Who Are Alberta's Ultimate Travellers?
The Evolution of Audience Targeting
Who are Alberta's Ultimate Travellers? That’s a question Travel Alberta has been working to answer to stimulate future growth and industry profitability. People visit Alberta from all over the world, but there are certain geographic, behavioural and demographic segments that choose Alberta more often and place a higher value on the unique experiences offered across the province.
Destination Canada developed the Explorer Quotient™(EQ), linking traveller social values—such as interests, beliefs and lifestyle—with their travel preferences.
Team Alberta has used EQ traveller segmentation profiles to better understand our target customers. This knowledge has played a valuable role in focusing our efforts and increasing our collective return on investment.
Now, Travel Alberta is taking audience targeting to the next level.
Introducing the Ultimate Travellers Project
As Travel Alberta works with the Government of Alberta and industry stakeholders around the province to develop a new 10-Year Tourism Strategy to grow the visitor economy to $20 billion by 2030, we need to focus on the right customers—our Ultimate Travellers.
In alignment with our data-driven destination promotion practices, Travel Alberta led a comprehensive stakeholder engagement and analysis exercise to identify the travellers that can help us achieve our goals: stimulate sustainable growth and increase industry profitability across the province.
For more in-depth information on our Ultimate Travellers research and findings, watch our recorded industry presentation.
This in-depth research strategy has resulted in the development of two Ultimate Traveller personas: Curious Adventurers and Hotspot Hunters.
So, who exactly are these Curious Adventurers and Hotspot Hunters? Those who have been using Destination Canada's EQ segmentation system will probably recognize similarities between the Enthusiastic Indulgers and Hotspot Hunters, and the Learner segment and Curious Adventurers.
Curious Adventurers
Curious Adventurers travel to get a different perspective on the world. They’re energized by exploring new places and inspired to learn all they can about a destination through its landscapes, authentic culture and the people they meet. Willing to be spontaneous, they’re fueled by a sense of adventure and discovery, knowing these organic moments can provide their best experiences. They are thoughtful planners, investing time before their trip to help forge deeper connections with a place.
Hotspot Hunters
For Hotspot Hunters, travel is about conquest and accomplishment. They want to visit the top attractions, take part in one-of-a-kind experiences and connect with local experts. They’re driven to make the most of every minute, to fill their trips with as many stories and memories as possible–and they plan accordingly, leaving little to chance and deprioritizing sleep.
NEXT STEPS
Moving forward, we will support you with a deeper understanding of Curious Adventurers and Hotspot Hunters.
We are incorporating information on these personas into our training; building on EQ to add a deeper level of understanding. Watch for the updated version of “Getting To Know Your Best Customer” workshop early in 2020 or check with your regional Experience Development Manager about hosting a session in your community.
We will also begin testing the segments in early 2020 to learn more about the types of content, creative and media they find most engaging.
If you have any questions regarding this ongoing project in the meantime, please email us