If one item needs to be identified, implementing which would have the highest impact on tourism growth, my view is very clear that it is Signages and Interpretation boards alone that the tourist destinations need to be plastered with, for bringing about a never before positive impact on tourism.
Former MD, Madhya Pradesh Tourism
I had a free run as the Head Domo (in three different stints) of Tourism in the state of Madhya Pradesh, better known as the Heart of Incredible India, this beautiful state let me and my team experiment with various facets of tourism development and in the process relish the catalyzing impact that they triggered. And the impact was phenomenal for the state that then emerged as a force to reckon with on the national tourism scene for the first time, now continues to be the frontrunner amongst states regarded as major players in the tourism domain.
During my first stint with tourism, in the federal ministry of tourism, I learnt the tremendous value of the 5S of tourism, namely Soochna or Information, Suvidha or Facilitation, Suraksha or Security, Sanrachna or Infrastructure and Sahyog or Co-operation.
Without Soochna or information, tourist sites fail to make the desired impact on the roving tourist who also feels dissatisfied with the overall experience. And Soochna is therefore the first stop that the tourism bodies need to handle diligently.
There are various ways to convey Soochna or Information, with the print media, electronic media and now social media being the primary modes. During my stint with Madhya Pradesh, the tagline “Hindustan KaDil” stuck, and played a major role in truly conveying the essence of the state. The rise thereafter of the state in the tourism space was therefore a natural corollary. The best offshoot however, besides the growth in tourism, that the catchy tagline led to, were the gains made by the state in attracting private investment in other sectors too. This was fueled primarily by the high visibility of the tagline and the positive image of the state that it conveyed.
Coming back to signages and interpretation boards.
The first and the most prominent kind is road signage that basically point out the tourist places coming ahead, the distance thereof and thereby, besides keeping the tourist on the right track, keep his interest and the journey alive and bubbling with excitement. These signages are vital for tourism to prosper and therefore the imperative need to plaster almost all roads, the national and state highways and even lesser roads to adequately display quality signages of tourist destinations. This is what we did in the state of Madhya Pradesh by first making a master plan of road signages and implementing them in a time bound manner, so one could not travel anywhere on the state roads without bumping into a Madhya Pradesh Tourism signage that conveyed tourist destinations coming ahead. This also led to an enhanced branding of the state tourism body and helping tourism to emerge as a top of the mind recall for almost everyone. Cantilever, across the road overhead signages and standalone signages by the roadside covered the entire gamut of the signages required to remind the tourist of the tourist sites on the way and keep his interest alive.
The unique stone signages – at many archaeological sites including ones in Vidisha District we came across ancient stone signages, signages that were easily over a hundred years old. We therefore decided to experiment with heavy stone signages that would last as long. Such signages were provided at many archaeological sites of the state that attracted tourists.
Another successful experiment was to put huge stainless steel interpretation boards at city centers (in Bhopal it was placed at the boat club) that detailed tourist destinations within the city and also within driving distance of the city. The interpretation board at the boat club detailed Sanchi, Bheembetka, tourist spots in nearby Vidisha and tourist sites within the lake city of Bhopal. Such SS Boards became extremely popular with tourists who could at one location find details of tourist sites within and around the city and contributed to a rapid increase in intra state tourism.
Interpretation boards at tourist destinations that were installed in large numbers, covering important tourist sites of the state also played a major role in the growth of tourism, for it is interpretation alone that defines a tourist destination.
Tremendous and rapid proliferation in signages and interpretation boards contributed to the rise of the state of Madhya Pradesh, almost like a Goliath, in the field of tourism.
And there is no rocket science involved, it is a simple, powerful and very effective strategy that can easily be implemented on the ground. Other tourism bodies can take a cue from the heart of Incredible India and plaster their states with signages and interpretation boards.
Let tourism prosper!
