Research Article

DMO and TTPs' Perspectives: Exploring Promotional Strategies and Challenges in Marketing Cape Coast as a Tourist Destination

Authors

  • Quaye Francis Junior Department of Tourism Management, School of Applied Arts, Cape Coast Technical University, DL 50 Cape Coast, Ghana

    francis.quaye@cctu.edu.gh

Abstract

The focus of this investigation is on the promotional strategies and obstacles encountered by Tourism Trade Practitioners (TTPs) and Destination Marketing Organisations (DMOs) in their efforts to promote Cape Coast as a tourism destination. Using qualitative research methods, it identifies critical promotional activities, including festival promotion, social media use, and digital platforms. It also emphasises problems such as low community engagement, insufficient resources, and bureaucratic constraints. To strengthen Cape Coast's competitive position, recommendations emphasise the adoption of digital marketing tools, the promotion of local participation, and the enhancement of stakeholder collaboration. For practitioners seeking to increase tourist arrivals in Ghana, this research provides actionable insights and contributes to the destination marketing literature.

Keywords:

Destination Marketing DMOs Marketing Challenges Marketing Strategies Tourism Promotion TTPs

Article information

Journal

Journal of Economics, Business, and Commerce

Volume (Issue)

2(1), (2025)

Pages

1-14

Published

01-02-2025

How to Cite

Quaye, F. J. (2025). DMO and TTPs’ Perspectives: Exploring Promotional Strategies and Challenges in Marketing Cape Coast as a Tourist Destination. Journal of Economics, Business, and Commerce, 2(1), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.69739/jebc.v2i1.221

References

Acheampong, H. (2020). Destination Branding: Focusing on Events Contribution on an Urban Level. Published Master’s Dissertation. School of Natural Sciences, Technology and Environmental Studies, Södertörn högskola-Sweden. Retrieved from https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1520475/FULLTEXT02

Addison, R. (2019). Determinants of international tourism demand for Ghana. Masters’ thesis submitted to the University of Ghana, Legon. http://ugspace.ug.edu

Avila-Robinson, A., & Wakabayashi, N. (2018). Changes in the structures and directions of destination management and marketing research: A bibliometric mapping study, 2005–2016. Journal of Destination Marketing & Management, 10, 101-111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdmm.2018.06.005

Bobier, C. J. M., Mico, J. M., & Sabater, R. L. (2019). Tourism Destination Marketing: A Case of Quitinday Green Hills Formation, Camalig, Albay. LPU-Laguna Journal of International Tourism and Hospitality Management, 4(2), 136-148.

Byun, J., & Jang, S. C. S. (2018). To compare or not to compare?: Comparative appeals in destination advertising of ski resorts. Journal of Destination Marketing & Management, 10, 143–151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdmm.2018.09.003

Dogru, T., McGinley, S., & Kim, W. (2020). The effect of hotel investments on employment in the tourism, leisure and hospitality industries. International Journal of Comtemporary Hospitality Management, 32(5), 1941–1965. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-11-2019-0913

Dredge, D. (2016). Are DMOs on a path to redundancy? Tourism Recreation Research, 41(3), 348-353. https://doi.org/10.1080/02508281.2016.1195959

Edwards, C. (2024, January 1). What Is a Tourist Destination? WiseTour. https://www.wisetour.com/what-is-a-tourist-destination.htm

Ekstrom, S. (2023, June 27). What does a destination marketing organization do? Learn Tourism. https://blog.learntourism.org/what-does-a-destination-marketing-organization-do

Galal, S. (2024, January 30). Africa: share of travel and tourism in GDP 2021. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1320400/share-of-travel-and-tourism-in-africas-gross-domestic-product

Gardiner, S., & Scott, N. (2018). Destination innovation matrix: A framework for new tourism experience and market development. Journal of Destination Marketing & Management, 10, 122-133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdmm.2018.07.002

Graphic Online. (2019). Tourism, creative arts receive $40 million World Bank support. Graphic Online. https://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/ghana-newstourism-creative-arts-receive-40-million-world-banksupport.html

Gretzel, U. (2022). The Smart DMO: A new step in the digital transformation of destination management organizations. European Journal of Tourism Research, 30, 3002. https://doi.org/10.54055/ejtr.v30i.2589

Gretzel, U., Fesenmaier, D. R., Formica, S., & O’Leary, J. T. (2006). Searching for the future: Challenges faced by destination marketing organizations. Journal of Travel Research, 45(2), 116-126. https://doi.org/10.1177/0047287506291598

Hogan, J. E., Lemon, K. N., & Libai, B. (2004). Quantifying the Ripple: Word-of-Mouth and Advertising Effectiveness. Journal of Advertising Research, 44(3), 271–280. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0021849904040243

Institute of Directors. (2024, April 17). How to repair a damaged reputation? Institute of Directors. https://www.iod.com/resources/business-advice/how-to-repair-a-damaged-reputation

Local Government Association. (24 June, 2021). Debate on promoting tourism in the UK, House of Lords. https://www.local.gov.uk/parliament/briefings-and-responses/debate-promoting-tourism-uk-house-lords-24-june-2021.

Lukaz, J. (2021). Business and MICE Tourism: Ghana’s Post-COVID Economic Recovery Vaccine. The Business & Financial Times. https://thebftonline.com/2021/11/19/business-and-mice-tourism-ghanas-post-covid-economic-recovery-vaccine

Marais, M., du Plessis, E., & Saayman, M. (2017). A review on critical success factors in tourism. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 31, 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhtm.2016.09.002

Jiang, H., Tan, H., Liu, Y., Wan, F., & Gursoy, D. (2020). The impact of power on destination advertising effectiveness: The moderating role of arousal in advertising. Annals of Tourism Research, 83, 102926. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annals.2020.102926

Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture. (2019). Medium term expenditure framework (MTEF) for 2019-2022: programme-based budget estimates for 2019. Accra-Ghana. www.mofep.gov.gh.

Morrison, A. M. (2013). Marketing and managing tourism destinations (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315178929

Murphy, L., Mascardo, G., & Benckendorff, P. (2007). Exploring word-of-mouth influences on travel decisions: friends and relatives vs. other travellers. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 31(5), 517–527. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1470-6431.2007.00608.x

Odunga, P. O., Manyara, G., & Yobesia, M. (2020). Estimating the direct contribution of tourism to Rwanda’s economy: Tourism satellite account methodology. Tourism and Hospitality Research, 20(3), 259-271. https://doi.org/10.1177/1467358419857786

Oxford Business Group. (2021). The Report Ghana 2020. https://oxfordbusinessgroup.com/overview/competitive-destination-country-seeks-transform-its-tourism-offering-attract-investment-and-increase

Pinto, R. B., & Kastenholz, E. (2012). Collaborative destination marketing. Tourism & Management Studies, 1, 215-228. https://tmstudies.net/index.php/ectms/article/view/190

Muluneh, D. W., Chiriko, A. Y., & Taye, T. T. (2022). Tourism Destination Marketing Challenges and Prospects: The Case of the Southern Route of Ethiopia. African Journal of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure, 11(1), 294-309. https://doi.org/10.46222/ajhtl.19770720.226

Saif, N. M. A., & Aimin, W. (2016). Exploring the value and process of marketing strategy: Review of literature. International Journal of Management Science and Business Administration, 2(2), 7-18. http://dx.doi.org/10.18775/ijmsba.1849-5664-5419.2014.22.1001

Sharma, A. (2016). Tourism brands and destination marketing campaigns in Asia. TPBO. https://placebrandobserver.com/tourism-brands-destination-marketing-asia

Sheehan, L., Vargas‐Sánchez, A., Presenza, A., & Abbate, T. (2016). The use of intelligence in tourism destination management: An emerging role for DMOs. International Journal of Tourism Research, 18(6), 549-557. https://doi.org/10.1002/jtr.2072

Soteriades, M. (2012). Tourism destination marketing: Approaches improving effectiveness and efficiency. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Marketing, 3(2), 107-120. https://doi.org/10.1108/17579881211248781

Sotiriadis, M., & Gursoy, D. (Ed.). (2016). Conclusions: Issues and Challenges for Managing and Marketing Tourism Experiences: The Handbook of Managing and Marketing Tourism Experiences (pp. 507-528). Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Bingley. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-78635-290-320161025.

Sotiriadis, M. (2020). Tourism destination marketing: Academic knowledge. Encyclopedia, 1(1), 42-56. https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/encyclopedia1010007

UNWTO. (2020). World Tourism Barometer No18 January 2020. UN Tourism. https://www.unwto.org/world-tourism-barometer-n18-january-2020

Wall, G., & Nuryanti, W. (2010). Marketing Challenges and Opportunities Facing Indonesian Tourism. Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing, 6(1), 69-84. https://doi.org/10.1300/j073v06n01_06

Wang, Y. (2008). Collaborative Destination Marketing: Understanding the Dynamic Process. Journal of Travel Research, 47(2), 151-166. https://doi.org/10.1177/0047287508321194.

World Economic Forum. (2019). The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2019: Travel and Tourism at a Tipping Point, Insight Report. Geneva, World Economic Forum. http://reports.weforum.org/ttcr.

World Travel and Tourism Council. (2019). Travel and Tourism; Economic Impact 2019 World, International Creative Commons Licence, London. https://ambassade-ethiopie.fr/onewebmedia/Tourism-WTTC-Global-Economic-Impact-Trends-2019.pdf

World Travel and Tourism Council. (2018). Travel and Tourism Economic Impact, Ghana 2018. Retrieved from http://wttc.org/economic-impact/country-analysis/country-data.

WTTC. (2023, November 2). New Report Shows How Travel & Tourism in Africa Could Boost Continent’s Economy by US$168BN Over the Next 10 Years. https://wttc.org/news-article/new-report-shows-how-travel-and-tourism-in-africa-could-boost-continents-economy-by-usd168bn-over-the-next-10-years

Zavattaro, S. M., & Fay, D. L. (2019). Brand USA: A natural quasi-experiment evaluating the success of a national marketing campaign. Tourism management, 70, 42-48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2018.07.013

Zhe, Z., & Bawuah, S. (2019). The effect of Adinkra symbol patronage on tourism growth in Ghana: The mediating role of youth awareness. Journal of Culture, Society and Development, 52, 39-45. https://doi.org/10.7176/JCSD/52-05.

Downloads

Views

28

Downloads

5