The Regional Directorate for Tourism, in partnership with GMT Hospitality and its partners, presented the programme designated as "Azores Destination: who are the tourists and what they say about us" at BTL- Lisbon Tourism Market. This is an innovative online tool intended to measure the reputation of the Region as a tourist destination.
 
"This analysis tool allows the recovery and comparison of the Azores destination with its potential competitors and each of the companies referenced with the market average, through Online Reputation Management," said Regional Director for Tourism. In this regard, he noted that, at this stage, there are 260 active companies in the archipelago.
 
Filipe Macedo added that this tool also "builds the profile of tourists, conveying a thorough knowledge about those who visit the Azores Destination," which will improve the promotion of this destination in markets.
 
Through the digital tourist footprint, the tool will analyse the assessment of the tourist experience in the Azores on 175 websites and 45 different languages in areas such as accommodation, restaurants or tourist activities.
 
Filipe Macedo also stressed the "innovative approach that results from collaboration of GMT Hospitality with the University of Cambridge," which analyse the personality traits of tourists. This will allow the segmentation of demand and, therefore, boost the efficiency of target promotion campaigns.
 
As for the reputation analysis component, this tool will also identify complaints in coordination with various inspection services operating in the tourism sector. It will also highlight the agents, products and services with better performance in terms of tourist satisfaction by monitoring in time real the level of satisfaction of those who visit the Azores and post their experience online.
 
"The initiative intends to encourage competitiveness among agents as well as to complete the quality management cycle for the benefit of the tourist, the reputation of each agent and the reputation of the Azores brand," stressed the Regional Director.
 
The online reputation programme for establishments and tourist attractions was conducted by GMT Hospitality in partnership with ReviewPro and had the support of the Regional Government. It aims to provide public and private partners in the sector (accommodation, catering, tourist entertainment companies, parks, museums and other places to visit) with valid information on the expectations of tourists, thus allowing them to adapt, shape, reshape and innovate the supply of goods and services.