Sharing? Yes! But keeping control of the chain of value!

The other day, I was lucky enough to participate in a debate about my favorite subject… Touristology!

It was an interesting experience! You can listen to it here…

Be aware, the podcast is in Catalan (My beautiful mother tongue!!!).

We talked about sharing economy in tourism. As you know, the sharing economy is the flavor of the month and it’s a very interesting topic BUT… I expressed my doubts about the viability of their business model:

I can summarize my doubts with the following Touristology’s questions:

1) Is your enterprise a good example of Dr. Frankenstein’s segmentation? Do your members feel a part of this community? Do you have the capacity to create groups?

2) Do you have the control of the chain of value or at any time (especially, when the business will become profitable) other members of the chain of value can buy or destroy you?

3) How many sales (experiences) you have to sell in order to get the breakeven point?

Anyway, after the debate I began to think from the point of view of the owners that share their belongings (House, car, you-name-it…) and knowledge through an intermediary.

Some of them offer a very specialized product and I began to feel Touristology’s voice in my head, first whispering then screaming…"Sharing? Yes! But keeping control of the chain of value! "

Let me sum up, we have the owners of the capital (as economists like to say, capital is the things we use in production) and they want to share it with other people for a profit or for the experience, and… Are you willing to put this in the hands of some new intermedary/infomediary that has a high probability of not surviving? Don’t make more sense to create a cooperative? We are talking about sharing economy, right? Let’s use the right sort of enterprise!

What about from the point of view of the tourism destination? It is not clear enough that the most important tourism resources that we have is our people, our culture, our way of living?

You want to keep our culture, right? You want to create richness and employment for your country, right?

Pssst , pssst.. I began to listen to Touristology’s voice again… “I think that we have a good definition for this…

Touristology is the art and science of travel motivation promising improvements in quality of life, international contacts and broader perspectives for the tourist AND a way to take care of culture and create richness and employment for the tourist destination.”

You want tourists talking about you  (in a positive way, of course) and  to return…. In order to achieve that you need to offer support from the beginning to the end of the trip. Help this cooperative to create communicate and commercialize their products. Help them to make partnerships with your tourism enterprises (hotels, incoming travel agencies…) begin to think about how YOU can bring tourists here! We are leaders in Tourism… Time to prove it!!!

As is said here…

Welcome to Bottom-up Touristology!

Tourism destinations of earth! The time has come to change the way you create, communicate and commercialize your tourism products or, at least, to reorganize the way you spend your budget…

Spend less on mass-media ads saying that you are the best, less on tradeshows, less on … and more on Touristology! More on your people, the most important tourism resource in any destination!!!

I Feel Like I’m 20 Years Old!!!

When My Touristologists give Wonderful presentations… I Feel Like I’m 20 Years Old!!! They get the framework, they transform it… it is not my framework anymore (never was!!!) now it’s their framework! Touristology’s one!

They take a real enterprise or they make up a new one then, they follow the specialization path (they are intelligent enough to know that it’s my favorite one!) but, they also know that is not the only one!

At the end of the day, all enterprises want to grow and Touristology provides the tools to allow that. Let’s review those paths. Shall we?

1) Your business can grow getting more customers. Touristology teaches you to keep your customers and get new ones using customization, syndication and pro-am as magnets and community builders!

2) Your business can grow “eating” (I mean acquiring or creating) members of the chain of value. Touristology teaches you to define and manage the chain of value (remember the one create FOR and BY the customer)

Finally, your business can also grow creating new chains of value. This is the specialization path. Touristology teaches you how to do the right segmentation process, how to build an international community, how to extract groups from there, how to increase margins and profits…

I love Touristology’s games!!!

I love to see that My Touristologists are the perfect guide for any of those paths that allow enterprises to grow!

They have the vision, the knowledge, the business model, the technological scheme, the contacts, the kind of attitude that push them to do whatever it takes to be successful.

When they finish their presentation, I encourage them to make a call to the enterprise that they talked about (or any of its competitors) in their project. To ask for a meeting and introduce themselves, to show that they know what is important for the company and furthermore how to get it!… That is much better than sending thousands of CV, Touristologists!!!

Then you will get a high quality job (I mean with a good salary, responsibilities, promotion opportunities…) … a consultancy project… or create a new disruptive startup!!!

Making me the proudest men on earth! Becoming yourself in the best minds working in the best sector ever… Making Touristology a science!!!

Where are the future of Touristology?

Are you there?
Waiting to learn Touristology’s framework…
Ready to change the way we enjoy, manage and define Tourism…
Ready to do whatever it takes…
Loving web-engineering as a member of the family…
Focusing on high level segmentation...
Desiring to create and manage social networking sites....
Seeing the potential of groups creation in an international environment!
Smiling even (and especially) during tough times...
Dreaming even when your world falls apart…

Hoping as only a Puccini’s character is able to do!

Are you there?...

I know you are there! I can feel your energy! It’s the most powerful force of the Universe. It’s the force of a dream burning inside… Touristology’s dream!!!

Why is segmentation so important in Touristology?

Not so long ago, I wrote a post about Dr. Frankenstein’s segmentation. It is a compulsory reading for the future of Touristology (I mean, My Touristologists!) .
Some of them get the idea at the first glance, others need time to get used to the idea, others never stop complaining…
Jordi, why do I have to learn about segmentation… When you segment you are losing part of the market. If you specialize and specialize… you can end up with just a single customer… I am against specialization!!!
When it happens, I start to pray silently “Schumpeter, Carnegie (Dale) and Maslow give me strength, wisdom and PATIENCE!!!!!” I repeat this three times and then, calmly, I always reply:
Why is segmentation so important in Touristology? 
We have several reasons which backup this idea! 
1) If you created and gain the trust of a community you control the chain of value (remember the one create FOR and BY the customer).
2) If you created a community NOT based on Dr. Frankenstein… you will have an international community desiring to be together. So, sooner or later, they will want to meet!
When you organize the trip (or any sale!) for a group… For sure, you will increase your productivity, margins and profits.
When you organize the trip for a group… The rest of the member of the chain of value  (Hotels, Service Suppliers, transport companies…) are willing to serve you (Because YOU are the community!)
3) Different segments means different ways to create and run the processes FOR ANY OPERATION (Marketing, Human Resources, Finance, Servuction, Yield Management, you-name-it) They also means different members of the chain of value, different business model, different technological schemes…
So, YES! I, definitely, believe that to segment properly is important from Touristology’s point of view! What about you, Touristologists???

Fast Data = Big Data + Real-Time Web + Human Interaction!

Jordi, Can you give us a seminar about Fast Data?

Of course! - I reply!

First, because I know that nowadays it is very usual that some people use different words to describe the same /old thing.

Second, because as Richard Branson say “If somebody offers you an amazing opportunity but you are not sure you can do it, say yes – then learn how to do it later!”

I like this kind of attitude! Basically, because it is carved in my mind…

My father every time that we have to deal with a new adventure / difficulty /tough time / you-name-it!, say to me: “Pit, barra i collons” that I, gently, can translate as:

1)    Step forward… Yes, I volunteer!

2)    Self-confidence…. Yes, I can do it!

3)    Perseverance and whatever-it-takes kind of attitude in order to deliver what you promise!

So, here I’m… saying yes to a Fast Data seminar! After the proper research, I confirmed my assumptions… Fast Data is a new name for the holy grail of business intelligence…

We can get a lot of data from different chain of value’s members. This is Big Data in nowadays terms (intelligent systems, when I was writing my doctoral thesis!)

We are getting data NOW and we need to provide customized answers, comments, offers, 3 C’s (Content, commerce and community)  in the fastest possible way. You can call it Real-Time web .

But before the organization replies… maybe it is a good idea to use the best software on earth: The human brain! 

From my point of view, any seminar related to Fast Data is incomplete if it doesn’t deal with the two breakthroughs in Web-Engineering in this decade that I try to summarize in this slide:

1) Server-Side RESTful web APIs that allows you to get and send the 3 C’s NOT ONLY of your enterprise BUT ALSO of the chain of value (remember the one created FOR and BY your customer!)
2) Client-Side MV* that allows to the customer to work even without internet connection and to provide them a fast service… faster… the fastest!
 

I find this video enlightening...

Do you think you can apply Fast Data to Touristology?
Fast Data? Fast answer, fast reaction…as fast as the wind! Touristology’s wind!

This is My Advice, Touristologists!!!

Sometimes, Touristologists improving their studies abroad ask me advice about what to do next.

My Advice? Look for a travel agency willing to send tourists to your native country OR for a chain of hotels willing to open/manage a hotel in your native country OR  for an airline company willing to open a route to your native country OR a tourism consultancy company OR a rent a car OR a revenue management software company OR… I could go on for a month but I think I have made my point!

Don’t look for a big salary (nothing wrong if they offer it!), look for the opportunity to show your skills, your attitude, your contacts… gain their trust and become the obvious choice to be the manager of their branch in your native country!

We are Touristologists! The world is our office! And… YES! We are, definitely, the best minds working in the best sector ever!

Is it seems difficult? Do you have doubts? Do you think that you don’t have what it takes? Don’t listen to me… Listen to your guts! Listen to the old master!

Yes, there were times, I'm sure you knew
When I bit off more than I could chew.
But through it all, when there was doubt,
I ate it up and spit it out.
I faced it all and I stood tall;
And did it my way.

……

For what is a man, what has he got?
If not himself, then he has naught.
To say the things he truly feels;
And not the words of one who kneels.
The record shows I took the blows -
And did it my way! 

Stand up Touristologists!

The other day I saw this video. They want to convey the idea that to become a Touristologist is a bad choice… You know that I have retired for blogging for a while BUT… Enough is enough!
Stand up Touristologists! Show to the world who has a doubtful / questionable / uncertain / chancy future!
A girl appears in the video bemoaning the fact “nowadays on-line travel agencies are the strongest” Didn’t you learn how to create and manage an on-line Travel Agency? Change of University NOT change the best sector ever!!!
Another one complain “Anyone can work in Tourism” Yes! BUT, only Touristologists are able to change the way we enjoy, manage and define Tourism!
You are Touristologists! The world is your office! You can work anywhere! You can bring Tourists from anywhere to anyplace!
You know the main tendencies in travel motivation around the world. You know languages, you know how to apply new technologies to improve the tourism sector… you are the best minds working in the best sector ever!
If you want to know about the big opportunities that Tourism can bring to you…
Don’t listen to copyologists! They always do the same. They have an old fashion vision about our sector.
Don’t listen to journalists with a lack of knowledge about Tourism (just remember, they still believe that the success of a Tourism destination or a lodging can be assessed by the number of tourists)
Don’t listen to people with interest that you study another science.
If you REALLY want to be a Touristologists…
If you really want to know the opportunities of Tourism… ask REAL Touristologists!!! Miguel Angel, Roman, Sara, Roger, Nicole, Miriam, Sergi, Pau, Esther, … The kind of Touristologists

that have a kind of Master and Commander Attitude! I can see them creating the new killer start-up, changing the way we enjoy, manage and define Tourism….Making me as proud as can be!
To the simple-minded...
To the excuse searchers…
To the I-don't- know- and- I'm- proud- of-it…
To the I-don’t-know-about-Tourism-but-I-dare-to-give-my-opinion
…..
This is OUR message!