{"id":28640,"date":"2023-10-26T09:08:52","date_gmt":"2023-10-26T13:08:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=28640"},"modified":"2023-10-26T09:08:54","modified_gmt":"2023-10-26T13:08:54","slug":"avea%e2%80%88ceo-catherine-flanagan-highlights-need%e2%80%88to%e2%80%88attract-gen%e2%80%88z-to-irelands-world-class-experiences","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=28640","title":{"rendered":"AVEA\u2008CEO Catherine Flanagan Highlights Need\u2008To\u2008Attract Gen\u2008Z To Ireland\u2019s \u2018World Class Experiences\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Pictured at the Cliffs of Moher in Co Clare, Ireland ahead of the largest gathering of visitor attraction and experience operators for the 2023 AVEA (Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions) conference are Catherine Flanagan (CEO of AVEA), Jenny de Saulles (Director of Sector Development F\u00e1ilte Ireland), Alice Mansergh (CEO of Tourism Ireland), Eimear Callaghan (Head of Experience and Industry Development, Tourism Northern Ireland), Geraldine Enright (Director of the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience) and Miriam Kennedy (Head of the Wild Atlantic Way Failte Ireland), Leonard Cleary, Director of Tourism Development West Clare Municipal District (Arthur Ellis)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By Barry Coughlan<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 2030 Gen Z will represent 27% of global income and are the decision-makers of the future, according to Catherine Flanagan, CEO of Ireland\u2019s Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions (AVEA).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She told of the need for the nation\u2019s tourism industry to adapt to this digital-first generation when she addressed this week\u2019s sixth annual AVEA annual conference in the Eco Falls Hotel in Ennistymon, County Clare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The owners and operators of Ireland\u2019s leading visitor attractions \u2013 all 220 of them \u2013 gathered to discuss how the industry could achieve its full potential and elevate their businesses under the conference theme of \u201cWorld Class Experiences \u2013 Local Authenticity,\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ms Flanagan said tourism businesses must deliver excellent and memorable experiences to their visitors, while remaining true to the spirit of Irish hospitality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHowever, the industry will need to find the fine balance between \u2018local authenticity\u2019 and \u2018world-class\u2019 with a digital transformation on the horizon.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eoghan Phibbs, Country Manager for Ireland at Google said \u201cAI is the next big tech shift. Seven years into our journey at Google as an AI first company, we\u2019re at an exciting inflection point. We have an opportunity to make AI even more helpful for everyone, including businesses. AI is not only a powerful enabler, it\u2019s also a major platform shift. Every organization is thinking about how to drive transformation which is why we\u2019re focussed on making it easy and scalable for others to innovate with AI. The travel industry included.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor our travel trend data, we know that the time a consumer spends researching their holiday online is getting longer. Presently, for every one week of holidays, we spend a minimum of three weeks researching, planning, considering, dreaming and then booking. This means that businesses need to ensure firstly that they are displayed in online search results but secondly, that visitors can book online in advance and have access to all of the key decision-making information online too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And Catherine Flanagan also spoke on that subject, saying: \u201cAI is transforming customer service in our tourism sector, and we are known worldwide for our warm Irish welcome. This welcome is going to have to shift somewhat online and how Ireland\u2019s tourism attractions and experiences can do that is one of the key areas for us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAVEA members have made huge advances digitally in recent years through F\u00e1ilte Ireland\u2019s \u2018Digital that Delivers\u2019 program; now that we have built the capability, we must be ready for what\u2019s next.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cChatGPT, for example, enables people to tailor-make their holiday itinerary based on their activities, who they are traveling with, and what they are interested in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn the past, 100 people might do the same search and get the same results – however, now, AI is personalizing the data served to the individual, so each search result can have an almost bespoke offering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo we need to look at how our offering can include much more sophisticated customer service tools, anticipating search requirements, while still maintaining our warm Irish welcome and local authenticity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Delegates also heard from tourism leaders Jenny de Saulles (Director of Sector Development F\u00e1ilte Ireland), Alice Mansergh (CEO of Tourism Ireland), Eimear Callaghan (Head of Experience and Industry Development, Tourism Northern Ireland), and Eoghan O\u2019Mara Walsh (CEO of the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

International speakers included the Head of Hampton Court Palace Rachel Mackay and Rich Neville, who led the operations teams for ABBA Voyage and the BBC Earth Experience in London.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kelly Molson, MD of Rubber Cheese, reported on changing trends for booking experiences online, and John Harte from ATS Heritage revealed findings from AVEA research on how visitor attractions meet the requirements of the Deaf and hard-of-hearing community. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can find out more about Ireland\u2019s Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions (AVEA) at www.avea.ie<\/a><\/p>\n

Share this:<\/h3>