Mike Mackenzie: Marketing Argyll
published this on 10:16 am, Friday, 14th August, 2009Business| News| Politics| Tourism | Comments (rss) | Respond | Ping |
Tourism is perhaps the most significant economic activity in Argyll and Bute and it can offer solutions and benefits to some of our other sectors as well as to the quality of life of residents.
There are many good examples of individual businesses and business associations advertising and marketing Argyll and Bute. The term marketing though, as opposed to advertising, implies a more holistic approach.
There are different senses in which this holistic approach may be applied. Perhaps the most important is in drawing together the various tourist businesses and agencies into a coherent whole that seeks to market Argyll and Bute as a brand. Building the Argyll and Bute brand has obvious advantages, especially because as the recognition factor improves, the job of marketing becomes easier and a virtuous circle results.
As important as bringing an identifiable product or brand to market is in making sure the product is a best fit for the marketplace. In order to do this we need to carry out the SWOT (Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis and to keep on doing this so that we set up a culture of continuous improvement.
As a tourist destination we have many strengths, not least our wonderful scenery, our quality of environment, our history and culture. Just as Highland Region, especially around Fort William, Lochaber and Aviemore, has branded itself an outdoor capital in terms of land based recreation so Argyll and Bute has a significant opportunity and is well placed to profit from the growth area of marine recreational pursuits of all kinds.
Of course we have weaknesses, in terms of improving the quality of visitor accommodation, of making available our high quality local produce, of highlighting and showcasing our history, our built heritage and our environment to best advantage. We also need to improve our marine infrastructure and we need to increase the number of bad weather visitor attractions and activities.
The traditional industries of farming, fishing and aquaculture all stand to benefit by making our wonderful produce available locally in restaurants and retail outlets for visitors and locals alike to enjoy. Adding value by marketing this produce locally could bring large advantages to all involved in the production and preparation of our food. Farmers in particular are the custodians of our environment and if locally marketing farm produce helps farming remain profitable we can be assured that our land will be well managed.
Forestry too has benefits to offer and if our forests are well managed they can be more productive and through sensitive public access enrich the life of locals and visitors alike as well as provide the raw materials for bio fuel and craft industries. This will take time to fully realise as more enlightened mixed planting methods are used. The past approach of huge spruce plantations created forests which are ecologically bereft and produced the blighted landscapes left after large scale clear felling operations. Native hardwoods although slow growing, create places which have a natural charm and provide a cash crop which has much greater added value.
Most of Argyll and Bute’s towns retain a high quality built environment and many charming buildings from bygone eras. They therefore retain a sense of place and an identity which is particular to Argyll and Bute. Few tourists travel to spend time in towns which are identical to those they live in and the character of our towns is an under appreciated framework to build on for future prosperity.
In our more rural areas our built heritage has remained undisturbed for generations. History comes to life as almost around every corner, an iron-age hill fort, a mediaeval castle or a Neolithic burial crypt reveals itself. All have their stories to tell in our fascinating history and the real stories are better by far than those told by Hollywood film directors.
By better managing and marketing all that Argyll has to offer we all stand to benefit, visitors and locals alike. Prosperity has many rewards including Government’s greater ability to provide infrastructure and services.
Managing prosperity brings its own challenges but they are better challenges by far than the managed decline which has been Argyll and Bute’s misfortune for too long.
Mike Mackenzie is the candidate selected by the Scottish National Party to contest the seat for the constituency of Argyll & Bute in the coming Westminster General Election.
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August 14th, 2009 at 12:45 pm
Whilst recognising the undoubted success that both Scotland and Argyll has had in raising its game within the international tourist market, much remains to be done in order to deliver both value and quality for the ordinary middle market tourist.
All too often visitors are disappointed by below standard accommodation, mediocre food making a mockery of Argyll’s superb natural larder and steep prices.
As a bare minimum we need to have a star system that is universally recognised and respected, rather than the present mishmash that confuses locals and visitors alike.
August 14th, 2009 at 7:10 pm
i agree with Mike tourisim plays a big part in Argyll but for years we have taken their money but not realy invested in the future for example the train comes in at 9.30 pm but the hotels stop serving food at 9 pm, we don’t have a lot off entertainment or as mike says no real wet weather facilities .It is our future lets sort it
August 15th, 2009 at 10:15 pm
the extreme nationalist agenda of the snp is damaging argyll’s tourist industry and should be rejected at every opportunity
August 16th, 2009 at 2:14 am
This last comment by “kintyre1″ does not seem to have any facts to sustain it. “Extreme nationalist agenda” – does the anonymous commentator think that it is extreme to advocate an independent Scotland -I could suggest that the policy of the SNP is wrong, against the economic interest of Scots ( though I could not sustain that argument with facts ) – but extreme to advocate what Norway, Ireland even the USA find essential for the well-being of their Nations is stupid as a proposition. The setting up of the Homecoming Year might have been done by an SNP government, but was it extreme and damaging to Argyll’s tourist industry? Should it have been rejected? What rubbish!
The other comments are sound – the industry has much to do to improve its standards and service. It cannot prosper with the “take it or leave it” or “put up with what we offer” attitude which still exists in some areas of the hospitality industry.
August 16th, 2009 at 8:49 am
my goodness these nationalists don’t like anybody daring to disagree with them .
for the record the year of homecoming was not the snps idea .
anyone who has heard the bile coming from nationalist msps like for example christine graham or michael matheson can be in no doubt that their nationalism is based on a hatred of the english . their extreme anti englishness is damaging to the tourist industry in scotland as england provides the biggest number of visitors to scotland .
August 16th, 2009 at 5:49 pm
Rather than a sensible contribution to a debate on how we can bring together all of Argyll’s tourism stakeholders with the common purpose of improving and maximising our core product, Kintyre1 appears to be intent on making puerile and unsubstantiated assertions rather than engaging with the core issue – attracting the highest tourist footprint for Argyll and Scotland.
Indeed, this was highlighted in an article in this morning’s ‘Sunday Herald’
http://www.sundayherald.com/business/businessnews/display.var.2525691.0.scots_tourism_industry_in_a_shocking_state.php
although I do not share the pessimistic timbre of the article itself. The Scottish government has rightly identified tourism as one of the crucial drivers of the country’s economy and has directed both public and private investment towards optimising economic outcomes.
However, I do think that we need to sit down and address the elephant in the room – a general cultural antipathy towards genuine service. Compared to our major competitors like Australia, New Zealand, the US and much of the EU, where folk employed in the hospitality business passionately care about professional service, all to often here in Scotland we present a begrudging face with little thought given to value.
As a start, it is about time we raised the status of people employed in tourism – in far too many hotels youngsters are given no training yet are expected to cope with the demands of the modern tourist. How about specific qualifications, similar to those in France, where a waiter is expected to speak at least one other language?
August 16th, 2009 at 10:00 pm
What is “extreme nationalism” as indicated by Kintyre 1 so we can understand what he is talking about? And can he give some examples of it in the remarks or behaviour of Christine Graham or Michael Mathieson?
Does he believe that the fairly unremarkable proposition that people should run their own countries, as accepted as normal and natural by the peoples of 200 nations represented at the UN, is “extreme nationalism”.
In what way does the democratically expressed aims of the SNP differ from what is normal worldwide or is there some other aspect of it which is not immediately obvious that makes it “extreme”.
Or is Kintyre 1′s post just the usual brainless rant that now typifies the increasingly desperate defence of the lost cause which is the union and which has nothing whatever to do with the subject in front of us.
Can we get back to the substance of this particular topic?
August 17th, 2009 at 8:35 pm
I am looking forward to a reasoned reply from Kintyre1. Perhaps he will he indicate what we should be doing to promote Argyll and Bute.
Actually I think the Scottish Government’s cancellation of commercial rates for small shops and businesses is probably allowing a lot of them to stay in business and this is the sort of practical policy that is very helpful.
August 20th, 2009 at 7:47 pm
by releasing a mass murderer , enraging worldwide public opinion msaskill will have done untold damage to the tourist industry .
quite how the nationalists think a local income tax ( to be set in edinburgh under snp proposals ) will help tourist operators i look forward to hearing …….. punishing those who work hard over long hours is unlikely to raise standards and of course they favour a rise in income tax over and above that but removed the pledge from their website when they thought it would cost them votes .
we are governed in scotland by people – salmond ,cunninghame ,mcaskill ,who were considered extreme even by their own party thats why they were expelled from the snp in 1982.
nationalists airbrush her majesty the queen and prince philip from their photographs , refuse to attend her majesties speech on 10 years of devolution preferring to read emails (christine grahame) describe the union flag as a butchers apron ,describe the british broadcasting corporation as the english broadcasting corporation etc etc waste thousands of pound on a conversation when argylls roads are in a disgraceful state and need the money spent on them .
in summary the most useful contribution nationalists here could make to the well being of argylls tourist industry would be to keep all their spiteful hatefilled utterances out of the public domain .
August 20th, 2009 at 8:08 pm
@Kintyre1. I don’t get the vitriol here, K1. Is there a bit of personal history here, somehow?
I’m a political agnostic. I don’t think anyone should ever give any political party carte blanche. See what they’re made of – on the evidence. Vote for the best. Next election do the same again. Your vote doesn’t always go to the same place. But whoever gets it’s earned it. This is what I call independence.
I’m not a Scot either – but I’d have thought this country could make a success of whatever it put its mind to, if it stopped this sort of parish pump bellyaching.
Do you think Scotland’s not got what it takes, K1? And if you do – why?
August 21st, 2009 at 2:06 am
Kintyre 1
Your almost incoherent post is quite the biggest load of nonsense I have read since I started enjoying For Argyll.
What has Local Income Tax ,which will result in a tax cut for the majority of Scots, especially the old, the poor and the poorly paid, got to do with the Tourist trade?
Which tax rise are you talking about? The SNP has no income tax tax rise planned. Did you make that bit up?
To date the SNP has frozen the Council tax and cut small or abolished business taxes,cut student debt and abolished bridge tolls and parking charges at our hospitals.
Perhaps you haven’t noticed any of that.
I don’t know any serious nationalists that waste their time airbrushing the Queen and Prince Philip out of photographs but it wouldn’t worry me the slightest if they did. Who cares?
The union flag is routinely described as the “Butchers Apron” in many of the parts of the world where that was exactly what it was.
The SNP government has already given Argyll and Bute substantial extra money for the Argyll and Bute roads which are the worst in Scotland and which were like that when the SNP inherited them from the Labour/LibDem executive.
August 21st, 2009 at 10:45 pm
as a non partisan observer of the debates here i am struck by the mean spirited and intolerant tone of the snp supporting contributors .
perhaps they’ve had it all their own way here for too long
August 28th, 2009 at 9:01 pm
74% of scots believe scotlands reputation has been damaged by the snps decision to release mass murderer megrahi according to respected pollsters icm
can the nationalists explain how such mistakes help in the marketing of scotland and argyll in particular ?
August 31st, 2009 at 5:24 pm
It would appear that those who feel at ease about the performance of the present government of Scotland are prepared to put their names beside their opinions while those who disagree in general favour the use of pseudonyms.
I understand that in spite of the effects of the recession, in some ways because of the financial constraints caused by the recession, Argyll is presently and against all odds enjoying a fairly favourable tourist season. One of the factors is the way that our government has raised the Homecoming game from its rather low level initial steps.
The poll that “kintyre 1″ appears to place so much faith in seems far out of kilter with the opinions and polls that I have encountered in the past couple of weeks.
I work in a job coming into contact with a lot of politically active people across the political spectrum and only one has so far indicated to me distress and disagreement at the courageous decision taken by our Justice Minister.The easiest option open to Kenny MacAskill would have been to do nothing -to pass by on the other side. Sadly it would appear that is precisely what our Prime Minister has chosen to do.
September 1st, 2009 at 7:32 pm
it says a lot about the climate of fear and hatred the nationalists have created in scotland when many who oppose them feel they have to remain anonymous
September 1st, 2009 at 8:02 pm
mr mackenzie must be embarrased by the extremist snp fringe represented here .
they are unlikely to help market argyll in a positive light
September 1st, 2009 at 9:52 pm
I note that kintyre1 and kilmartin glen never answer any of the points that are put to them. They just call names. Must do better, guys. Are they the same guy by any chance?
September 1st, 2009 at 10:01 pm
Good point, Willie. They are contributing nothing to any of these debates. It gets very difficult to remain reasonable and calm when you are losing all the arguments but serioius political commentators know when the only sensible course is to gracefully accept defeat.
I wonder what our two ranters think about the latest opinion poll, published on Sunday in the Mail on Sunday (certainly no friend of the SNP) showing a sharp and substantial rise in support for the SNP over the past 10 days.
September 3rd, 2009 at 7:51 pm
nationalists only contribute hatred and division , not very helpful when we are trying to market the country in a positive light
November 19th, 2009 at 5:28 pm
I am trying to make a judgement on four possibilities from the least to the most likely they are:
1 K1/KG is a juvenile probably under 13 years
2 K1/KG is a device intended to misrepresent and ridicule the SNP opponents:
3 K1/KG needs to discuss with his/her carer the need for anger management therapy.
4 K1/KG only posts on this site when drunk.
December 5th, 2009 at 9:31 pm
Find it funny when the SNP are accused of having it all their own way for too long or being anti Glasgow they’ve been in the seat for what 2 years and have done more than labour and lib-dems did in 8.labour have been presiding over poverty and failing councils throughout Glasgow and central Scotland for decades relying on the poor and misguided middle class to vote them in.
December 5th, 2009 at 9:34 pm
i like this forum
March 8th, 2010 at 12:05 am
Interesting points about nationalism & division damaging Scotland’s reputation as a tourist destination. I thought it was our rainfall that did that.
Seriously, from my perch outside the EU I can reliably (at least as reliably as other commentators on this site) say that this is clearly written by someone whose parents haven’t let him out of the country on any school trips yet.
Almost everywhere I go I am welcomed as a Scotsman with the questions “Where’s your kilt?” and “Have you seen Braveheart?”. Questions about whisky, oatcakes devolution and income tax usually come much later in conversation. Usually after whisky without oatcakes.
In many weird and wonderful places that I have had the fortune to visit, our reputation as a land of sword-wielding, English-bashing, 5-foot-tall Australian troublemakers has gone before me. It’s not the childish chit-chat of politics that inspires people, but rather the romantic imagery of castles and men with no pants on, and the sense of pride that goes with being a breakaway republic fighting for its identity. And it’s a part of our international identity whether we choose to accept it or not. As a slogan for the tourist board, “Proud to be Scottish” will go a lot further than “Proud to be the hilly part of the United Kingdom”.
I’ve met this attitude from more nationalities than I can remember right now. I’ve been met by complete strangers with open arms on countless occasions purely on merit of my nationality. We can ruminate and squabble about the correctness of all this as much as we like, or we can capitalise on it and use it to our own benefit.
Just a thought – I’d love to do an experiment where half the establishments in Balloch fly the Saltire and half fly the Union Jack for one summer (divided in two equal groups by location, price and service level). It would be interesting to compare data on visitor statistics (in particular demographics) at the end of the season.
In terms of marketing Argyll – I am doing my best, honest. I advise anyone planning to visit Scotland to head straight for the hills, bypassing Glasgow and Edinburgh (among other reasons, they could pass for almost any city in Europe). I show pictures that elicit enchanted ‘ooohs’ and ‘aaahs’, and often questions like, “Why are there no tours to these beautiful places?”
The next question posed is how to get there, and this is where it all falls apart. I describe the transport connections in as much detail as I can. They point out that hiring a car would be better. Then they usually hum and haw at the cost of fuel and ferry tickets for visiting islands, ruling out car hire as an option for straying beyond Stirling, and eventually go back to the idea of Glasgow and Edinburgh. I almost cry into my duty-free Famous Grouse, because I know they are going to come back and think that these places characterise my country.
Next there are visa issues for anyone who needs them – it’s pretty off-putting that you have to go through ‘immigration’ procedures just to visit for a week. Here is another interesting point for anyone pushing the ‘nationalism kills tourism’ line – most of the (few) people that I know who’ve faced difficulties obtaining a UK visa to visit Scotland have made a very clear distinction (albeit maybe to avoid offending me) in describing Scotland as their destination and England/the UK as their obstacle.
Marketing Argyll outside the UK would be child’s play given a budget and decent resources, but only if there is infrastructure to back it up when people get there – transport connections, understandable pricing & good-value accommodation, things to do and places to go. Argyll should be able to cater for a wide range of disposable incomes without leaving that ‘we’ve been robbed’ feeling at the end of a trip.