«We must work harder in order to attract tourists».

Massimo Boni, 44, marketing and communication expert, will be the new director of Lugano Region as of April. He shared his perspective on the situation with us.

The pandemic has heavily influenced tourism all over the world. Lugano appears to have come out on top, with record figures thanks to visitors from the rest of Switzerland. The risk, however, is that now Swiss tourists will not return, since they will presumably look for «other horizons» after two years in which going abroad was complicated. What can be done?

« While the current tourism environment is delicate, tourism has always shown a great aptitude for resilience. The attacks of September 11, SARS in the East, terrorist attacks or the financial crisis of 2008 are examples of how dramatic situations have affected the behavior and habits of travelers, but have also shown how the market has always managed to recover. And how some destinations, such as the region of Lugano, were able to emerge victorious. Tourists will have new important priorities and requirements to satisfy, such as the search for safety, hygiene and social distance. Concepts, which we are well aware of, that will have to be integrated at the level of communication and development of the brand and the tourism product. It will therefore be appropriate to re-think spaces, the use of the product and modes of relationship, by increasing the digital experience of the tourist seeking information about the region. This will be done through the development of dedicated apps, chatbots and all that new technologies can offer to shorten the distance between visitor and destination. The tourism organization must, more than before, be active in building trust, advising and accompanying tourists during their experience through an ever more digital strategy. In this sense it is highlighted as, for example, Google DMO partner has given complete availability to destinations for the direct management of the Google monuments tab. Increasingly important will be the ‘long tail’ (a retail strategy where low demand or low volume products can, collectively, constitute a higher market share than high selling rivals) and the experiential opportunity within the destination. This was an already defining trend before the crisis and will be even more so now. The region will have to work a tremendously hard with the network of tour operators on site and develop relevant, safe and green experiences.»

Perhaps we are wrong, but Lugano seems to be struggling a bit to identify what kind of tourist markets to target and what to focus on. On «urban» and cultural tourism? Naturalistic tourism? Luxury or families? Or is it pointless to put labels on it since in the end it’s a bit of all of these things?

«Lugano is a multi-talented destination and it will be our task to communicate the excellence of the various types of tourism we offer. I’ll mention only the most important ones. There is sports tourism and therefore the possibility of hosting international level meetings, which are very important for promoting the image of Lugano and all of Ticino on a national and international level. This is useful and necessary promotion for tourism, but also for the numerous economic activities that generate jobs and income. More and more central is food and wine tourism, which stimulates travelers from all over the world to visit a destination. It creates economic value and new opportunities for the tourism and food production sectors. Then there’ s experiential tourism. After these long months spent in quarantine, people will be very keen on outdoor activities. This is going to favor destinations like Lugano Region that offer structured and well-organized experiences. And then there is cultural tourism, where what counts is not only conservation but also promotion through strong press office work and social media management. Art and culture must be enhanced, valued and, above all, communicated. In a world where we increasingly know the price of everything and the value of nothing, we must focus on the set of goods that cannot be purchased, on the beauty that cannot be acquired regardless of how rich we are. Last but not least, I would like to remind you of the importance of MICE tourism (Meeting Incentive Congresses and Events). While this segment will certainly be the last to restart, it is of no less importance. Quarantine has shown how smartworking is a plausible solution also for meetings and conferences. In addition, the economic ability to incur travel expenses will be scaled back due to the effects of the healthcare crisis. Interesting will be the rethinking of the spaces in a dynamic way between business and leisure (between business and pleasure, n.d.r.) and the definition of bleisure proposals».

In recent years, the center has undergone a certain amount of development. The quality of the catering has grown, as has the differentiation of the offerings. Is this an aspect that helps to «sell» Lugano?

«Food is a central part of our history, culture and daily life. Much of our social life is centered around the dining experience and we are constantly looking for different meals and new dishes to enjoy. As individuals become more aware of the culinary choices available around the world, they are willing to travel considerable distances to seek out new experiences. When tourists eat, they are not only satisfying their hunger but also interacting with the local community to immerse themselves in that country, culturally and socially. With the rise of the experience economy, food has become one of the central elements on which destinations base their brand, shape their image and promote tourism. Food and wine tourism promotes knowledge not only of the local area and community, but also of the production processes within the supply chain. Tourists can see the places where basic ingredients are produced, witness their preparation and can appreciate the whole culture that is expressed through the creation of the finished dish».

In addition, you worked for an airline in Ticino (Darwin). It has always been said that the presence of regular flights was fundamental for the tourism sector. Is it erroneous to say that, with the opening of AlpTransit, the closure of commercial flights has not made much impact on tourism?

«Granted that the presence of an airport has a fundamental value for the businesses of a region (not only for tourism and business traffic, but for the entire productive fabric), the task of a person in charge of a tourism agency is to best communicate and sell what exists in the area. It will be the Municipalities and the population that will decide what is best for our region in this sense».

Tourism promotion is a sector in perpetual evolution. Today, many people choose a destination after seeing a photo on Instagram or a movie on Netflix. How is Lugano positioned from a digital promotion standpoint?

«The entire marketing strategy must be re-examined according to the current situation. Targets have changed and it will be necessary to work more on proximity and short range. The needs of tourists have changed and it will be necessary to develop a visibility strategy consistent with them. Therefore, a lot of work will have to be done on visibility and on new keywords on search engines, both with SEO (Search Engine Optimization) strategies oriented to the new needs, and with SEM (Search Engine Marketing) strategies to acquire immediate visibility on a target with specific needs. In addition, it will be necessary to work on dormant demand to acquire new markets, geolocalizing our proposals and structuring very well targeted packages. This can be effectively developed with a segmentation strategy, both through social media and through the press and specialized portals. All tourism operators in the area will be more involved: hotels, restaurants, businesses, service companies, public transport and trade associations.