Path forward for DMOs (Actions for Destination marketers to navigate in a COVID-19 world)

Over the past 20 years, the global travel and tourism business has grown at a 5% annual pace and in 2019 it totaled $4.7 trillion, according to research from BCG in collaboration with Google. Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) have been at the heart of this growth. When the pandemic began, however, the impact on the travel industry was immediate. A decline in international and commercial passengers around the globe could lead to a loss of up to 58% of jobs (190 million) in the travel and tourism industry, and cut the industry’s contribution to global GDP by up to $5.5 trillion (62%), according to the report.
For destination marketers in charge of developing tourism strategies based on annual planning and predicted travel behavior, this period has been particularly difficult. That’s why we looked into how consumers’ attitudes toward travel have changed in response to the pandemic. And how DMOs can prepare for the eventual resumption of travel — or more unexpected changes on the horizon.