Domestic tourism could get a welcome boost, thanks to an initiative by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and DBS Bank.
Their three-year tie-up will leverage DBS services - its travel marketplace portal, digital payments service, predictive analytics and its DBS PayLah! app - to "help the tourism industry seize new opportunities".
DBS and STB will also help local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the sector to accelerate their digital transformation.
Part of the initiative involves the tourism board and DBS investing in marketing campaigns for home-grown products and experiences.
These will complement the SingapoRediscovers campaign launched in July and led by the STB, Enterprise Singapore and Sentosa Development.
DBS and STB will curate promotional bundles for attractions, tours and hotel stays.
The bank will also employ its predictive analytics and intelligent-banking capabilities to provide personalised itineraries and destination content to encourage locals to explore the country's different precincts and learn about the myriad home-grown brands and experiences.
And both parties will create content to increase awareness of tourism experiences and brands.
This will be amplified across DBS' platforms, including its travel marketplace, social media communities such as The Burrow, and marketing channels.
The next phase of the partnership will target inbound visitors through international marketing campaigns as Singapore progressively opens its borders.
Similar to their tie-up for the domestic market, DBS and STB will customise content and introduce promotions and products for international visitors such as flight and accommodation bundles, business events and travel insurance plans.
DBS and STB will help home-grown tourism SMEs transform digitally so they can reach customers more easily and boost customer engagement in the light of the shift of everyday payment and banking needs to mobile phones and online platforms.
DBS and the STB will partner local businesses to pilot smart experiences such as contactless digital payments at various precincts, for instance.
As a start, they will launch a campaign to encourage the use of DBS PayLah! within the Bugis precinct by the end of the year.
This pilot will involve merchants such as the Eighteen Chefs restaurant. Managing director Roger Wong said he hopes to incentivise customers to use cashless payments by offering them cashback rewards.
DBS Singapore country head Shee Tse Koon said the three-year collaboration will help the tourism industry get back on its feet.
"In addition, we look forward to supporting our local SMEs by leveraging our customer base, data insights and technology to help them build up their resilience and unlock more business opportunities," he added.
STB chief executive Keith Tan said the partnership will reach a large community of local and international consumers, and encourage them to discover and support local tourism businesses.
"These efforts will ensure that Singapore remains a safe, trusted and preferred destination for all our visitors," Mr Tan added.
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