Strategic pivots, and preparing for the ‘new normal’ with a DAM-powered Brand Portal

Covid-19 has had a dramatic effect on industries globally, but few have been impacted as significantly as tourism. With countries closing borders and limiting travel, tourism nearly came to a halt in 2020. As borders begin reopening, the ‘green shoots’ of tourism recovery are emerging.

To recover, tourism and destination marketing organisations (DMOs) must rethink their marketing strategies and content. Before Covid, strategies targeted international tourism. The pandemic has forced a pivot to domestic tourism, laying the groundwork for the eventual return of international visitors.

Now is the time for DMOs to evaluate their processes for creating and managing digital assets to serve domestic tourists while preparing to tell their destination brand story effectively when international tourism resumes.

Leveraging Digital Asset Management (DAM)

1. Gaining efficiencies from DAM

Destination marketing involves numerous stakeholders generating content and telling parallel stories about the destination. Without coordination, this can lead to confusion for audiences.

DMOs handle significantly more content than the average brand, posing challenges in organising, licensing, and sharing assets efficiently.

“If a picture is worth a 1000 words,
a brand is worth a thousand pictures,
a destination brand 10 times more.”
– David Vaassen, Founder, Brandkit

DMOs must curate a cohesive, authentic brand story while managing rights and usage effectively. DAM provides a centralised solution to achieve this.

2. Using a DAM to be authentic

Consumers demand authenticity from brands.

Destination content should:

• Be real and honest.
• Come from stakeholders, citizens, local businesses, and visitors.
• Align with strategic messaging and branding.

A good DAM allows contributions from internal and external users, enabling DMOs to curate content that accurately represents the destination.

3. Using a Brand Portal to influence, not control the story

DMOs can’t fully control destination narratives told by partners, journalists, or social media. Instead, they can guide these stories by providing storytellers with easy access to authentic, high-quality content, ensuring consistent brand storytelling.

A self-service Brand Portal powered by a DAM provides streamlined access to content, empowering storytellers to use official assets rather than turning to unofficial or unlicensed sources.

Efficiency, Authenticity, Influence – requires a DAM-powered Brand Portal.

DAM software consolidates digital assets into one accessible location, enabling efficient asset management, streamlined usage rights, and quick distribution to stakeholders.

Efficiency gains include:

• Time saved finding, organising, and tagging content.
• Improved rights management and automated approvals.
• 24/7 access for users, enabling self-service content discovery.

Combining DAM with a Brand Portal enhances these efficiencies, allowing external storytellers to self-serve content while maintaining control over access and licensing.

Brandkit – The unique solution for authentic brand content

Brandkit combines DAM with a highly customisable Brand Portal, designed for destination marketers. Features include:

• Rights Management and Role-Based Access for secure content sharing.
• Tools for contributors to upload content, fostering authenticity.
• Approval workflows for scalable content moderation and publishing.

A case study

‘Only in Scotland can travelling so little make such a big difference’

VisitScotland Media Centre, a Brandkit customer, shifted its focus to domestic tourism with a campaign encouraging locals to explore Scotland’s golf tourism.

Get the full story.

In summary

Post-Covid, destination marketers must focus on domestic tourism while preparing for international visitors. This requires creating authentic, efficiently managed content that storytellers can easily access.

Learn how Brandkit can help you curate and share authentic content:
Book a discovery call today.

Happy branding :)