If you suffer from travel envy, meeting Dominic Rowell is not a good idea. As one might expect from Lonely Planet’s global marketing director, he’s not short of tales from exotic destinations. Island-hopping in the Maldives, trekking in Thailand (his favourite destination) and going to a rave in a Namibian desert at the turn of the millennium - it’s the sort of background you’d expect for the man who oversees one of the world’s most popular travel brands.
Even his CV reflects the restless nature of a backpacker. He cut his teeth in the UK’s food and drink sector, but since 2005 has not stayed at one company for long, with a six-month stint agency-side at Leo Burnett preceding his latest move. At Lonely Planet, however, the signs are he’ll be sticking around. For a start, he’s moved half way round the world for the job, transplanting himself, his wife and his 18-month-old daughter to Melbourne, where the brand is based. Then there’s the fact that a second child is on the way.
The pressures of work and family, he admits, will curb his wanderlust (contrary to expectation, he has not yet travelled greatly with his job). “These days everything is a little more short-haul.”
This transition is exactly the dilemma Lonely Planet faces. The brand began as a backpackers’ handbook in 1972, but has had to grow with its audience. “We could project ourselves as a brand for young backpackers. But that backpacker from the 70s - like me - now has a couple of kids and a mortgage. We still want to travel and see the world, but it may have to be less time consuming and accommodate kids.”
This realisation has led to the launch of new products that help Lonely Planet - with more than 500 titles and 93 million books sold - maintain its lead in its sector. Among these is the Encounter Guide, a condensed look-book for travellers getting away for a weekend, and a phrasebook mobile application for the iPhone.
Rowell’s role is, he says, “about charting a course for Lonely Planet that will make us super-relevant to our consumers”.
In practice, that means looking at the potential of the brand to enter new countries, new channels to market and new consumers. It also means co-ordinating marketing teams in Singapore, Melbourne, London and San Francisco. Lonely Planet does not use agencies, and has no plans to do so. “It’s important that the creative judgment stays with the regional guys, where our tone of voice and initiative is close to the local consumer. At a global level we set the brand parameters so we’re consistent with our values and strategic goals.”
A year ago, Lonely Planet was purchased by the BBC for a reputed £100 million (US$147 million), giving the company extra clout as it expands its media presence. “It gives us a really good strategic partner who share our values, such as integrity and accuracy,” says Rowell. “It brings a lot of multimedia expertise to the table.”
Multimedia is now a key issue, given the amount of information online and the growth of travel recommendations by users rather than by ‘official’ reviewers. The books, insists Rowell, still have “a massive role to play”, given that they remain the most portable source of information. Online, however, can complement this. Lonely Planet has set out to turn its 40 million web users into a community where people can ask others for information. “The most exciting thing is that we’ll will tap into that community and learn from their expertise, passion and experiences,” he says.
There are old-media opportunities too; in the UK Lonely Planet has launched a magazine “to interact with our consumers more frequently and more deeply”. There are no plans yet to bring that to Asia, though Rowell says it remains a possibility.
In Asia, Lonely Planet’s big opportunity lies in the growing tourist sectors in China and India. At present the brand does not cater to this audience. Rowell envisages that changing, but has no concrete plans yet. “We’re out there, we’re learning. Our experiences and what we hear from Indian and Chinese travellers and our local trade partners will help us evolve those plans.”
Yet he insists the brand will never be right for the package tourist. “You have to have a spirit of adventure to get Lonely Planet,” Rowell says. “Whether you’re the gap-year backpacker or the marketing director of Lonely Planet, they all share this sense of adventure.”
Dominic Rowell’s CV
2008 Global marketing director, Lonely Planet
2008 Group account director, Leo Burnett
2007 UK marketing director, Carphone Warehouse
2005 UK head of marketing, McDonald’s
1998 Head of loyalty,Sainsbury’s Supermarkets.
1998 Head of advertising and store events, Sainsbury’s Supermarkets
1996 Brand manager, Walkers Snackfoods
