define the target audience and what they are
seeking in a destination. The target audience can be defined in psychographic and
demographic terms (geographic is defined in the Marketing section). These parameters
have been defined to match the targets that are being pursued by TNS to support and
leverage their brand for greater overall impact.
Psychographic
Destination Canada’s Explorer Quotient™ (EQ) market segmentation tool has changed
the way that tourism experiences are developed, marketed, and sold. As stated by
Destination Canada:
EQ can narrow your campaign focus down to the target audience that’s most
interested in your message or product. It creates a profile of your customer and
gives your internal teams and the partners they work with a common language
when it comes to talking about their best prospects, planning campaigns, building
marketing communications, buying media and delivering the products consumers
are most likely to buy.
Although TNS has previously used different definitions for its market segments, it has
recently adopted the EQ approach. The EQ types it will be targeting through marketing
efforts for 2016 match the segments previously chosen by DCBA based on the Island’s
core experiences: Authentic Experiencers and Cultural Explorers. Each of these EQ
segments is defined in greater detail below (Source: Destination Canada).
Authentic Experiencers (26% of the Nova Scotia market)
Authentic Experiencers appreciate the understated beauty of both natural and
cultural environments, and try to keep a foot in both worlds. They enjoy using all
of their senses when they explore their chosen destination and really get to know
the places they visit. They quickly adapt to personal challenges and risks, easily
figuring out how to make the most of every situation. Authentic Experiencers
want to be fully immersed in their travel experience and tend to stay away from
group tours and rigid plans.
While Authentic Experiencers are not constant travelers, they are also not
reluctant travelers. Travel is seen as enriching life, not escaping from it. Authentic
Experiencers travel to better understand the world around them and value the
nature and culture found everywhere, including their own backyard. Authentic
Experiencers tend to visit a wider range of destinations and prefer longer trips to
weekend getaways. They are more likely than others to add time before or after
business trips.
Authentic Experiencers have a strong ecological and societal ethic, being very
conscious of the environment and those around them. Generally, they are more
socially reserved and are not interested in crowds or status seeking. Authentic
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Experiencers are skeptical of advertising and tend not to impulse shop. When
they decide to purchase, they are guided by ethical concerns and social equality.
Travel values:
• Learning travel – they like to learn everything about a place, time or culture
• Nature – they enjoy vast natural settings and wonders
• Cultural immersion – they prefer integration into the local culture
• Personal development – they seek self-improvement through understanding
others
Cultural Explorers (16% of the Nova Scotia market)
Cultural Explorers seek constant opportunities to embrace, discover and
immerse themselves in the entire experience of the culture, people and settings
of the places they visit. Not content to just visit historic sites and watch from the
sidelines, they want to participate in the modern-day culture as well. They often
attempt to converse with locals, attend cultural festivals or go off the beaten track
to discover how locals truly live.
For Cultural Explorers, travel is seen as the only way to truly experience life and
the world. Experiencing the world first-hand can never be replaced by secondary
methods such as TV or the Internet. Travel tends to have an element of
escapism for Cultural Explorers, as they get away from their everyday lives.
Cultural Explorers prefer spontaneous events and unique discoveries; they avoid
mainstream, touristy locations. They are not intimidated at all by unfamiliar
locations or situations and are willing to endure uncomfortable transportation and
amenities to “live” a different culture. Cultural Explorers avoid skimming the
surface of their destinations and are more interested in deep, meaningful
experiences than seeing all of the “must-see” attractions.
Cultural Explorers feel some time pressure, trying to meet all of their goals and
responsibilities. They are willing to take risks to reach their goals and are
confident in their ability to adapt to change. Cultural Explorers are egalitarian and
progressive in their societal views, and feel little need to adhere to societal
norms. They seek fun and excitement, and are attracted to crowds and social
events. When shopping, Cultural Explorers place little importance on brand
names and status purchases, and are skeptical of advertising. They are
ecologically and ethically aware, which their carefully thought-out and researched
purchases reflect.
Travel values:
• Companion experiences – they prefer traveling with like-minded people
• Living history/culture – they enjoy ancient history and modern culture
• Learning travel – they like to learn everything about a place, time or culture
• Constant exploration – they’re always planning for the next outing
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Demographic
The primary target audience for DCBA, as defined through the 2016 Cape Breton Island
Travel Intentions and Conversion Surveys, has the following demographic
characteristics:
•
The travel planning process is conducted mainly be women.
•
51% of the audience is in the 45 to 64 years old age range.
•
53% are employed full-time and 23% are retired.
•
41% have an annual household income in the $50,000-$100,000 range, while
38% have an annual household income in excess of $100,000.
•
They travel mainly as couples (53%).
Visit Motivators
In looking at why the target audience is interested in visiting Cape Breton Island, the
chart below shows the top visitation motivators from the Travel Intention Survey. As
illustrated, coastal sightseeing, likely tied to the Cabot Trail, is the top motivator, followed
by outdoor adventure, Celtic culture, history, culinary, and Acadian culture. These
motivators line up closely with the core experiences from the ACOA Tourism Strategy.
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In terms of the experiences visitors actually experienced during their vacation, the chart
below shows the top experiences as per the Conversion Survey. These also line up very
closely to the core experiences from the ACOA Tourism Strategy.
In addition to gaining even deeper insight into the target audience, the research strategy
will focus on establishing a new key performance indicator to measure tourism revenues
and to track the progress of existing key performance indicators.
Research Objectives:
1. To work in collaboration with TNS to gain deeper market intelligence on the target
EQ segments.
2. To work in collaboration with TNS to establish a key performance indicator to
3. To monitor and enhance existing KPI tracking.
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B. RESEARCH TACTICS
To achieve the research objectives, a number of tactics will be implemented, as follows.
Research Objective 1:
To work in collaboration with TNS to gain deeper market intelligence on the target
EQ segments.
•
Collaborate with TNS on research activities
TNS has purchased a license for the Explorer Quotient program, which will allow
them to access a deeper level of intelligence on the target segments. They also
have dedicated resources to conduct research on the provincial industry, core
experiences, niche markets, etc., which may include some regional data. By
collaborating with TNS, DCBA will gain even greater insight on the target market.
To work in collaboration with TNS to establish a key performance indicator to
•
Collaborate with TNS on the development of tourism revenue KPIs
With the $4 billion goal focused on tourism revenues, an effective way of
measuring revenue growth is required. TNS is exploring methodologies for
tracking tourism revenues and, while they are focused on a provincial number,
there may be an opportunity to determine Cape Breton Island tourism revenues
through their process.
To monitor and enhance existing KPI tracking.
•
Continue existing KPI tracking procedures and monthly reporting
Current KPIs should continue to be tracked, including:
• Room night sales;
• Google Analytics on cbisland.com;
• Google Analytics on Cape Breton content on NovaScotia.com;
• Online advertising stats (clicks, impressions, views);
• Social media insights for Facebook and Twitter; and
• Video views.
•
Set targets and measure packages developed and sales
Targets should be established for the optimal number of packages to be created
to represent the core experiences on the Island. Then, procedures should be
established to track the sales of those packages through the concierge service
and online booking.
•
Schedule the travel intention and conversion surveys for every third year
The travel intention and conversion surveys, which had been implemented
annually, have been providing fairly consistent information each year. As a result,
the frequency of those surveys may be spaced out to be every third year with the
next ones scheduled for the 2018 season. In doing so, resources from those
initiatives may be re-allocated to other research activities or other areas of the
budget.
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IV. PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
A. PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT OVERVIEW
Operators, community groups, local tourism associations, government representatives,
and other stakeholders have invested significant resources (time and money) into
product development initiatives and efforts over the past number of five years.
Subsequently, a tourism culture has emerged on Cape Breton Island, and a shift has
begun taking place moving the tourism industry on Cape Breton Island to tourism
destination status. As outlined in the Product Development Phases chart on page 11,
most of the product categories for core experiences are now market-ready. Development
efforts may now be shifted to bringing those experiences to market, with the intention of
alleviating challenges visitors face in planning and booking travel to Cape Breton Island.
Emphasis in 2016 onward will be placed upon packaging market-ready experiences
(based on the identified seven core experiences, in addition to aligning with the EQ
types), developing itineraries, and creating a point of sale purchasing system.
Product Development Objectives:
1. To work through the TNS World Class Experience Excellerator program to identify
2. To develop a menu of market-ready packages, experiences, and itineraries for
3. To prioritize and implement next steps based on niche product inventories and
assessments.
4. To explore new opportunities for industry development and innovation.
B. PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT TACTICS
To achieve the product development objectives, a number of tactics will be implemented,
as follows:
Product Development Objective 1:
To work through the TNS World Class Experience Excellerator program to identify
•
Identify opportunities for experience development
Through a combination of one-on-one coaching, access to experts, and
professional development, this Tourism Nova Scotia pilot program is a great way
to grow a tourism business by creating innovative, hands-on experiences. DCBA
intends to work with TNS to identify opportunities (based on previous product
development work, assessments, and identified product clubs) for experience
development.
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To develop a menu of market-ready packages, experiences, and itineraries for
•
Work with industry on the development of market-ready packages and
experiences
From a package assessment conducted in 2015, DCBA is now ready to work
with industry to address gaps, based on the core experiences, EQ profiles, and
travel intentions research. This will involve redefining Package and Experience
Criteria based on the TNS criteria guidelines. As well, there is a need to
differentiate between packages and experiences for all listings on cbisland.com
and novascotia.com.
•
Work with Events Cape Breton on the development of market-ready pre and
post meetings packages
Events Cape Breton has identified golf, outdoor, and culinary packages as the
best matches for the pre and post market. Golf is already at a market-ready
stage with existing packages available, so this niche may be the lead. However,
DCBA can work with Events Cape Breton and industry partners to identify and
develop outdoor and culinary experiences that may be packaged for the pre and
post market.
•
Itinerary development
As a next step in the packages assessment, DCBA aims to develop sample
itineraries for purchase through an established concierge service. In terms of
bringing the itineraries to market, the Tourism New Zealand presentation model
will be followed, with an emphasis on video and testimonies to enhance content
and visual appeal.
To prioritize and implement next steps based on niche product inventories and
assessments.
•
Support Experience Acadie’s development efforts
DCBA will support Experience-Acadie’s development efforts, which aim to create
4-5 new experience offerings within Chéticamp, Isle Madame, St. Peters, and
Louisbourg.
•
Support the execution of the Cape Breton Island Culinary Roadmap plan
DCBA will work with TNS, Taste of Nova Scotia and industry partners to begin
the implementation of the Culinary Roadmap. This will involve a number of
initiatives from the launch of the Parks Canada Perfect Picnic Places program to
various industry education programs, which will be prioritized for implementation
in the 2016 year.
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•
Support the development and promotion of Cape Breton Island trails
In collaboration with TNS, DCBA will identify and support one-two destination trail
assessments. As well, based on GPS coordinates, DCBA will develop a GIS trail
map for promotional purposes. Based on inventory and market-readiness
outcomes, other product development priorities will be identify as per the
assessment report.
•
Support the Unama’ki Tourism Association (UTA) in development and
marketing efforts
DCBA will work with partners and TNS to create a minimum of one new
Aboriginal experience on Cape Breton Island, per the Excellerator funding
program. DCBA will assist UTA in package creation with identified
accommodations, cultural partners, and artisans. Membertou will be supported
as an Aboriginal youth and elders hospitality training facility for all UTA partners.
This will also include support for the development of the Skye River Trail in
Waycobah, including overnight rough camping and natural remedies and
medicines interpretation.
•
Support the completion and implementation of other product assessments
Once completed, DCBA will work with partners to prioritize the next steps in
product development for the assessments currently being undertaken, including
the outdoor, winter product, and performing arts experiences.
To explore new opportunities for industry development and innovation.
•
Align with any new TNS product development efforts
In addition to the World Class Experience Excellerator program, TNS may
explore other new product development initiatives based on the EQ focus. This
may include product development for the Free Spirit EQ segment or marketreadiness for the Chinese market, two development areas that have been
identified in the TNS strategy. As TNS identifies priorities moving forward, DCBA
will align and shift priorities (if applicable) to ensure a unified approach.
•
Establish partnerships with CBU and NSCC to foster tourism innovation
and entrepreneurship
Currently, CBU and NSCC are involved in business start-up programs and
events, including UIT, the Island Sandbox, and various hack-a-thon events. Most
of these programs have focused on information technology or social enterprise to
date, but they could be adapted for the tourism sector. Such programs would
support the on-going renewal of the sector in terms of ideas, businesses, and
new experiences. As well, in CBU’s Tourism and Hospitality Management
program, there may be opportunities to incorporate projects and assignments
into the curriculum regarding the creation of tourism experiences. The hope is
that some of these students will use such as assignments as launching pads for
the creation of actual tourism experiences and start new businesses.
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V. BRAND
A. BRAND OVERVIEW
As previously noted, the brand for Cape Breton Island has been designed with an
emotional trigger using the “Your Heart Will Never Leave” theme. The messaging is
designed to appeal to the target EQ types, as both types seek a deeper, richer,
engaging experience than most travelers. In 2015, the brand creative was adjusted to
align with the creative direction of the Nova Scotia campaign to position Cape Breton
Island as a must-see destination within the provincial destination. The alignment
approach delivered strong results, so it will be continued for 2016. Given that TNS is
now focusing on the same EQ targets, this should only be strengthened.
Overall, the brand strategy will focus on enhancement through deepening the content
and creative elements that support the brand. As well, opportunities to extend the brand
will be explored.
Brand Objectives:
1. To enhance the brand, thus strengthening Cape Breton Island’s position as a mustsee region within Nova Scotia.
2. To explore opportunities to extend the brand.
B. BRAND TACTICS
To achieve the brand objectives, a number of tactics will be implemented, as follows:
Brand Objective 1:
To enhance the brand, thus strengthening Cape Breton Island’s position as a
must-see region within Nova Scotia.
•
Continue brand alignment with TNS
The TNS creative for 2016 has not yet been released, but once in hand, direction
should be provided to DCBA’s creative agency to enhance the Cape Breton
Island brand, as needed, to complement with provincial brand.
•
Enhance the Cape Breton Island brand voice
The partnership with Linden MacIntyre to provide the voice for the television
commercials should be continued and expanded. To extend authenticity to all
video content, Cape Breton Island musicians should be commissioned to
compose and/or arrange music for all commercials and videos.
•
Emphasize packages and experiences with a conversion focus in creative
To match the product development focus on packaging and itinerary
development, the selling of packages and experiences should be emphasized in
the creative with a strong call to action.
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•
The inventory of photo and video content should be reviewed to determine
gaps and a plan developed to source new content
The photo and video inventory should continue to be renewed for both leisure
and niche activities to ensure that imagery and footage is available to portray all
core experiences. New content to be collected should follow the Destination
Canada guidelines for the target EQ types. The new Content program offered by
TNS should be explored and industry partnerships established to cost-share the
investment.
Brand Objective 2:
To explore opportunities to extend the brand.
•
Explore ways to extend the brand through partnerships
The Cape Breton Island brand may be extended through strategic partnerships.
For example, DCBA is developing branded picnic baskets for the Parks Canada
Perfect Picnic Places program. Other opportunities may exist with partners like
TNS, Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy, Bay Ferries, industry operators, etc.
•
Develop a merchandise pilot project
The brand may be extended through merchandise that could be available for
sales at VICs or through partners. For 2016, a pilot project will be established
with “Your Heart Will Never Leave” merchandise designed and made available
for sale at the VIC at the Joan Harriss Cruise Pavilion.
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VI. MARKETING – LEISURE
A. MARKETING – LEISURE OVERVIEW
To align with the TNS marketing direction, DCBA will look for optimal opportunities within
their direction, which includes a consumer campaign and B2B/trade activities.
The TNS consumer campaign has the following objective:
To increase first-time visitors, Authentic Experiencers and Cultural Explorers,
from high yield markets, Toronto, Montreal, and the Northeastern United States.
DCBA does not have the resources to pursue all of these markets equally, so priorities
must be established. As such, it will continue to place a primary focus on first-time
visitors in the high-yield Toronto market. This market is prioritized for the following
reasons:
• The Cape Breton Island Conversion Survey indicates that this market has a
greater spend per travel party than Quebec and Northeastern US;
• There was strong visitation to cbisland.com from this market from the 2015
campaign, so a continued focus will build on that momentum; and
• There are direct flights from Toronto to Sydney to support access.
Although prioritizing Toronto, DCBA will continue to place a secondary emphasis on
Montreal and the Northeastern US.
Additionally, although not a focus of TNS, Mainland Nova Scotia remains an important
market for Cape Breton Island. Efforts will ensure that the Island remains top-of-mind as
a getaway option and will have a retail focus with specific packages, experiences and
events highlighted to drive interest and conversion.
Based on website analytics and conversion data, the regional campaign will place a
secondary focus on Moncton and Charlottetown. There was an increase in interest from
those markets (16% increase in web traffic from Moncton and 56% increase from
Charlottetown) and website visitors from those markets showed a significantly higher
rate of conversion (i.e. clicking through to an operator’s website) with a 10.8%
conversion from PEI visitors and 8.5% from New Brunswick, compared to 6.7% for Nova
Scotia and 5.5% for Ontario. Given their proximity, there is an opportunity to target this
market for getaways, particularly at times of the season where there is excess capacity.
TNS has defined the role of marketing as inspiring the target audience, as stated in the
above objective, to create a “vacation movie” and nudge them toward conversion with
tactical messaging. Creating a vacation movie means visualizing their vacation and
picturing what they would do in Nova Scotia. To do so, their plan will follow the
marketing funnel illustrated on the following page to create awareness of Nova Scotia, to
engage potential visitors to sample the experience and visualize their vacation movie, to
nudge potential visitors toward conversion, and then to encourage visitors to become
advocates for Nova Scotia.
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DCBA has utilized a similar process in recent years and will continue to match this
approach.
For B2B/trade, TNS is planning to continue to manage key accounts and receptive tour
operators. They will leverage trade activities through partnerships with Destination
Canada, the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership (ACTP), Atlantic Canada Cruise
Association, and the Air Gateway Committee. They plan to attend key marketplaces for
trade and media and to invest in trade partnerships and media fams.
DCBA will liaise with TNS to support trade and media activities that will benefit Cape
Breton Island. In particular, a major focus will be placed on the 2016 TMAC Conference
to be hosted on the Island in June.
Marketing – Leisure Objectives:
1. To align with TNS to target key markets of high return.
2. To grow Cape Breton Island’s market share within the regional Maritimes market with
a 20% increase in regional website traffic on cbisland.com.
3. To increase qualified website traffic on cbisland.com by 100% and Cape Breton
Island content on Nova Scotia.com by 20%, while maintaining current bounce rates
and average time on site.
4. To increase Facebook followers by 40%, while maintaining an 18% engagement rate
and doubling the conversion rate to cbisland.com.
5. To increase Twitter followers by 30%, while reaching a 10% engagement rate and
6. To drive conversion and establish strong benchmarks for package and experience
sales.
7. To convert visitors into advocates for Cape Breton Island.
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B. MARKETING – LEISURE TACTICS
To achieve the marketing objectives, a number of tactics will be implemented, as follows.
These tactics are also organized by awareness, engagement, conversion, and
advocacy, although it should be noted that some tactics cross over multiple phases.
AWARENESS
Marketing – Leisure Objective 1:
To align with TNS to target key markets of high return.
•
Capitalize on the interest from CBIfTrumpWins with a re-targeting
campaign to Converters from that site
As stated on page 26, there is an opportunity to capitalize on the web traffic and
media interest derived from the CBIfTrumpWins website by targeting the
“Converters” or qualified leads. Through Google re-targeting, a campaign may be
developed to send ads directly to this group after they have visited the website to
encourage them to continue to engage and to convert to a visit. Additionally,
Google allows for the creation of a ‘Look-alike’ audience that mirrors the
characteristics of the Converters group and a campaign may be developed to
target this group as well.
•
Leverage the interest from CBIfTrumpWins to target travel writers who
have been to Cape Breton Island to feature the destination again to extend
the interest
Many travel writers who have been to Cape Breton Island may be persuaded to
take advantage of the CBIfTrumpWins interest to feature the Island in another
story. These writers may be contacted to encourage them to look at this option,
as a related story is likely to garner a significant readership at this time.
•
Develop a targeted advertising campaign in the Greater Toronto Area that
is aligned with the TNS campaign
Based on the 2015 results, this campaign will include television and a strong
digital focus (Google AdWords, Facebook ads, programmatic, and TripAdvisor).
Advertising in the Toronto Star will be discontinued due to a lower ROI.
•
Develop targeted advertising campaigns in the Montreal and Northeastern
US markets that are is aligned with the TNS campaign
Based on the 2015 results, these campaigns will be strictly digital (Google
AdWords, Facebook ads, and TripAdvisor). Partnership opportunities will be
explored for other marketing tactics, including consumer shows and co-operative
promotion with Bay Ferries.
•
Establish a partnership with Bay Ferries
With the return of Bay Ferries to the operation of the Portland-Yarmouth ferry, in
addition to the existing ferry services between Saint John-Digby and Wood
Islands-Caribou, the potential exists to build a strong partnership with this
organization. Partnership opportunities will include consumer shows, providing
content and packages for the Bay Ferries website, and possible co-operative
promotions.
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•
Identify and target key travel media from these markets to attract to Cape
Breton Island for TMAC or on individual fam trips
Both as stand-alone activities and through partnership with TNS, Destination
Canada and Parks Canada, the media relations program will continue to attract
key media from target markets of high return. In 2016, this will include a strong
emphasis on TMAC to fully capitalize on this opportunity. A pre-event media fam
has been presented for Go Media Canada Marketplace in Montreal in 2016 and
other opportunities are being explored.
•
Continue partnership with Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy on their
Visions of Cape Breton Tour
The Visions of Cape Breton Tour was very effective in creating awareness of
Cape Breton Island as a destination and Natalie and Donnell definitely helped the
audience to visualize their Cape Breton Island vacation movie. In 2016, they will
be touring across Canada, which will likely include the Greater Toronto Area and
Montreal.
•
Attend Rendez-vous Canada
Rendez-vous Canada is Canada’s premier international tourism marketplace led
by Destination Canada, connecting international buyers with Canadian sellers of
tourism products. The DCBA presence will provide destination support for
international markets being targeted by Nova Scotia, including the United
Kingdom, Germany, and China.
To grow Cape Breton Island’s market share within the regional Maritimes market.
•
Develop a targeted advertising campaign in the Maritimes with a primary
focus on the Greater Halifax Area and a secondary focus on Moncton and
Charlottetown
Based on the 2015 results, this campaign will include television, print, and a
strong digital focus (Google AdWords, Facebook ads, programmatic, and
TripAdvisor).
•
Develop a new Experience Cape Breton Guide
This year, a new guide will be developed to promote Cape Breton Island
experiences and packages. The guide will be utilized on-Island for visitor
servicing, but will also be used as a lure piece for the regional market.
Distribution plans will include an insert with Saltscapes Magazine, targeted
drops, distribution province-wide through VICs*, and distribution through Bay
Ferries. The guide will also be produced as a digital version and made available
on the website.
•
Expand and enhance the Cape Breton Island presence at the Saltscapes
Expo
The Saltscapes Expo provides a solid return on investment and serves as a
motivator for the regional market to consider Cape Breton Island. This year,
Tourism Nova Scotia will not have a presence at the Expo, so there is an
opportunity for Cape Breton Island to take a larger, commanding space. The
Island’s presence will continue to be organized in partnership with key industry
partners to provide a strong sample of core experiences available on the Island.
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•
Develop a hotel concierge advocacy program
The kiosk on the Halifax Waterfront will be discontinued in 2016, as other costeffective opportunities to reach visitors in Halifax are being explored. This will
include the development of a new program to educate hotel concierges in the
Halifax area on Cape Breton Island and to encourage them to promote the Island
to their clients.
•
Develop stronger partnerships with Nova Scotia entry point VICs
Staff at entry point VICs (Halifax, Amherst, Yarmouth) will be visited to educate
them on the Cape Breton Island experience and to ensure that the Island is top
of mind when they are servicing visitors.
•
Continue the Port-aux-Basques kiosk
The kiosk in Port-aux-Basques will be continued as part of the partnership with
Marine Atlantic.
ENGAGEMENT
To increase qualified website traffic on cbisland.com by 100% and Cape Breton
Island content on Nova Scotia.com by 20%, while maintaining current bounce
rates and average time on site.
•
Launch new cbisland.com website
A new cbisland.com site is nearing completion. The new site is designed using
current best practices for travel websites, including a visual navigation structure,
optimization/responsiveness for mobile devices, geo-targeting, TripAdvisor
integration, etc. It will incorporate content feeds from NovaScotia.com and will
allow for user-friendly content editing.
•
Complete an annual review of Cape Breton content on NovaScotia.com and
provide recommendations for enhancement
The review completed in 2015 contributed to a 50% increase in traffic to Cape
Breton Island content on NovaScotia.com. By continuing this process each year,
traffic to that content may continue to grow. Industry will be encouraged to
enhance their listings and package content on the site, as this content ill feed into
cbisland.com as well.
•
Extend the Locals Know content to a blog
The Locals Know content is very valuable in providing information that the
potential visitor may perceive as the “inside scoop”. For the target EQ types, this
gives them a sense of gaining greater access to an authentic experience. This
content will be extended to a blog format on the new cbisland.com website,
which then may be shared through social media channels, email, etc.
•
Align with TNS on Google AdWords
In 2015, a partnership program was developed with TNS on Google AdWords
that drove traffic to both cbisland.com and Cape Breton content on
NovaScotia.com. This year, TNS has launched a Search Engine Marketing
(SEM) program that may provide a similar partnership opportunity. This program
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will be explored to determine if a portion of the Google AdWords spend should be
invested through it.
•
Develop pilot program for email marketing
Through the partnership with Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy, a significant
email database has been developed. Additional emails have been collected
through a signup form on cbisland.com. As a result, there is an opportunity to
develop a pilot program for email marketing to determine optimal approaches.
The program will send targeted email messages that drive visitation to the
website and nudge recipients toward conversion.
To increase Facebook followers by 40%, while maintaining an 18% engagement
rate and doubling the conversion rate to cbisland.com.
•
Boost Facebook posts
Posts will be planned with audience and geographic market in mind, and where
possible, Facebook content will be promoted through paid targeting in
geographic regions to complement investments in other advertising channels.
•
Video sharing
2015 Facebook tactics included a test of videos uploaded directly to the new
Facebook Video player app. The video posts were boosted and used in
Facebook advertising to promote the videos on a regular basis. Overall the
success was exceptional with all 2015 videos currently showing over 640,000
views through Facebook since being launched in May 2015. In 2016, the focus
will be to continue to utilize this tactic in promoting and sharing content on
Facebook. Any new video content will be re-purposed for use on Facebook and
relevant new video content will be promoted through paid advertising in this
channel in 2016.
•
Encourage conversion to packages
Using key content pieces being developed, such as the Experience Cape Breton
Island Guide, social media efforts will shift to regularly promoting and
encouraging the consideration of these packages in their 2016 planning. This will
be accomplished not simply through scheduled postings, but through taking
audience engagement to the next level and finding the best prospects through
continuing the conversation with our followers in comments sections. With over
6,000 comments on the 2015 Cabot Trail video alone, there are hundreds of
leads to nurture by sending relevant packages.
To increase Twitter followers by 30%, while reaching a 10% engagement rate and
•
Sharing practical and valuable content
If the Cape Breton Island Twitter channel is to motivate a potential visitor to make
a trip, the best tactic is sharing practical and valuable content that the visitor
would appreciate. With marketing elements such as trip itineraries, purchasable
packages, e-newsletters and the new Locals Know content focused blog, there
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will be many options for content to share with visitors that they can find useful.
•
Sharing rich media
90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual. Visuals are processed
60,000 times faster in the brain than text, so it makes sense that images play an
integral part to the social media messaging. This will include selecting compelling
images to accompany tweets as well as working with the marketing team to
create some GIFs. In addition, the strong videos and images that represent Cape
Breton will help in meeting all goals noted and acts as great content to be
retweeted to enhance engagement.
•
Develop and share “What makes Cape Breton tick” content
The people and cultures are such a strong part of the story for what makes Cape
Breton Island who she is. This type of behind-the-scenes style content can allow
more flexibility in sharing content that is endearing, but may not be completely
connected to driving tourism. In addition, the Locals Know blog content will also
add a direct connection to driving tourism products while also sharing the behind
the scenes spirit that is so strong in online engagement.
•
Maintain Google+ and YouTube channels
DCBA maintains a profile on Google+ and will continue to do so in 2016 for the
purpose of assisting in the effectiveness of search engine results. DCBA also
maintains a YouTube profile and will continue to do so in 2016. The purpose for
maintaining this profile is to have a presence on the 2nd most searched online
platform as well as hold our promotional video content for sharing and
embedding on websites. There has been some great use of this channel with the
Cabot Trail and Coastal Adventures videos being embedded on NovaScotia.com
in 2015.
CONVERSION
To drive conversion and establish strong benchmarks for package and experience
sales.
•
Enhance the Cape Breton Island concierge service to focus on sales
The Cape Breton Island concierge service has previously existed to provide trip
planning assistance to visitors. While this function will continue, a greater
emphasis may be placed on the selling of packages. Sales training should be
provided to the concierge staff members to adopt this sales mindset.
•
Enhance the Island-wide VIC service to focus on sales
Similar to the concierge service, Cape Breton Island VIC staff can add a focus on
sales to their current visitor servicing function. They may utilize the Experience
Cape Breton Guide as a tool in the sales process. Sales training should be
incorporated in their training. The potential of adding a point-of-sale system in
VICs should be explored for the eventual direct selling of packages and
experiences on site.
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•
Emphasize conversion in all aspects of marketing
As previously mentioned in the strategy, an emphasis on packages and
conversion should be placed on all facets of the plan from adding a strong call to
action and lure packages in creative to promoting packages through social media
engagement.
•
Support Bay Ferries in selling packages and room nights
Bay Ferries has a strong track record of selling packages and room nights as
part of its overall service. Select Cape Breton Island packages should be
provided to them for inclusion on their website and promotional materials.
Product education should be planned with their visitor servicing staff and with
their team at the Blue Ocean contact centre.
•
Enhance the Cape Breton Island destination page on TripAdvisor with
packages and experiences
The destination page for Cape Breton Island on TripAdvisor is an important piece
of the Island’s web presence. As such, it should be enhanced to add packages
and experiences to encourage conversion.
ADVOCACY
To convert visitors into advocates for Cape Breton Island.
•
Ensure continued high quality visitor servicing at Cape Breton Island VICs
The visitor servicing program is scheduled to continue with VIC staff training and
a fam tour, information gathering and sharing activities with industry and the
community, and integration with marketing activities to sell packages and
experiences and promote events. A focus for 2016 will be to continue to build the
VIC presence at the Joan Harriss Cruise Pavilion. As well, an assessment of the
ScreenScapes program will conducted to determine if it should proceed for 2016.
•
Utilize social media channels to encourage visitors to share their
experiences
Part of the marketing process has been encouraging potential visitors to visualize
a vacation movie. Once they visit, the focus can shift to encouraging them to
share their actual movie (plus photos and testimonials). Through social media,
visitors may be prompted to share videos, photos, stories, etc. through Cape
Breton Island’s channels, TripAdvisor, and Nova Scotia’s channels.
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VII. MARKETING – NICHE
A. MARKETING – NICHE OVERVIEW
DCBA is actively involved in three niche product/market areas:
• Golf;
• Marine (Cruise and Boating); and
• Meetings and Conventions.
In 2016, there will be a focus on achieving a greater integration of these three niche
activities, so greater cross-promotion and synergies may be achieved.
Marketing – Niche Objectives:
1. To increase the value of golf media coverage by 20%.
2. To increase website visitation to the Golf Cape Breton site by 20%.
3. To increase package sales through the golf concierge by 20%.
4. To support the growth of Cape Breton Island’s three niche ports through Ports Cape
Breton.
5. To evaluate the strategy for Boating Cape Breton and facilitate the transition to a
6. To grow the regional meetings and conventions business on Cape Breton Island,
7. To initiate entry into the customized corporate and incentive groups market.
8. To explore and encourage the development of Sport Tourism as a secondary
market.
B. MARKETING – NICHE TACTICS
To achieve the marketing – niche objectives, a number of tactics will be implemented, as
follows and arranged according to each niche area:
GOLF
Marketing – Niche Objective 1:
To increase the value of golf media coverage by 20%.
•
Continue to capitalize on media interest in Cabot Cliffs and secure interest
in the 75th Anniversary of Highlands Links
The golf media is one of the most significant ways to create awareness for the
destination. Given the continued interest in Cabot Cliffs and the 75th Anniversary
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of Highlands Links, there are two strong hooks to attract the media. Key golf and
business/travel media will be invited to visit Cape Breton Island for a golf fam
with the goal of having them feature the experience and the destination in their
respective channels in the winter/spring of 2017.
•
Maximize media coverage from hosting the 2016 PGA TOUR Canada’s Cape
Breton Celtic Classic
As stated in the Situation Analysis, hosting professional golf events can result in
golf media coverage with the opportunity to profile the destination. The 2016
PGA TOUR Canada’s Cape Breton Celtic Classic will provide media coverage,
which may be maximized to ensure that Cape Breton Island is well positioned as
a golf destination.
•
Continue to nurture relationships with media who visited in 2015 to support
their coverage of Cape Breton Island
A number of members of the media visited Cape Breton Island during the 2015
season and, while some released articles or coverage during that season, some
are planning to do so in the lead up to the 2016 season. Care should be taken to
ensure these media members have all images, footage or other needs for their
stories.
•
Capitalize on the golf component of the TMAC conference
Hosting the TMAC conference provides an opportunity to highlight Cape Breton
Island’s golf experience to members of the travel media. Pre and post conference
fam trips are being planned and these opportunities will be executed to ensure
optimal coverage.
To increase website visitation to the Golf Cape Breton site by 20%.
•
Develop a golf-specific marketing campaign targeting Ontario and the
Northeastern US
Research shows that golf travelers regularly consume golf content through golf
broadcasts, magazines and websites. This year, a multi-platform partnership is
being developed with TSN who are taking larger steps into the golf business.
Additionally, the campaign will include targeted golf broadcasts, specialty print
and digital advertising. The call to action of all advertising will be to visit
golfcapebreton.com.
•
Develop a targeted search engine marketing campaign
Another way to effectively target golfers is through targeted online marketing.
This will include continued campaigns through Google AdWords and Facebook
advertising, with the exploration of programmatic advertising to targeted markets.
This program may take advantage of a new search engine marketing campaign
offered by Tourism Nova Scotia.
•
Target PGA professionals and industry influencers
Increasingly, avid golf travelers seek the opinion of PGA Professionals on travel
plans and the Professionals often arrange group travel for members of their club,
accompanying them on the trip. PGA Professionals also serve as rankers for
many of the prestigious golf publications who issue listings of the top courses in
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the world. In addition to the pros, golf travel operators have lists of group travel
leaders who arrange trips of groups of golf travelers to a variety of destinations.
Planning fam tours for these key influencers will lead to the generation of word of
mouth promotion and group travel bookings. A section will be added to
golfcapebreton.com dedicated to these key influencers.
•
Develop new Golf Cape Breton website
Based on the infrastructure of the new cbisland.com site, which is nearing
completion, a new Golf Cape Breton site will be designed using current best
practices for golf destination websites, including a visual navigation structure,
optimization/responsiveness for mobile devices, geo-targeting, etc. It will allow
for user-friendly content editing and its design will be aligned with the search
engine marketing campaign. The new website will place greater emphasis on
packages and prompt visitors to use the Golf Concierge service to book a
customized package.
•
Develop a new golf guide with a package focus
Another partnership being developed is with renowned Canadian golf writer Rob
Thompson. This partnership will involve the production of a new golf guide for
Cape Breton Island with Thompson contributing all the written content. A focus of
the guide will be on engaging the audience and leading them to appealing golf
packages. The call to action for the guide will be to visit the website for detailed
package information and to use the Golf Concierge service. The guide will also
be produced digitally and added to the site.
•
Enhanced social media presence
A dedicated social media campaign will be developed and promoted through the
Golf Cape Breton Facebook page, Twitter account, and YouTube channel with
the goal of increasing engagement and converting interest to clicks through to
the website. Social media efforts will focus on regularly promoting and
encouraging the consideration of golf packages in their 2016 golf travel planning.
•
Enhanced email marketing
Utilizing the existing database of golfers, regular email blasts will be sent at least
once per month to encourage golfers to visit the website to find out more
information and to promote golf packages.
To increase package sales through the golf concierge by 20%.
•
Sales events in Ontario through PGA of Canada partnership
Through a partnership with the PGA of Canada, sales focused activations will
take place at 7-10 of the top golf clubs in Ontario. The activations will include a
sponsorship of men’s nights at the clubs where package itineraries will be
distributed. A Golf Concierge staff member will be on hand to encourage group
travel.
•
Enhance the inventory of golf packages
The inventory of golf packages may be enhanced to add new packages and to
build upon the most popular packages. For example, a Cape Breton Island golf
package may he developed that includes Cabot Links, Cabot Cliffs, and
2016 Strategy
47
Highlands Links, along with a choice of two of the other courses. By offering a
multi-course, 5-7 day package, a golf traveler will envision Cape Breton Island
being a golf destination that ideally requires a week.
•
Expand the Golf Concierge to include the proposed Nova Scotia Golf Trail
courses on mainland Nova Scotia
The concept of a Nova Scotia Golf Trail is currently being explored, which would
include all of the Golf Cape Breton courses as well as the Mainland Nova Scotia
courses that would hold appeal to the traveling golfer (tentatively Fox Harb’r,
Glen Arbour, the Links at Brunello, and Digby Pines). Although the demand for
Cape Breton Island golf is far greater, these courses may be added to packages
and itineraries for golfers traveling by car/ferry or flying into Halifax.
•
Utilize the Golf Concierge to facilitate group sales
With a sales mindset, the Golf Concierge may build relationships with leads
developed through key influencers or through the corporate market via Events
Cape Breton. Sales training may be warranted for Golf Concierge staff.
MARINE (CRUISE AND BOATING)
To support the growth of Cape Breton Island’s three niche ports through Ports
Cape Breton.
•
Continue to nurture the partnership through the Atlantic Canada Cruise
Association (ACCA)
ACCA is now ready to actively promote the niche ports and is working on new
collateral for them. Content may be provided to them to ensure the best possible
profile for each of the three ports. ACCA will then be taking the collateral to
Seatrade Cruise Global in 2016.
•
Attend the Canada New England Cruise Symposium
This event brings together the industry cruise associations along the Canada
New England Cruise corridor with the cruise lines that sell and travel the east
coast of Canada and New England for one-on-one appointments, as well as
region-specific seminars and presentations. DCBA will attend the event this year
to represent the three niche ports in Cape Breton.
•
Ensure exceptional experiences for the vessels coming to small ports this
season and next
For the two confirmed niche ports visits, DCBA will work with the niche ports and
cruise line itinerary planners for Adventure Canada and Le Ponant Cruises to
ensure their inaugural visits to Cape Breton Island exceed their expectations.
2016 Strategy
48
To evaluate the strategy for Boating Cape Breton and facilitate the transition to a
•
Conduct an assessment of all marketing efforts of Boating Cape Breton
and Race the Cape
With a few years under their belts, it is time to evaluate the marketing efforts of
both Boating Cape Breton and Race the Cape to determine their level of
effectiveness, looking at what activities have delivered results and what activities
have not. Following this assessment, a new plan may be developed.
•
Manage the transition to a new model
As these organizations are moving toward a new operating model, a transition
plan will need to be established and carefully managed to give the new approach
the best opportunity for success.
MEETINGS AND CONVENTIONS
To grow the regional meetings and conventions business on Cape Breton Island,
•
Build upon the partnership with Progress Media
A specialized sponsorship was established with Progress Media targeting their
corporate clients through booth representation at their TOP 101 magazine
summit, a double page spread in their magazine, online banners to be featured
spring and fall on their new Progress Intelligence website, and access to their
high profile database. This event provided 22 solid leads from organizations that
are planning an event and will consider Cape Breton as an event destination.
Events Cape Breton has discussed future Progress Events being held in Cape
Breton with the organizations executives and look forward to a valued
partnership moving forward in to 2016.
•
Encourage and support local and regional association members and CEO’s
to actively promote Cape Breton Island as their next conference location
Through working with members of associations, stakeholders may be identified
to champion Cape Breton Island as a location for their next conference. These
relationships will be established and nurtured by Events Cape Breton with
requisite support provided to bring the association events to the Island.
•
Continue to build upon existing relationships with qualified executive
assistants within the provincial government who organize events
With relationships established with a number of key executive assistants, Cape
Breton Island can be maintained as top of mind when provincial government
meetings and events are being planned.
•
Utilize the resources of DCBA in the development and marketing of pre and
post packages for the Halifax convention market
DCBA staff are already actively engaged in the development and marketing of
packages. As such, DCBA can assist Events Cape Breton in bringing packages
and marketing messages to the pre and post convention market.
2016 Strategy
49
•
Attend events already booked for Halifax for 2017 to promote pre and post
packages
Events Cape Breton has a list of large meetings and conventions that have been
booked for Halifax for 2017. Plans will be made to attend these events wherever
they are scheduled in 2016 and have a presence on the convention floor to draw
attention to Cape Breton Island for pre and port packages when the event goes
to Halifax the following year.
•
Continue to explore opportunities in the national association meetings
market
Although the regional market is the priority, Events Cape Breton can take
advantage of opportunities that focus on a prequalified targeted audience in
cooperation with its industry stakeholders.
•
Continue to foster positive working relationships with the World Trade
Centre and Destination Halifax
The World Trade Centre in Halifax and Destination Halifax are the two major
organizations involved in attracting large meetings and conventions to the
province. Events Cape Breton has established relationships with each
organization and they may continue to be nurtured to gain referrals for smaller
meetings and to identify opportunities to maximize upon pre and post meeting
packages to Cape Breton Island.
To initiate entry into the customized corporate and incentive groups market.
•
Target and approach key corporate executives in Atlantic Canada and the
Greater Toronto Area for customized corporate and incentive groups
Leading with golf, which is market ready, and then adding outdoor and culinary
experiences, Events Cape Breton will position Cape Breton Island as a future
event location among corporate executives in Atlantic Canada and specific
corporate markets in the Greater Toronto Market including Insurance, Banking
and Firm Organizations.
To explore and encourage the development of Sport Tourism as a secondary
market.
•
Continue to work with stakeholders on the market-readiness of Cape
Breton Island to attract sports events
Events Cape Breton will explore and encourage the development of Sport
Tourism as a secondary market in collaboration with its industry stakeholders,
and community sport organizations in cooperation with our local municipalities
and Membertou First Nation.
•
Look for opportunities to submit bids for sports events that are right-sized
for Cape Breton Island
Events Cape Breton will work with stakeholders to identify sports events that fit
the hosting capacity of the Island and will support the stakeholders in submitting
bids and proposals.
2016 Strategy
50
VIII. INDUSTRY AND COMMUNITY MOBILIZATION
A. INDUSTRY AND COMMUNITY MOBILIZATION OVERVIEW
To ensure everyone is moving in a unified direction, industry and community mobilization
is a key part of the strategy. Educating Nova Scotians about the significance of the
tourism industry – why tourism growth matters, who is coming, why they are coming, and
why the destination brand is special – is an important component in building tourism
confidence, one of the four pillars of the TNS strategy to double tourism revenues.
DCBA can support this goal by educating and mobilizing industry and community on the
Island.
Industry and Community Mobilization Objectives:
1. To maintain and enhance existing communication channels with industry to ensure
active engagement and mobilization.
2. To build confidence in the tourism industry by promoting tourism as an economic
B. INDUSTRY AND COMMUNITY MOBILIZATION TACTICS
To achieve the industry and community mobilization objectives, a number of tactics will
be implemented, as follows:
Industry and Community Mobilization Objective 1:
To maintain and enhance existing communication channels with industry to
ensure active engagement and mobilization.
•
Continue Tourism Connect e-newsletter
An assessment of the Tourism Connect e-newsletter was conducted in 2015 and
it was found to be very valuable for industry members in learning about
professional development, training, and other opportunities; however,
suggestions were provided to enhance the e-newsletter. A process will be
undertaken to improve Tourism Connect, including building a content calendar
and scheduling distribution, ensuring mobile optimization, reducing the frequency
of distribution, increasing appeal with more images, improving tracking through
more links, etc. A bi-annual assessment will be conducted to review open rates
and click-through rates.
•
Continue dcba-info.com industry website
The dcba-info.com website holds a significant amount of information for industry.
This content must be maintained. In the short-term, this will continue to be
housed on a separate website, but eventually may be migrated to be located on
an industry section of cbisland.com.
2016 Strategy
51
•
Present Cape Breton Island Industry Day
Industry Day will once again be presented to share the strategic direction and get
industry mobilized behind it. The theme for this year’s event will be “Market and
Media Ready” to emphasize that the industry is ready to go to market and to take
full advantage of the TMAC opportunity.
•
Continue involvement of key industry members in TMAC execution
Plans have already been established for the TMAC conference, particularly the
pre and post conference fam tours, which will involve a significant number of
industry members. Ensuring industry preparedness for this event will be key.
•
Conduct a marketing session with key industry members
At this session, an overview of the 2016 marketing direction will be provided.
Members of industry will be strongly encouraged to participate in the
development and promotion of packages and experiences and provided with the
promotional opportunities that will be available to them.
•
Enhance the Product Development and Marketing Committees
The existing Product Development and Marketing Committees may be evaluated
to determine if new members should be added to adequately represent the
industry. Meetings should continue to be held twice annually: once pre-season to
present the plan for their feedback, and once at the conclusion of the season to
review results.
Industry and Community Mobilization Objective 2:
To build confidence in the tourism industry by promoting tourism as an economic
•
Continue Locals Know program
The Locals Know program will be updated in 2016 to reinvigorate the existing
Top Ten and Hidden Gem content within each of the trail regions, which will be
utilized in 2016 Experience Cape Breton Island Guide and in the new Locals
Know blog. Festival and event information will continue to be distributed through
the program. As well, a third annual industry “Open House Day” will be planned
and executed with increased operator and local participation.
•
Conduct a series of community engagement sessions
Under the banner, “Tourism – Why It’s Your Business?”, a series of community
engagement sessions will be planned, promoted and presented. The sessions
will educate the audience on the importance of the tourism sector to the Cape
Breton Island economy and the role of the public in ensuring visitors receive a
great experience. The sessions will reinforce that idea that tourism is everybody’s
business.
•
Develop and execute a communication plan for industry and community
mobilization
Using the media and other communications channels, key messages to build
tourism confidence may be disseminated to industry and community members to
reinforce the importance of the industry.
2016 Strategy
52
•
Continue advocacy efforts with key stakeholders for advancement of the
Cape Breton Island tourism
DCBA has developed strong relationships with key members of the federal and
provincial governments, federal and provincial departments and agencies, all five
Island municipalities, the Island’s First Nation communities, airlines, ferry
operators, and numerous other key stakeholders. The organization will continue
to maintain those relationships to ensure that Cape Breton Island moves from a
tourism industry to a complete tourism destination.
2016 Strategy
53

DCBA Strategy 2016-17 FINAL - Destination Cape Breton Association

Transcription

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