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HUGO MARCOS
Steering Committee of the Tourism and Society Think Tank
In our series of interviews with members of the TSTT Steering Committee, today we meet Mr. Hugo Marcos, Secretary General of the International Committee of International Tourism Film Festivals (CIFFT).
With a vast experience in marketing, tourism and events with a focus on management and audiovisual, he has always stood out for his ability to build, grow and manage the CIFFT circuit, the highest distinction for the Travel Video Marketing industry.
His work capacity has led him to work on projects such as the Cannes Corporate Media and TV Awards, the US International Awards - Los Angeles, Landing-Madrid, New Trends On Tourism Communication.
Despite his international work, he is still closely linked to his hometown, Miranda do Douro, a historical city of Portugal, of a singular beauty and with a great material and immaterial historical heritage such as the Mirandese language, the second official language of Portugal.
Dear Mr. Marcos, it is a pleasure to be with you today to share your knowledge and vision on international promotion and how to transmit the benefits of tourist destinations. In this regard, what do you think are the most significant changes in the tourism audiovisual industry?
Video is part of our daily lives. From its creation by the Lumiére brothers, through silent films, television, VHS, DVD, BluRay to the era of digitalisation, we have witnessed its boom.
Following the evolution of the times, in 1934 James A. Fitzpatrick created the first television series dedicated to tourism promotion (Travetalks). The series was distributed by Metro Goldwyn Mayer for the American and British markets, producing more than 70 episodes, and remained on the air until 1946. This format is still in use today and allowed the development of other formats that revolutionised the habits and consumption of tourist destinations, products and services until the arrival of new technologies.
Focusing on the most significant changes in the last 15, 20 years, I can highlight changes such as the length of videos, from feature films to 30-second advertisements, from testimonial narrative to storytelling so that the content reaches the audience in a more rational way, and also in its format, from television to the digital world.
What do you think is the current state of the audiovisual tourism industry in the world in general?
For marketers, video is the most powerful tool in any marketing strategy today. Usage and spend in 2021 has increased and is expected to continue to increase in the coming years. The pandemic has caused people to watch more videos online than ever before, according to a study by Wyzowl, the numbers have almost doubled since 2018.
In recent years, we have seen the gradual integration of video into the travel industry in an attempt to help improve relationships with tourists, to try to educate, convert consumers and improve customer satisfaction. This strategy worked, because for two years the way for destinations to reach their potential consumer was through video and this new way of communicating increased the attraction of new customers. Today, there is no destination that does not have audiovisual content creation in its planning.
In general, the outlook is very positive, but we must not forget that there are always areas for improvement.
What do you think are the keys to tourism promotional videos?
Any business needs a solid marketing strategy, and the tourism industry is no exception. Nowadays, there are already several studies and analyses that allow us to evaluate the benefits of using video in tourism marketing.
Speed and efficiency: video helps potential customers to make a quicker decision when purchasing a product or service. According to the Business Benchmark Report 2018 study, 90% of respondents revealed that videos helped them make a purchase decision, and 64% say that watching a video makes them more likely to buy. A Hubspot study found that 72% of people would rather watch a video than read text.
Personality and Authenticity: video can and should enhance and highlight the personality of a competitor's product or service. The greater the emotional connection with the target audience, the more likely they are to buy the product.
Experience: video is the experience of an experience. The power to emotionally connect the customer to a particular action or environment, creating an immediate feeling that makes them want to live or experience the moment, is only possible through video.
Performance: according to the Aberdeen Group, marketing campaigns that use video increase return on investment (ROI) faster than campaigns that do not use video. Video is the tool that has the most views and impressions compared to other media.
Why do you think promotional videos are important for tourism destinations in the current situation and where is this relationship heading?
In the current context, if we look at the evolution of technological platforms and the way we consume content, tourism promotion videos are essential for any destination or tourism service. Video is available anywhere and accessible at any time, it is highly engaging and easy to consume on the different devices available. Even for the most resistant, video is and always will be the tool to reach the largest number of customers immediately.
Do you think that many tourism destinations are improvising in their promotional programmes using video?
I don't want to believe that there is any destination to invest thousands of euros in the production of a video without having a defined strategy. However, it does not mean that the strategy, the concept and the final result are executed with care and that there are less successful works that do not achieve the expected results.
But if we look at all the information available in the different media, or if we use the right tools to plan and develop a video marketing strategy for the promotion of a destination, its products and/or services, we are guaranteed to get better results. and that can serve to improve competitiveness and creativity among destinations.
I would like to take advantage of this opportunity and leave here what in my opinion is an excellent tool to use as a reference for creativity and effectiveness of audiovisual tourism communication worldwide, divided into 5 thematic categories - the CIFFT Ranking List.
According to you, how can a tourist destination start a good tourism promotion plan using video?
Understanding the target audience we want to reach is the first step to create a good audiovisual tourism promotion plan. This first step will have an impact on the choice of the places, products and/or tourism services we want to promote. It will also affect the message and the way it is told (Storytelling). Finally, we must not forget the format and which platforms we will use for the most effective distribution of the video. Knowing who the communication is aimed at is fundamental to create an emotional connection that resonates with the interests and desires of the audience and leads us to achieve the proposed objectives.
In your opinion, how do you choose a company to work on the audiovisual tourism of a destination, product or service?
Creating a video is an important task and should not be left in the wrong hands. Selling a destination, an experience or even a tourist service is not an easy task. The company we choose must, first of all, have the capacity to provide a range of services related to the video creation and production process. On the other hand, it is important that, in a first approach, they understand the needs and quickly come up with ideas that correspond to the vision and objectives we are trying to achieve. We also need to understand the company's level of expertise for what we want in our video. By analysing their portfolio, you will see if the videos the company has already produced are in line with your organisation's standards and style.
Personally, I believe that the more experience the company has, the better it will deliver a final product that meets the client's expectations. Having excellent professionals and equipment also contributes to the quality of the video. Another factor to take into account has to do with the awards won at festivals. This recognition is a sign of the company's potential and its ability to create differentiated and quality work.
As we have asked other of your colleagues on the TSTT Steering Committee, and as TSTT President Mr. Antonio Santos always expresses, "mixing product and feelings is an art", how do you translate this concept to Travel Video Marketing?
Video is an extremely impactful tool due to its ability to create an emotional connection with the audience. The emotional response after watching a video will directly influence the consumer's purchase decision process. In the context of Tourism, as I have already mentioned, video is an experience of the experience, as this tool transports the viewer to a specific tourism experience, awakening a series of feelings (joy, surprise, inspiration, nostalgia) and the desire to be part of what is presented. Emotions are fundamental to a good tourism promotional video, which is much more than informative content. Capturing the essence of a tourism experience and presenting it in an exciting and compelling way through video is indeed an art.
For a few years now, you have been heading the International Committee of Tourism Film Festivals, where is this institution heading?
The International Committee of Tourism Film Festivals (CIFFT) was created in 1989 in Vienna to recognise and reward excellence in audiovisual tourism production. Since 2017, I have the pleasure to work in this organisation and to participate in the management of the CIFFT Circuit, the world's largest tourism video competition. Annually, more than 3,000 tourism promotion videos, from 90 countries, participate in tourism film festivals on four continents in the race for the title of World's Best Tourism Film. It is very challenging and at the same time rewarding to work together with organisations such as the UNWTO and the European Travel Commission and, more recently, the Tourism and Society Think Tank with the aim of reinforcing the importance of audiovisuals for brand building and the promotion of tourism destinations, products and services. It's actually been a very interesting day, next to the founder and director of CIFFT, Alexander V. Kammel, and I'm lucky to have a great team that shares the same vision. And, together with our members, the world's best tourism film festivals and our partners, we aim to become increasingly influential and recognised by the tourism industry and media as a reference in the promotion of tourism through video.
Given your experience, what is new about the Tourism and Society Think Tank for the tourism industry?
For me, the Tourism and Society Think Tank is a unique initiative, whose differential is to give a voice to professionals with high specialisation in the Tourism Industry, who not only share their experience, but also provide important insights for the development of the sector.
What does TSTT bring to CIFFT, and CIFFT to TSTT?
TSTT and CIFFT share the same objectives with respect to supporting the development and promotion of the Tourism Industry. CIFFT, together with TSTT, aims to be one of the most important contributors to driving innovation and creativity in tourism communication, helping tourism brands, destinations, products and services to achieve a high quality, award-winning travel video marketing strategy. The partnership with TSTT also provides CIFFT participants and TSTT members with excellent benchmarking and networking opportunities.
The authors are responsible for the choice and presentation of the facts contained in this document and for the opinions expressed therein, which are not necessarily those of Tourism and Society Think Tank and do not commit the Organization, and should not be attributed to TSTT or its members.
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