Online platform to boost rural tourism in Yangzhou

A group of students from the Business College of Yangzhou University recently paid a 20-day visit to 42 rural tourist spots in Yangzhou, to analyze the current situation of Yangzhou rural tourism. 

The visit was also aimed at collecting information for the establishment of an online marketing platform for local rural tourism. 

"We found several common problems such as the homogeneity of tourism products and some individual problems involving transportation and land during the research. We also went to the Yangzhou Tourism Bureau to learn more about rural tourism from a macroscopic perspective," added Zhao Zhongyan, leader of the research team.

After analysis, the team will apply the research results into the development of a Wechat mini program named "Xiao Jiao Ya" (little footprint).

The mini program, expected to launch by the end of the year, is established to be a comprehensive guide to rural tourist spots in Yangzhou and promote some of the lesser known spots to a bigger audience.

The information collected by the research team will be included in the mini program, such as the capacity of the tourist spots, the activities on offer, and the quality of services.

The research team has also stated their intention to embark in future cooperation with the relevant people in charge of some rural tourist spots and many of them have shown their interest.

"With people's consumption levels continuing to rise, the demand of the tourism market is steadily changing. Nowadays, more and more people are choosing rural spots for their vacation, which has increased the potential for development opportunities in rural tourism," said Professor Zhang Yawei from Business College of Yangzhou University, instructor of the team.