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Belize
faced two critical nature tourism issues. First, it had built a
reputation (with Egret’s help beginning in 1991) as a nation
that has tied tourism and natural resource health together - but
Belize
has failed to consistently keep that image in front of potential
patrons. Second, in
response to success early in the 1990s, small-scale nature
related lodging infrastructure mushroomed. The two issues
combined to create an unhealthy industry: not enough patrons for
too many rooms.
Egret
was called in by the Cayo Belize Tourism Industry Association in
1997 to build and execute a plan to remedy the situation for the
Belize
interior. The
project began with a complete analysis of the region’s tourism
potential and of the North American market, then proceeded to
the development a plan to increase patronage and slow the forces
that were degrading Cayo’s tourism product and driving
profitability downward. New product was explored, and an
aggressive public relations and marketing strategy was outlined. |
