Rethinking tourism but not only by "virtualizing" it. This is the proposal that appeared on the Deloitte Italia blog presenting the data processed by the network and disclosed by the trade associations, which in recent days had written a letter through Federturismo to the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, to ask for measures to support a sector that represents the first Italian industry and which in 2020 saw visitors halve compared to 2019, for a total of 53 million fewer travelers on our territory. So how to restart it? Through digital-physical coexistence, hyper-personalization and slow tourism.
In fact, according to a survey conducted by Deloitte, only 13% of those interviewed state that they prefer the use of services in a totally digital way for museums, cinemas and theater performances, while 44% of the sample is in favor of a hybrid model. There is therefore a desire, and a need, to return to normality, as far as possible and extricate ourselves from restrictions and prohibitions that will still condition our lives for months. “Technologies – explained Andrea Poggi, Innovation Leader of Deloitte North South Europe – will have to respond to man's needs, placing him at the center of new value propositions. Passed this moment of transformation, when it will be possible to return to tourism as we knew it, the technological aspect must not override and replace the human one, but rather it will be a necessary completion, enrichment and support, simplifying access and use of certain services or tourist attractions".
But it's not just the technology. Another way forward according to Deloitte is that of "hyper-personalized tourism". According to a report by Selligent indeed 83% of millennials are willing to share their data to have a better travel experience and more personalized, while 85% of travelers (regardless of age) believe that personalized itineraries are much more attractive than standardized solutions. The increase in demand for a more personalized and less mass-produced tourism is also a consequence of an ever greater awareness on the part of travellers, of the impacts that tourism has on the territory and on nature. The new paradigms dictated by the pandemic can therefore suggest a transition towards a greener and therefore more sustainable sector.
There are already some virtuous examples in this sense. For example, Skyscanner, the flight booking platform, has rolled out les in 30 markets “Greener Choice Labels”, labels that inform travelers during the booking process which flights emit less CO2 than the average of the selected route. Furthermore, it is possible to build more sustainable mobility, even where a tested system already exists, as demonstrated by the case of the Greek island of Astypalea. In an interesting example of a public-private partnership, a project was created together with the aim of make transportation on the island fully electric.
"It will be necessary to reactivate - continues Poggi - the tourist flows, not only the international ones, whose attendances in 2019 had reached almost 218 million, but also of Italian tourists - 215 million visitors in 2019 - proposing an increasingly customizable and innovative national offer, but above all sustainable and accessible. Therefore, if in the first phase we took care of responding to an immediate need and recovering what was lost due to the closures, maintaining a connection with tourists and visitors, now it is time to rethink Italian tourism in terms of innovation and sustainability by acting with a structured plan that leverages the Next Gen EU”.
Deloitte's speech ends with 3 proposals:
1. First of all, you have to bet on strengthening public-private relations. For example, by strengthening the representative offices abroad, it could be possible to promote Made in Italy with greater force directly abroad and tell Italy as a tourist destination full of treasures to be discovered, also using digital and innovative solutions.
2. The Government could also support innovative private entrepreneurship by strengthening the cultural and territorial heritage, made up not only of works but also of experiences, using innovation and technologies as essential levers to make it more accessible (e.g. renovation of artistic and cultural structures, use of VR to make art immersive) and known (e.g. territorial marketing plans with innovative strategies, such as influencer marketing or gaming-marketing).
3. Finally, it will be essential to carry out a plan of sustainability and enhancement of lesser-known places, perfect substitutes for mass destinations, to support Slow Tourism, local communities and cultures, making them a development lever to preserve and enhance them. It is precisely here that innovation, sustainability and greenery come into play to spread knowledge and to encourage the rebirth of the villages and historic centers of which Italy is rich, for example by promoting bicycle tourism which, in 2019 alone, generated 55 million overnight stays, 6% of Italian tourist demand.
