Destination marketing organisations—Connecting the experience rather than promoting the place

Destination marketing organisations (DMOs) have long been structured and their strategies influenced by traditional distribution processes and passive customers. Now things have changed, with the customer taking over the process and rendering the previously normal processes redundant. DMOs need to get away from promoting the destination to a mass market and relying on an outdated distribution system, and instead engage the customer to ensure they effectively promote and provide the experience they are wanting. This will require a major change in the role, the structure and the skills of destination marketing organisations.