As part of its strategic plan to equip tour operators with pertinent marketing skills and information in order to be more competitive, the Belize Tourism Board (BTB) over the past weekends conducted digital marketing training workshops for 16 tour operators in Placencia Village and Belize City.
The first workshop was held at the Placencia Village Center on August 5 and 6 and a similar training was held at the Samuel Haynes Institute of Excellence in Belize City on July 29 and 30. Both training events were organized by the BTB and conducted by Maynor Larrieu, a digital strategist.
The workshops covered the components and benefits of digital marketing including: websites and SEO contents, blogs, online video content, email marketing, social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc.) and mobile marketing.
Digital marketing gives tour operators the ability to use internet marketing tools to interact with targeted audiences in real time. Digital methods of communication and marketing are faster, more versatile, practical and streamlined to close sales with travelers before arriving in Belize.
The workshops allowed for one-on-one interaction with operators on how to create or enhance their existing digital presence. The following are some tour operators’ testimonials:
– “This was a very (almost too) informative class that will definitely help me in my business.”
– “He (the instructor) was very professional at what he did. I learnt a lot over the course, and I will implement it in my business.”
– “The instructor sure taught me well, he was great and shared a variety of information with us. I definitely learnt a lot that I can bring to my business to take it to the next level. Job well done.”
Both workshops follow the successful BTB’s digital summit held on July 14, which provided a unique learning experience for tourism stakeholders. The Belize Tourism Industry has a huge potential for digital growth.
Historically Belize’s natural beauty, location and most importantly its archaeological ancestry has made it an easy sell for travelers to Belize. In this new era of online strategy and tactics, it is vital for Belizean tour operators to understand the tools and best practices of their regional and international competitors for their continued success. The digital marketing training workshops, are a step in the right direction to equip our operators with the digital arsenal to be digitally competitive.
