Goa has hit a low on tourism this year. And going ahead there are reasons to worry because a number of tourism businessmen have complained that they are totally disappointed with the way Goa is being marketed as a destination at international travel-marts, road shows, etc. The Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG) has been on record saying that such travel-marts serve as mere vacations for ministers and government employees. This is because neither the ministers nor the government officers are trained in marketing.
If they have a skill it is in policy making and administration, and not in marketing Goa as a tourism destination to an international audience. The question then is: why is tourism’s marketing so unprofessional in Goa? A number of experts believe that tourism is unfairly treated as a soft business, which means it is not as serious as say a factory or an IT company. The State Government must realize that tourism is as hard and tough a business as any.
Just consider the ongoing season itself. Turkey has opened up as a destination and as a result a lot of Russian tourists, who would have otherwise come to Goa, are going to Turkey. Who would have thought of such a trend happening just two years ago? No hotelier, no matter how big he is, can foresee potential impact of geo-political events on tourism. In recent times, it has been observed that if terrorism related problems crop up in Turkey to Middle East region, then European travellers prefer Goa just for the safety it offers.
However, if geo-political problems don’t crop up, then tourists prefer destinations like Egypt and Turkey over Goa. Having said that, even countries like Iraq, which have been torn by war and conflict, market themselves aggressively at international travel marts.
The fact of the matter is that tourism marketing is no kid’s play and no casual activity either. Several countries in the world, regardless of the political situation at home, are very serious about marketing tourism. And, therefore, Goa too should be very serious and professional about marketing itself as a tourist destination. What exactly is the meaning of the term “professional marketing”? In this case it means that clear goals have to be set. For example: If the government decides to do a road show in a country, it has to look into whether that country can send enough tourists to Goa? If goals are not met, then those who took the decision have to take responsibility.
The State Government must make a group of professionals, who have long experience in tourism marketing. Moreover, the government must take with it tourism stakeholders like tour operators, hoteliers, travel agents to international travel marts and events to market Goa as a destination. Our approach should change drastically, otherwise tax-payers’ money which is being used to market Goa will continue to go down the drain.
