- Email: [email protected]
Urban destination marketing in contemporary Europe: Using theory and practice
Annals of Tourism Research xxx (2015) xxx–xxx
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Annals of Tourism Research journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/atoures
BOOK REVIEW
Urban destination marketing in contemporary Europe: Using theory and practice John Heeley. Channel View Publications (www.channelviewpublications.com) 2015, xxiv + 165 pp. (figures, tables, bibliography, index) Pbk £29.95. ISBN: 9781845414924. This book is an engaging read, critically discussing the role and potential of urban destination marketing organisations (DMOs), and should be of interest to a range or scholars and industry alike. The author, John Heeley, appears to have substantial practical experience working for a variety of DMOs at a senior level over his career, and his current university environment has allowed him the chance to reflect on his profession and consider both flaws and opportunities. The self-stated purpose of this book, therefore, is to provide a critique of the ‘theory of marketing competitive advantage’ across all its central tenets, and to establish the foundation for a new and revised paradigm within which academics and practitioners can more readily and convincingly account for urban destination marketing (p. 3). To accomplish this goal Heeley undertook a literature review of academic and practitioner texts, a review of the practices and promotional materials of 62 European urban DMOs, in-depth interviews with representatives from two best practice DMOs, and 13 interviews with current or former DMO executives. The interviewees were from Austria, Poland, Sweden, and the majority from the UK. The book is split into two parts: practice and theory. In the first part on practice Heeley offers a detailed exploration and explanation of the main functions and operations of DMOs, the politics of funding and structure as well as the diversity of DMOs concerning size, scope, membership, and influence within their communities. This section should be useful for anyone wishing to gain or share a broad understanding of the DMO world, its intricacies, heterogeneity, and idiosyncrasies. The second part of the book offers a critical discussion on the marketing paradigm that urban DMOs operate within. Initially an exploration and description of the marketing of competitive advantage describes the common contexts that many destination marketers will be familiar with; the ubiquitous 4 Ps and identification of USPs as a guiding framework that DMOs follow to bring business to their communities. The subsequent chapters are a useful and somewhat provocative discussion of the application of this framework by DMOs. Heeley takes inspiration from Kuhn’s work on scientific revolutions as a framework to discuss the paradigm of competitive advantage and its usefulness. Within this section Heeley actually challenges the generally accepted concept and purpose of DMOs at their foundation, and it is somewhat refreshing to read a critical view on the practices of destination marketing in an urban and European context. Heeley’s core points are that the political nature of destination marketing, as outlined in Part 1, make it difficult for a DMO to truly follow the ‘marketing of competitive advantage’ despite this being http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.annals.2015.08.006
2
Book Review / Annals of Tourism Research xxx (2015) xxx–xxx
the dominant paradigm in the industry. DMOs must serve the interests of their stakeholders which means innovative practices based on research are often shunned for marketing based on intuition and individual stakeholder influences. This leads not to the marketing of competitive advantage, but to the ‘marketing of everything’ in an effort to include many stakeholders in branding and campaigns. Heeley suggests that the ‘marketing of everything’ fails to distinguish one destination from the next. An additional discussion is of measurement and evaluation, and the recurring dilemma of DMOs to truly explain and justify their efforts. Their widely accepted purpose is to ‘bring in the business’, but DMOs ‘‘cannot scientifically and objectively demonstrate to stakeholders, customers and the wider public at large that they are actually ‘doing the business’” (p. 78). A DMO’s inability to explain and measure their influence on the accepted metrics of success (i.e. hotel nights) means they ‘‘cannot in all honesty appraise their performance against their stated core purpose- [which is] an Achilles heel of momentous significance” (p. 81–82). Heeley’s final chapter proposes a ‘‘paradigm readjustment” (p. 114) rather than a full revolution. Labelled as the ‘dynamics of urban destination marketing’ his holistic approach builds on the identification of four core factors that can affect a DMO’s effectiveness: politics, product, organisational status, and marketing operations. Within this Heeley talks about the ‘marketing of difference’, a more contextual and local sense of distinction that can be found in culture or customs rather than just attractions and icons considered as USPs. Heeley also proposes the re-establishing of DMOs as Destination Communication Organisations, or DCOs, with the primary purpose of raising profile overall with heads in bed as desired but secondary outcome. Heeley’s personal experiences and critical reflection of his own work and that of his peers make this an honest and useful read. It certainly sparks discussion, and there are points I would enjoy exploring more; for example, how to truly enable DMOs to transition as DCOs while funding often comes from the hotel sector? In addition, what are the responsibilities of a DMO to the wider community, not just the tourism industries? And how can, or even should the marketing of difference for a community be consistent for all and various markets? There are certainly questions to be asked, both as a result of this work, and of the text itself; but that is a useful and fruitful purpose in itself. Overall, this is a timely, useful, and accessible text that could be valuable for academics interested in DMOs and place branding, and senior level practitioners in DMOs, as well as instructors interested in looking at DMO policy and marketing practices. Tom Griffin Ted Rogers School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario M5B 2K3, Canada Tel.: +1 416 578 7729. E-mail address: [email protected] Assigned 30 March 2015. Submitted 4 July 2015. Accepted 7 July 2016. Available online xxxx
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Annals of Tourism Research journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/atoures
BOOK REVIEW
Urban destination marketing in contemporary Europe: Using theory and practice John Heeley. Channel View Publications (www.channelviewpublications.com) 2015, xxiv + 165 pp. (figures, tables, bibliography, index) Pbk £29.95. ISBN: 9781845414924. This book is an engaging read, critically discussing the role and potential of urban destination marketing organisations (DMOs), and should be of interest to a range or scholars and industry alike. The author, John Heeley, appears to have substantial practical experience working for a variety of DMOs at a senior level over his career, and his current university environment has allowed him the chance to reflect on his profession and consider both flaws and opportunities. The self-stated purpose of this book, therefore, is to provide a critique of the ‘theory of marketing competitive advantage’ across all its central tenets, and to establish the foundation for a new and revised paradigm within which academics and practitioners can more readily and convincingly account for urban destination marketing (p. 3). To accomplish this goal Heeley undertook a literature review of academic and practitioner texts, a review of the practices and promotional materials of 62 European urban DMOs, in-depth interviews with representatives from two best practice DMOs, and 13 interviews with current or former DMO executives. The interviewees were from Austria, Poland, Sweden, and the majority from the UK. The book is split into two parts: practice and theory. In the first part on practice Heeley offers a detailed exploration and explanation of the main functions and operations of DMOs, the politics of funding and structure as well as the diversity of DMOs concerning size, scope, membership, and influence within their communities. This section should be useful for anyone wishing to gain or share a broad understanding of the DMO world, its intricacies, heterogeneity, and idiosyncrasies. The second part of the book offers a critical discussion on the marketing paradigm that urban DMOs operate within. Initially an exploration and description of the marketing of competitive advantage describes the common contexts that many destination marketers will be familiar with; the ubiquitous 4 Ps and identification of USPs as a guiding framework that DMOs follow to bring business to their communities. The subsequent chapters are a useful and somewhat provocative discussion of the application of this framework by DMOs. Heeley takes inspiration from Kuhn’s work on scientific revolutions as a framework to discuss the paradigm of competitive advantage and its usefulness. Within this section Heeley actually challenges the generally accepted concept and purpose of DMOs at their foundation, and it is somewhat refreshing to read a critical view on the practices of destination marketing in an urban and European context. Heeley’s core points are that the political nature of destination marketing, as outlined in Part 1, make it difficult for a DMO to truly follow the ‘marketing of competitive advantage’ despite this being http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.annals.2015.08.006
2
Book Review / Annals of Tourism Research xxx (2015) xxx–xxx
the dominant paradigm in the industry. DMOs must serve the interests of their stakeholders which means innovative practices based on research are often shunned for marketing based on intuition and individual stakeholder influences. This leads not to the marketing of competitive advantage, but to the ‘marketing of everything’ in an effort to include many stakeholders in branding and campaigns. Heeley suggests that the ‘marketing of everything’ fails to distinguish one destination from the next. An additional discussion is of measurement and evaluation, and the recurring dilemma of DMOs to truly explain and justify their efforts. Their widely accepted purpose is to ‘bring in the business’, but DMOs ‘‘cannot scientifically and objectively demonstrate to stakeholders, customers and the wider public at large that they are actually ‘doing the business’” (p. 78). A DMO’s inability to explain and measure their influence on the accepted metrics of success (i.e. hotel nights) means they ‘‘cannot in all honesty appraise their performance against their stated core purpose- [which is] an Achilles heel of momentous significance” (p. 81–82). Heeley’s final chapter proposes a ‘‘paradigm readjustment” (p. 114) rather than a full revolution. Labelled as the ‘dynamics of urban destination marketing’ his holistic approach builds on the identification of four core factors that can affect a DMO’s effectiveness: politics, product, organisational status, and marketing operations. Within this Heeley talks about the ‘marketing of difference’, a more contextual and local sense of distinction that can be found in culture or customs rather than just attractions and icons considered as USPs. Heeley also proposes the re-establishing of DMOs as Destination Communication Organisations, or DCOs, with the primary purpose of raising profile overall with heads in bed as desired but secondary outcome. Heeley’s personal experiences and critical reflection of his own work and that of his peers make this an honest and useful read. It certainly sparks discussion, and there are points I would enjoy exploring more; for example, how to truly enable DMOs to transition as DCOs while funding often comes from the hotel sector? In addition, what are the responsibilities of a DMO to the wider community, not just the tourism industries? And how can, or even should the marketing of difference for a community be consistent for all and various markets? There are certainly questions to be asked, both as a result of this work, and of the text itself; but that is a useful and fruitful purpose in itself. Overall, this is a timely, useful, and accessible text that could be valuable for academics interested in DMOs and place branding, and senior level practitioners in DMOs, as well as instructors interested in looking at DMO policy and marketing practices. Tom Griffin Ted Rogers School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario M5B 2K3, Canada Tel.: +1 416 578 7729. E-mail address: [email protected] Assigned 30 March 2015. Submitted 4 July 2015. Accepted 7 July 2016. Available online xxxx