Resources
As an Oxford County tourism operator or partner, you have access to many different resources and training opportunities. Some are free to attend, while others may have a small fee. We encourage you to check back often, as this page will be updated frequently based on availability. Explore our complete list of resources below and contact us if you have any questions.
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- Tourism Oxford's 2024 Annual Review
- Tourism Innovation Grant and Workshops (Closed)
- Buy Back Water Information Session Recording
- Understanding the Consumer with Ana Baxter Recording
Workshops & Training: stay tuned for upcoming training opportunities in 2025!
Digital Resources
- What You Need to Know About Uses Permitted in Prime Agricultural Areas (Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA) and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA))
- Digital Main Street (training)
- Developing Winter and Shoulder Season Tourism
- Elevating Canadian Experiences (powered by Tourism Industry Association of Canada)
- Podcast – The Brainy Business
- Employer Resources - Tourism HR Canada
- Extranet Training Documentation
- Typsy (hospitality courses and certificates - 10 day free trial)
- Tourism Marketing Resources (Tourism Oxford)
- Help others talk about you on social media (Tourism Oxford handout)
- Instagram 101 Presentation (Tourism Oxford presentation)
- Facebook 101 Presentation (Tourism Oxford presentation)
- How to Write a Marketing Plan for Beginners (Lightspeed)
- SWOTC (training & opportunities)
- Destination Canada (training videos)
- Complete guide to social media for small business (Sprout Social)
- Creating a basic website (The Small Business Centre)
- Welcoming visitors online (Tourism Oxford)
- Welcoming visitors on arrival (Tourism Oxford)
- Tourism Oxford Partnership Eligibility Form (contains Tourism Oxford readiness criteria)
- Culinary
Destination Ontario’s Insights team has released the most recent Ontario Tourism Health Check report which highlights key recovery indicators such as accommodation occupancy rates and border crossings. This report tells the tourism recovery story by curating relevant tourism data into a form that visualizes the information for industry stakeholders.
- Tourism in Ontario is in an overall upward recovery trend - some KPIs have fully surpassed 2022 levels in all regions but are still below pre-pandemic levels (2019)
- Travel Price Index (TPI) in September 2023 decreased by 0.3% compared with September 2022 levels, following a 0.4% decrease in August
- TPI category values in September 2023 for accommodation, recreation and restaurant are relatively stable with around 5% MoM change compared to pre-pandemic levels (2019).
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Border crossings from all key markets in August 2023 surpassed 2022 levels but have not reached pre-pandemic levels (2019)
- Community Employment Services; offers free wrap-around support, digital attraction, and retention of your existing workforce
- Learn more via their Uniquely Designed Programming PDF, or
- Check out their YouTube Channel for mini videos on hiring, labour market information, accessing funding and more
- Reimagine to Succeed: Hire and Retain People with Disabilities and Build Inclusive Workplaces (OTEC)
- Workforce Development, Tourism Ideas & More (SWOTC)
- An Oxford County Resource providing comprehensive employment services to both Job Seekers and Local Employers: Options for Employment - More than a service, a partner in your growth
Certifications
- Certified Bike Friendly (Ontario by Bike)
- Feast On Certification (Culinary Tourism Alliance)
- Safe Travel Stamp (Tourism Industry Association of Ontario)
- Signature Experiences Program (Southwest Ontario Tourism Corporation)
- Single-Use Plastic Free Certification (GreenStep)
- Zero Waste Spaces (Future Oxford)
- B Corp Certification
Organizations
- Southwest Ontario Tourism Corp. (SWOTC)
- Destination Ontario
- Tourism Industry Association of Ontario
- Please also remember to reach out to your sector specific associations like the Culinary Tourism Alliance and Festival & Events Ontario
- Transition to Less Waste (assistance & resources for waste free events)
- Water Capacity Buy-Back Water Program
- Future Oxford
- Sustainable Tourism 2030
Research
- SWOTC Research (consumer sentiment, market segments...)
- Tourism Regional Economic Impact Model- TRIEM (A tool to estimate economic impact of tourism activities)
- Explorer Quotient (Research on traveller types prepared by Destination Canada).
- Food Tourism 101, (Culinary Tourism Alliance)
- Food Habits of Canadians (segments Canadians based on food preferences)