“ANDALUCÍA MUST DEVELOP A CLEAR DECISION-FORMING MESSAGE FOR EVERY TARGET MARKET”

If there is someone who has a profound knowledge of the golf tourism industry at an international level, that person is Peter Walton, president and executive director of IAGTO.

Founded in 1997, the International Association of Golf Tour Operators brings together 2,031 members, including golf tour operators (487 in 61 countries), golf courses and resorts, airlines, tourism offices, authorised media and commercial partners in 91 countries. It is estimated that IAGTO tour operators control more than 85 per cent of golf holiday packages sold throughout the world, with annual business volume of more than 1,000 million euros.

“We are proud to be at the heart of the golf tourism industry,” says Walton.

 

What are the prospects for golf tourism at an international level, in the short and medium term? Is there reason for optimism?

We have just completed the largest ever survey amongst the global golf tourism industry and we can report that golf tour operator sales grew, on average, by 9.3 per cent in 2012 compared to 2011, and by 9.4 per cent amongst European golf tour operators, who are the most important sector for Spain. The operators were, by and large, feeling positive about further growth this year. In the long term there is certainly no reason to doubt the continued development of golf tourism as the most valuable niche market worldwide.

 

What have been the most substantial changes in golf tourism since the IAGTO was founded in 1997?

There are probably two major changes, which have both emerged and continue to evolve to this day.

On the one hand, the internet has facilitated the development of online promotions to the consumer and bookings systems for tee times and other travel products. The biggest surprise is that, with the exception of domestic golf trips and weekend breaks to neighbouring countries, golf tour operators have maintained a large part of their market share. They have achieved this by embracing the internet and becoming the ones whose interface the golf travellers use.

On the other hand, culturally golf itself has changed immeasurably with it now being impossible to say with any certainly which members of the family will play golf! Ladies have taken up golf in ever increasing numbers and there are now at least double the number of couples where both play golf. Furthermore the kids are playing, so now golf holidays can cater to a much broader spectrum and golf is a more common activity on simple leisure vacations.

 

To what degree is the economic crisis, being suffered in most parts of the world, affecting golfers’ travel activity and budgets?

Golfers will not be denied their golf holiday! That is for certain. Of course golf tourism is not immune to the changes in economic climate around the world, but it is less affected and recovers quicker. Golf travel is as affected by exchange rates as it is by national wealth, so we see peaks and troughs every year in different parts of the world. Spain itself is now the sixth most important market for golf destinations in Spain because more Spanish golfers are choosing to take a golf break at home rather than abroad, which is a positive result with the very challenging economic situation that Spain is facing.

 

One of the IAGTO’s main responsibilities is to persuade public tourism organisations of the need to invest in international promotional campaigns for their golf destinations, in order to attract more visitors. In what way are the public authorities responding in this respect?

Over the past decade, the IAGTO has been commissioned by the governments and national tourist boards of 30 countries and regions to prepare their golf tourism development and promotional strategies. In summary, our objective is to help improve the positioning of a golf destination so that it can attract more golf visitors and deliver them the best possible experience. To be successful the private sector needs to work in unison and develop the product, service and message, whilst at the same time the government needs to understand that it must be responsible for the international promotion of the destination. Where public administrations together with the private sector have understood this, sustainable growth of golf tourism has followed, just as surely as night follows day…

 

What does Andalucía need to do, in your opinion, to attract more golfers? What advantages does it offer in comparison to other rivals such as Portugal and Turkey?

Andalucía is already benefitting from a shift in golf travel from Turkey to Spain, due to a drop in satisfaction levels in Turkey. The same is true for golfers who were previously planning to travel to northern Africa. But these are external factors that reverse just as easily and they are outside the control of the Andalucian golf tourism industry. Andalucía must develop a clear decision-forming message for every target market, from Germany to the USA, and target a 10 per cent growth from every market by the end of 2014. I believe strongly that IAGTO members in Andalucía can be the catalyst for this and provide the message, branding and coordination, but it will be local government at the end of the day who will be able to turn on the switch in terms of activating international promotions.

 

In what ways are the new internet technology tools having an influence on the marketing of golf tourism products?

Most new changes are cosmetic rather than ground-breaking. You can now use a smartphone as a GPS device to measure distances to the pin and to record your scores and upload them to social media sites for your friends to comment on! The software has been available for a decade now for online reservations, but the complexity of the golf holiday has meant that it is the tour operators who take advantage of this more than the golfers themselves.

 

What added value do tour operators offer to golf tourists to encourage them to book their holidays with them rather than directly?

 

The volcanic ash crisis a couple of years ago demonstrated precisely the value of booking with a tour operator. Those travellers who booked with tour operators and found themselves stranded in destinations around the world were looked after fantastically by tour operators. The economic crisis has also led consumers to be careful who they trust with their money, as they have seen that even hotels themselves can go out of business. This has lead directly to an increase in market share for golf tour operators. At the end of the day it will be consumers who decide how they book their golf holiday, but there is no doubt that the golf traveller needs three things that put IAGTO golf tour operators in the driving seat: product knowledge, leg work (organisational skills) and great value deals. If the pricing is competitive then every golfer wants somebody else to do the work of putting the holiday together; they want to know that their money is secure and they want to know that they are playing the right courses for the experience they are looking for. This is food and drink for IAGTO golf tour operators worldwide!

Photos: 1) Peter Walton with Tony Jacklin. 2) Peter Walton with Marco Polacci (IAGTO Andalucía) and Manuel Piñero.

 

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