Zimbabwe: The Land of Experiences

Contributor Jeffrey-Takunda Murungweni , Curator Tadiwa, Styra Yacho

Have you ever observed the spectacle that becomes of our supermarkets during the festive season? A lot of people become so engrossed in shopping, and a lot of foodstuffs are purchased with little or no care. When I was thinking about that, I was wondering why people are so into food during these periods. After some thought around that, I came to understand a key thing that humans are after - culinary experiences.

The shopping spree is just one example of how humans can go all out to look for varying experiences. But, if humans are really looking for experiences, what is the one thing that can satisfy what they are craving? The answer lies in tourism. This sector is one through which people get to explore different experiences, beyond their usual environments. And people are willing to spend quite a lot to get such experiences.

Would you not want to see the mighty Victoria Falls whilst having fine droplets from the Zambezi soaking you? Would you not want to experience the thrill of zip-lining over the Mutarazi Falls and marvel at the Honde Valley which would be right below you? Or how about getting to spend nights in the heart of Mana Pools, with an abundant array of wildlife around you? These are some of the experiences that countless adventurers are craving.

The tourism experience does not begin when you arrive at the location you are travelling to. It starts with the idea and how the journey to the destination is described to the traveller and the type of location access. So this means that the first contact that a potential tourist has is critical in determining whether the tourist would proceed to buy the tourism service or not. This is where great opportunities are available for companies! Just having a brilliant product to offer without considering the experience from the beginning till the end is not sufficient. I believe that is the reason why tourism and hospitality are words that usually go along together. When a person feels cared for when he or she is still inquiring about the product, he or she would assume that level of care throughout the use of the product or service. This has been popularly termed customer care. Brands and organisations actually need to now transcend customer care to customer experience as it is a lifelong commitment to your customer to ensure maximum satisfaction. This also ensures brands become household and sustainable providers of solutions and not just products.

The more a tourism company decides to focus on customer care, the more a customer will get the experience he or she would be looking for. As I said earlier, this sector is all about creating the best experiences. That is why a bird lover would be willing to pay money to go to a bird sanctuary like Kuimba Shiri. This is why an explorer would be willing to climb the famous Mount Nyangani and reach the highest point in Zimbabwe. It is all about the experience and the joy you derive from what you would have done. There is a TV series I love so much which is called Voetspore. This show is about a group of people who drove from South Africa, reached the source of the Zambezi River, and followed the river by road to reach the mouth of the Indian Ocean. They did that for the experience! This just comes back to show how much a person is willing to part with for an amazing experience. With all this in mind, I implore tourism operators to continue asking themselves the question: How can we make the African experience more memorable? In answering that question lies the solution to getting more tourists to come to Zimbabwe and to do much more! Again, Zimbabwe: The Land of Experiences!

Jeffrey-Takunda Murungweni (second from right) is a young entrepreneur who is passionate about using technology to improve the user experience of tourists. He is interested in making the travel experience a better and much more seamless one. It is because of his passion for tourism that he founded a tourism company trading as Trafiki Africa. This company will help tourists be able to access key tourism services via WhatsApp. His idea has won 2 accolades as of now, including the recent Africa Youth in Tourism Innovation Challenge 2022 held in Namibia. Currently, Jeffrey is a student at Africa University pursuing Computer Science.