It has been awhile since we posted a blog here. We took a brief hiatus, although we stayed busy writing some blog posts for clients. It’s both a pleasure and an honor to be guest blogger for a client, because it gives us a reason to spend time in their community sampling a new restaurant, exploring a new trail or chatting with local business owners. But now, we’re back to sharing our thoughts on our very own blog.

Much has happened since our last post. The UK got a new king; Barbie was a big hit at the box office; and a team not lead by Tom Brady won the Super Bowl. The world continues to spin, and changes and advancements seem to come at light speed. We will be sharing thoughts on many of them.

We will be writing mostly about trends in advertising, branding, marketing and technology in future blogs. For this return to blogging, here are a few quick, random bits:

• Overtourism is in the news lately, especially in Europe. Venice is charging additional fees to control the flow of visitors. Locals in Barcelona are downright hostile to tourists. Both sides have valid points. Local businesses are reaping the economic rewards, not to mention local governments collecting loads of sales and meals taxes. On the other had, it must be incredibly frustrating for local residents to not be able to enjoy the exceptional quality of life in their own community because they can’t get a table at a restaurant, or find enough square feet to spread a blanket on their overcrowded beach. We have delighted in helping communities expand tourism in recent years, but none have reached the saturation point like Barcelona, where it negatively impacts the community. Honestly, we hope it never happens to our clients. For now, we’re gratified to contribute to the economic growth and prosperity of the places we help promote and hope these places always have a great quality of life without overtourism.
  
• From the beginning of modern advertising, the effectiveness of different media and platforms has risen and fallen. Have you noticed the size of your Sunday newspaper, or checked your MySpace page recently? Some people may have thought this would would happen with social media as a marketing tool. Well, they would be wrong. It’s not only still a good tool for reaching consumers, it’s bigger and better than ever. Of course, each brand has to determine which platform is best for them and develop creative ways to communicate with their prospective customers. The bottom line is, every DMO or direct to consumer marketer should make social media marketing a priority.
  
• The travel sector has made a remarkable rebound from the depths of Covid a few short years ago. So much so, that tourism is bustling and the competition for travelers is fierce. Now, more than ever, marketers need every advantage they can get. Strong brands. Targeted campaigns. Very high caliber creative messaging. All of these things mattered before, they matter now, and will matter in the future for creating a program that hits on all cylinders.
  
• The government procurement process, especially for selecting creative services, is irreparably broken. At its best, it rewards mediocrity. At its worst, it is filled with lies and deception. One thing is certain, it rarely leads to the best outcome for the community. We will have much more to say on this topic in future posts in hopes of starting a state-wide conversation about reforming this ineffective and outdated system.