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Training in Disaster Risk Management for Hospitality and Tourism Establishments
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Survey: Disaster risk reduction in tourism enterprises
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Travel Trends 2024
The travel and tourism landscape for 2024 is shaping up to be an incredibly diverse and dynamic field, reflecting evolving consumer preferences and technological advancements. As we navigate through this exciting year, Visit Stellenbosch is thrilled to share key trends that are shaping the world of travel.
Emphasis on Tactile, Personal Experiences: Recent years have seen a shift from contactless services to a growing appreciation for personal, tactile experiences in hotels and travel destinations. This year, expect a return to more traditional, human-centric hospitality experiences.
Digital Passports and Biometric Systems: Countries like Finland and Singapore are leading the transition to digital passports and biometric systems for immigration clearance. These advancements aim to make travel more seamless and secure.
Redefining Brand Loyalty and Subscription Models: The travel industry is experiencing a shift towards subscription-based models and a redefinition of brand loyalty. This includes offering more integrated experiences that cover lodging, dining, and lifestyle amenities.
Focus on Shoulder Season Travel: To combat climate change and overt ourism, there’s an increasing trend towards travelling during shoulder seasons. This approach aims to avoid extreme weather and overcrowded tourist spots.
Growth of Sleep Tourism and Wellness Retreats: There’s a notable surge in sleep tourism, with travellers seeking destinations that offer restful and rejuvenating experiences. This aligns with the broader trend of wellness retreats focusing on health and wellbeing.
Rise in Solo Female Travel: Travel companies are increasingly catering to solo female travellers with trips tailored to women and led by female guides, reflecting a growing market segment.
Sustainable and Responsible Tourism: Sustainability continues to be a major factor in travel decisions, with travellers actively seeking eco-friendly accommodations and experiences that positively impact the environment and local communities.
Tech-Enabled Personalised Travel: The integration of technology in travel planning and execution is becoming more prominent. Personalisation through AI-driven tools and virtual reality previews is enhancing the travel experience.
Remote Work and Extended Stays: The ‘workation’ concept is gaining popularity, with more people working remotely while travelling. This trend is influencing accommodation providers to enhance their facilities for digital nomads.
Domestic Travel and Microcations: There’s a resurgence in domestic tourism and the concept of microcations, as travellers explore and appreciate local attractions within their own countries.
As the world emerges from the pandemic, we are also witnessing the end of ‘revenge travel’ – the phenomenon of overindulgent travel as a reaction to lockdowns and travel restrictions. While ‘revenge travel’ was a natural response to the restrictions faced during the pandemic, we’re once again seeing a more thoughtful and sustainable approach to travel. Visitors are increasingly seeking meaningful, enriching experiences that resonate with their values, rather than just ticking destinations off a list. This shift is a positive sign for the future of travel, ensuring that it’s both enjoyable and sustainable for years to come.
Go Green, Support Local: Hendrikse E-Cargo Delivery Launches in Stellenbosch
Hendrikse Deliveries “your green delivery partner” is open for business. This is a business with promise for the future said Eon Hendrikse. Our business is part of the global/worldwide efforts to reduce CO2 emissions. Hendrikse Delivery is committed to provide efficient, quality and reliable service to its clients. What makes us different is the fact we can do multiple deliveries, you as the client can save on petrol, we ease to traffic without any hassles and we are Stellenbosch locals. We also offer marketing and advertising service to clients on our bike and trailers since the stotage space is so big see photos.
E Cargo bikes as a solution to climate friendly transportation of small goods may yet represent present tremendous benefits to Stellenbosch. Over the last year we have delivered fruits and vegetables, laundry, meat, documents, magazines and online products for Shein. We have also have grown our fleet of delivery bikes and created over 10 jobs so we looking to expand our clients and contribute to combating unemployment in Stellenbosch and stimulate economic growth.
Stellenbosch residents and business owners might remember seeing electric delivery bicycles in and around town last year, as part of a testing phase to establish the viability of this delivery method. The project was launched by Stellenbosch Entrepreneur and Enterprise Development Trust (SEED) in 2022, and the initiative has now translated into the establishment of the Ida’s Valley-based Hendrikse delivery service.
Brothers Eon and Alfons Hendrikse are growing their newly established business by offering an eco-friendly and cost-effective local delivery service. To find out more, or to support them, contact Eon Hendrikse on WhatsApp 074 675 8347 mobile 084 430 2766.
Repeat & Referral: Harnessing Google Ads Data for Effective Stellenbosch Messaging
In the dynamic world of digital advertising, using data-driven strategies is crucial for impactful communication. For regions like Stellenbosch, known for its unique cultural and scenic appeal, conveying its message accurately and effectively is essential. Google Ads provides a wealth of data that, when harnessed correctly, can significantly enhance the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.
Here we explore a few key factors to consider when designing a Google Ads campaign, ensuring that the message not only reaches its audience but also resonates with them.
Key Factors in Google Ads Campaign Design
1. Target Audience Insights: Understanding who the adverts are reaching is fundamental. Google Ads provides in-depth data about the audience, including demographics, interests, and online behaviours. This information is invaluable for crafting messages that appeal directly to the intended audience, ensuring that the Stellenbosch message is relevant and engaging.
2. Keyword Relevance and Optimisation: Keywords are the foundation of 00000 Google Ads campaign. Selecting the right keywords ensures that the adverts appear to the right audience. Moreover, continuous optimisation based on campaign performance data helps in refining these keywords, thus keeping the adverts as effective as possible.
3. Ad Performance Analysis: Google Ads offers detailed metrics on advert performance, such as click-through rates (CTR), conversion rates, and cost-per-click (CPC). Regularly analysing these metrics allows for an understanding of what works and what doesn’t, enabling real-time adjustments to improve the campaign’s overall effectiveness.
4. Geotargeting and Localised Content: For a region-specific campaign like Stellenbosch, geotargeting is crucial. It involves tailoring adverts to specific locations and can include localised content that resonates with the local culture and language. This strategy increases the relevance of the adverts to the target audience in different regions.
5. Seasonal Trends and Timing: Understanding and leveraging seasonal trends is vital for the timing of the campaign. Data from Google Ads can help identify peak seasons and times when potential visitors are more likely to engage with the content. This allows for the strategic scheduling of campaigns, maximising visibility and impact.
In conclusion, utilising data from Google Ads is essential for ensuring that our message is shared effectively and accurately. By focusing on target audience insights, keyword optimisation, advert performance analysis, geotargeting, and seasonal trends, a campaign can be tailored to resonate with its audience, ensuring the best use of resources. Continuous review and adaptation of these strategies are key to maintaining a successful and impactful Google Ads campaign that truly captures the essence of Stellenbosch.
About Google Trends:
Understanding public interest and trends can be significantly enhanced by analysing what people are searching for on Google. This information is accessible through tools like Google Trends, which provides data on popular search queries in specific regions. By examining the search patterns in Stellenbosch, marketers and businesses can gain insights into the current interests, needs, and preferences of locals and tourists alike.
This is particularly interesting because it allows for a data-driven approach to marketing and service provision, enabling businesses and organizations to tailor their offerings to meet the specific demands of the area. By aligning with the real-time interests of the audience, companies can enhance engagement, improve customer satisfaction, and potentially increase their market relevance and success.
CWDM Call for Proposals 2024/2025
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Call for proposals: Business Retention & Expansion Programme (2024/2025)
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WCPP Virtual Roundtable: SMMEs
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Stellenbosch CBD Safety Initiative
Safety in and around the Stellenbosch SBD forms part of our Street Savvy in Stellenbosch project. Visit Stellenbosch and the Stellenbosch Municipality have partnered with Winelands Safety Initiative and leading private security companies in the area to relaunch the informal car guard project in Stellenbosch.
This initiative aims to address the pressing issue of informal parking attendants who have been harassing and exploiting visitors due to their lack of knowledge about parking regulations. The primary objective is to enhance security and provide a safer environment for both residents and visitors in the Stellenbosch central business district (CBD),” WSI chairman Andre Pelser said.
Approximately 40 high-vetted car guards were all screened for criminal records and will be strategically deployed throughout the Stellenbosch CBD.
WSI said the dedicated car guards will not only assist motorists with parking, but will be diligently monitoring their areas for any suspicious activities and promptly report any incidents to the municipal operation control centre as well as the control centres of ABC and AM security.
Click here to download the Street Savvy toolkit