Opinion (Different): Hospitality Marketing During The Virus Outbreak
On February 28, Messe Berlin announced the iconic ITB Berlin will be cancelled, for the first time in history. Then on my Facebook, LinkedIn, the majority of industry associates were upset about this news, mainly very rationally based on data that we should not fear COVID-19 and also if we industry people stop travelling, how can we convince others to travel.
I think Messe Berlin has made the right decision. Okay, many of you are loading bullets now and want to shoot but listen… my business is China-focused, working with independent hotels which see impacts right away and my China IT office is in Wuhan, so I feel the pain more than many of you. Not just business-wise but how is the team doing in Wuhan, how are our independent hotels managing during this difficult time. I want more than anyone to say "don't worry, be happy" but I can't. It is obvious countries are taking the "Fight over Flight" approach so I would rather face the reality and get prepared.
I am not going to talk about COVID-19 as I am not a doctor. Instead, I am going to talk about something I do know about, hospitality marketing. And, here I hope I will be able to give my colleagues, clients and the industry at large ideas on how to make the best of a challenging situation, especially in terms of Chinese outbound tourism.
