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Travel Distribution Summit
Asia 2014The shift from Groups to FIT in China
How to market to China's rising numbers of independent travellers
Roy Graff – Managing Director, ChinaContact@chinacontact
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The China outbound tourism market is already impacting nearly every international destination. Every single tourism organisation and company needs to formulate a China market strategy and prepare the ground work now.
• Over 18 years of hospitality, e-commerce and tourism
industry experience in China
• Launched independent travel business division in China
on behalf of Gulliver’s Travel Associates
• Fluent Mandarin Chinese speaker and student of
Chinese philosophy, literature and poetry
• Managing Director of ChinaContact, working with travel
businesses on strategies and implementation
of China market access
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Destinations & Associations
Hospitality Tourism & Media
Online travel Event and Exhibition companies
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China FIT – why now?
• Group travel competition is about price
• 16 years of outbound leisure travel started producing
experienced travellers
• High pressure tactics of group tours is off-putting
• Increasingly, destinations offer Chinese friendly services
• Global prevalence of Chinese operators and service
providers
• Rise of the middle class and high-income earners
• Seeking status through travel experiences and individual
control
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Chinese outbound trips (millions)
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Growth with current trajectory
Historical growth rate average: 19%Total outbound trips by 2020 estimated between 200-315 million
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Image of Chinese tour groups
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Image of Chinese FIT
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China’s new Tourism Law
• Effective from 1 October 2013
• Aims to protect consumers
• Ignores independent travel
• Cannot advertise shopping tours
• Guide cannot go into store with group
• Tour leader must be a full time employee
– But…shopping tours are back!
• More on http://chinacontact.org/blog/chinas-new-tourism-law
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•What are the sources for research and information?
•Where should you engage them?
•What are their priorities when travelling?
Influencing Travel and Spending Decisions
Overcome their instinctive distrust.
Engage at a personal level.
Learn to see beyond the clichés.
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Source of information for travel research and inspiration
• Friends and Family recommendations
• Online travel forums
• Review sites
• Mobile content apps
• Travel agents
• Official Destination websites
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Where and when should you engage them?
• Inspiration stage
• Planning stage
• Booking stage
• Pre-travel
• On the road
• Post-travel
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Priorities of Chinese while travelling
• Trust
• Loyalty
• Cultural Nuance
• Food
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How to better engage with Chinese FIT?
• Speak to operators and wholesalers
• Work with media
• Engage with the Chinese business
• Have a multi-channel strategy
• Localise wisely
• Have a clear focus of your target market
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Social media
• Cover PC and Mobile
• Branding, engagement, service
• Fragmented market
• Time on social media
• Your own web presence
• Avoid piracy and copying
• Mobile web and apps
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Relationships – GuanXi
• Nothing replaces direct face to face meeting and relationship building
• Market visit
• Client orientation
• Gift giving
• Negotiation techniques
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