Today I’m kicking off a Consumer Demand Study for the new Apple Thief Cider House in the Snowy Valleys. During this trip the team will be applying our combined experience to shape the various elements for a Cider House experience, but running with our experience alone is a high risk approach. To explore and validate our thinking we will conduct consumer research with potential travellers within our target markets. Through this process we will be seeking insights and direction around the following aspects:
1. Quantifying the appeal and understanding around the Snowy Valleys region and the Apple Thief brand
2. Testing various experience elements of the proposed Cider House to rank appeal of each element, guiding both product development and marketing
3. Visitation forecasts by day and month to underpin revenue projections.
While this Apple Thief study is comprehensive, research can be as simple as a survey to your customer database, questions on social media page or someone with a clipboard at your front door. If you draw a line in the sand that your tourism business or destination won’t make big moves without some level of traveller insight I promise you will move ahead of the pack.
