Introduction to Public relation
Public relation is the process through which an company make efforts to establish cordial business relations with their customers and clients. It is essential for the firms to understand the needs and wants of the customers so that they can design their services as per them in the travel and tourism industry (Beaver, 2005). This report discusses the role, scope and importance of public relations as a promotional tool for marketing and promotion in tourist destination like London in the international market. The second assignment is about application of PR and promotional tools used by TUI organization in order to promote their tourism services.
Assignment 1 Planning A Public Relations And Promotion Campaign For A Destination
Introduction to London
London is the capital city of the England and the United Kingdom. It is the highly populated city in UK. It is a leading global city having strengths in field of arts, education, media, fashion and tourism. It is also known as the world's cultural capital. In terms of international arrivals, it is world's most visited city. Along with that it is also having the world's largest city airport system. It became the first ever city to conduct the modern summer Olympic games three times. The city is also enclosed with people from different cultures and backgrounds and more than 300 languages are spoken within it. London is having four world heritage sites which are greater sites of attraction and these includes Tower of London, the Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey and St Margaret's Church (The Economy, 2014). It is a very popular destination for tourism and it is one of its major revenue generating industry. It attracts over 14 million international visitors every year, tagging it as the most visited city of Europe. British Museum, Madam Tussauds etc are legend destinations in the history of tourism in London.
Task 1
A. Role and Scope of public relation as a promotional tool
Public relation in travel and tourism plays an essential role because these tools are used extensively in strategic marketing activities and is integrated with marketing communications. Visit Britain, a tourist board of Great Britain is acting as a public relation tool for the promotion of tourism service in London. It is incorporated under the Development of Tourism Act 1969.
Government of the London has been using this promotional tool since many years and it has helped then in gaining the attention of the tourists from different parts of the world (Butterick, 2011). The Visit Britain is making all possible efforts to establish rules and provisions which can enhance the value of then tourists visiting the nation. It is helping in building the value of inbound tourism to London. It is acting as a strategic body for inbound tourism and the national tourism agency. It is funded by department for culture, media and sport. It is playing unique role in raising London’s profile worldwide, increasing the value of tourism exports and developing Britain’s visitor economy. It is making favourable perceptions about the London destination because the success of the industry relies on different sectors.
All different companies along with the government create positive relationship with the public with the public by using promotional medium such as Facebook, YouTube and blogs (Kumar, 2012). All these tools are used to promote the destination and to create a positive image in the minds of the existing and incoming tourists. Different types of travel and tourism companies had also added their contribution in the promoting London as the most renowned tourist destinations. Their role is to establish healthy and fine relations with the customers so that they can be motivated to visit London again and again (Jefkins, 2007).
Through public relations customers can be informed about the new services and destinations. It is very similar to the advertising and it facilitates to create more awareness about the destination and hence this increased the business and revenue for the economy. In order to meet the needs and aspirations of the tourists, the government of London is required to use public relation as a tool for marketing and promotion (Henslowe, 2003). In the present context there are numerous destinations where the people can go and enjoy the tourism services hence it will not be wrong to say that the level of competition is high in this industry. This tool will play significant role in promoting London as famous tourist destination in the international market (Bowen, 2014). The PR strategy not only helps in attracting the visitors towards the destination but also keeps them happy and satisfied so that they can wish to visit the place again. Further it identifies the target market segment for the government and travel & tourism firms. Hence the role and scope of public relation as promotional tool is enclosed with central and crucial importance.
B Analysis and discussion of the diversity of publics, tourists and other stakeholder with in travel and tourism
In the travel and tourism sector it is important to develop mutual understanding with the public including government, media, general public, tourism departments. It is evident that people from all parts of the country tend to visit London for travelling and business purposes. These people belong to different caste, regional and ethnic groups (Becker, Sprigg and Cosmas 2014).
Countries | 2003 | Countries | 2013 |
U.S.A. | 2234 | U.S.A | 1884 |
France | 1191 | France | 1873 |
Germany | 892 | Germany | 1338 |
Irish Republic | 624 | Irish Republic | 619 |
Netherlands | 619 | Netherlands | 696 |
Italy | 601 | Italy | 1091 |
Spain | 527 | Spain | 843 |
Australia | 451 | Australia | 696 |
Canada | 317 | Canada | 533 |
Sweden | 308 | Sweden | 523 |
Table 1: Top 10 visitors to London over last 10 years nation wise
The above table shows the number of visitors arrived in London for the period of last ten years. Business of travel and tourism in the nation has grown by ups and downs over the years. 16.8 million people, travelled to the country in gaining a 43.5% increase in the year 2013. Hence this clearly shows that country provides tourism services to a very wide and diversified customer base. It can be seen that there is a hardcore rise in the tourists from Germany, France and Italy. Apart from the tourists, there are different types of pressure groups, policymakers and the suppliers of service components (Lages and Simkin, 2013). In order to boost the tourism profile it is essential to integrate with the activities with the expectations of the locals and to strengthen the relationship building at the grassroots level. Various type of tourist departments are established at different places of London. These departments help in solving the queries and complain of the visitors. This also contributes towards creating a positive image in the minds of the tourists related to the destination (Marcotte and Bourdeau 2012). Further there are tourism companies which design the tours and packages of the tourists. They also make effective efforts to give exceptional and amazing tourism experiences to their clients.
Task 2
Undertake an audit of the internal and external environments within the context of setting relevant goals and objectives for the campaign using a range of PR and promotion skills
Environmental analysis of London
Political – London is a part of UK which is one of the most prosperous and influential countries across the world. It has a large role to play in relation to globalization. Political factors such as governmental laws & regulations related to travel & tourism affects the London tourism industry.
Economic – Factors such as GDP, purchasing power, living standard, income level, inflation, recession etc affects the London as a tourism destination. UK is still in the clutches of 2008 financial crisis.
Social – London faces number of challenges with respect to maintaining the level of tourism services. People from different nations, culture, religion, background etc also visits London in search of leisure hence it puts an impact on tourism services in the destination.
Technology – At present social media marketing and mobile marketing is in focus. Tourism authorities in London have to make use of these promotional tools in order to reach large number of tourists.
Legal – It is also essential to maintain control and discipline in the tourism services. It can be done by framing laws and regulations which can improve the tourism