These quick tips are designed to help you get through these hard times. If you have any tips that you want to share, send them to marketing@tourismtiger.com(opens in a new tab)
The recent protests against the devastating and unlawful killings of Black individuals at the hands of the police around the world have caused many people to reassess their actions, and how they too can make a difference in the fight against racism. As a tour operator, you too have a part to play in combating discrimination, by using the workplace as a valuable tool in dismantling systemic racism.
The coronavirus pandemic has encouraged and forced many tour operators to reexamine, reinvent, or drastically change their approach to business as usual. When reconsidering the aspects of your business that need to change, consider the social side as well as the financial.
10x Travel(opens in a new tab), a digital sales partner for tour operators, has created an article filled with resources (opens in a new tab)for tour operators to combat racism. One point which has caught our attention is the importance of diversifying your team.
The travel world’s trend of local guides has really taken the world by storm. We can see it in the number of tour operators who sell themselves as “tours with locals”. While a tour with a local is special, consider the benefits of tours with non-natives too. Non-locals can provide unique insights into a destination to like-minded travellers. Guides from different backgrounds and cultures will all bring a different perspective to the team, cultivating the perfect environment for innovation. An essential quality in our post-pandemic world. Nikki Padilla Rivera, a tour guide trainer, wrote an excellent piece(opens in a new tab) on the extensive advantages of diversifying your guide team on the basis of race, age, and experience.
Not only can a diverse team of guides bring new ideas for your tours, but they can also help you create original, diverse, and inclusive content. Sustainability doesn’t just refer to the environment, it’s also about your community and your team. Make the travel industry inclusive of everyone, not just the select few.
If you want to know more about building a more inclusive tour business, check out the wealth of resources in the following articles.
https://skift.com/2020/06/05/a-black-travel-agents-message-for-her-industry/(opens in a new tab)
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