Destination Marketing: Italy and Digital Marketing Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of destination marketing, with a specific focus on promoting Italy as a tourist destination. The introduction emphasizes the role of marketing in attracting visitors and highlights the significance of digital platforms like websites, social media, and SEM. The report then delves into marketing planning principles, evaluating how these principles can be applied to support destination development and growth, using Acorn Tourism Development as a case study. It explores various destination marketing campaign examples, such as family, pilgrimage, and adventure destinations, to analyze the success of their objectives. The report reviews different digital marketing tools, including content marketing, social media marketing, Google Analytics, and email marketing, used to promote a specific destination. Furthermore, it assesses the role and services of Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) in marketing a destination and addresses the challenges they face. The conclusion summarizes the key findings, emphasizing the importance of strategic marketing in the tourism sector. The report also includes references to support the analysis.

Destination Marketing

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................................3
TASK 1..........................................................................................................................................................3
P1: Evaluation of marketing planning principles for supporting marketing of a particular destination...3
TASK 2..........................................................................................................................................................5
P2. Analyse the key elements of a range of destination marketing campaign examples to analyse the
success of objectives...............................................................................................................................5
TASK 3..........................................................................................................................................................6
P3. Review of different digital marketing tools used for promoting and advertising a specific
destination...............................................................................................................................................6
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................................8
P4: Role and Services of DMO in marketing a destination.......................................................................8
P5: Challenges Faced by DMO.................................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION.............................................................................................................................................10
REFERENES................................................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Destination marketing emphasize on promoting the particular destination site which
finally helps in increasing the amount of visitors in order to explore the particular location. Here
the role of marketing department is to attract the customer through tourism advertisements which
are designed to appeal the interest of customer through various platforms like website, social
media, SEM as well as other paid and unpaid advertisements (Hays, Page and Buhalis, 2013).
The employees of an organization attempt to develop a desirable customer satisfaction have an
immense role to play as they offer highly convincing customers to make their trip desirable
enough by eliminating the chances of dissonance. For a better understanding of the study, the
UK consultancy company Acorn Tourism Development has been selected that believes in
collaborative work ethics. The company's clients are tourism destination businesses to which
suggestion is given in order to maximize social, environmental and economic values. This report
includes topics such as determining ways a company can apply marketing principles in order to
support growth and destination development. In this report Italy is taken as a tourist destination,
it is taken as a European country which has long Mediterranean coastline which has left a strong
mark on cuisine and western culture which can be easily seen in country. It also evaluate of role
of digital marketing that helps in the promotion of particular destination site. Further, access the
role of destination marketing organization as well as challenges face by them is covered in the
report. Italy is a capital of Rome which is a home to Vatican and also has various ancient ruins
and land mark which makes it a tourist destination it also has various major cities which includes
Florence it has number of Renaissance masterpieces including Brunelleschi’s Duomo and
Michelangelo’s “David”, Milan which is known as a Italy’s fashion capital and Venice, which is
also known as a city of canals.
TASK 1
P1: Evaluation of marketing planning principles for supporting marketing of a particular
destination
Marketing refers to the method or function of selling the goods or service to a target
market so that it can attract a large numbers of customers. It includes advertisement, distribution
and supply of goods or services to its customers. There are various principles within the
organization, which control this operation. Effective marketing requires a strategy-a marketing

plan in particular (Principle of marketing planning. 2019). While consumers should have been at
the core of every promotional campaign, advertising campaigns do not run in a void. Marketing,
then, is one role of a broader company, working within a dynamic market setting. To maintain
promotional efforts are successful, all of these aspects must be taken into consideration in the
marketing strategy. In addition, once a strategy is in motion, it acts as a roadmap for all the
marketing strategies a company undertakes. The marketing campaign will take several different
formats. It's also a structured document that is regularly checked to establish organizational
cohesion and help. This may also be a document detailing each of goals and tactics. Often the
marketing plan components are displayed on the internal website of an organization which
allows all staff to access information and see notifications.
The benefit of making a plan:
 Addressing fragmentation: The visitor ecosystem involves a whole range of
experiences provided by several governments, private, and volunteer organizations. It is
important that they function together and achieve effective usage and financial allocation
in doing so.
 Recognizing, reinforcing and organizing various functions: Promoting the tourism
sector is not only about advertising but must include a whole variety of activities aimed at
enhancing the quality of the tourist experience and business efficiency. Company
promotes Italy as a tourist destination by promoting its various tourist attractions in order
to attract more and more tourist visiting Italy as a preferred tourist plce.
 Impact management and tracking: Tourism has a variety of effects on people and the
environment and seems to be fundamentally an activity which profits from management.
Prioritizing and resource allocation: A key advantage of making a plan is defining what
the specific objectives and goals are in order to allow the most efficient use of financial
resources along with human resources.
 Getting more funding and support: Well written, discussed and delivered action plans
will improve the fundraising and it can help identify support projects. Acorn tourism
development gets more funds and support Italy as a tourist destination as it plans and
manages its marketing plans.

Other than what is currently accessible in the location, it is extremely crucial to remain aware
of:
- Major development projects-building, planning or proposing.
- Neighboring product-major tourist destinations and facilities, opportunities for various,
recent innovations and initiatives, outside but near to a location.
It is important to consider when recording and evaluating all this product:
- Quantity – how much, of what kind?
- Price – Are they decent or poor? This will include references to national or regional
quality assurance schemes (e.g. accommodation or ranking of attractions), and any other
relevant documentation, which include local share holder and tourist opinion
TASK 2
P2. Analyse the key elements of a range of destination marketing campaign examples to analyse
the success of objectives
Marketing strategies for destinations make reference to advertising a single destination
from various modes. This can include television, radio, online channels, newspaper etc the
purpose of such an operation is to draw the attention of a large number of people who are
interested in that particular destination or may be interested in the future. Mainly, the main points
like deals, services, costs and many more are represented. Some advertising campaign examples
have been listed below, using a number of destinations:
Family destination- This is a tourism idea that allows a person to spend holidays with his
family. These trips are most favored and enjoyed in various parts of the world by the majority of
the population. National parts, resorts, amusement parks, zoo etc. are some example of
this location. While selecting a company which provides these services, it means that the needs
of every customer are met. For example, light and sound display was launched in many historic
locations in Italy where its history is revealed through audio and segments of such locations are
viewed which use lights of various colors in order to attract its customers making it an ideal
tourist location (Li, Robinson and Oriade, 2017).

Pilgrimage destination- The destinations falling under this group are for old-age
residents. Those include temples, churches, mosques, and many other associated locations. The
key purpose of these destinations is to offer a harmonious and pleasant experience. Such two are
basic pillars upon which the entire concept of a destination for pilgrimage is based. India, for
example, is a heritage place and is also considered to have one of the Seven Wonders of the
World which is Tajmahal. Most locations are connected to history and spiritual locations that can
be included in this group.
Adventure destination- There are destinations full of modern and sporting activities that
offer a beyond imagination experience. Those are also dubbed exceptional, energy-filled utilities.
Those falling into the millennial group have a strong appetite to travel to such unexplored
destinations while carry new experiences. Iceland, for example, has launched a campaign saying
"Fill your heart" It is a part of Iceland Tourism that provides useful and attractive knowledge
about the country to raise the amount of tourism. It is a creative and groundbreaking concept
showing what Iceland can give to visitors to this region (Line and Runyan, 2014). Iceland has
seen a strong hike on the number of tourists heading to that destination with this initiative. This
is one of the advantages of such ads which have proven effective in attracting large numbers of
people.
TASK 3
P3. Review of different digital marketing tools used for promoting and advertising a specific
destination
Digital marketing tools are the strategies that help promote the various online products
and services. It's done with internet access and is completely contradictory to traditional
approaches to advertise the latest new. Most organizations 'digital strategy is the automated
marina device used to advertise products and services. The benefit of doing this is that in future it
is cost-effective and able to affect large numbers of people who will be its clients. The following
are some of the digital marketing methods which can be used:
Content marketing- This method includes writing some positive content about the
product or service as a form of online advertisement. In attracting customers that the company
needs to reach it also includes a range of advertising resources for specific destinations such as

holiday planners, hotel publications, worldwide travel magazines, and much more (Zach, 2012).
With the help of this, Acorn can write information on the beautiful locations, restaurants located
at the ocean bay, historical monuments etc. Many people read this content before making plans
to visit a specific country. In case of Italy Company uploads various contents about famous
tourist places of the country which attracts its customers making it an ideal choice for a
destination.
Social media marketing- This digital marketing tool uses social media as a medium to
promote goods and services through consultancy firms on destination marketing. There's a huge
number of people who are regular internet users who have their presence on different social
media platforms. It is the perfect way to interact with people from all walks of the planet. Acorn
may, for example, use Buffer's digital marketing platform to reach several different groups of
people. Besides that, there are many social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram etc. that help to promote the products or services to reach a large number of people.
Google Analytics- It is a Google-provided program, which is majorly used to monitor
traffic of website with intent to report them. In general it is used to promote the name of
a product which is offered by a company. Individuals such as the SEO consultant and
webmasters are assigned to perform activities related to digital marketing. It lets users connect
with all new websites inside the business. It is the most commonly used digital marketing tool in
the advertisement campaign which can help Acorn promote Italy as one of the most desirable
venue for holidays.
E-mail Marketing- When the people are convinced or reached by sending commercial
message via mail, then it is called email marketing. Usually, the future and current customers are
the ones to who search mails are sent. It is a way of emailing promotional products. It is a
popular digital marketing promotional tool which helps to develop direct and healthy customer
marketer relationships. This should be planned in such a way which can help company to attract
clients (Séraphin and et. al., 2016).
The way in which these tools helps in promoting tourism in Italy
The businesses which are involved in providing services associated with trips and
vacation to different locations undertake extensive consumer research to determine their

expectations and desires in tourism sector. In addition, the data gathered can be used to attract
customers on a digital channel to advertise their preferred destination. Italy is known for its
architecture, modern lifestyles, its literature, food and design. Acorn makes use of the digital
advertising platforms as follows:
 There's an official business website where people can use digital mode to visit different
locations. It is the best way to gather information on the basis of which weather decisions
to visit the country or not can be made.
 Mobile device software has now been introduced and can be accessed over the internet so
that people can use it.
 The company uses various social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram etc. Which are
being used in excess to show various promotional offers which are offered by cutting the
overall package prices to encourage people to visit Italy.
TASK 4
P4: Role and Services of DMO in marketing a destination
DMO means Destination Marketing Organization which promotes destinations and help
in developing their travel and tourism policy over long term. A few terms such as tourism board,
convention office and tourism authority, and visitor’s office are used. They have a goal to market
the destination in a way that enhances demand so people can travel, work or stay in it. To boost a
country's brand identity, mixed approaches are built to attract large numbers of customers
(Marasco and et. al., 2018).They help in organizing, making and implementing different
activities in order to achieve their tourism goals in the particular country. The main goal is to
enhance the experience of visitors who visit a particular country. A few of the functions and
services rendered by DMOs are discussed below:
Making a Tourism Marketing plan- Destination marketing organsitions have the task
of formulating a simple and effective plan to present the country in a way that attracts tourists
who visit that specific country. Each nation has its own objective and Italy also aims to
encourage people to do more trips to this area. To achieve this aim, DMOs make maps and use
different techniques to accomplish those objectives.

Building a platform on Social Media Sites: It's all about providing a spot on social
media channels in a particular location to create a brand with locals. This is planned to attract
clients to various locations (Murdy and Pike, 2012). There is a special team that has the task of
creating online communication among different web pages and social media sites. They are also
responsible for handling it with aim of attracting a large set of consumers. This helps to identify
a large number of visitors who are likely to visit Italy.
Promotion and Advertising: This is linked with supporting and advertising a particular
target for places that individuals may like. Different approaches such as website, application
software etc. are established to provide tourism-related information in the particular country for
this purpose. Specific initiatives in the form of online ads are taken using different types of social
media sites and channels to provide information that can help people make decisions about travel
(Laesser and Beritelli, 2013). Acorn, for example, has its presence on Facebook through which it
can promote Italy's tourism by showcasing the positive points and the wonderful experience an
individual can experience after visiting the place.
Conducting Market Research- Destination marketing organsations conduct market
analysis for collecting data which is relevant to a key objective of a country in this business. It
may be based on demands, demographics and so on. The data collected are used in an appealing
manner to design plants and procedures for that was playing the particular country. It helps to
understand what can be done to boost service to the customers. Despite good restaurants and
other facilities for some people Italy can be expensive. That can be a factor in lowering people's
interest in visiting the country. Acorn being a marketing company for destinations should
therefore use this data to reduce the total expenditure, so that large numbers of people can be
influenced while traveling to Italy.
P5: Challenges Faced by DMO
Destination Marketing Organisations are those organizations which are able to advertise
various types of tourist destinations. Their focus is to make a particular area famous. It is a
demanding job that may attract various difficulties which have been discussed as under:
Adapting to Technical changes- The main concern is dealing with the change
happening in the technological climate. It is difficult for the company of concept marketing to

make changes efficiently so that there are no gaps in meeting targets (Jiang, Ramkissoon and
Mavondo, 2016). Acorn, for example, faces difficulties in accepting unreasonable customized
change, but attempts are being made to maintain a balance between the customized change and
the revenue needed to dispense such changes.
Competitors: There is more than one organization in the Destination Marketing
Organizations group. With the involvement of so many rivals, it is impossible for Acorn to come
up with a plan to overcome the obstacles that could be attributable to various problems in Italy.
Through ensuring consistency, it undertakes various methods and procedures for properly
managing all the operations. This means there is on the market a healthy rivalry which can
become serious. This may trigger Acorn to put additional effort into surviving the competitive
market (Fyall, Garrod and Wang, 2012).
Another test this association looks at in goal advancements is a huge number of
contenders. In this way, the number of associations is constantly expanding in goal showcase;
this division is becoming incredibly focused around the world. Acorn Tourism Marketing faces
the intense challenge of visiting and travelling from UK. In order to counter this considerable
degree of competition this undertaking uses a few strategies and processes to distinguish the
administrations from others.
Threat of Terrorism- Destination marketing is faced with the greatest dangers of
psychological coercion as consumer protection and confidence is the responsibility of a
direction-advertising goal. Expanding in militant psychological assaults makes clients fear that
would inevitably decrease number of clients for an organization (Tussyadiah and Zach, 2013).
Acorn Tourism tries its utmost to choose a safe target for its clients and to train its employees to
meet emergency and danger circumstances.
Natural calamities: They often pose a risk to DMO as it also poses a risk to customers
'lives. However, at such a spot danger of flooding, seismic tremor, landslide, and so on,
customers want to make the most of their days off in common habitat is much higher and no one
has power on these occasions. Acorn Tourism leads timely research to think about chances of
characteristic catastrophe and convenient preventive steps are often made to shield customers
from these hazards.

CONCLUSION
From the above report it has been determined that to promote the destination of particular
tow, city, geographical region as well as country marketing plans an essential role. Destination
marketing helps to spread the awareness about the location amongst the traveler so that whenever
they visit to the particular country they remain concerned to visit to the tourism destination as
well. There are various digital marketing tools like email marketing, social media and Google
analytics that helps in promotion of the site. Along with that application of marketing principles
support the overall sustainable planning, also marketing campaigns are prepared to carry out the
particular purpose like increase the ration of international visitor. Therefore, the role of different
stakeholders and digital marketing tool helps on the wide promotion of the place which together
enhances the growth of hospitality sector within particular region.

REFERENES
Books and Journal
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Marasco, A., and et. al., 2018. Exploring the role of next-generation virtual technologies in
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Jiang, Y., Ramkissoon, H. and Mavondo, F., 2016. Destination marketing and visitor
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Murdy, S. and Pike, S., 2012. Perceptions of visitor relationship marketing opportunities by
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Fyall, A., Garrod, B. and Wang, Y., 2012. Destination collaboration: A critical review of
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