“It’s not just about being sustainable. It’s about selling it too!” 🤔

“It’s not just about being sustainable. It’s about selling it too!” 🤔

Sustainable tourism and successful entrepreneurship can go hand in hand, if you know how to communicate your efforts effectively. 

It’s not just about being sustainable. It’s about resonating with travelers through clear, honest, and practical communication. 📢

In this very first episode of Sustainable Today, Successful Tomorrow, we explore why good sustainable marketing is key to success in tourism. 

We talk about the gap between what travellers say and do, why trust matters, and how a good story can make all the difference. 💬

Want to learn more about the Say-Do Gap? Read our article on: https://goodtourisminstitute.com/library/close-sustainability-say-do-gap/

Transcript

Anne: [00:00:00] Sustainable tourism and successful, entrepreneurship can definitely go hand in hand because it's not just about being sustainable. It's about selling it too and you can only sell it successfully by communicating sustainability successfully.

Rik: Welcome to Sustainable Today, Successful Tomorrow, where we explore real world sustainable tourism stories that actually work. This is our very first episode recorded from our living room here in Bali. 

Rik: Before we get started, Anne can you explain what this series is all about? 

Anne: Yes, absolutely. So we'll be diving into real world stories of sustainable tourism that actually work. We'll be talking to travel businesses, discussing their interviews and really. Diving into their impact, their challenges, and what it takes to be sustainable and successful.

Anne: We'll be sharing these entire interviews as well. And we'll also [00:01:00] have episodes where it's just us two discussing our expertise and sharing knowledge and,reflecting on projects we've worked on. 

Rik: So in these conversations, we're always going to be honest, we're always going to be practical and we're always going to be focused on what actually works.

Rik: Exactly. And we've been having these conversations or discussions for years now and we used them as a foundation for the Good Tourism Institute. Yeah. We've used them to build our programs, write articles, create videos, and basically any type of content we've created in the past years has been based on these discussions.

Rik: Yeah. And for this series, we thought, yeah, let's just press record and share them. 

Anne: Yeah, exactly. I'm very excited to start doing this. 

Rik: So to dive right in, for today, we picked a theme. Sustainable marketing, which is really close to home. We talk about it all the time. Yep. And we feel like people are talking about it more and more.

Rik: It's not just us. Yep. [00:02:00] so in this episode, we're going to dive deep into what sustainable marketing in the tourism industry, but more importantly, what it should and shouldn't do, and one thing we've noticed is that businesses kind of struggle with communicating their sustainable practices in a way that's really connecting to their target group.

Rik: Why do you think that is?

Anne: it has several reasons, but one of the main reasons is that travel businesses are, afraid to greenwash. so they're afraid to oversell their sustainability practices and then be called out for it. at the same time, they're also feeling that travelers are not interested in what they have to say, and then also at the same time, they are not really sure what to share about sustainability.

Rik: So you're saying that businesses feel like travelers don't really care, but, research suggests otherwise, right? 

Anne: Yeah, true. so there's a lot of research out there, that confirms travelers are aware about sustainability, that they care about it. so for [00:03:00] example, Expedia, did a really big research a few years ago, and the outcome was that 90% of travelers are looking for sustainable options.

Anne: Studies of booking.com confirm that four out of five, travelers areinterested in sustainability. so yeah, definitely, the case that travelers are interested. So 

Rik: the interest is there, but the booking lack? 

Anne: yeah. And I think this is what we call, the say do gap, which is the gap between what travelers say, they want to do.

Anne: So booking more sustainable trips versus what they actually do. So not always booking sustainable trips. 

Rik: And why do you think they're not booking them? 

Anne: Yeah, there are multiple reasons for that, but travelers are holding back because of, availability of sustainable tourism, trust, price, clarity.

Anne: So there are multiple reasons why travelers decides to, in the end, not book, a sustainable trip, even though they are aware and say they care about it. 

Rik: What I noticed when I stepped into the tourism industry about five, [00:04:00] six years ago was that the genuine, sustainable businesses weren't really communicating about their practices, which was kind of strange to me because I have a marketing background and.

Rik: I felt like they're putting in the hard work, but they're not really looking at it from a business perspective. Yeah. because if you're doing all the hard work, why are you not communicating about it? Yeah. And that might be a reason for their lack of success in some cases. Do you feel like. It could go hand in hand the sustainability and success factor.

Anne: Yeah, absolutely. And I think, it can definitely go hand in hand if these travel businesses can overcome, certain challenges that travelers are experiencing. for example, lack of awareness or trust. and I think for a lot of travel businesses that are in it for the right reasons, that have intrinsic motivation to be sustainable.

Anne: [00:05:00] They also feel that sharing that they are sustainable and that their trips are sustainable is enough to convince the traveler, to book with them. Yeah. But unfortunately, that's not what, is actually the priority of the traveler. So it's not enough to convince them to book with them. 

Rik: So the roadblocks you're referring to, that's part of a World Economic Forum and Accenture paper, right? 

Anne: Yeah, exactly. Yeah. So the World Economic Forum, launched a paper that goes into six main roadblocks, like barriers that are holding travelers back in booking more sustainable trips.

Anne: And this causes a say due gap. And if these roadblocks are not, overcome by travel businesses, yeah, the say do gap will still exist. 

Rik: I kind of read up on this article and dug it up out of our archives before recording this , and one that really stood out to me was the lack of awareness.

Rik: Yeah. Which is something that, we experience ourselves, more than once. 

Anne: Yeah. 

Rik: One example that stuck to me was this [00:06:00] family barbecue we were having about a year ago. Yeah. we bore our families with sustainable tourism, stories more than they'd like to. Yeah. but,after one of these talks, like straight after someone pulled out their phone to show us this 'cool' video about, a friend walking with a lion, I believe was somewhere in Senegal. Senegal, yeah. And it was right after we had a sustainable tourism talk, but there was a clear lack of awareness in how unsustainable this was. This is what happens a lot because people aren't sure what sustainability in tourism actually is.

Anne: And I think this is also because the definition of sustainable tourism is quite vague and has quite a lot of different interpretations. So even though my family members are interested in sustainable tourism and they support what we do, and they think about [00:07:00] traveling sustainable themselves.

Anne: But at the same time, they didn't see at first what was wrong with walking with lions. 

Rik: We kind of had to explain it. 

Anne: Because the first reaction was that is so cool. 

Anne: How can you be this close to a lion? And to be honest, it is cool, however, the whole process before a lion can actually walk with a human, in a way that you do with tourism experiences

Anne: is very unnatural and very painful for the lion. 

Rik: It's horrible. 

Anne: It's horrible. Yeah. 

Rik: And how do you feel that travel businesses can help in this education process? 

Anne: So it's really about, making, sustainability easier, visible and more appealing. and to overcome this roadblock of lack of awareness is to really practically share what sustainable tourism is, and to provide examples.

Anne: So very practical, what does it mean and how does this look like? 

Rik: Being very practical and very transparent about what it is that you're doing. 

Anne: Exactly. 

Rik: I feel there's a lot of [00:08:00] ground to be won in that area. 

Rik: And sustainable communication can definitely play a big part in this.

Rik: Absolutely. And one other part that's kind of lacking behind, I feel is credibility and trust. Yeah. with all the greenwashing going on out there, it's difficult for travelers to kind of spot what is sustainable and what is not. Yeah. Even for us, it's difficult to figure out your way around it.

Rik: What is sustainable, what isn't? Yeah. And I had to think back to, we traveled last year to South Africa and Oh, I know where this is going. We wanted to do a safari close to Cape Town, but yeah, close to Cape Town it's private reserves only. Yeah. And what these private is reserves have down is talking about sustainability without actually being sustainable. 

Anne: Yeah. 

Rik: So they talk a big game, but at the same time they offer experiences like cheetah runs. Do you remember? Yeah. 

Anne: Yeah, because I was, I'm really, one of [00:09:00] my biggest dreams is to actually spot a cheetah in the wild. So what you said, like we were looking for a game reserve where you could actually do that.

Anne: And then when we thought. We found a game reserve that did, that way you can go, on a, a private walk, to actually spot cheetahs. we found out that the cheetahs also do cheetah runs at afternoon tea time. 

Anne: Four o'clock sharp. 

Rik: That's exactly when they start running, right? Yeah. Completely natural.

Anne: Exactly the point where we said. This is not right. Like this is number one greenwashing rule. 

Rik: But the thing is that their story looked quite good. Aside from the cheetah walk, they had it down, so it was difficult for us to spot out. Yeah. So there's a lot of this type of greenwashing going around, especially with a kind of private companies. Yeah. Who do have a good marketing team. Yeah. And do know what travelers are looking for. I mean, how cool is it to see a cheetah run at full speed It's not something [00:10:00] you can, force. 

Anne: No and I think this is also exactly where it comes down to that travelers are interested in sustainability.

Anne: They are aware of it, but they lack the knowledge and tools to actually spot greenwashing or when it's not really executed in a sustainable way. And this is where the role of genuine, sustainable tourism businesses comes in because they do have the responsibility to be better in communication, about sustainability. 

Rik: What do you think that they can, like practically do to earn that trust? 

Anne: Again, comes back to transparent and practical communication. So it's really important that they, support their stories with examples, with data,certification is also a good tool, but to really focus on genuine, connection with the traveler, and to really share what it is that you're actually doing. Not making promises, not overselling, but really what it is that you do. Why are you doing it, and why is it good for the [00:11:00] traveler? 

Rik: One thing I'd like to add is that it should be an added value to your product. Yeah. it shouldn't be just like: you should do this because it's sustainable. People don't really like to be told what to do. 

Anne: You need to show why it's an added value to the actual sustainable experience. 

Anne: Exactly. And I think this is also sometimes a mismatch in communication of these genuine tour operators that are in it for the right reasons, because they often communicate in a way that comes across as preaching.

Anne: So you can't do this, you have to do this. and not really thinking about the opportunities that sustainable tourism does bring. 'cause in the end, the traveler is looking to have an amazing experience and because they care about sustainability, what you said, like they will. See it as an added value and they will choose a sustainable business over another one if the experience they can have is similar.

Anne: Yeah. And the whole goal of sustainable, marketing [00:12:00] is to share your travel experience that is sustainable, but in a way that appeals to the traveler. And then share about, what the positive impact is of that trip. But the experience of the traveler should be, your priority in communication.

Rik: Yeah, definitely. And I I feel like it shouldn't only be about the negative as well. I think a lot of businesses are focusing on, you can't do this or you shouldn't do that, but what's the alternative? 

Anne: Yeah. 

Rik: Focus on the alternative and show how it's better than the unsustainable. 

Anne: Yeah, exactly.

Anne: So that's the appealing part. So how can you enrich your experience by traveling, sustainably to meeting, local people or seeing wildlife up close in the wild? there's nothing better than seeing a lion roaming around in their natural habitat. There's nothing fun about walking with them on a leash.

Rik: And I think that sustainable marketing can really shine in this area and can [00:13:00] make your business grow and, have a positive light on what it is that you're actually doing. 

Anne: Yeah, exactly.

Anne: 'cause if no one knows that you are sustainable and you can have the most sustainable products or experiences of your country, if you are not able to communicate it in a way that appeals to travelers or makes them care, it won't make a difference. Because if they are not traveling with you. You can't, share your experiences or actually sell them.

Rik: Exactly. It's not about just having a great product, but it's about gaining understanding and trust from your target group. Would you agree? 

Anne: Yeah. Yeah.

Rik: It's not about just checking a box, it's about making your business actually stand out. And to show your target group why your sustainable option is better than the alternative. 

Anne: Yeah. 

Rik: And we've talked about awareness and credibility, which both can be tackled through, communication. and that's where we wanna close off because there's many more of these roadblocks and we can make an hour and a half [00:14:00] episode, but we want to stick to, what we feel are the most important two.

Rik: So to close off, do we have any, tips, for the businesses to get started right away? 

Anne: Yeah, so I think the main tip is that, yes, sustainable tourism and successful, entrepreneurship can definitely go hand in hand because it's not just about being sustainable, it's about selling it too and you can only sell it successfully by communicating sustainability successfully.

Anne: And you have to do that in a practical, transparent way for it to be effective. And at the same time, you have to keep in mind, that you have to be appealing to your traveler. and these two things are very important to keep in mind. 

Rik: Yeah, definitely. And if you wanna really take the first step, we'll link to the Say-Do Gap article in our description.

Rik: So you can read about all the roadblocks, all six of them. 

Anne: And also the article includes how to overcome them. It has practical tips on what can you do, to make sure that the roadblock is no longer an [00:15:00] issue for your traveler. 

Rik: So on that note, we'd like to close off and thank you all for listening, and we hope you enjoyed this very first episode. 

Anne: And we would also love to hear from you, so share your main challenges in communicating sustainability. So thank you for listening, and we hope you join us for our next episode.

Rik: Bye 

Anne: bye.