Takeaways from VIBE in London on China and BRIC

Today I spoke at two sessions at the VisitBritain International Business Exchange. A well run annual forum facilitating one on one meetings for VB reps from all markets with local operators, hotels, attractions and destinations. Along side the meetings they run 3 workshops in the morning and again in the afternoon.
The session topics are North America, BRIC countries and Europe. Each lasts just under an hour. I was invited by VB to speak about the China market and there were very good speakers representing Indian and Russian markets. The session was moderated by VB’s Brazil rep.
So from the view of the stage, did people find this format valuable? I think so. All speakers answered questions from the moderator relating to their markets with about 15 minutes at the end for open questions. What struck me was the wide variance in knowledge and experience of the audience. Over 60% had already begun work with at least one BRIC market. Some were doing very well with China (Bicester village earns 44% of revenue from Chinese, Twin International group brings over 2000 students from China just in the summer) while others haven’t even started preparation.
Questions ranged from the very basic (does language need to be localised?) to less basic (how will the Olympics effect tourism growth next year?) and I sensed that this year more than ever before, every one in the room knew they had to start having a strategy for the Chinese market.
What became clear, loud and clear, was that the current visa regime is badly restricting tourism growth from Russia, India and China. All speakers urged the audience to petition and write to their MPs to ask for the visa rules to be reviewed and improved. European countries that are part of the Schengen visa agreement receive up to 3 times more tourists from China compared to Britain. The sensible thing to do is to issue a visa on arrival to anyone with a multiple entry Schengen visa and vice-versa.

Lastly, I tried to emphasise the growing importance of the Internet in China to develop brand awareness and stimulate demand. You still need the trade of course, but the web provides a direct communication channel with the end consumer and social media gives you that word of mouth trust factor.

VB tweeted me that maybe next year, each BRIC market might get its own one hour workshop. Here’s hoping. Everyone knows how to deal with Americans and Europeans. When Australia is pledging 30 million dollars for marketing to Chinese, I’d say it is time for UK to invest in future proofing our tourism industry.