Resonance Consultancy to take on Los Angeles tourism
Resonance Consultancy has been contracted by the City of Los Angeles Department of Convention and Tourism Development to create a long-term "tourism master plan” for the city. The plan, which will be devised over the next 11 months, will be devised to increase the number and improve the experience of visitors, residents, and stakeholders in key industries such as small business, arts and culture, and technology and education.
The firm will first meet with city officials, as well as industry and community representatives. “Between our interviews, workshops, surveys, and competitive assessments, the city will have a clear picture of its strengths and weaknesses through the lens of the people who matter most: their residents and visitors,” Richard Cutting-Miller, Resonance’s senior vice president, said in a statement. Los Angeles in 2018 received a record 50 million visitors, a goal which was fulfilled two years early, and is a 3.1% increase on 2017’s total, making this the eighth consecutive year that tourism has grown in the city.
Growth in the city can be attributed to factors such a nearly 4% increase in seat capacity at Los Angeles International Airport, 2,000 new rooms added to hotels in the city, and several initiatives by the Los Angles Tourism & Convention Board, a private and nonprofit group aimed at increasing tourism. The board’s last campaign was titled “Everyone is Welcome” in a bid to encourage diversity and inclusivity, and counter any negative perceptions foreigners might hold toward the United States.
Tourism is unsurprisingly a key industry in LA, with the lure of Hollywood, Disneyland, and large-market teams from all major professional sports. The industry supported approximately 550,000 jobs in the leisure and hospitality sector in 2017, while more than 30 million hotel rooms nights were sold throughout LA County. “Estimates show visitors are expected to generate at least $288 million dollars in transient occupancy tax collections for the City of Los Angeles in 2018, a record. These dollars are used to fund local fire, police as well as cultural and recreational services,” according to Travel Agency Central.
Resonance is a global advisor is real estate, tourism, and economic development. It has offices in New York City and Vancouver. The firm often works with cities or counties to create tourism plans and destination development and branding strategies. “In the past five years, it has worked for Vancouver; Tulsa, Oklahoma; San Luis Obispo County, California; Cincinnati, Ohio; Bellevue, Washington; and Snohomish County, Washington,” according to Travel Agency Central.
Consultancies around the world often take on tourism-related jobs for cities and countries. Chinese communications advisory firm Topline Consulting recently unveiled a strategy to increase Chinese tourism in India. The Thai government is also putting in place infrastructure and mechanisms to promote medical tourism in the country.
