I published a post this morning on my Costa Rica Guy blog. It was about the fact that bigger does not always equate to best. It is entitled Boycott Big.

Afterwards, I started thinking how the mindset of bigger is better has affected my Costa Rica vacation package business. In the past year I have seen my sales cut in half as I have virtually disappeared from Google…this despite being dedicated to constantly producing useful content based on first-hand knowledge about vacationing in Costa Rica.

What exactly is Google looking for these days?

Well, I did a quick review of the top ten Google search results for the most competitive key phrase of Costa Rica vacations. The results showed only one company that is “arguably” located here in Costa Rica. The rest consisted of giant international travel industry companies who have decided that Costa Rica tourism is now hot enough for them to jump on the bandwagon. These are household names like Travelocity, Expedia, Apple Vacations and Jetblue, to name a few.

And it didn’t used to be that way. Package Costa Rica used to show up on that page, as well as many of my in-country competitors. But neither I nor they have for a while now. I guess I can take comfort in our shared suffering.

But just as my post on “bigness” this morning alluded, all this doesn’t equate to better.

I have been arranging Costa Rica vacations and living here as well for the past ten years. I buy my groceries here. I hire my employees here. I blog from my first-hand experiences here.

I don’t have the clout of these large companies, but what I do have is an enhanced degree of knowledge about my home and what is good for it.

Bigness usually resonates to the benefit of a few, at the expense of the many.

For instance, if Google now thinks that only these international corporations should get the lion’s share of Costa Rica’s tourism, how will that benefit Costa Rica? Will the money stay here, or flow abroad? Those companies are just as interested in selling other competing destinations than they are about promoting Costa Rica. Does Google honestly think that allowing them to monopolize the search rankings will contribute to solid continual and sustainable growth in Costa Rica tourism?

And what about the consumer…YOU?

Will your experience of this country be enhanced by a commoditized vacation arranged by some corporate cog with no real connection to the country you want to visit?

I don’t think so.

As usual, all this focus on bigness does not mean anything good for what really counts…keeping Costa Rica the wonderful tourist destination that it has become and making sure that those who visit have the best experience of it possible.

What will more than likely happen is that Costa Rica will turn into just another plasticized tourist destination with no real distinction from others such as Cancun or Cozumel.

So, my rant this morning asks you to consider something. Before you pull the trigger and buy that hotel + flight deal from Travelocity, thinking it is going to save you a buck or two, why not consider the impact of doing so…not only on your overall experience of the country, but also the ability for others to have that experience for years to come.

If things keep going in this direction I am afraid the Costa Rica that I have come to love will gradually disappear (and me along with it).

Post by CRG

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