This session is all about purposeful marketing, asking the question "can destination stewardship become a key driving force behind the brand?". As we look towards the future for a sustainable recovery, what role will stewardship play in brand competitiveness? How can we understand the keys to economic success whilst also considering the entire tourism value-system beyond GDP, revenue and bed-nights?

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As marketers, the pandemic has taught us to excerpt cautious consideration in how we convey the brand. We've been reminded of the need for responsible messaging, the need to 'hold back' if the time isn't right, or to lean-in when it's needed most. Whether by design or by accident, strategy or tactics, immersion or information, we've learnt to apply empathy as we decide on our messaging and as such to become altogether more 'considered' in our approach to marketing.

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The paradigm shift of 2020 will leave every one of us with a sense of what's really important. For many, this has meant a newfound determination to protect, celebrate and appreciate what we have and those small things that really matter. It might be that love for a local producer right on our doorstep or that sense of community and people coming together, or that discovery of the destination on in our back yard, from wondering empty city streets to discovering local nature trails.

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How does all this come together when we consider recovery, growth and competitiveness? We'll be exploring the balance between appreciation of every day and the parallels of the thriving tourism industry - and the ills that come with it. Inevitable, or avoidable? It’s all up for debate.

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These are just some of the things we'll be discussing with an esteemed panel of destination brand marketers, as we explore the shift in attitudes around the impact of tourism on local communities, the environmental footprint and the increasingly conscious traveller seeking meaningful connections with only positive impact. When the world travels again, we want to be brand competitive, succeeding on impact, not volume.

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Here's how we're going to frame the conversation, taking participants through a journey offering look at whether we can drive brand competitiveness through stewardship and sustainability.

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PART 1: Can the Destination Brand catalyse change for good? Exploring the power of brand competitiveness as a driver of change.

• In this first part of the conversation, we’re looking at this so-called ‘change for good’, so when we bring this back to a brand perspective, what does this really mean?
• We heard a lot about standards, accreditation, governance, development. It’s amazing to see this really happening in our industry now. But how do make that connection with the marketing and the consumer?
• It’s assumed and also backed up by research, that consumers post-pandemic are looking for something more meaningful. What do we think is driving this and can brands be the driving force for change themselves?
• If the answer to that is yes, then does this mean destination brands themselves take on a sense of purpose and therefore

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PART 2: Trends Driving Competitiveness: Translating stewardship and sustainability into the digital conversion funnel.

• So if we are to now incorporate stewardship into strategy, how do we see this in the visitor funnel - towards conversion?
• What’s the balance between ‘protecting and managing’ the destination as a so-called DMMO and promoting it as a competitive destination brand?
• With the website of the destination being a central, but only one touchpoint amongst hundreds of dispersed touchpoints, how can we measure the sum of the brand’s reputation and use stewardship to shape/grow its competitiveness?
• What steps can we take to shaping the image, deep-diving on storytelling, getting a really rich narrative around the brand whilst delivering this message at scale  - or in fact, honing in on the right visitor, not at scale?
• What do we think about the interplay between the ‘image’ and aspiration to visit, experience or immerse ourselves in a place and the ‘offer’, commercially, as a trigger and the product offering?

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PART 3: Incentive vs. Disincentive: Can regenerative funding models drive competitiveness and impact?

• Regenerative marketing is something that Elke from Tourism Flanders spoke about - a general need to use marketing to drive purpose. What are the general thoughts around this - do we risk losing focus of our core aim - to drive economic success - and prosperity which follows?
• Are we considering that the DMOs role is redundant or that there’s a ‘legacy’ model for a DMO and a ‘progressive’ model emerging today - if so, are we shifting away from accountability in ‘success’ or simply ‘redefining what success looks like’?
• If the DMO is less focused on driving visitation, overnights and spend, then how did this shift take place and who is actually continuing to drive demand? Is that a more fragmented or market-driven reality and can we step into that with product and investment?