Make Ireland Jump OutUSA REVIEWA strategy for growth 2013 - 2015

IntroductionI am delighted to present the US Strategic plan 2013 – 2015, Make Ireland Jump Out. The United States continues to be one of our strongest performing markets but we can’t take our relatively successful performance in recent years for granted.

Therefore, working with key partners, we have carried out a fundamental review of the market to identify the opportunities and challenges facing us for the next 3 years. This new strategy has been designed to bring the brand and our tourism offering to the next stage of development in what is one of our key markets. It is both challenging and ambitious, pursuing share gain and a growth in visitor number of in excess of 20 per cent over the period of the plan.

At its core, the strategy is focussed, targeting ‘best prospect’ segments and delivering cut-through and persuasive messages which will convert their interest into decisions to travel.

Ireland as a destination and brand has a strong affi nity with a broad base of consumers in the US. Our primary focus will be to reach and connect with US consumers who are well disposed towards Ireland and move this disposition into actual bookings and incremental visitors. In addition the strategy puts in place actions that will facilitate the development and promotion of new and different propositions for Ireland as a holiday destination. In doing this we will make the brand relevant to consumers in new and different ways, thus broadening its overall appeal.

The strategy has been developed so that it integrates consumer understanding & insight, the competitive environment, the strengths of brand Ireland and the capabilities of both Tourism Ireland and key industry stakeholders. We believe that through good decision making, focussed actions, continued stakeholder collaboration and outstanding marketing we can make Ireland Jump Out in the US market and deliver on the targets we have set ourselves.

We look forward to working with the industry on the Island of Ireland and our trade partners in the United States on the challenge and the delivery.

Niall Gibbons Chief Executive Offi cer Tourism Ireland

Niall Gibbons Chief Executive Offi cer Tourism Ireland

The United States is the island of Ireland’s second largest tourism generating market delivering almost a million valuable visitors who stay longer and spend more than average. The last decade has seen many world events and crises impact on the US travel market, however the island of Ireland has maintained strong visitor share during this period – due in part to the very strong brand affi nity and brand recognition that Ireland enjoys in the United States.

Tourism Ireland carried out a review of the US market in 2012, under the aegis of the US Marketing Partnership Group, in order to secure continued growth for the period 2013- 2015.

This document sets out the ambition of the plan and the strategy in place to achieve growth.

Background

Building on a strong market performance, the US Review and the strategy produced has a clear focus on delivering accelerated growth. With market conditions that may prove to be more challenging than ever it is imperative that Ireland ‘jumps out’ relative to its competitors. We will make Ireland stand out for key target segments, creating a connection between them and ‘brand Ireland’. We will encourage key targets to not only consider but choose Ireland – ultimately planning and booking their trip, increasing visitor numbers and delivering market share growth.

In the pursuit of this strategy the key outcomes being sought are threefold:

Make Ireland Jump OutWhat are we setting out to achieve?

1. Conversion getting consumers to book Ireland: executing a brand and market strategy that converts a high ratio of consumers who express an interest in visiting Ireland into actual visitors

2. Consideration encouraging consumers to consider Ireland: enhancing and developing the relevance of Ireland as a holiday proposition so that it becomes a real and credible choice for consumers and stimulates them to actively explore the idea of holidaying in Ireland

3. Interest driving interest in Ireland as a destination: ensuring Ireland is positioned to be of interest to prospective future travellers and in doing so enters their consideration set

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Make Ireland Jump Out

1. Conversion

2. Consideration

Island of Ireland share of outbound market

Inbo

und

visi

ts

SOURCE: Data based on outbound fi gures from Itta and forecast growth from TDM. Inbound share data based on TI facts and forecasts.

US visitors to the Island of Ireland

The brand objective All efforts should lead to Ireland being perceived as an aspirational, iconic and accessible holiday destination that targeted US consumers are highly motivated to visit.

The business objective Increase the number of US visitors to the island of Ireland by approximately 20 per cent and in doing so achieve a market share in excess of 9 per cent.

Our targets in terms of visitor numbers and share growth are challenging, our aspirations for the brand are ambitious but the opportunity that the US market represents is signifi cant.

Ambition for growth

0.0%

2.0%

4.0%

6.0%

8.0%

10.0%800

1000

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Young IndependentsWho are they? Typically in their late 20s, they

are relatively affl uent and have the freedom to travel.

Most commonly they travel as couples or with a group

of friends. They are very web savvy and tend to book

holidays closer to their departure date. They are open to

travelling for shorter breaks and have higher potential to

travel in the shoulder season.

What do they need? Young independents are

motivated by the idea of new and unique experiences

that are memorable and immersive. They value

interaction with people, history, festivals, the landscape,

food, culture and local life. They tend to be very active –

doing and seeing many things in a short space of time,

with a particular interest in cities and city life.

What does Ireland have to offer them that is most

relevant to them?

• Cities that offer vibrant and distinctive cultural

experiences

• Authentic experiences that are delivered and

enhanced through genuine interaction with the

people of Ireland

• A fun and engaging connection with history

While the US represents a huge opportunity for tourism on the island of Ireland it is also an extremely competitive market. The level of competition has intensifi ed and the number of choices available to the US traveller has grown. Now more than ever, we must be focussed in terms of the consumer segments we seek to target, infl uence and ultimately convert into visitors to the island of Ireland. Key to our success will be knowing our consumers better than anyone else and acting on this knowledge. We will apply our resources and collaborate with our partners so that we connect and resonate with our target consumers and infl uence them to not only consider Ireland but book their trip to Ireland.

We have developed a refi ned and action oriented approach to segmentation, identifying target consumers, understanding their needs and interests and how Ireland can respond to and deliver on these needs through ‘experiential propositions’. The ‘experiential propositions’ represent a series of ‘authentic holiday experiences’ that are being developed so that the consumer can imagine themselves in Ireland – painting a picture of what they will be doing, what they will experience and what it will feel like.

Understanding our priority targets and how to infl uence them

Based on the US Review we will target three priority segments. These segments represent the ‘sweet spot’ of the broader consumer group that we have targeted in the past, these three segments are defi ned as:

Young Independents

Middle Aged Explorers

Mature Must Seers & Doers

Strategic Pillar 1:

Middle Aged Explorers Who are they? Typically they are aged 40-55, well-educated

couples, occasionally travelling within a group of friends, tend to

be pre or post young children. They are active sightseers who

are interested in history, culture and greatly enjoy the beautiful

landscape and nature of a destination.

What do they need? Middle Aged Explorers are seeking to

immerse themselves in and feel part of the place they are visiting.

They aspire to explore and discover local authentic experiences

that give them a sense of the unique character of a destination

and its people. They like to experience a destination at their own

pace and have many cultural options to choose from.

What does Ireland have to offer them that is most relevant

to them?

• The opportunity to immerse oneself more fully in nature,

through the environment itself, a diverse range of active

experiences and the people encountered along the way

• A rich culture and history that educates, stimulates and

inspires

• Unique cultural city experiences

• A variety of museums, art galleries, interpretive centres,

historic houses and castles to choose from all set in vibrant

cities and beautiful countryside

Mature Must Seers & Doers Who are they? Mature Must Seers & Doers tend to

be aged 55+, affl uent and travelling as a couple. They

tend to have a clear idea of the types of things they want

to see and do, and have a deep interest in the history of a

destination.

What do they need? They are very interested in

history and culture as well as the natural environment.

With an appetite for learning they are seeking to enhance

their knowledge through experiences that will broaden the

mind. They like a destination to be easy and accessible

and to be able to learn as much as possible and are open

to organised trips and tours.

What does Ireland have to offer them that is most

relevant to them?

• A destination that offers them a broad and balanced

set of memorable and iconic experiences

• A variety of historical and cultural experiences with which

they can engage in, learn from and be inspired by

• A distinctive and beautiful natural environment that

enriches their holiday experience and brings a sense

of renewal

• A well-developed tourism infrastructure that allows

them to experience everything they want to at their

own pace

Actionable Segmentation

Our focus will be on making Ireland “jump out” to best prospect segments. We will do this by understanding them, their needs and how Ireland can meet these needs better than anyone else.

Business Tourism

Beyond the core consumer segments that have been defi ned the review has concluded that we will maintain a focus on key niche segments: business, golf and the Diaspora (consumers with Irish ancestry). Each of these segments represents a signifi cant opportunity to deliver incremental visitor numbers in meaningful volume.

We will maintain our focus on the three key segments we have historically targeted, Association Conferences, Incentive Travel and Corporate Meetings. In delivering growth from the MICE segment we will seek to deliver high quality B2B platforms for the industry to develop business and generate sales, aggressively identify and develop qualifi ed leads in partnership with relevant stakeholders and industry. We will seek to further develop the general awareness of Ireland as a leading business tourism destination and continue to communicate Ireland’s strengths in business basics – value for money, access, venues, quality and professionalism.

Through the strategy we will seek to make Ireland’s golfi ng proposition jump out to relevant US consumers for whom playing golf is the primary motivation for a holiday. In order to do this and give Ireland a competitive advantage we will promote Ireland as one of the world’s leading

destinations for golf, communicating the quality and uniqueness of courses, beauty of scenery, friendliness and helpfulness of people and quality of service experience.

Specifi cally we will highlight in particular the strength of our Links courses, the profi le and success of Irish golfers and our authentic ‘19th hole’ experience.

Golf

We are determined to make Ireland a relevant and compelling option for our chosen niche segments. We are clear as to which segments we are pursuing and how we intend to impact upon them.

Niche segments for special focus

Strategic Pillar 1:

Within the US it is estimated that there are almost 40 million people with ancestral links to the island of Ireland. Many of these consumers are already included in the key segments that have been defi ned. However they are highly relevant to us as they not only have a natural connection with Ireland but an existing affi nity with brand Ireland and a

concrete reason to consider and travel to Ireland.

We will target these consumers by implementing dedicated communications that will be driven through precise targeting strategy reaching Diaspora groups, societies, clubs with a specifi c Ireland proposition and call to action. We will also maximise the opportunity The Gathering represents in 2013, driving signifi cant additional visitor numbers and maximising The Gathering legacy in 2014/15.

Diaspora / Irish Ancestry

Niche segments for special focus

1. Brand led conversion ~ using our brand power More singular in our messaging ~ communicating the most compelling and persuasive reasons to choose Ireland based on real insight into our target segments

Bring a buzz to the island of Ireland ~ presenting Ireland as a vibrant, fun and distinctive destination

Deliver immediacy, action and engagement in our communications ~ our objective is to get US consumers to visit Ireland now, not just sometime in the future

2. Iconic ‘must do’ experiences ~ compelling experiences to captivate the consumer

We will align the needs of our target segments with the experiences Ireland has to offer, putting forward compelling reasons to travel to and experience Ireland

We will fully leverage our major events and attractions to drive visitor numbers, including St Patricks Festival, Titanic, Derry / Londonderry UK City of Culture

We will focus on key cities as prime reasons to choose and experience Ireland

Ireland is viewed very positively by many US consumers, many of whom assert an ‘intention’ to travel to Ireland. However, there is huge potential to move the ‘lookers’ to ‘bookers.’ With this in mind a core focus of the strategy is to increase Ireland’s capacity for conversion and maximise the return on what is already perceived to be a very strong brand in the US market. Building on our strengths and what we know works we will strengthen our capacity to get more consumers ‘over the line’ with a focus on four key areas:

We must translate goodwill towards Ireland and high levels of ‘intention to travel to Ireland’ into enquiries, booking and ultimately highly satisfi ed visitors. Our focus is on moving US consumers from “looking to booking”.

Capacity for ConversionBreaking the inertia

Strategic Pillar 2:

3. Call to action ~ reasons to visit Ireland now

We will include a direct call to action in our messaging to encourage and facilitate the consumer booking a trip to Ireland

Ensure there is a strong ‘call to action’ messaging in co-op activities, interested consumer will be in no doubt as to what to do next

We will further strengthen our presence and impact on digital channels – which are key platforms for planning and purchasing

4. Conversion partnerships ~ team Ireland winning the consumer

We will focus on improving the conversion ratio (from enquiry to booking) in key sales channels, backing winners and high potential operators with a special focus on Northern Ireland

We will support and collaborate with industry partners to communicate Ireland’s convenience and value as these are two known triggers for conversion

We will invest in ‘carrier’ led conversion programmes

We will encourage trade and industry partners to increase destination promotions for Ireland

Capacity for ConversionBreaking the inertia

1. Extending seasonal relevanceThe focus of this strategy will be to make Ireland more relevant in ‘shoulder’ seasons and develop ‘seasonal niche’ opportunities. In order to do this we will:

• Identify and promote key experiences / events that take place in shoulder months, including Dublin’s festival season amongst others

• Support trade partners to develop and communicate shoulders season propositions and packages

• Measure impact and outcomes, to revise and strengthen our approach

While our primary efforts in the period 2013-2015 will focus on building on existing brand strengths and delivering increased visitor numbers in peak seasons, we will also focus on extending Ireland’s relevance in ‘shoulder’ seasons (March, April, October, November).

We have identifi ed untapped potential to extend Irelands relevance beyond the long stay proposition and we will work with core partners to deliver this. While we need to continually enhance and develop Ireland’s relevance we must also broaden the brand relevance.

Ireland must be perceived as having the capacity to offer a wide range of experiences at different times of the year and for different lengths of trips, creating and communicating a rich reservoir of reasons to choose Ireland now – whatever time of the year it happens to be.

In order to drive new brand relevance for Ireland we will be concentrating on three specifi c areas over the course of the plan.

New Brand Relevance

Strategic Pillar 3:

3. Six day visit propositionThere are a vast number of US consumers that are ‘cash rich and time poor’ due to lower annual leave entitlements. In response to this we will develop and communicate a six day visit proposition to Ireland. This has at its core the development and implementation of a balanced city / countryside visit, enabling a potential visitor to experience the best of Ireland in less than a week. This strategy will be supported by:

• The defi nition and communication of balanced experiential city / countryside breaks

• Collaboration with key industry (operators and carriers) in order to defi ne, develop and promote relevant packages at appropriate price points

2. City based proposition Primarily targeting Young Independents living on the East coast of America, we will promote a city based proposition for Dublin and Belfast. This strategy will be deployed with a focus on driving volume in the shoulder seasons and be supported by:

• Precise targeting, communications and channel marketing

• The defi nition and communication of experiential city based packages

• Collaboration with key industry including tour operators and carriers to develop and promote attractive city based packages at accessible price points

New Brand Relevance

Making ‘brand Ireland’ relevant to consumers and in new and different ways

Through our strategy to drive new brand relevance we will make Ireland more accessible to a broader range of consumers, getting new consumers to consider Ireland and those may have considered Ireland in the past to re-appraise it as a real holiday destination.

Digital Being brilliant on a key channel for consideration and purchase

Areas of Special Focus 1:

Digital, broadly encompassing the internet, mobile / tablet and social media, is a key platform through which consumers not only research vacation options (driving consideration) but for many it also represents a key channel through which consumers make decisions, plan and purchase their holidays.

The relevance and importance of the digital platform is only set to increase and with this in mind it is vital that the brand excels in this environment.

To build on our current success in the digital environment Ireland will:

INSPIRE

PERSONALISE

INFORM

CONNECT

Through the digital platform we will inspire

consumers and motivate them to visit Ireland on their next trip

overseas.

We will enable individuals to create a personal vision of their trip – what they will do,

how they will interact with icons, experiences.

Potential visitors will be provided with relevant information that infl uences

them to choose Ireland and enables them to plan

their trip.

Connect consumers with relevant partners (trade / industry) so they can make bookings, facilitating conversion.

Now more than ever being brilliant in the digital world is a key factor for brand success. We will strengthen what is already a solid base, lead the way relative to our competitors, ultimately winning consumers and drive performance through the digital platform.

In order to achieve this we will focus on three key objectives:

1. Optimise brand positioning and messaging

• Outstanding execution of our brand strategy in digital environments

• Feature key experiential propositions as key content

• Stimulate and facilitate infl uencer content including bloggers, journalists

2. Position the brand optimally for sale

• Focus on OTAs and all key online sales platforms

• Improve conversion ratio and ranking online

• Make active intervention in relevant environments, drive call to action and target competitors

• Enhance the connection between TI digital environments and trade to facilitate sales

3. Facilitate and engage in brand dialogue

• Foster brand ambassadors online

• Stimulate brand conversations in digital environments

• Drive relevant content sharing and distribution

• Leverage relevant databases and information

Airfares & Access Focussing on fundamentals that make a big difference

Areas of Special Focus 2:

Although the areas of airfares and access to the island of Ireland sit outside our direct infl uence they are key factors that have the capacity to support or indeed inhibit Ireland’s performance. So it is of high importance that we do everything within our power to optimise conditions with respect to airfares and access.

Building on the success of securing new access in 2013, we must continue to leverage our relationships, assert our infl uence and collaborate with key stakeholders and partners, in order to bring about the best conditions possible to facilitate consumers booking their trip and visiting Ireland.

Key strategies and actions

Airfares

We will highlight proximity and ease of access of Ireland relative to other Western European destinations

We will develop a season extension strategy so that consumers are attracted to Ireland in off peak periods when airfares are more affordable

Focus co-operative investment on campaigns that will drive incremental visitors during the shoulder season

Access

We will continue to develop and manage relationships which will infl uence access and route development. We will work with all stakeholders to advocate the development of access onto the island of Ireland

We will support all stakeholders who are working to support route development and the retention of critically important routes

We will help promote strategically important routes through co-operative campaigns with carriers to exploit the development of new and existing routes that are strategically important for the island of Ireland

We will share marketing and promotional plans with carriers to motivate route development / promotion and drive future intention for greater capacity and new routes

We will assist carriers in route development and target carriers and gateways that service behind point access markets

The Fundamentals

Focussing on the building blocks of our brand and organisation.

The ‘Make Ireland Jump Out’ strategy is underpinned by the management and development of key fundamentals that support the brand, key stakeholders and the Tourism organisation and team in the US. While we must push on with ambition and energy and deliver our strategic intent we must also have a focus on continuing to get the basics right and strengthening the key foundations of brand Ireland in the US.

These ‘basics’ are defi ned as follows:

Product

Messaging

Trade

Value

Organisation

Product • Ireland as a destination is ‘America

friendly’. We will continue to promote fundamentals that are of appeal to US consumers: English speaking, safe, compact, accessible, infrastructure, immigration, hospitality, accommodation (diverse properties)

• We will amplify differentiated and motivating product attributes based on an insight into our target consumers

• We will identify and manage product failures, weakness and gaps

Value • We will continue to reinforce value

for money and affordability through relevant messaging

• We will support the trade to create and communicate experiential value packages and bundles at relevant price points (underpinned by co-operative investment)

• We will drive our value for money perception through word of mouth strategy

Messaging • We will focus on ‘motivation based’

messaging – providing reasons to choose Ireland in all relevant communications

• We will be more singular in our messaging. We will over extend the brand

• We will amplify and focus on consumer key drivers (access, affordability, urgency)

Organisation• We will have a ruthless focus on

prioritisation

• Impact metrics to be applied where possible and useful, with a primary focus on return on investment metrics

• We will deploy our resources (time, money and people) based on where we believe we will get the greatest return and have the greatest impact on brand performance

Trade • We will maintain and develop priority

trade relationships

• We will gather information relating to conversion ratio and ranking and seek improvement through collaboration

• We will assess and strengthen the OTA network and relationships

Conclusion We have a clear strategy with challenging goals.

We are confi dent that if we can execute the strategy that has been defi ned the period 2013-15 can be a very successful one for brand Ireland in the US.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the US Marketing Partnership Group for their valuable input into the US market review. We are also very grateful for the contributions made by experts within the US and Irish travel trade during the US Market Review.The contribution of Genesis is also acknowledged.

Marketing Partnership Group Members

Nico Zenner, President, Brendan Vacations

Janice Gault, Chief Executive, Northern Ireland Hotels Federation

Brian Stack, President, CIE Tours International

Jack Foley, Executive Vice President, North America, Aer Lingus

Bert Accomando, President, GCS/Sceptre Tours

Marc Kazlauskas, President, Insight Vacations

*Jim Brody, Vice President Marketing, Oyster.com

*Audrey Hendley, Vice President, American Express

*Eamonn McKeon, Chief Executive, ITIC

*Alison Metcalfe, Vice President, Marketing USA, Tourism Ireland

*Joe Byrne, Executive Vice President USA, Tourism Ireland

* Members of the US review working group chaired by Alison Metcalfe.

It is a strategy we believe in and one we are determined to deliver on, so let’s work together to Make Ireland Jump Out.

Ultimately the strategy is about building on the

strengths and stature of brand Ireland in the US

and enhancing the brand appeal by:

• bringing a sharper focus to the consumers we are trying to infl uence and win (connecting with them in a more compelling way than we ever have)

• motivating people to choose, plan and book in the here and now

• broadening the relevance of Ireland as a holiday proposition so that we make it more relevant and accessible to more people

• collaborating with all key stakeholders to bring a joined up approach to delivering brand Ireland

Tourism Ireland

5th Floor, Bishop’s Square

Redmond’s Hill,

Dublin 2, Ireland

T: +353 1 476 3400

F: +353 1 476 3666

E: corporate.dublin@tourismireland.com

Tourism Ireland

345 Park Avenue,

New York, NY 10154

T: +1 212 418 0800

F: +1 212 371 9052

E: info.us@tourismireland.com

Contacts