Economic Impact Assessment

Travel and Tourism is the largest service sector industry in the world.  Understanding the economic benefits that tourism brings to your destination – jobs, tax revenue, and added value – is integral in fulfilling your DMO’s strategic goals.

Rockport Analytics has expertise in performing various types of economic impact assessment including:

Tourism Satellite Accounting (TSA)

Tourism Satellite Accounting is the most comprehensive accounting of the economic impact of tourism activity.  TSA is the standard for measuring a national system of tourism statistics, developed and maintained by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).  Since tourism is not recognized as its own distinct industry, but rather a part of many different economic sectors (e.g., hospitality, food & beverage, entertainment), this methodology must be used to recognize Tourism’s full impact to a given geographic region and allow it to be comparable to any other economic sector.

Visitor Economic Impact

Less comprehensive than a TSA, Visitor Economic Impact measures the impact that your destination receives directly from traveler visitation.  Visitor impact looks at spending levels of key tourism spending streams like lodging, food & beverage, entertainment, car rentals and shopping.  Using input/output modeling we can use these spending levels to estimate the direct, as well as the secondary – indirect (supplier) and induced (income) – economic impacts derived from tourism.

Event or Attraction Economic Impact

Rockport can model the economic impact for a specific event, attraction or activity.  Rockport’s analysts have conducted a multitude of event and attraction impacts including those for high profile events like the Super Bowl, the Pocono 500, and the Masters.

Project Feasibility Analysis

Project feasibility analysis helps stakeholders to analyze the full costs and benefits of taking on a project, such as building a stadium, museum, convention center or other tourist attractions.  Conducting an analysis of the full economic benefits of a project helps stakeholder to make key decisions, including project approval and funding support.