Covid 19 has had a devastating impact on the tourism sector within Scotland. Many of our livelihoods are dependent on tourism and these have been some of the most worrying times the sector has ever experienced. The seasonality of tourism has led to a greater loss of income with the lockdown commencing at the start of peak tourist season in Scotland.

The journey to recovery starts with inspiring Scotland to holiday at home. The good news is that Scottish visitors are more inclined to visit outwith peak season and are keen to book holidays into Autumn and Winter this year providing it is safe to do so and in line with Government advice.

Appealing to the local market will require a mix of both inspiration and practicality.

Inspiration

Digital Marketing

Online marketing is key here. If your website and social media isn’t up to date, now is the time to do it and pivot your online presence towards a more local market. You can access digital training and support from a range of organisations in Scotland including Visit Scotland linked here.

To inspire your potential visitors you need to focus on evoking all their senses. Think about touch, taste, sense, smell and sound. How can you incorporate these into your images?

It might be helpful to start with a list of everything that you love about autumn and winter. To guide you, here is my list of all the reasons why I love winter in Scotland:

There’s no doubt that summer in Scotland is special - its endless days of light lead to hours of exploration and fun. That said, I prefer holidaying in Scotland in winter. It’s quieter, the night sky is incredible, l have no expectations with the weather so just wrap up warm and I love nothing better than curling up by the fire with a book after a long, bracing walk in the beautiful landscape. Other favourite things about the season are listed below:

Winter favourites

Twinkly lights, glowing embers, snow, night sky, hot chocolate, sitting by the fire, crunching ice, christmas, candles, glow of houses in the dark when you are walking outside, emptiness and vastness of the landscape, wide open brooding skies, golden hour, christmas smells, cosy blankets, slippers and warm pjs, wreaths on doors, christmas songs, board games, mulled wine, sparkles, morning frost, sunrise and sunset, cosy clothes, porridge with berries and baking.

Events -

Winter Solstice - 21 December

Geminids Meteor Shower - 13 December

Winter Collage

Use your lists as a starting point for creating images which invite viewers in to experience your corner of the world. For example, one of my winter favourites is cosy nightwear - I’d let viewers experience that sensation by photographing a luxurious, soft fluffy robe on the back of a door which is opened into a room with a cosy wood burning stove. In terms of landscapes, I’d perhaps post a video of me crunching through hard ice before panning upwards to reveal the winter vista in front of me.

The images you post do not have to be technically perfect and shot on expensive equipment. It’s more important that they are authentic and inviting. Create a scene that is impossible to resist and invite people to experience it.

Become a Local Champion

In my opinion, lots of Scots don’t know what’s on their doorstep. Now is the perfect time to show them. Become an ambassador for your local area. What makes it special? Why do you love living there? Tell local stories, share local walks and landmarks, record the local wildlife and fauna. Create simple itineraries for 3-7 day trips. What would you recommend?

Collaboration

Now is a great time to reach out and collaborate with other local providers and create unique experiences for visitors. Local food hampers, movie night packages, pamper boxes, gin/ whisky tasting, private local walking tours, wildlife watching, electric bike hire, photography tuition. There are many experiences that are perfect for the winter months.

You could consider working with local influencers to generate more engagement on social media and create a bank of content to use in marketing. Visit Scotland has some guidance on influencer marketing here.

Practicalities

Post Covid 19, visitors are going to need information and reassurance on the following areas:

• Cleanliness - what can you do to assure them that your accommodation is maintained to the highest cleaning standards? Reassure and inform. Reference reviews where cleanliness is highlighted. Prepare a brief which details how you will keep visitors safe that you can send out with all bookings and make available on your website.

• Flexibility - if Government advice changes, how will that impact upon any bookings made. Make clear your policies at the outset.

• What can they do locally and what is open with particular reference to facilities such as public toilets, car parks and food services.

As we move through the phases of lockdown, focus can move from exclusively targeting the Scottish market and onto England, Wales and Ireland. Identify ease of travel and good transport links where applicable and start thinking now about how to tailor your marketing for different target markets from these areas.

Hopefully these tips can help your business maximise the potential to generate income this year (providing it is safe to do so as advised by Government) and lead you well on the road to recovery.