Table of Contents

1.0 Executive Summary……………………………………………………….…..………3

1.1 Objectives……………………………………………………………...………4

1.2 Mission……………………………………………………………….…..……41.3 Keys to Success………………………………………………………...……...

4.2.0 Company Summary…………………………………………………………...……….

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2.1 Company Ownership……………………………………………………..…... 52.2 Company Locations and Facilities…………………………………….……... 5

3.0 Services…………………………………………………………………….…….……5

3.1 Service Description………………………………………………….….……..53.2 Competitive Comparison………………………………………….…….……. 83.3 Sales Literature………………………………………………………….……. 83.4 Technology……………………………………………………….……………

83.5 Future Services…………………………………………………….………….

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4.0 Marketing Analysis Summary……………………………………..……..…………... 9

4.1 Market Segmentation……………………………………..……………………9

4.1.1 Schools…………………………………………………………………… 94.1.2 Tourists………………………………………………….………………. 104.1.3 Local Organizations………………………………………..…….………. 11

4.2 Target Market Segment Strategy……………………………..…………….. 11

4.2.1 Market Needs………………………………………….…………. 114.2.2 Market Trends………………………………………….………… 114.2.3 Market Growth…………………………………………………… 14

4.3 Service Business Analysis……………………………………………..……. 15

4.3.1 Business Participants……………………………………………… 164.3.2 Distribution Patterns……………………………………………… 16

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4.3.3 Competition and Buying Patterns……………………….………… 164.3.4 Main Competitors………………………………………………… 16

5.0 Strategy and Implementation Summary…………………………………………….. 17

5.1 Value Proposition…………………………………………………………….17

5.2 Competitive Edge…………………………………………………………….17

5.3 Marketing Strategy…………………………………………………………...17

5.3.1 Pricing Strategy…………………………………...………………..195.3.2 Promotion Strategy……………..……………..…………………... 205.3.3 Distribution Strategy…………………………...…………………..205.3.4 Marketing Programs…………………………...…………………...

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5.4Sales Strategy……………………………………………..…………………. 21

5.5 Strategic Alliances…………………………………………...……………… 22

5.6 Milestones……………………………………………………..……………. 23

6.0 Management Summary…………………………………………...……………….… 23

6.1 Organizational Structure…………………………………...………………... 236.2 Personnel Plan……………………………………………..……………….. 23

7.0 Financial Plan………………………………………………………..……………… 24

7.1 Important Assumptions………………………………...…………………….257.2 Projected Profit and Loss…………………………...………………………..267.3 Projected Balance Sheet………………………………...……………………277.6 Projected Cash Flows………………………………………………………. 28

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1.0 Executive Summary

Jamaica Story Tours Ltd. (JST) situated at XX Ruthven Road, Kingston XX, began operations in January 200X. It is the result of collaboration between Our Story Tours, a small tour guide company started in 1997 by XXXXXX, XXX Holdings Ltd., and other partners. OST was a small firm with a permanent staff of two persons, and four part time persons including three tour guides and a commissioned sales/ marketing executive. The company focused on tour packages for schools in the Kingston Metropolitan Area i.e. Kingston, St. Andrew, and the urban centers in St. Catherine. OST acquired a loyal customer base, but was unable to parlay its comparative advantage of being able to provide relevant information through research and study, into a viable business.

The creation of JST was to ensure adequate capital funding, management and organizational support, and financial/ investment advice. The capital funding which has already commenced will allow for marketing and positioning of the company, tour guide training, procurement of two tour buses, securing of adequate insurance coverage, and ensure certification within the various industry organizations.

JST provides services in professional tour guiding, tour guide training, event management, tour planning, information management, and hotel booking/ transfer services. Its product line includes numerous tour packages to sites all over Jamaica based on school curricula, and focused on social studies, history, geography, and biology. Other edutainment tours are being planned for the tourist and local social organization markets.

The main target markets are the school curriculum driven school tour market, the tourism market, and the local professional, business, and social organization tour market. Market trends indicate enormous growth in the tourist market with the school market set to grow as the new mandates of the secondary school curriculum are enforced. The increasing thrust towards teaming and recreation among professionals is driving the movement towards edutainment options.

The Professional Tour Guiding Business is poised for tremendous growth as it is still in its infancy. JST plans to be a first mover and corner the professional tour guiding market by differentiating itself as being fully professional and knowledgeable of the subject matter due mainly to its focus on training and continuous learning.

Short-term plans include for a reversal in the current financial situation by aggressively pursuing new markets in tourism and expanding our share of the school market. In the medium term, i.e. three years time, a combination of capital investments in additional vehicles and the training/ employment of additional guides, will ensure adequate revenues and substantial profits to the shareholders.

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1.1 Objectives

Sales of JA$50M from tours and special events by the end of year three. Develop strong strategic alliances with suppliers, customers, regulators,

and competitors i.e. hotels, other tour companies, education and other government agencies.

Profit after taxes of 15% by the end of year three.

1.2 Mission

Jamaica Story Tours Ltd. (JST) is a tour guiding company that specializes in history, culture, and landform tour offerings. JST’s mission is to become the foremost provider of professional guided tours in Jamaica. JST seeks to ensure that its customers are educated and entertained by well-planned and relevant guided tours, which will enhance their knowledge base and sense of adventure.

1.3 Keys to Success

Successfully position JST as tour guide specialists.o Knowledgeable tour guides.o Use of Jamaica Tourist Board Approved destinations.

Develop a repeat-business base of loyal customers.o Delivery of memorable experiences.o Reliable and comfortable transportation.o Maintain a current database with customer profiles, contact

information. Communicate the differentiation and quality of our offering through media

and personal interaction i.e. testimonies of satisfied customers.o Personal sales and follow up.o Presentations at PTAs and other organizational staff meetings.

Develop credibility and association with important travel and tourism bodies e.g. CTO, CHA, JHTA, and AJAL.

Develop relationships with travel agents and tours both locally and abroad. Develop relationships with major event organizers. Ensure effectiveness of JST’s web site in generating interest in booking

tours. Demonstrate JST’s efficiency in marketing events, managing transfers and

accommodations before, during, and after major events.

2.0 Company Summary

JST is a professional tour guiding company. JST has positioned itself as a specialist in the field of curriculum driven tours for school children and currently generates the majority of its income from this segment. It specializes in provision of curriculum driven tours for school children in the Kingston and St. Andrew

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metropolitan area. JST shall become the industry leader with regards to edutainment tours for tourists and local social and business organizations, while expanding its student tour segment.

2.1 Company Ownership

JST is a limited liability company and is owned by XXX Holdings Ltd., XXXXXX and others.

2.2 Company Locations and Facilities

JST is currently located at XX Ruthven Rd., Kingston XX where it occupies a two-floor facility complete with foyer, clerical area, executive offices, a kitchenette and a conference room.

3.0 Services

JST provides guided tours and associated services to the educational, professional, and tourism market segments. Services and products include pre-arranged guided tours, basic transportation, tour planning management, and customized packages.

3.1 Service Description

JST is a full service tour guide company, which currently focuses on guided tours for curriculum driven school trips, and training for professional tour guides. We hope to quickly broaden our product to include exciting packages for local social, business and other groups, as well as stopover and cruise ship tourist tours. Services are to include:

1. Professional tour guide services, undertaken by personnel who are highly trained, and who are professional in their delivery and demeanor. They shall command respect and shall be adept at responding to the needs of guests whether it is information on the subject area, scheduling, safety, and security.

2. Tour Guide Training Services which will be a natural extension of our business and which will allow for creation of a critical mass of professional tour guides. The guides will serve the expanding tourism product and will form a natural pool from which JST will draw as it enters expansion mode.

3. Hotel Bookings and Ground Transfers i.e. provision of each service upon request or carry out both activities as part of vertical integration into vacation planning inclusive of accommodation, transportation, and tours.

4. Event Management, which will include the design, marketing, and implementation of events in collaboration with sponsors, and other partners.

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Events will range from cultural and historical commemorations, to fun events showcasing popular culture.

5. Information Management and Research of subject areas or topics on the history and culture of Jamaica. This service is being sought after by CXC and CAPE teachers who will benefit from the time saved. Tours shall be focused on deepening the information base and knowledge of guests via interaction and story telling.

The products to be offered include:

1. Culture and Historya. Plays i.e. Pantomimesb. Dance and Music Recitalsc. Historical Sitesd. Commemoration of cultural/ historical events at the actual historical sites.e. Cultural Extravaganzaf. Pirates Day.g. Heroes Week.h. Celebration of Independencei. Packaged Historical, Social Studies, Biology, and Geography Tours:

i. History1. Free village system 2. The people who came 3. Resistance and Revolt 4. Colonization and Assimilation

ii. Social Studies1. Government 2. Culture & Society 3. Blue Mountain National Park Resource Area 4. Tourism Features 5. Jamaica’s Architectural Heritage

iii. Geography1. Conservation 2. Limestone features 3. Tectonic Features

iv. Biology1. Micro organisms & the Environment

2. Sports and Entertainment

a. Track and Field events ~ local and internationalb. Caymanas Park race Dayc. Cricket ~ local and internationald. Soccer ~ local and international

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e. Golf tournamentsf. Stage Shows e.g. Reggae Sumfest, Sting, Jazz Shows, Rebel Salute (Jan

15, 2005), etc.g. Carnival

3. Multiday Packaged Tours

a. Ten (10) Day Tourb. Three (3) Day Island SIP Tour

Note: i. Product Offerings will be packaged specifically for different

groups and will vary across ages, nationalities, tastes, perceived knowledge base, etc.

ii. Our value adding, support services i.e. non revenue generating activities are:

1. Tour planning and package design based on the needs of the guest and to include:

a. Identification of the attraction/ point of interestb. Duration of tourc. Planning of tour routes and attraction stopsd. And all arrangements for lunch, payments to

attractions and hotels, and accommodations (where necessary)

2. Relationship management which is concerned with building long term relationships with:

1. Suppliersa. Attraction ownersb. Site guidesc. Caretakersd. Refreshment vendorse. Cultural performers i.e. folk dancers, mento

bandsf. Travel agents (local and overseas)g. Hotelsh. Other Tour companies (local and overseas)

2. Customersa. Schools, parents, teachersb. Touristsc. Local groups

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3.2 Competitive Comparison

The industry is competitive in that major tour guiding companies located on the north coast of Jamaica provide complete destination management services and in some cases has formed alliances with international tour operators. Destination management services include air and land transfers, concierge services, tours and event management. Some existing alliances include First Choice with Tropical Tours, Thomson Holidays with Tour Wise, and Virgin Holidays with Tour Wise and Jamaica Tours. Sun Ventures offers educational tours and has an established website.

JST has positioned itself as the premiere professional tour guiding company in Jamaica which focuses on knowledge transfer in a safe, entertaining atmosphere.

3.3 Sales Literature

JST publishes a calendar of events developed in conjunction with schools. Promotional letters for sponsors are generated for each event. JST will maintain a database from which customer/ contact information will be drawn. Additional literature such as direct mail, print ads, sales promotion materials will be utilized as needed. Advertorials in Air Jamaica’s “Sky Writings” and the major industry magazine, “Destination Marketing” are to be pursued.

3.4 Technology

JST will create a computerized platform for our clients’ database and accounting system, which will allow linkages to and compatibility with other software, and other database platforms.

Separate Training Programs will be designed for:

i. Ongoing staff training.ii. JST’s service offering as an Accredited Tour Guide Training

Organization.I

Forrester Research (highlighted in the U.S. Travel Industry Survey for 2003) indicates that:

… In 2002, about 26M U.S. households booked leisure travel online, an increase of 12% over the previous year. They spent U.S.$22.6 billion, almost 30% of their total leisure travel budgets for the year online. It is predicted that by 2007, the number of U.S. households buying leisure trips online will jump by 1/3 over the 2003 level, and their online travel spending will rise to almost U.S.$50 billion. Between January and May 2003, consumers spent U.S.$13 billion on online travel purchases, a 28% increase over the comparable period a year earlier. Traditional travel

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agencies will continue to lose share as hotel sales move online. They will represent just 18% of hotel sales in 2005, down from 21% in 2001.

JST has developed a website, XXXXXX which details the company’s offerings from an educational and tour package standpoint. We must move to increase its ability to do full bookings as the industry continues to migrate to online transactions.

3.5 Future Services

JST will increase the number of locations nationally as we more aggressively pursue other segments of the tourism industry e.g. attraction management, Destination Management, Accredited Tour Guide Training, and full service tours inclusive of accommodation, tours, and airline reservations. JST’s long-term goal is to establish itself as an internationally recognized provider of top of the line guided tours. This goal doesn’t prohibit JST from participating in additional segments. It does, however, provide a corporate focus and differentiated offering.

4.0 Marketing Analysis Summary

JST plans to focus its initial efforts on the school tour guide market in the Greater Kingston Metropolitan Area. This market is largely untapped and is uniquely placed for full exploitation. With the massive investment expected in additional rooms in the tourist industry over the next six years, it is important to establish a presence and be a first mover in the professional guided tour business segment. The local groups present a sizeable opportunity especially when viewed from the standpoint of slow, steady economic growth.

4.1 Market Segmentation

Potential target markets are:a. Local educational organizations.b. Overseas educational organizations.c. Tourists interested in culture, heritage, leisure, and ecotours.d. Local groups interested in culture, heritage, leisure, and ecotours.e. Tourists interested in sports and entertainment.f. Local groups interested in sports and entertainment.g. Returning residents and locals living overseas.

All these groups have to some degree expressed interest in the guided tours product offering and form the basis for JST’s short, medium, and long-term marketing strategy.

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4.1.1 Schools

a. Public Schools i.e. Primary, All Age, Junior High, and Secondary High:Public Schools. There are 214,000 children in 271 Schools Island wide. The initial thrust will be focused on schools in the parishes of Kingston, St. Andrew, and St. Catherine i.e. 27% of the total public school population or 57,780. Of these schools we will target the primary and high school children, which represent 77% of the 57,780 or 45,000.

b. Private i.e. High School, and Preparatory School:

Private Schools. There are 48,000 children attending private school in the Kingston, St. Andrew, and St. Catherine region. We will focus on Kindergarten, Preparatory and private high school children, which represent 44% of that population i.e. 21,120.

There are thus a total of 66,000 children earmarked for tours annually.

Note:School statistics detailing the school population by region and school type are taken from the Ministry of Education Website, http://www.moec.gov.jm/projects/.

4.1.2 Tourists

This important market consists of:

1. Cruise Ship Passengers i.e. Families; Groups – Churches, Organizations, Learning Institutions, and Conventions.

2. Stop Over Passengers i.e. Families; Business travelers; Groups – Churches, Organizations, Learning Institutions, and Conventions.

3. Returning residents and Locals Residing Overseas.

JST’s plan is to tap the vast potential of the stop over, cruise ship passenger, and locals residing overseas market for its educational and entertainment product offerings. The following is extracted from the Tourism Sector Study – Jamaica, found on the Profit Caribbean web site and JST business plan data. The largest market source for stopover visitors continues to be the United States of America, which accounted for approximately 73% of tourist arrivals during 2002, followed by the U.K. with 10%, and Canada, 8%. See Table 1, Annual Stopover Arrivals by Major Source Markets 1999 – 2003.

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Market 1999 % Share 2000 % Share 2001 % Share 2002 % Share 2003 % ShareUnited States 870019 69.7 942561 71.3 916681 71.8 925629 73.1 969699 71.8Canada 100338 8.0 107492 8.1 111158 8.7 97413 7.7 95265 7.1United Kingdom 124930 10.0 135338 10.2 127320 10.0 125859 9.9 149714 11.1Other European 83759 6.7 63641 4.8 53312 4.2 53230 4.2 68786 5.1Caribbean 38023 3.0 43971 3.3 40845 3.2 41138 3.2 42500 3.1Latin America 15635 1.3 14703 1.1 14815 1.2 11864 0.9 12400 0.9Japan 8411 0.7 7779 0.6 7859 0.6 4664 0.4 5100 0.4Other 7283 0.6 7205 0.5 4526 0.4 6569 0.5 6821 0.5Total 1248398 100.0 1322690 100.0 1276516 100.0 1266366 100.0 1350285 100.0

Table 1 - Annual Stopover Arrivals by Major Source Markets 1999 - 2003

The Key Hospitality Players in the Industry are:

Ritz-Carlton Hotels and Resorts (American) Super Clubs (Jamaican) Sandals Resorts (Jamaican, includes the Couples chain) Riu Hotels (Spanish) Hilton Group (British) Wyndham International (American) Holiday Inn Sun Spree (American)

4.1.3 Local Organizations

These organizations consist of Churches, Businesses, Lodges, Service Clubs, Non governmental organizations incl. Citizens groups, and Adult educational institutions.

4.2 Target Market Segment Strategy

JST’s strategy in the short term will be to focus on:

1. Public and private schools in the Kingston, St. Andrew, and St. Catherine metropolitan area where 27% of the public school population and 50% of the private school population is concentrated.

2. Tourists interested in culture and heritage, as well as sports and entertainment.

3. Local social, business and professional groups, interested in sports and entertainment, as well as culture and heritage.

4.2.1 Market Needs

The Ministry of Education has mandated that field trips be carried out as part of the school curriculum. Schools therefore need tours, which allow students to gain by experience, a better understanding of the subject material presented. Tourists and cruise ship operators have traditionally complained about a lack of new, innovative attractions which are exciting but secure, and which allow for an exciting look at Jamaica’s culture and history. This need will be further multiplied as the product is expanded. Local social, business and professional groups, require interestingly packaged and promoted tours, which are educational and entertaining. This group is yearning for refreshers and new lessons in history, geography and sociology.

4.2.2 Market Trends

As Jamaica’s economy slowly gains momentum and continues to register moderate growth, there will be an upward trend in foreign investment inflows and potential for increased business with overseas firms. Local businesses, especially

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those listed on the stock exchange, have been experiencing positive financials and are set to grow even more over the next few years. There will thus be a return to a larger social and team building approach within firms. We foresee an upsurge in interest in tours.

i. Schools

As the new school curriculum is implemented across secondary schools, there will be increased interest in the mandated field study component. If JST is proactive and designs each tour to accurately reflect the course intent, then our tours will be synonymous with guided School Tours.

ii. Tourists

The significant growth of U.S. arrivals in the year 2000 enabled the destination to record an over 6% growth in visitor numbers. As a result of considerably lower growth in the U.S. travel market in 2001, a consequence of lower economic growth and terrorist attacks, the performance of U.S. arrivals declined in 2001, but recovered in 2002. Performance of the U.K. and European markets were affected by the same factors.

There is a distinct positive correlation between hotel size and occupancy levels. Also, the all-inclusive sector of the hotel industry consistently outperforms the non all-inclusive group. For non all-inclusive and hotels under 100 rooms, occupancies are below levels required for viable operation.

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1999 2000 2001 2002

Average Occupancy 57.0 58.5 56.3 55.5Occupancy All - Inclusives 67.0 70.0 69.4 66.2Occupancy Non - All - Inclusives 41.0 39.3 35.1 38.3Occupancy Hotels > 200 Rooms 65.3 68.9 66.9 67.2

Occupancy Hotels > 100 Rooms < 200 Rooms 59.7 65.0 65.1 62.9

Occupancy Hotels > 50 Rooms < 100 Rooms 49.4 41.6 37.9 38.4Occupancy Hotels < 50 Rooms 37.9 36.9 31.9 29.9Ave. Length of Stay (Days) 10.3 10.1 10.2 10.2

Table 2: Hotel Occupancy by Type and size Category

Source: Jamaica Tourist Board

Average visitor expenditure grew by 2% to 3% per annum over the period 1992 to 2000, in U.S. dollars. While the Jamaica Master Plan for Sustainable Tourism Development projected an average growth rate from the year 2000, of 8%, the downturn in the tourism economy reflected in successive declines of 7.5% and 2% respectively in 2001 and 2002. This reversal of the moderate growth trend is directly related to the decline in performance of visitor arrivals as shown in Table 2.1 above. Expenditure performance improved in 2003 to US$1.329 billion, a 9.85% increase in 2002.

The U.S. Travel Industry Survey on Cruise Shipping Trends states:

In 2002, 13 vessels entered service. In 2003, 15 ships are expected to debut. In 2004 and 2005, 16 new ships are scheduled to enter service. In all through 2007, 44 ships are scheduled to enter CLIA member line fleets. In 2003, more than 216,000 lower beds were added to CLIA member fleets, up 10% from 2002. this will rise again by 10% in 2004 with the addition of 239,000 beds. By 2005, 240,000 more beds will be added, for an increase of 2.8%. Currently, 24% of U.S. adults have taken a cruise.

Having under-performed the Caribbean region as a whole for much of the 1990s, between 1998 and 2000, the Jamaican cruise industry recorded 34% growth, outperforming the Caribbean average growth rate of 27%. The economic slow down in the USA subsequently adversely affected cruise arrivals in 2001, compounded by the impact of the September 2001 terror attacks, which had the effect of diverting cruise business to destinations in even closer proximity to the USA, in particular the Bahamas and Mexico. Performance started to recover in 2002 and rebounded in 2003, with an almost 31% increase in arrivals (1,132,600 passengers) over 2002.

The markets to be targeted for tours in history and culture, as well as sports and entertainment are the UK and other European markets, as individuals in these

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Table 3: Total Visitor Expenditure 1992 - 2002

858942 972

1069 1092 11311197

12801333

1233 1209

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Years

US

$ M

illio

ns

markets tend to spend a much longer time in Jamaica. They are more adventurous, outgoing and more interested in the culture of the people.

4.2.3 Market Growth

Based on the upward trends, we foresee clear growth in the local business and professional groups, interested in sports and entertainment, as well as culture and heritage. In so far as the school tour market is concerned, the branding of JST as The School Trip Company will see phenomenal growth being experienced.

According to Price Waterhouse Coopers, in their “Jamaica Hotel Industry – 2004 Report”, the tourism sector is set to boom over the next six years with an additional 5,100 rooms slated for construction to bring the total number of rooms to 21,000 (See table 4 below). JST is uniquely placed to capitalize on the tremendous benefits to be derived, especially in the Ocho Rios area, which, is slated for an additional 3,500 rooms over the next six years, thereby far surpassing Montego Bay as resort area with the most rooms. Also, with the advent, in another two years, of the Highway 2000 leg from Bushy Park, St. Catherine to Ocho Rios will become an easy commute from the south coast.

Table 4: Projected room expansion in tourism over the next six years.

The 2004 Hotel Industry Report also indicates that:There are at least 15,966 (2003 - 15,419) hotel rooms available for occupancy in Jamaica at 31 March 2004, an increase of approximately 3.5%. The number of hotel rooms in the island, including those unavailable for occupancy due to closure, refurbishing or other reasons is 16,844. We estimate that approximately 878 rooms or 5.2% of Jamaica’s hotel rooms are idle at March 2004. If these rooms were in operation, we estimate that this could create up to 1,100 jobs.

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A total of 4,998 (2003 - 5,077) or 31% (2003 - 33%), of the available rooms, are located in Montego Bay. Ocho Rios accounts for 4,028 (2003 - 4,036) of the market, which is 25% (2003 - 26%) of the total. Negril’s room count has increased to 4,521 from 3,960 in 2003. This 14.2% increase is primarily due to the construction of the 420 room, Club Riu Negril. Kingston is next with 1,544 rooms and the South Coast and Port Antonio follow with 474 and 401 rooms respectively.

Kingston, the South Coast and Port Antonio account for 15% of available rooms island wide. We estimate that approximately 8,469 (53%) of the 5,966 rooms are operated on an all-inclusive basis while 7,497 (47%) are operated as European Plan (EP). Of the 9,927 rooms in the category of 100 rooms or more, 79.4% are all-inclusive and 20.6% are EP.

Table 5. Share of Market by number of rooms

Again, it is clear from the Price Waterhouse Coopers report that the potential for growth in the tour guide market is greatest in the Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, and Negril areas as these areas command the lions share of hotel rooms island wide. JST expansion will thus be into hotels in Ocho Rios, then those in Montego Bay and Negril.

4.3 Service Business Analysis

Tour guiding internationally is a growing business as the number of persons interested in traveling to historic, religious, and culturally stimulating sites worldwide is increasing. With the increase in terrorism in European and Middle Eastern Countries, we are already seeing a substantial increase in tour activity in the Latin American and Caribbean markets. It is clear therefore that the school market is set to be overrun by the stopover and cruise shipping tourist segment.

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4.3.1 Business Participants

JST has approximately eleven competitors in Jamaica with the vast majority focused mainly on transportation for tourists. Professional tour guiding is a niche segment which we hope to capture, thus differentiating ourselves from the regular tour companies that do some tour guiding on occasion.

4.3.2 Distribution Patterns

The primary distribution pattern is currently from JST to the consumer. Thus, sales are conducted directly with the schools and other organizations requiring tour services. JST will increase the patterns to include JST to Industry Organizations, bookings via our web site, jamaicastorytours.com, and joint ventures with preferred suppliers/ travel agencies.

4.3.3 Competition and Buying Patterns

The main competitors to school guided tours are visits to the beach, and trips to museums, etc. using parents’ transportation. For tourists, there are the transportation tours to well established leisure sites i.e. Dunn’s River Falls, Green Grotto, etc. For the local social, professional, and business groups, it is the provision of a rental car, JUTA bus, or the use of personal vehicles for group trips. The members of this group might opt to spend the money for a trip on other more pressing concerns.

4.3.4 Main Competitors

1. Schoolsa. JUTA toursb. Leisure for Pleasurec. Sun Venture Tours

2. Touristsa. Jamaica Toursb. My Jamaican Placesc. JUTA toursd. Tropical tourse. Sun Venture toursf. My Jamaica Escapes

3. Local Organizationsa. JUTA toursb. Leisure for Pleasurec. Cosmo Toursd. Great Vacations

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Note:1. JUTA tours are enlisted by schools to transport school groups with teachers

doing the actual tour guide duties.2. Leisure for Pleasure Tours routinely hires a JST tour guide to do guided tours.

5.0 Strategies and Implementation Summary

In order to reach its goal of becoming Jamaica’s premiere guide tour company, JST will adopt the following strategy:

1. Establish JST’s reputation as a differentiated, specialty provider of tour guide services, tour guide training services, and tour transportation services. This will be done through a marketing program at the target markets, utilizing the appropriate media.

2. Provide unparalleled service to the local and international market in order to gain repeat business and build trust.

3. Aggressively promote products and services offered and position the company as the only logical choice in providing the high quality service required.

5.1 Value Proposition

JST’s value proposition emanates from its experience with and love of tour guiding. Its employees are confident in their ability to meet the needs of their customers because they share their enthusiasm in visiting new places and learning new and interesting things. The development of long term relationships and trust are an obvious by-product.

5.2 Competitive Edge

JST’s competitive edge is its focus, passion, and experience. JST will promote and provide access to diverse guide touring options. JST provides a differentiated offering with the management experience, capital, and commitment to make it work.

5.3 Marketing Strategy

JST provides much more than tour guiding, it provides adventure, discovery, and the efficient dissemination of knowledge. JST adheres to the theory that the goal of business is to create and keep customers. Its marketing strategy will reflect this goal as it builds its reputation in the Jamaican market.

JST will embark on a program of aggressively building relationships with both its suppliers and customers. This will be done through its Customer Relationship Management system. The CRM is about the automation of manual systems which capture customer likes, dislikes, family status, economic levels, demographics,

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birthdays, anniversaries, and types of travel customer is interested in taking in the future. These databases can be used to systematically keep in touch with customers in a planned and scheduled way. These databases also allow for quick searches for qualified candidates to match promotions, new tours, etc.

Cycle marketing will also be practiced among the different target markets i.e. starting with the initial booking, which generates a thank-you-for-your-booking-we-value-your-business email. When clients return from a trip, they are greeted with a welcome-home email, a welcome-home direct mail piece, and a phone call. The email is more than a thank you; it also invites the customer to review the trip by clicking on a link embedded in the email, which can then be posted on the web site. The reviews are edited to ensure proper language and post them as being written by the customer. It is important to contact a customer within 3, 6, or 12 months after their last tour as this is when they will want to book another. “Don’t touch a client unless you have something to sell to him”.

Schools

1. A database to be developed of all schools, contact persons, all tours done with each school over the last six months (longer if information is available).

2. Matrix to be developed which shows schools vs. attractions and will show distance and cost of transportation and guide service.

3. Develop concise, comprehensive school calendar, which would have been generated after considering the various competing events for the year.

4. Determine the extent of the market to be penetrated and timing over each year of the 3 – yr. planning period.

5. Develop sales contact plan for schools through direct presentation to teachers and principals, or via school groupings. Contacts must be done at least four times per year with each school contact and each contact must be an attempt at a sale.

Tourism

1. Target and set up tour desks in the larger, all-inclusive and EP hotels (incl. RIU) and develop contact listings and databases of size, philosophy, room types, target markets.

2. Determine the level of market penetration to be accomplished over each year of the three-year plan period.

3. Develop matrix for hotels / attractions complete with distance, length of tour, and costing.

4. Develop marketing strategy for each of the hotels and the attractions and package each plan for use i.e. advertising strategy, monies to be spent, results expected vs. results achieved, the resource, and the schedule required to achieve the results. The pricing, promotional, sales and distribution strategies will flow from this matrix.

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Local social, business, or professional organizations

1. Target the various associations i.e. churches, lodges, companies, service clubs, professional societies e.g. Jamaica Institution of engineers, Jamaica Geological Society, etc. Develop contact listings and databases of sizes, philosophy, interests, etc.

2. Determine the level of market penetration to be accomplished over each year of the three-year plan period.

3. Develop matrix for organizations / attractions complete with distance, length of tour, and costing.

4. Develop marketing strategy for each of the associations and package each plan for use i.e. advertising strategy, monies to be spent, results expected vs. results achieved, the resource, and the schedule required to achieve the results.

5. Develop sales contact plan for associations and organizations whether via direct presentation to managers or directors, or to group organizations e.g. PSOJ, JEF, Lodges, etc. Contacts must be done at least four times per year with each contact and each contact must be an attempt at a sale.

5.3.1 Pricing Strategy

JST’s pricing shall be determined by the market and as such shall be competitive. Price elasticity of demand varies across target segments. Schools are usually price sensitive with the degree of elasticity decreasing as you move to tourist, and then business traveler. Each tour will have to be priced based on size of bus, comfort level of bus, distance to be traveled, length of tour, type of service provided i.e. all-inclusive, transfer only, tour guiding only, or transfer and tour guiding, and competitor pricing. The average price for school tours is set at JA$821/ person for a full trip. For adults, the proposed average price per person is JA$1,200.00 per person.

U.S. Travel Industry Survey indicates that Dynamic Packaging is being used by online packagers to offer consumers better discounts since they protect the pricing integrity of suppliers (air, hotel and/or car rentals) and give a better deal than if purchased separately.

JST as part of its thrust into tour management must begin to partner with travel agencies regarding the provision of bundled supply chain management travel services.

5.3.2 Promotion Strategy

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Pirates Day was held in June 2004 and is slated for June 2005. A detailed review of the lessons learnt from this year’s production will be done and will form the basis for future events of this nature.

The next major event will be the Cultural Extravaganza in November 2004. This event will showcase Jamaican culture and focus on the various groups that contributed to the growth and development of our unique culture represented by our food, clothing, language, religious practices, and music.

Familiarization Trips and destination training will be held with key members of each of the three main target groups. The familiarization trip for schoolteachers, principals and other education officials is slated for late September 2004.

Destination training seminars, which will include site visits, be organized for travel agents and other key promoters. Studies have indicated that 82% of persons trained will more actively promote market destinations they are trained in.

Within the tourist market, there is a tremendous potential for entry into the Meeting, Convention & Incentive market. Roughly 27% of all U.S. hotel guests are generated by the MCI sector.

5.3.3 Distribution Strategy

JST’s distribution strategy will focus on the target market i.e. school guide tour market. Alliances with travel agents will be key tool in establishing JST as a national and regional guide tour entity. The 2003 Travel Industry Survey suggests that:

Flyers (23%) and emails (22%) are the most commonly used marketing vehicles, followed by newspaper ads (16%), Web sites (13%) and newsletters (11%). Less commonly used methods include charity or community events (6%), travel nights (4%), radio ads (3%) and telemarketing (2%). Interestingly, some marketing methods that are used less frequently are as or more effective than methods that are employed more often. Although flyers and emails result in a substantial proportion of bookings (22% and 17% respectively), other lesser-used methods are quite successful. Although agencies report on average they used newspaper ads for 16% of their marketing efforts, this method resulted in bookings about a quarter of the time.

JST will focus on the print and radio media for the local market, and the international and tourism industry print media for tourists. JST advertising will be done through Air Jamaica’s “Sky Writings” magazine, Jamaica Destination magazine, and other specialty publications. Flyers and emails will also be used to supplement the other methods indicated.

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JST will provide literature with information about our tours and other activities during the aforementioned launch and at each of our special events.

5.3.4 Marketing Programs

1. An annual events calendar with the important milestones for the school year 2004 – 2005 has been published and is to be distributed to schools. A similar calendar must be produced with events tailored to tourists and local adult organizations. These calendars will be carefully researched to ensure that conflicts with other events are minimized and that event quality is sustained.

2. The school market will be reached via meetings with principals, teachers, PTAs. There will also be meetings with umbrella groups i.e. the Jamaica Teachers Association, and the Jamaica Independent Schools Association. Presentations to staff meetings will be used to explain the process, the prices, and the special deals. A familiarization tour is planned for late September 2004 to facilitate school sector buy in. There will be follow up calls as well as distribution of the aforementioned events calendar to students and teachers as a reminder of special events hosted by JST.

3. The local business, social, and other groups shall be targeted via cross selling among students on school trips. Students will be given brochures for their parents. Special awards for facilitating adult group trips will be offered. Presentations to the various groups at their organizational meetings will be done aided by Microsoft Power Point and video presentations outlining the services and tours offered.

4. For the tourist industry, presentations and special promotions will be done and alliances formed with Hotel chains, other tour companies, and travel agents. Industry and general print media will be utilized in convincing the various target markets to widen their experience of Jamaica by participating in conveniently planned guided tours.

5. Our web site, www.jamaicastorytours.com, is designed to provide information on the company, promote Jamaica’s uniqueness and diversity, the various tour offerings, and to facilitate bookings and tour purchases. The annual events calendar is to be posted on the site as a guide to future events. This will greatly assist in overseas queries and tour purchases.

5.4 Sales Strategy

JST sells the concept of knowledge through experience and plans to satisfy the customer. Satisfied customers lead to reduced costs and increased profits in the long run. It is less expensive to maintain a relationship than it is to develop a new one.

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5.5 Strategic Alliances

Strategic sales and promotional alliances will be developed and maintained with our competitors, industry resources, suppliers and customers. These alliances will be strengthened by the development of relationships outlined in our marketing strategy.

Our suppliers include attraction owners and their employees, food vendors, cultural performers, travel agents, etc. our customers include tourists, hotels, other tour companies, airlines, cruise shipping lines, travel agents, local organizations, and schools. Industry resources include the JHTA, The Heritage Trust, the Jamaica Tourist Board, JAMPRO, and TPDCo. Membership in appropriate industry forums will facilitate the partnerships and enhance the communication necessary to ensure a win-win relationship.

The development of preferred supplier arrangements is growing internationally. According to the 2003 Travel Industry Survey:

Fully 70% of all travel agency sales revenue is due to preferred suppliers. The preferred supplier split is cruise (22%), tours (19%), air (16%), hotels (8%) and car rental (5%)…Consortia have really changed tactics in the last few years…the pitch today is value added – the selling tools, training, marketing support, technology, and networking within the group…In addition to new and better technology, harnessing the power of the internet and the ability to profile and reach the customer, both agent and supplier are searching out the best partnerships and are being very picky about it.

JST shall look at developing preferred supplier relationships with travel agencies and attraction owners and develop incentives with its partners i.e. joint marketing, advertising, trade publication updates, dedicated portion of websites, fax updates on special offers, familiarization trips, special training, and customer referrals.

Again, the U.S. Travel Industry Survey suggests:

“…What with the economic down turn in the U.S. and the aftermath of 9-11, people are generally staying closer to home i.e. Alaska, Hawaii, and the Caribbean…there is a permanent dent in business travel. Travel agencies are being transformed into Travel Management Companies, which capture and analyze data for clients. They are leveraging technology to bring information to the business traveler thereby reducing the hassles of life on the road in an increasingly uncertain travel environment”.

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5.6 Milestones

JST’s important milestones are detailed in the Annual Events Calendar. They will be used as a way of marketing the company’s event driven products and in measuring JST’s success in reaching its goals.

6.0 Management Summary

XXXXXX will perform the role of Director/ President and CEO and will be in control of the day-to-day affairs of Jamaica Story Tours Ltd.

6.1 Organizational Structure

Director/ President and CEO: XXXXX.Director/ Training and Product Development Manager: XXXXXX.

Director: XXXXXX

6.2 Personnel Plan

The personnel plan depicts JST’s current headcount. JST will increase its personnel requirements, especially tour guides, over the next 2-3 years as it aggressively pursues a sustained increase in market share and profitability.

The company will again organize for the training of professional tour guides with a view to ramping up its guide service capability and improving the quality of guided tours. The training will be done in accordance with the company’s expansion strategy to ensure value for training dollars spent.

The company library will be outfitted with the appropriate hard copy and electronic literature as research and tour development work will have to be enhanced. Research into the historical and cultural preferences of European tourists will be done to accommodate the expected increases in this market over the next five to ten years.

The company will move towards a pay for performance incentive strategy for as many of the employees as possible. Each staff member will be given a list of goals and objectives and asked to state the resource requirements to make the targets set. The progress towards obtaining the goals will be monitored closely using well-defined metrics and pay scales and incentive schemes developed to reward excellence and contributions to development of the firm. Among the necessary attributes of the sales, marketing and other staff shall be sales attitude, Internet and email savvy, specialty knowledge, and knowledge of the various database systems in place.

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Table 6. Personnel

Position Current 2005 2006

Chief Executive Officer 1 1 1Training/ Product Develop. Mgr. 1 1 1Director 1 1 1Marketing & Research 1 1 1Sales Executive 1 1 1Operations Manager/ Snr. Tour Guide 1 1 1Administrative Assistants 2 3 3Tour Guide (Staff) 1 3 7

Tour Guide (Contractor) 3 3 4Total 12 15 20

7.0 Financial Plan

In order to achieve the ambitious task of business turnaround, JST will have to capitalize further with the phased purchase of an additional two buses and increase its staff of tour guides commensurate with the degree of tour expansion required over the next three years. The sales strategy indicates a substantial increase in tour quantities. A graph of actual tours to date and proposed tours over a two-year period is shown in Table 5 below. The financials will have to match this expansion strategy.

Table 7. Tour Schedule January 2004 – December 2005.

7.1 Important Assumptions

JST assumes the following:

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Jamaica Story Tours - Quantity of Tours

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23

Months (Jan 04 - Dec 05)

No

. o

f to

urs

Local

Tourists

Students

Market growth projections for the tourist sector are accurate. National economic conditions, currently delicately poised, will not experience

significant decline in the next five years. Interest rates will continue to be reduced. The current school curriculum will not be significantly changed with regards to

mandatory site visits for students.

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