5 tips to design a competitive proposal under the tourism call of COSME

The new call for proposals “Supporting the Promotion and Development of Transnational Thematic Tourism Products Linked to Cultural and Creative Industries”, whose deadline is on the 29th June of, published under the COSME 2014-2020 Programme, provides several innovative starting points, interesting linkages with cultural and creative enterprises and with new technologies, specifically the augmented and virtual reality.

Considering the limited budget provided by the European Commission, the call can be considered highly competitive. For this reason, at Twissen we collected some tips to best design the proposal

1. Stay relevant 

The call is very specific about a transnational tourism product which has to be linked both to the tangible movable/immovable/underwater cultural heritage, and to the intangible cultural heritage.

Some examples can be found in theatres, archaeological sites, ruins, historical cities, but also local cuisine, handicrafts and rural life.

It is required that the cultural assets has to be linked to one or more UNESCO sites.

2. The theme 

The transnational tourism product has to be thematic.

So, being too generic, as it happens sometimes, is not positive and it does not allow to clearly identify the tourism product.

Since the conception phase, it is useful to specify all the connections with the enterprises of the cultural and creative industry, and, most of all, with other tourism segments.

3. Technology 

The augmented and the virtual reality solutions are increasingly expanding in the Travel & Tourism industry, with different modalities and functions.

The call specifies that the combination with technology has to be designed to enhance the tourists’ experience and to support the promotion of the tourism product.

4. Be focused 

Even if the call does not specify it, we think that target-tourists need to be well identified and described, proving that their needs and expectations are clear. At this point, the proposed actions need to be coherent.

Staying to vague causes a loss in credibility.

5. Partnership 

The set of involved partners is for sure one of the most important aspects of a competitive proposal. The main partner has to prove an appropriate experience, but generally the consortium must highlight a balance in terms of skills, nature (public and private) and geography.

Roles and tasks must be clear, but it is also important to elaborate from the beginning how to prove the sustainability of the project after the co-funding period.

At Twissen we analysed the call for proposals “Supporting the Promotion and Development of Transnational Thematic Tourism Products Linked to Cultural and Creative Industries”, that introduces some interesting innovations to be developed in the proposals. The projects must be quality-oriented, and must clearly define all the required aspects, in particular the transnational tourism product. Applicants should to read the call carefully, and compare the proposal with all the evaluation criteria which are specified in point 9 of the call.

Francesco Redi

President and founder at Twissen. Manager in Local Development, Tourism Policies,  EU Funds. He cooperates with several European universities, public bodies, development agencies, DMOs and enterprises.