The future is digital…. and human

In the second in the series of blogs on the future Visitor economy for Jersey, we explore the potential of digital for the sector.

I spoke to business leader and industry ambassador Matt Falla about how he sees the industry in 2030.


Click to watch the video here.


Whilst human interactions and experiences will always be at the heart of what we do in hospitality and tourism, there is significant opportunity for the sector to embrace digital in a much bigger way.

From how we as consumers discover destinations and events, engage with brands and businesses, make purchases, interact with people and places and share our experiences after the event, digital is increasingly everywhere.

We also live in a world where customisation and personalisation is possible, both in terms of the marketing and the experience itself, and with such a wealth of activities, attractions and experiences on offer in Jersey we have the ability to delight a wider range of consumers with exactly what they are looking for and experiences that will be of great value to them personally. This is also a fundamental piece of the experience economy of which we are now all part.
There is opportunity in Jersey to improve the experience for the digitally savvy and connected consumer of the future, to ensure we both capture their interest before they visit and engage and interact with them while they are here. Greater use of technology, digital marketing and booking platforms that work better for all users and across different business types will help to do this, with information available in real time, making it easier for guests to customize their visit to their needs, and for businesses to target their customers. This will also enable us to target a greater proportion of the younger demographic which is a growing market globally and one which we are well placed to appeal to.

There is also significant opportunity for businesses to embed technology much deeper into their operations and drive efficiency. Increasing productivity across the economy will be one of the key challenges of the next decade and automation will be a big part of this. This is not intended to remove human interaction from an industry where we know this is an important part of the experience – far from it; if done correctly this should reduce the amount of time staff spend performing certain routine, manual and transactional tasks by automating them, enabling them to focus more on interacting and building relationships with customers. This in turn should make jobs in the sector more rewarding and interesting and at the same time provide guests with the personal experience they expect. And who doesn’t think we will increasingly crave and value quality human interactions in an increasingly digital world?

We’d love to hear your thoughts….