A usual question that I, frequently, ask to the future of Touristology is… Do you think that it is worth investing in this enterprise OR to work on it in exchange for stock options? They reply focusing on if they like or dislike the services that the enterprise is offering, thinking about its marketing strategies, its sources of funding, the way it is organized in departments and jobs… All these visions are interesting BUT, Do you know THE KEY to a right answer?
Is this enterprise controlling its chain of value?
This is a fundamental question - I told them (for the thousandth time!!!), just remember, chain/s of value are like ecosystems, like cities, like ants… something emerge from it automatically (I, strongly, recommend the book Emergence to go deeper into this topic or this link about Emergence, OR the words of the father of Economics, Adam Smith, and his idea of the invisible hand). In the case of a chain of value, sooner or later, a leader will emerge. So, if you don’t control the chain of value, others will do it for you!
Of course, I’m talking about the chain of value created FOR and BY the customer, Touristologists! As we saw here “It is the customer who decides who is a member and in which way adds value or gain its trust. Don’t make the usual mistake of a copyologist that defines the chain of value based on their preferences, contacts or interest. We don’t send goods through OUR chain of value. We attract, motivate, and seduce customers through it. For that reason, we have to use the chain of value created for and by the customer!!!”
Let’s see a way to answer this important question:
FIRST: What kind of game are we playing at? Innovation/specialized Tourism or Standarization /Generic Tourism
Standarization/ Generic Tourism? Then, the power to control the chain of value comes from economies of scale and, therefore, the possibility to offer lower prices. One example is McDonald's, as they buy a lot of meat they get big discounts. Ryanair, as they transport thousands of tourists, some tourism destinations (managed by copyologists) pay them to be on Ryanair’s routes. Booking (it is something similar, hotels pay to get tourists…) Google…. Good examples of Oligopsony / Monopsony?
Innovation / Specialized Tourism? So, the power to control the chain of value comes from Community power.
Community power is an old trick in the history of humanity, religions use it, communist parties use it… and nowadays big multinationals (like Apple) are using it as well.
SECOND: Do you have community power? Great! It is good bedrock on which you can build an enterprise and a good asset for your aim to control the chain of value. On top of this you can add two more tiers (you can be successful without community power but, especially in specialized tourism, it is far more difficult).
Let’s analyze some ideas about community power…
A) Do you gain the trust of your customers? Do you motivate contacts between them? Remember, No contacts, No interactions OR any actions together… NO COMMUNITY
Do we have a community where people communicate with each other and have a sense of belonging? A way to achieve this is through this matrix. Where people that like, pro-am and professionals get networking and provide a powerful nucleus to build layers of profit as we explained here.
B) Another way to get the trust/loyalty of your customers depends on the answer to the following question: Is it difficult to find your offer in other places? Do you create your own mobile app? Providers /suppliers give their offers through it and you don’t use other kinds of intermediaries? We saw the case of blink here. We saw the case of ski resorts here. Recently, appears BeMate willing to combine apartments with hotelier’s services, creating their own community and developing their own mobile app (sleepover).
What do you think? Good examples?
C) What you offer satisfies an IMPORTANT need of the customer? Or is it a need that the customer doesn’t care about? OR you offer something that is so difficult to explain that your customers don’t understand!!!
THIRD: Can other members of the chain of value go directly to the customer OR create an alternative chain of value? Can other suppliers copy the idea? Can the suppliers go directly to the customer? Can other intermediaries /infomediaries create this alternative chain of value?
Can you provide examples of tourism enterprises and foresee their future using this structure?
Some of my students (usually the ones that are tweeting, whatsuping, facebooking or gossiping like hens in the middle of the class!!! ) say that they find a lack of structure in my classes. Well, I share the same feeling; I find a lack of structure in their answers!!! On the other hand, other Touristologists always provide perfect answers (usually the ones that work with the concepts, search how to complement them using Internet, talk about them with their colleagues, other teachers and any professional of our beloved sector) Ummm… maybe there is a causal relationship here!!!
Anyway, do you want a structure? Here you have it! Maybe you can use it to provide a good reply. I hope so, for the future of Touristology!!!
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