TheBestofZambia.com selling Zambian tourism online

Through the power of twitter I’ve been able to monitor Sara Brown retweet stories about Zambia that I publish on the blog. This in turn led me to follow her and visit her website to figure out what it’s all about. Though currently based in the UK, she is actively involved with TheBestofZambia.com which promotes tourism in Zambia.

Tell us about yourself, when were you born and where are you based?

• Born in Monze a little town in Zambia in 1981 to Zambian dad (Joseph Brown) and English mum (Julia Brown).
• Lived on a farm in Chilanga, just outside Lusaka until I was 5 then moved to Luansobe Farming Block (in the middle of nowhere between Ndola, Luanshya and Kapiri Mposhi) in 1986
• Home schooled for primary school
• Went to Chengelo Secondary School
• Moved to the UK in 1999
• Achieved a 1st class degree in Graphic Communication and Illustration from the University of Wolverhampton in 2005
• Currently, I am based in the UK although I have just returned from a 6 week trip to Zambia. (Concerning my four business partners, Jessica and Lily are based in Zambia, Joseph has been in Zambia since January and Julia is about to return for another 2 months!)

What is your business all about and what inspired it?

• The Best of Zambia is an initiative run by Papayi Graphic and Web Designing Ltd in Zambia which is owned and run by our family – Joseph Brown (Dad), Julia (Mum), Jessica (Sister), Lily (cousin) and myself
• The idea for www.thebestofzambia.com was born out of a conversation between Joseph, Jessica and cousin Lily when my Dad returned to Zambia for a personal visit. Development of the concept started in March 2008. During 2008 Julia, Joe and myself turned it into a working business model, designed the website and did the copy writing. In September 2008 we conducted market research. All this took place  as we continued providing graphic and web design solutions to our UK clients.
• The Best of Zambia was inspired by being proudly Zambian, knowing what Zambia could offer if only it could communicate effectively, and knowing that we have the skills to make this happen
• The Best of Zambia is about connecting individuals, businesses and other organisations with the services they are looking for via the web
• Our initial launch focuses specifically on the tourism industry so its aim is to connect Zambian based service providers in the tourism industry (accommodation providers, travel agents, restaurants, transport providers etc) with potential visitors to Zambia
• Zambia has a lot to offer potential visitors who want a destination that is still relatively untouched and yet has a vast amount to enjoy – like Victoria Falls, safaris with rich animal populations, and a great cultural experience
• 85% of people use the web exclusively or in conjunction with off-line resources to schedule such things as hotel reservations, but very little of what Zambia has to offer is actually online.

What were you doing before launching your business and when was it launched?

• After graduating in 2005 I worked for two companies as a Graphic Designer, in marketing and magazine design respectively. I went freelance in 2007, offering design led communications solutions to start up and small businesses
• I went into a business partnership with Joseph and Julia Brown, and incorporated the business as Sarabrown Ltd in late 2008
• www.thebestofzambia.com launched officially in January 2009 when we set up an office in Zambia. We began introducing the idea to Zambian service providers to get more subscribers to our site. We also began to build awareness of the site online, promoting it with search engines and link building through online social networking tools.

How did you know there is a market for your business?

• Online research revealed that there was not a lot of information about Zambia online. What there was lacked quality. From personal experience we knew that what Zambia had to offer travellers was far more than was being presented on line. E.g. TripAdvisor.com – the largest travel community on the web, with 30m unique visitors p m only lists a handful of places to stay in Zambia, and just 3 activities around Victoria Falls. Travelocity.com – the world’s largest online travel company, with 21m registered members – Zambia not even listed as a possible destination. Expedia.co.uk – lists 80,000 properties worldwide just 15 of them are in Zambia – less than 0.02% – & Zambia not listed as a holiday package destination
• The market research trip in Sept 2008 identified that Zambian service providers were recognising they needed to market themselves online. It also revealed that there was not really any serious competition ‘in the field’ as yet.
• The facts and figures also backed our idea – A massive 43% of online purchases are travel. Travel remains the #1 on-line retail category. Travel will grow to $119 billion by 2010. Luxury holiday market continues to perform well – 82% of ‘GenY’ adventure travellers put destination before budget. “If you’re out to experience the ‘real’ Africa, Zambia is that diamond in the rough” The Lonely Planet Website. “The Victoria Falls are among the most spectacular waterfalls in the world.” UNESCO.org (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural)
• Putting all this together we realised that the challenge was not the product (Zambia and what it had to offer) – the challenge was communicating Zambia to the world. We saw this challenge as an opportunity.

What is your opinion of booking engines to your business model?

• One of our key selling points is that we are commission free. Our model is simply to be a connector – putting the right information about Zambia into the hands of people searching for adventure travel experiences in countries that offer ‘the road less travelled’. To achieve this we have an enquiry form on each of our client’s web pages on our site. We forward enquiries on to our clients for them to respond to. And we track the business we give our clients.
• Our income currently comes from Zambian service providers who pay a yearly subscription fee to be on our site. We are also now developing sales from advertising.
• Currently booking systems do not fit into our model. This could possibly change in the future.

What planning did you engage before launching?

• We did a lot of online research of what was online, assessing any direct competition and other similar sites developed for other destinations.
• We took advise from business advisors in the UK who helped us formulate a business plan, marketing plan and the market research trip.
• Joseph went to Zambia in September/October 2008 to test out the concept on a well thought out market research trip.

How many people do you employ?

• Currently just one employee in Zambia – Kudata, a wonderful administrator who was a great find and who plays a huge part in our business.
• We are currently recruiting quality sales people in Zambia.

Besides www.thebestofzambia.com do you own any other domain(s)?

• Yes! www.sarabrown.co.uk our graphic and web design company.
• We have 2 other online business sites under development.
• We also own 9 domain names for other African countries.

Are tourism operators in Zambia welcoming to the idea to selling online?

• Generally when we explain the concept of www.thebestofzambia.com the reception is welcomed by 95% of tourism operators. Others find the concept very new and take time to understand the benefits.
• There are always a small percentage of people who say they don’t need it as they have functioned fine without it – we believe that many of them will come on board eventually.
• Originally we hoped to sell our yearly subscriptions online. Although we have that facility, there is definitely resistance in Zambia to paying online. Many businesses there do not have the right card for online payments. Those that do are suspicious of paying online. Generally the sales process takes longer than we thought originally, partly due to cultural factors – people expect a personal meeting initially; they don’t expect to have to pay immediately etc.

Given an opportunity to start all over again, what would you do differently in launching your business and why?

• We would not do much differently except possibly continue to remain focussed on our other design business. It takes time to build a business, especially in Zambia which has a slower pace and especially when the team needs to be split over two continents.

What do you like and dislike about the tourism industry?

• I like the fact that I’m involved in something I love – travel.
• I like the fact that potentially we are helping to make a positive shift in the way that tourism is developed in Zambia
• I like the fact that the tourism industry, particularly in Africa, is a growth industry and therefore constantly offering marketing new opportunities
• I don’t like the fact that we have to educate everyone about our online marketing opportunity (even people who should know better). Although this could be seen as a positive because we are playing such a crucial role!
• Although it’s nice that people want to meet you, it would be more cost effective for everyone if tourism operators would be willing to do business over the phone and via the web and email! But there is an element of distrust and people want to see you and assess  you before they will do business for you. But this makes our job that much more challenging because Zambia is a very big country!

How do you unwind after a busy day in the office?

• When you are setting up a business taking time off can be challenging! But we believe in what we do and that there will be a pay off when we can all relax a little.
• However, in answer to your question, I can only speak for myself. I love to spend time outdoors, reading and spending time with family round a table packed with great food (except we often talk about our business plans)! I also enjoy travelling even if it’s just a weekend away.

How do you market your portal?

• We have seized opportunities to partner with tourism agents in Zambia and are very pleased to be involved in the first Zambia Tourism Awards. The awards website is hosted on the Best of Zambia website. Those wanting to find out more go through our home page, raising our profile in Zambia. We are benefitting from working closely with the Tourism Council of Zambia and the World Bank on these awards. This gives us credibility with Zambian tourism operators. We are also benefitting from the media coverage surrounding the Awards event.
• We market online through Twitter, blogs and writing E-zine articles (I have expert author status with E-zine). Twitter in particular has helped us develop key relationships.
• We haven’t so far used more traditional forms of advertising like specific magazines in Zambia and in particular respected travel magazines. We may do so in the future.

What are your short and long-term business plans?

• Short term: To grow our customer profile in Zambia – both Best of Zambia clients and design clients.
• Long term: To raise awareness of Zambia to an international audience and expand the website. To expand into other African markets.

Is your business affected by the current economic climate?

• Our paying clients are Zambian service providers. We offer a very cost effective service and most recognise that during tough times it’s even more important to market your product well.
• Although in general less people are travelling, Zambia’s niche markets, the adventure travel and luxury sectors, are less affected by the economic crisis.

In your opinion, which sectors of the tourism industry in Zambia still provide untapped business opportunities?

• Responsible tourism – sustainable tourism, eco-tourism and community-based tourism
• Several geographical areas of Zambia are largely inaccessible to visitors and yet have huge tourist potential due to the selection of animals and birds there -  Liuwa Plains, Bangweulu Swamps etc.
• The ‘Emerald Season’ – in the past tourist traffic stops at the beginning of the rains in October / November until April the following year as gravel roads become impassable and destinations inaccessible. This makes up half the year! But things are beginning to change – see Dale Morris’ article on a February trip to Luangwa in the latest Travel Africa magazine – we blogged about it at http://tinyurl.com/owngla
• Destination management and transportation – especially visa acquisition, flights and transfers.

Related Stories

• 80% of our bookings are online – Chanters Lodge
• Tour operators fight back against online competition
• Sure Corporate packages business travel on a single online platform
• Trends and opportunities for online booking of holidays
• Tourism websites underperforming

FREE  for 30 days

 Email This  Print This