Now you have collected your data, what tools can you use to help you define the market?

SWOT PESTLE Competition amongst destinations Stages in the Butler Destination Lifecycle

These tools help you define:

-What products and services your target market is already using -Which businesses are using the best marketing mix to provide these products and services -If there are any shortcomings in these products and services that you can fix to gain the attention of customers -What external factors apart from competition and demand can affect the success or failure of your business (e.g. government economic policies)

SWOT Analysis

-Used to weigh the pros and cons of a product, an organization or for tourism a DESTINATION! -Strengths and Weaknesses are internal factors (meaning they are controlled by the organization) -Opportunities and Threats are external factors (meaning they are beyond the control of the organization) -It is usually conducted at the initial stage of a project to determine the market environment in which an organization operates. -It looks at the current situation in order to help an organization decide whether to move forward.

PESTLE ANALYSIS

-Used to assess the EXTERNAL influences on the market environment- Political, Economic, Social, ---Technological, Legal, and Environmental -Although the threats are outside of the organization it does not mean that can’t be minimized -Since the industry is dynamic there are many forces affecting marketing trends which affect the popularity of specific tourist products and destinations- a PESTLE considers them -Sometimes called a PEST Analysis

COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

-Used to identify which destinations pose the biggest threat and the extent each rival poses -Competition exists between destinations which offer similar or identical experiences -What do you look at? -->Digital presence -->Google rankings -->Social media branding -In tourism, often your competition is people’s time and how they are willing to spend it.

STAGE IN THE BUTLER DESTINATION LIFE CYCLE MODEL

-Butler saw destinations as fragile -Destinations can’t exceed their carrying capacity or tourists will not want to visit. -As attractiveness declines, due to overuse and impacts from visitors the visitor numbers will decline too. -Knowing the destination’s place within the model becomes a tool for understanding the market and who is visiting and in which direction the destination is trending.