Trends

If you feel that many people are looking and not booking, lurking but not visiting or spending - then you're not alone. 

There's a lot of 'wait-and-see'

Waiting for the weather to get better. Waiting for the economy to improve. Waiting for some kind of certainty. Waiting to feel better. 

This is all going to take some time. 

Of course some people are struggling, but there are also many still with money in their pockets. 

But they're waiting. They're in a state of inertia. 

It's our job to …

I have never met a business owner who is proud of all they're doing to make their business more sustainable. Not even the gold-starred, award-winning ones. Everyone feels like they're not quite doing enough. Some feel guilty. Others fear that someone will come along at any moment with a big waggy-finger and tell them off. 

It's true: we could all do more. But doing something, anything is better than not doing anything. None of us will ever do enough - that's the reality but...

In the meantime,…

I’ve just spent several days judging accommodation awards for the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence. I enjoy doing this as it gives great insights into trends and what others are doing to stay ahead. Perhaps surprisingly though it’s also a reminder to go back to basics.

Some of the best B&Bs or hotels miss out on awards (and bookings) because they don’t do the simplest things. The same lessons apply to other tourism businesses, whether attractions, activity providers, or food and drink outlets.

R…

A long time ago I worked in an office where we used ancient manual typewriters to write the same kind of letters again and again. I’d seen one of the early Amstrad computers in action and eventually managed to persuade my boss that we’d be much more efficient with a computer. The day the computer was due to be delivered, one of the secretaries (then aged about 25) didn’t come to work. She sent a letter saying she was giving in her notice because she didn’t want to use a computer and thought it w…

I’ve been going on about this for a while. If you've been listening, you may be feeling a little smug as you'll have seen rsome good results already...

If not, its worth psying attention to this trend as its noty going away!

One of the biggest post-pandemic trends in tourism is an increased desire among visitors to gain insights into places that give them an ‘insider’s view’.

I’ve noticed it in two different generations:

• younger people who don’t want to follow the crowd, are independently-…

Sometimes it’s important to keep up with competitors, to use the latest social media or do something so you’re not seen as ‘old-fashioned’.

But sometimes it pays to deliberately be different.

Millionaire entrepreneur James Caan says he made his money by 'zigging' when everyone else was 'zagging'.

I was reminded of this recently when the family-owned Booths supermarket chain (the North’s answer to Waitrose) announced that they are removing almost all their self-service checkouts. This was in s…

Who are you? What do you actually do?

What do you care about?

Do you do anything to ‘do good’?

How are you connected to your local community?

What are your values and ethics?

How are you making your business more sustainable?

As money becomes tighter, visitors think more about how they spend their precious income.

Some visitors will turn to chain businesses because they think they’re trustworthy, and offer a standardised product.

Many others are turning their back on faceless chains, a…

There seems to be one dominant theme running through our world at the moment: uncertainty.

In fact, things feel so uncertain, some of the time it’s not even clear what we feel most uncertain about… Rising living costs, the environment, changes in the ways we do business and live, changes in the market place…

I have a bit of a mother hen approach to the businesses I work with. I’d love to gather everyone up under a broad wing, and cluck to tell you everything will be OK. Since even my bingo win…

Ever felt like you’re stuck in treacle and every time you try to move forward you either topple over, or bring the gloopy treacle with you?

I’m hearing a lot of business owners are feeling like that at the moment. Even the busy ones with lots of bookings.

There’s a huge amount of uncertainty at the moment. Economy, war, whether Covid will return…

If you feel like it’s one step forward, one step back don’t get overly frustrated. You’re practising steps and it will get better. Think of it less …

Recent economic predictions have indicated we could be in for a rocky time. inflation increases, fuel price hikes and an uncertain economy mean that not everyone will want to think ahead and book a holiday or feel good about spending on a day trip. Combine this with the discounts available on overseas' holidays and iffy British weather and the domestic tourism industry isn't feeling as confident as a few months ago. 

So, there may be tricky times ahead. What can you do about it? 

First of all,…