Newfoundland and Labrador Product Development Strategy

- 208 -Section 13ImplementationThis section addresses implementation issues and models for the future. We deal in turn with thefollowing issues:o Obstacles and challenges to moving forwardo The kinds of industry support initiatives that are needed and warrantedo Issues with respect to industry development and operational funding provided bygovernment agencieso Approaches to industry organization and government-based approaches toimplementation of the strategy and support programsChallengesTourism product development is a struggle for all destinations. Unlike marketing, where all theindustry players support the idea of getting more sales, industry-wide approaches to productdevelopment are a tougher sell, and for understandable reasons:o Product development’s returns are longer term and seen to be more speculative thanmarketing, which has short term impactso The industry tends to be mistrustful of product development efforts that are seen to leadto bringing in new competition and/or giving some operators an unfair advantage overothers. In other words, operators see more risks than benefits to them personally if theyare not the ones getting the help directlyo The models for effective tourism product development have not been nearly as wellestablished as those in marketingo Operators are more defensive about being told they need upgrading or market readinesshelp, whereas everyone agrees they need more marketing supportTaken together, these factors make tourism product development a tougher sell to the industry.But that doesn’t mean the effort should be abandoned. There is ample evidence that getting youract together on the product side will pay dividends. And there is no question that neglecting thisissue will lead to early peaking of tourism growth potential and earlier and faster declines inmarket position as competitors pull ahead. So there is really no choice.Also, there is really no choice for a destination like Newfoundland and Labrador that has both aneed of economic growth as well as an industry like tourism offering such promise for the future.Pursuing an aggressive product development strategy should be of top priority at all levels ofgovernment and for the industry itself.There are other challenges to overcome. One is that tourism development has to be depoliticizedand made strategic. It demeans the whole tourism industry by treating it as a porkTHE ECONOMIC PLANNING GROUP of Canada Newfoundland & Labrador Tourism Product DevelopmentD. W. Knight Associates Strategy and Accommodation Needs Study