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Make it accessible! - Promote barrier-free travelling for senior citizens and people with handicaps through innovative marketing strategies based on awareness of specific requirements, needs and active interest in social inclusion
Start date: Oct 1, 2009,

Mainly dominated by SMEs, the tourism sector is very important to the European economy and barrier-free travelling is an important topic of the European tourism policy. In the EU, about 37 million people are disabled But enhancing accessibility is not only about disabled people but also about the ageing population. Altogether, around 120 million disabled or senior citizens in Europe would welcome improved access. It is crucial for SMEs and micro-enterprises in the tourism sector to actively face this change by developing new products and services meeting the growing demand. In order to distinguish their competition they need to develop defined profiles, but often awareness, knowledge and skills are missing. They also need to communicate their profiles on European level in order to design the dialogue with their according target groups effectively, but knowledge and skills concerning ICT use are often limited. The MIT! project will develop in all partner languages plus EN:- a blended learning course, - guidelines and - a handbook - a standard model for design and benchmarking,- an ICT tool for presentation and marketing on the internet and - a platform matching supply and demand on European level. The application is targeting - Managers of SMEs in the tourist sector (TS) and those who are responsible for marketing- Trainers, teachers of VET providers targeting the TS- Trainers, teachers of associations in TS offering trainings to members- Key actors for lifelong learning, multipliers and actors of VET policies of the TS, VET providers targeting the TS- Associations of senior citizens, of handicapped people, key actors for regional economical development- Beneficiaries: senior citizens, people with handicaps and their families.Traditional marketing strategies in the tourism sector focus on standard requirements, but until now only 6.5% of accommodation establishments are capable of meeting these. The term ‘disabled people’ encompasses a diversity of individuals with different requirements, abilities, needs and interests. MIT! will focus on specified target groups Methods and tools in creating innovative marketing strategies will be directed to clearly defined sub-groups of people with handicaps and designed to meet not only specific access requirements, but also needs (of assistance for tourist activities, concerning care, medical and health services, dialysis etc.) and interests (learning about culture/cooking/crafts/history/policies, foreign language acquisition, learning about ICT: how to use a handy/digital camera/getting involved in e-mailing/internet etc.). Methods and tools will foresee the development of close co-operations with regional actors from the areas education and training, culture and health. The "MIT! ComModel” for a web-based communication of specific requirements, needs and interests met by SMEs in the tourism sector will be developed.
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