Focus topics of the Outdooractive Conference 2019
This year, the Outdooractive Conference takes place on September 24 – 26, 2019 and deals with the digitization in tourism. In addition to the outdoor program, a seminar day with various workshops and presentations by numerous experts awaits you. The focus will be on digital leadership, digital guest behavior and market research/data analysis. As usual, there will be two lecture halls at the conference in which the sessions will run in parallel. In order to give you a rough idea of what these three topics are about before the conference, we will go into more detail in this article.
In order to keep the organizational structure of our agenda, we would like to present the three main topics to you once again in the following. However, this does not mean that they can be viewed in isolation from each other in practice! On the contrary: they are overlapping in many areas and all pursue the same goal – a successful digital transformation. That is because the constantly “changing guest behavior” is posing challenges to the “digital leaders” in destinations. However, strategies and solutions can only be developed successfully if you know the market and your guests – “market research and data analysis” are the key terms here.
Digital Leadership
Digital Leadership describes leadership in times of digitization and the associated tasks and tools. It is all about the new challenges of the future that you have to adapt to with a new style of leadership. This is only possible by using digital tools to harness the potential of digitization.
But what are the challenges of digitization and what impact do they have on tourism? A key feature of this digital transformation is that product and innovation cycles are becoming shorter and shorter. This in turn triggers enormous innovation pressure on destinations. It is important to actively shape change and to be able to adapt quickly to major changes. Simply put, digital leadership means managing the challenges of digitization. But what exactly does digital leadership mean for tourism and how do destinations succeed in applying and developing digital leadership in the best possible way? These are precisely the questions that will be the focus of the discussions at this year’s #oac19. On September 24, a practice-oriented seminar will take place in which strategies for digital transformation will be established together. On September 25, top-class speakers will deal with this subject in four presentations. Among others, we are looking forward to presentations held by Florian Bauhuber (Tourismuszukunft), Prof. Dr. Heinz-Dieter Quack (Institute for Tourism and Regional Research) and Bastian Hiller (Teejit – eLearning for Tourism).
Digital guest behavior
The behavior and needs of guests in tourism are also changing. In the past, simple travel agencies were often sufficient to meet their needs. “Digital” was very little – everything was static. In addition, many things were already predetermined for a trip and one could not determine much oneself. Today customers want increasing self-determination and have an extremely high need for information. But what effects does this have on digital guest behavior? Where, when and how does a user search for information? How do I get to know my guests and how do I recognize their needs? What is the best way for a destination to get in touch with its guests? These are just a few of the questions that will be answered at the OAC. Due to the complexity and the many possibilities, there will be presentations on both main days of the event about the topic “digital guest behavior”.
On our program page you will find already confirmed speakers like Armin Dellnitz (Stuttgart-Marketing GmbH), Lars Bengsch (dwif-Consulting GmbH), Rafael Enzler (gutundgut GmbH) and many more.
Market research and data analysis
Market research and the analysis of data are absolutely necessary in every industry and the basis of all action. Those who do not know the market and the needs of their customers well will not be successful in the long run.
As mentioned above, the behavior and needs of guests are becoming more complex and competition is increasing. This is precisely why market research plays such an important role in tourism. Information is needed on how the industry is changing as a result of digitization. Additionally, a significant amount of customer-specific data is needed.
How exactly are guest planning their trips nowadays?
What kind information do they want for planning their trips and at what time?
On the third day of the Outdooractive Conference, the topics of market research and data analysis in relation to digitization will be addressed in a separate thread in various presentations. Experts will present challenges and various strategies for dealing with today’s enormous amounts of data. Best practice examples from tourism will also show how this can be done in practice.
Why did we choose those topics?
They currently affect the market and confront it with great challenges and opportunities, which must now be faced. We are of the opinion that an event like the OAC is exactly the right place to bring tourism experts together – to discuss together, to exchange ideas and to develop practicable strategies. With our format, we offer a mixture of theory and practice to provide the participants with maximum added value. The goal of the OAC is to give you a better understanding of the current trends and developments on the market in order to prepare you for all obstacles in the future and expand your scope of action.
Did you even register for the OAC19? Save your ticket now.