globalEDGE NEWSLETTER
Hospitality and Travel Industry
France is the most visited country in the world, according to the World Tourism Organization. In 2007 they received more tourists than their entire population! Furthermore, they have consistently remained the most-visited country for the past decade.
The hospitality and travel industry is a collection of companies catering to the needs of people with leisure time and money. Historic examples of tourism consist of simple lodging such as inns, and to a lesser extent, methods of transportation. Today, the hospitality and travel industry consists of everything from campgrounds to five-star hotels, airlines, foodservice establishments, travel agencies and services, recreation and attractions, and cruise ships. Tourism accounts for nearly 9% of the world's GDP, and employs almost 3% of its workforce. Recently, these figures have likely decreased in light of the global economic downturn and the swine flu epidemic, as the World Tourism Organization projects an eight percent decrease in international tourist arrivals in 2009. This trend, however, looks to stabilize near the end of 2009, and international tourist arrivals are expected to rise. The decrease in international tourist arrivals doesn't necessarily indicate that people have stopped traveling. The Top 2009 Tourism Trends are all about cutting costs, and people are turning more towards domestic tourism, including camping or cultural and historic tours, which are generally less expensive. However, some people are taking advantage of the global economic downturn to visit places that are generally quite costly, but which have become bargain tourist destinations due to a large decrease in the value of their currency. These surges in tourism could lead to a major growth of the industry in countries that have suffered heavy losses in other industries crucial to their economies.
Twitter and Facebook Serve as Valuable Tools to Promote Australian Tourism
The rising stock of Twitter and Facebook as valuable business assets is a surprise to nobody, but just how big of a role they play may be overlooked. Australia, which is currently going through a tourism slump due to the global economic downturn and the swine flu epidemic, is getting a bit of help from social networking giants Twitter and Facebook.
The managing director of Tourism Australia, Geoff Buckley, asserts that Twitter and Facebook are helping to pull the Australian tourism industry through the recession. "Tourism Australia's activities on Twitter and Facebook are connecting people around the world who have visited Australia and getting them to share their experiences with a community of travelers who are equally passionate about our country."
The Facebook page, in particular, has over 250,000 fans and is growing in number by roughly 1,000 daily. Though some of those members are Australian, it is they who provide the strongest ambassadorial voice as to why prospective travelers should come to Australia. The word-of-mouth of the Australian locals as well as those who have travelled to Australia serves as powerful persuasion to people on why they should choose to make Australia their next vacation destination.
These testimonials are especially important for the Hospitality and Travel Industry. While sites like VirtualTourist provide an area for members to offer their reviews on various hotels, eateries, and recreations, it is difficult to get a sense of the travel experience as a whole. Twitter and Facebook provide a more digestible means for prospective tourists to hear from the locals and travel vets alike, as well as an easy channel for a dialogue if those prospective tourists have any questions. The success Tourism Australia is having could translate to Twitter and Facebook gaining a larger role in the Hospitality and Travel Industry.
This site collects data from thousands of diverse global travelers to develop rankings for countries in a variety of areas. Some sample areas include nightlife, beaches, value for money, and conferences. Users can download past years' studies, and can also request a custom report.
Tourism Australia is a production of the Australian government, and provides the contacts and information necessary for one to monitor and organize various industry and trade events in Australia. Furthermore, the site provides Australian tourism market briefings, research and statistics, as well as an up-to-date news feed.
This module was created in cooperation with the U.S. Commercial Service and is the sixteenth chapter of the book A Basic Guide to Exporting. In this module, we will cover: Necessary international documents and travel tips; cultural factors to take into account. A case study on the company Candy Bouquet International is also included.
Category: Online Course Modules
Research papers in trade published by OECD. The following subsections exist: market openness, regulatory reform, trade and investment, trade and competition, trade and environment, export credit, trade relations with economies in transition and developing countries. All papers are downloadable in PDF format.
Category: Paper Depositories
"MSU's Broad School to Offer Free International Business Assistance" by Tomas Hult
Pro bono work has long been a staple of professions such as law. Now the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University is getting involved. The Broad School's International Business Center has developed a program to help predominantly U.S. owned small- and medium-sized organizations go international. The research assistance comes from small teams, in 10 hour increments, over a month period. This article describes the Center and the globalEDGE Business Team pro bono program as an innovative case study that can increase the international competitiveness of U.S. firms.
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