Touristology using Analogy’s power

I’m a Lecturer, Consultant and Entrepreneur specialized in Tourism. By far, the most gratifying activities I develop are to learn, to understand, to put theory into practice and then to convey what I have learned in a framework format.

If the frameworks are effective then the good part begins:

1) Seeing my Touristologist earning a living using them!

2) Seeing my customers improving their business!

3) Seeing my companies creating employment and local wealth!

Sometimes the issues which I’m dealing with are difficult and complex. My task is to explain, in easy terms, these difficult ideas. Sometimes, the best way is to use analogy’s power. I try with one then with another…

The other day, we talked about Top-Down versus Bottom-up approach here. Recently, I had the opportunity to express my ideas in a seminar. As usual my creativity increases in the battlefield. So, an analogy appears…

One of the most interesting authors I have ever read is Malcolm Gladwell I fell in love with him (intellectually of course!) when I read "The Tipping Point", to me one of the best books ever about  viral marketing, then came “Blink” and others but in this post I want to focus on "Outliers"…

In this book he explains a very possible theory about why people in South of China are good in mathematics. One of the reasons is because they practice a lot, Gladwell mention the "10,000-Hour Rule" which claims that in order to excel in any activity you have to practice this amount of hours! The other is because they live in an environment where everybody believes that if you do your part success will appear.

 Ancient China was built along the two main rivers. The Yellow River in the north, and the Yangtze in the south.  In the settlements along the Yellow River, people grew millet in the rich, easily worked loess soil. In the south, people grew rice along the Yangtze river.

Cultivating rice is difficult you have to spend many hours, you have to take care of any single detail but if you do your part you get your reward. So, a lot of practice and a good attitude make people from the south of china successful.

Jordi! Where is the analogy here? Good question Touristologists! People who cultivate rice are similar to the ones which choose bottom-up approach in tourism and also prefer specialized tourism. People who cultivate millet or wheat need great volume and are similar to the ones who choose the Top-Down approach and usually rely on mass tourism.

Which kind of Touristologist are you? Which kind of strategy will you recommend to a tourist destination? Remember you can choose, Top-Down OR Bottom-Up are just extremes to know your position BUT are you sure you can follow the Bottom-up approach? A Chinese proverb says “No one who can rise before dawn 360 days a year fails to make his family rich.”

Touristologists! Practice your skills, keep a good attitude, take care of your contacts (tourists, chain of value members, service providers…) and nothing will stop you! …and I will be the proudest person in the entire world!