Rezgo Sponsors PhoCusWright Special Report on Tour & Activities
I am very excited to announce that Rezgo has formerly signed a sponsorship agreement for the “When They Get There (and Why They Go)” special report by PhoCusWright, which is focused on the in-destination events, attractions, and activities.
Why is Rezgo sponsoring this special report? The tour and activity market is a tremendously important segment of the travel industry but, until now, has been largely ignored. When PhoCusWright asked us if we would be interested in being part of this report, I knew we had to do it. We work with tour & activity operators around the World and we know how important in-destination activities are to the traveler. Our frustration is that there has been NO research into this segment by any major research company. I felt we had to sponsor the report, because if we didn’t then how could I expect anyone else to sponsor it?
Why is this report so important? If the results of this report are any where near what I expect, then there will be a massive spot light shone on the in-destination tour & activity sector. As soon as that happens we will see a surge in innovation and interest around the sector. We will also see large OTAs and distributors looking for ways to connect with suppliers in a big way. This will put pressure on application developers to build systems that easily connect to these distribution channels (hopefully using OpenTravel messages). This attention will increase the awareness of tour operators that, if they want to participate in this incredible opportunity, they need to use management systems like Rezgo to better manage their products and distribution, and that, quite simply, is good for business.
How will this report help small business operators? This report is all about small business. Unlike airlines or chain hotels, the majority of in-destination tour and activity operators are small businesses. When PhoCusWright estimates the overall value of this sector, that value will reflect the work of thousands of small business entrepreneurs from around the U.S. Having a report like the “When They Get There (and Why They Go)” will provide these small business entrepreneurs with hard research that can be used to help acquire funding, grow their businesses, or perhaps start a new business.
Won’t the added attention mean more competition for Rezgo? That is a very strong possibility and one I have considered. But in considering the risks of sponsoring this report, I determined that the long term benefits to the industry and to the tour & activity sector are greater then the potential short term impact caused by an increase in competition. Besides, my feeling is that by sponsoring this report and showing our support for an initiative as important as this, we will enhance our leadership position within the sector.
Over the coming weeks I will be working hard to engage other like minded entrepreneurs and companies to sponsor this report. If you are a destination, an aggregator, on-line travel agent, or even a tour & activity supplier, I encourage you to review the report details and consider sponsoring this report as well.
