Summer: Trampoline or Trap for Your Tourism & Wellness Brand? Avoid These 3 Crucial Strategic Mistakes

Summer, with its vibrant energy and influx of visitors, often sweeps us up in the whirlwind of daily operations. For many tourism and wellness brands, and especially for the hospitality sector, it's a season of peak activity. However, behind the apparent calm of the sun and holidays, lies a common trap that CMOs and marketing teams should not overlook: the tendency to push strategic planning for the future to the back burner. If you're looking to move beyond daily operations, discover how our strategic consulting can boost your brand.

While it's easy to get caught up in the "here and now" of the high season, now is precisely the ideal time to plant the seeds for next season's success. How we manage summer can determine not only our immediate results, but also the resilience and revenue growth of our brand in the coming months, whether we operate in APAC or EMEA.

Avoiding the following three common mistakes can be the difference between thriving and watching valuable opportunities slip away. Is your tourism and wellness strategy ready for the challenge?

The 3 Profit Killers Your Hospitality Brand Must Avoid:

1. Forgetting Your Local Audience When International Season Slows Down

When the international high season begins to slow, it's tempting to focus exclusively on attracting the few remaining travelers. However, many hospitality brands make the mistake of neglecting their local audience. This is a lost golden opportunity. Your local community is a base of loyal customers, a driver of word-of-mouth, and a constant source of business throughout the year, especially during low seasons for international tourism.

What to do? Keep the connection with your local audience alive through special offers, exclusive events, loyalty programs, and continuous communication. They are your ambassadors and your vital support when tourist flows decrease, and a key for hospitality customer loyalty.

2. Failing to Analyze Summer Data: Your Goldmine for Off-Season Planning

Summer generates an immense amount of data: which services were most popular, where your customers come from, which promotions worked best, demand peaks, operational pain points, etc. Not thoroughly analyzing this information is like leaving a goldmine untapped. This data is key to understanding your customers' behavior and optimizing your off-season strategies or post-season planning, as highlighted by recent UNWTO reports on tourism resilience. Hotel operations optimization directly depends on this analysis.

What to do? Dedicate time to review sales metrics, customer preferences, the effectiveness of digital marketing campaigns for hotels, and feedback. Identify patterns, what worked well, and what needs improvement. Use this information to refine your services, adapt your messages, and plan your promotions for the slower months, thus boosting hotel performance and wellness revenue growth.

3. Pausing Content Creation During Summer, Just When Your Audience Is Most Receptive to Stimuli

With daily activity at its peak, content creation is often perceived as a secondary task that can be postponed. Big mistake! During summer, many people have more free time, are more relaxed, and are therefore more receptive to consuming inspiring, educational, or entertaining content. It's the perfect time to capture their attention and keep your brand on their radar. This is vital for your tourism branding and positioning.

What to do? Plan your content strategy in advance. Even if you're busy, you can schedule posts, repurpose existing content, or create light, seasonal content that resonates with your holiday audience. Maintain consistency across your social media, blog, and newsletters. Remember, the engagement you build now can translate into future bookings and visits, contributing to tourism digital transformation and effective hotel management.

Is Your Strategy Ready for Success in APAC and EMEA?

Summer is not just a season for working hard, but also for working smart. By being aware of these common tourism strategy mistakes and taking proactive measures, you can transform this season into a springboard for continued success. Don't let opportunities slip away while you're busy; instead, use them to strengthen your brand and secure a prosperous future. If you need support with APAC tourism strategic planning or EMEA hotel marketing consulting, do not hesitate to contact a specialized hospitality consultant like us.

The Art of Resilience for Leaders: Flourish in the Hospitality, Tourism and Wellness Industry

In the last decade, few industries have been as hard hit and transformed as hospitality, tourism, and wellness. From global pandemics to economic crises, natural disasters, technological changes, and transformations in consumer values, sector leaders have navigated more than turbulent waters.

And yet, here they remain. What's the key to their success? Reinventing, sustaining teams, redesigning experiences and, in many cases, emerging stronger. They have achieved this through a competency that is no longer optional: resilience.

Why is resilience a critical topic today?

Because the unexpected is no longer the exception. It's the norm. Economic volatility, climate change, destination saturation, regulatory pressure, new consumption habits and digital acceleration have redefined the context. And in this context, leading is not just about resisting. It's about anticipating, adapting and evolving with purpose.

For sector leaders, resilience is not just an emotional or personal matter: it's a business strategy. And like any strategy, it can be designed, activated and strengthened with the right tools.

Strategic Marketing: Pivot, purpose and positioning

A resilient brand is not improvised. It's built with strategic vision.

Having a clear, adaptable, and purpose-oriented marketing strategy allows companies to:

• Reposition their value proposition in the face of new realities.

• Communicate with empathy and forcefulness in times of crisis.

• Recover customer trust and strengthen their community.

• Identify differentiation opportunities in saturated markets.

Strategic marketing acts as a compass: it aligns operations with vision and emotionally connects with increasingly demanding customers.

Fractional CMO: Flexible leadership, external perspective, real results

In uncertain contexts, many brands cannot afford a full-time Chief Marketing Officer. But what they cannot afford is not having leadership in marketing.

This is where the role of the fractional CMO comes in: a strategic figure, with senior vision, who joins as part of the team without the structural weight of a permanent hire.

With more than 15 years of experience working with hospitality and tourism brands, I have seen firsthand how companies that maintain strategic leadership in marketing manage not only to survive crises but also to turn them into growth opportunities.

As a boutique strategic and digital marketing agency, our approach as fCMO is precisely that: we help brands get their heads above water, recover long-term vision, and activate opportunities that perhaps are not being seen from within. Without losing the pulse of day-to-day operations, but with strategic perspective and a complete team behind us.

Strategic Consulting: Diagnosis, design and action

When we work with hospitality, tourism or wellness brands, we start with a premise: resilience is also designed. And for that you need:

• Diagnose blind spots in the value proposition, communication or experience.

• Design contingency scenarios (because plan B is no longer optional).

• Detect innovation opportunities: new products, services, audiences or channels.

• Strengthen the employer brand and care for the internal team, because a resilient company needs sustained people.

Real cases of resilience in action

• Boutique hotel in Bali that transformed its communication to attract local tourism when borders closed - result: maintained 70% occupancy during the pandemic.

• Wellness center in Mexico that digitized its services and today combines in-person and online therapies - grew its client base by 40% in two years.

• Resort in Ibiza that bet on real sustainability and managed to position itself in front of an increasingly conscious traveler - increased responsible tourism by 60%.

These are not miracles. They are strategies activated with intelligence, sensitivity, and focus.

What about the team? The heart of resilience

Resilience is also cultivated from within. A strong, aligned, and cared-for team is the first shield against any crisis. And that is also part of strategic marketing. Communicating purpose, reinforcing internal culture, activating a sense of belonging, and caring for the team's emotional health are fundamental to building a sustainable brand.

Is your brand ready to flourish in the storm?

Resilience is not enduring. It's leading with vision and purpose in the midst of change. If you lead a hospitality, tourism or wellness brand and feel that the time has come to not only resist, but transform and advance, we help you design that resilience strategy that your brand needs.

Our services as a boutique agency specialized in Fractional CMO and Strategic Marketing are designed specifically for brands that want to grow with intelligence, empathy, and impact in this sector.

Do you want to discover the key points that are holding back your brand's growth? We invite you to schedule a free Quick Scan. It's a personalized session where we will delve into your business's challenges and opportunities to understand how we can help you build a truly resilient marketing strategy.

Schedule the free Quick Scan at Marian Gomez Consulting

Marketing from the C-Level: Strategies that Transform Companies (Part 1/2)

Remember when marketing was just "making pretty ads"? I laugh every time someone mentions that phrase in a meeting. Marketing has evolved from being a "necessary expense" department to becoming the strategic engine driving business transformation.

After participating in multiple board meetings, I have seen how marketing has shifted from being a topic at the end of the agenda to becoming the center of crucial conversations in the boardroom. And it is no wonder: in a world where digitalization advances at lightning speed, how we connect with our customers defines the success or failure of our organizations.

Strategic Alignment: Beyond Immediate ROI

One of the most valuable lessons I have learned is that marketing cannot operate in a silo. In my experience leading teams, I have seen how successful companies are those where marketing is perfectly aligned with every aspect of the business, including each department.

Recently, in a quarterly meeting, a campaign was proposed that, on paper, promised spectacular results. However, something didn't align with our long-term vision. Instead of seeking quick success, we decided to redirect the strategy to align with our sustainability and international expansion goals. The result was surprising: we not only achieved our marketing objectives but also strengthened our position in key markets.

The key lies in understanding that each marketing initiative must answer three fundamental questions:

• How does this contribute to our long-term vision?

• How does it integrate different departments?

• What real value does it bring to our customers?

The Digital Revolution: Data that Speaks, Decisions that Transform

"We need to be more digital," a board member once told me. My response was simple: "We do not need to be more digital; we need to be smarter with digital."

Digital transformation in marketing is not just about having a presence on every possible platform or collecting mountains of data. It is about making smarter decisions based on real, actionable information.

In one of our recent projects with a hotel holding company, we implemented an advanced analytics system that helped us discover our most valuable customers weren't who we thought they were. This insight triggered a complete shift in our marketing and sales strategy. We redesigned our customer journey, adjusted our messaging, and most importantly, started speaking the language of our true ideal customers.

Digital transformation in executive marketing involves:

• Investing in technology that truly adds value, not just the latest trend

• Developing a data-driven mindset across the executive team

• Maintaining humanity in our digital interactions

The Power of Data in the Boardroom

One of the most significant changes I have experienced is how data has transformed our C-Level conversations. We do not discuss opinions or hunches; we talk about real customer behaviors, verifiable trends, and measurable results.

I remember a particularly tense meeting where we were debating annual budget allocation, presenting a detailed multichannel attribution analysis that not only justified current investment but clearly identified where each dollar generated the greatest impact. It was a revealing moment for the entire executive team.

True transformation occurs when data stops being numbers in a presentation and becomes the foundation for strategic decisions that drive growth.

Looking Ahead

If you found this article interesting, next Tuesday I will share the second part, focused on building and leading high-performance marketing teams, the KPIs that really matter at the executive level, and how to prepare our organizations for the future of marketing.

Marketing from the C-Level is not just about campaigns and metrics; it is about transforming entire organizations to thrive in an increasingly digital and connected world. The question is no longer whether we should transform, but how quickly we can do it without losing our essence in the process.

Let’s connect!

Market Evolution or Market Revolution? Preparing for 2025

The tourism and wellness industry is facing a pivotal transformation. As we approach 2025, the gap between businesses with robust marketing strategies and those running on tactical marketing activities is not just widening—it is becoming an unbridgeable chasm. The rapid emergence of personalized wellness experiences, shifting luxury travel paradigms, and evolving consumer behaviors are rendering traditional marketing approaches obsolete faster than ever before.

Beyond Random Acts of Marketing: The Strategic Imperative

In a dynamic landscape of tourism and wellness, many businesses confuse marketing activities with marketing strategy. While posting on social media, sending newsletters, and running promotions might keep you busy, these tactical actions without a strategic foundation are like navigating through fog without a compass.

The Cost of Strategic Blindness

The most expensive marketing is the kind that lacks direction. When working with luxury hospitality brands across Asia, Europe, and the Americas, I consistently observe a common pattern: businesses investing significant resources in marketing activities while missing the fundamental strategic framework that would multiply their effectiveness.

This strategic blindness manifests in several ways:

• Inconsistent market positioning that confuses potential customers

• Marketing investments that fail to align with business objectives

• Missed opportunities for market differentiation

• Inefficient resource allocation across channels

• Reactive rather than proactive approach to market changes

Why Strategic Marketing Planning Matters Now

The tourism and wellness industry has entered an era of unprecedented complexity. Consumer behaviors are evolving rapidly, digital landscapes are shifting, and competition is intensifying. In this environment, strategic marketing planning is not just beneficial—it is essential for survival and growth.

A strategic marketing plan serves as your business's navigation system by:

Defining Market Position

Understanding where you stand in the market and where you should be positioning your brand is crucial. This is not about being better than competitors—it is about being different in ways that matter to your target audience.

Aligning Resources with Opportunities

A strategic plan helps you identify and prioritize opportunities based on potential return, ensuring your resources are invested where they will generate the most significant impact.

Building Sustainable Competitive Advantage

In markets where services can be easily replicated, your strategic approach to marketing often becomes your most sustainable competitive advantage.

The Elements of Strategic Marketing Success

Effective strategic marketing in tourism and wellness requires three core elements:

1. Market Intelligence

Understanding market dynamics, consumer behavior patterns, and competitive landscapes is not just about gathering data—it is about deriving actionable insights that inform your strategy.

2. Clear Value Proposition

Your value proposition must resonate with your target audience while being authentic to your brand. This requires deep understanding of both your capabilities and your customers' needs.

3. Systematic Implementation

Strategy without implementation is just theory. A good marketing plan includes clear actions, timelines, and accountability measures to ensure execution.

The true value of strategic marketing planning becomes evident in measurable outcomes:

• Improved customer acquisition efficiency

• Higher customer lifetime value

• Stronger brand equity

• Better resource utilization

• Increased market share in targeted segments

The 2025 Strategic Imperative

The next 12 months will be critical for tourism and wellness businesses. We are seeing:

• AI-driven personalization becoming the norm rather than a novelty

• Sustainability moving from a marketing angle to a core business requirement

• The rise of hybrid experiences merging digital and physical wellness journeys

• Micro-targeting replacing broad demographic approaches

• Real-time adaptation becoming essential for market relevance

These shifts are not just trends—they are fundamental changes in how successful businesses will need to approach their marketing strategy. The businesses that thrive in 2025 will not be those with the biggest budgets, but those with the most adaptable and forward-thinking marketing strategies.

The question is not whether you need a marketing strategy—it is whether your current approach is robust enough to secure your business's future in an increasingly competitive landscape.

A strategic marketing plan should be:

• Aligned with your business objectives

• Based on solid market insights

• Focused on sustainable competitive advantages

• Flexible enough to adapt to market changes

• Clear about resource allocation and expected returns

The Role of Strategic Leadership: Moving Beyond Tactical Thinking

As markets become more complex, the need for strategic marketing leadership grows. Whether through internal capabilities or external expertise, businesses need strategic guidance to:

• Navigate market complexities

• Identify growth opportunities

• Optimize marketing investments

• Build strong market positions

The most successful tourism and wellness businesses understand that marketing excellence comes from strategic thinking followed by tactical execution—not the other way around.

As you evaluate your marketing approach, consider whether it is truly strategic or merely tactical. Are you building for sustainable success, or are you simply responding to immediate market pressures?

The future belongs to businesses that approach marketing strategically. The question is: Will yours be one of them?

Schedule your appointment today.