Webinar 119: Explore Business Opportunities in European Outbound Tourism to Japan

How can European SMEs in tourism retail and distribution business compete with global OTAs?

Today more and more tourism sales and marketing are done online and a handful of global Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) appear to dominate the tourism sector.  Offline and other channels still hold good market shares; however, they are mostly small and medium size enterprises (SMEs) operating locally or regionally and facing increasing threats from those technology-based global giants. In this competitive sector, European SMEs need to design new products meeting traveller’s new needs and promote with new marketing tools.  This webinar will review market trends to pinpoint a niche market for EU SMEs; will reveal travellers’ new characteristics and needs; and will identify Japan as a desirable destination and propose new products for European leisure and business travellers. The webinar will conclude with recommendations as to how successfully European SMEs design and promote tourism experiences in Japan as a redefined product to European outbound travellers.    

The webinar is targeted to those EU local and/or regional small- and medium size enterprises (SMEs) in tourism retail and distribution business who wish to explore a new sales and marketing strategy and to effectively compete in the tourism sector where global OTAs are dominanting. 

Registration deadline: 04/06/2018

What you will learn during this webinar?

In 40 minutes from your desk, discover how to:

• Make an industry analysis on tourism, identify competitive forces (i.e., rivals and buyers), study current industry structure, and pinpoint a niche market (i.e., outbound market) for EU SMEs;
• Explore business opportunities in European outbound market, and study new customer characteristics and needs (i.e., participation, uniqueness, authenticity and personalisation);
• Explore business opportunities in Japan as a desirable destination, propose new leisure and business products (i.e., experience offering) in response to new customer needs, give brief references to specific activities and events in Japan;
• Review key success factors (KSFs) as recommendations to EU SMEs in designing and promoting tourism experiences as a new product for European outbound travellers.

Programme:

• Introduction
• Expert’s presentation
• Q&A Session
• Conclusion

Speaker: Professor Chieko Nakabayashi, (Ogasawara Global LLC.) The expert is a marketing strategist with special interest in tourism who lectures at academic institutions and give seminars to professionals.  She is a licensed hospitality educator from the American Hotels and Lodging Educational Institute and has 10 years of experience in the tourism field. 
Moderator: Gwenael Beauvais, EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation
Organiser: EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation - Brussels Office

After Event Information