A new survey, the first ever of the Irish American community in America, has highlighted huge demand among Irish Americans for Irish tourism, education, products and services.
The survey was undertaken between 30 November and 6th December 2010. It forms part of a joint research programme launched today by the leading Irish market research company Amarach Research and the leading Irish American website irishcentral.com.
Among the findings of the first survey which polled 2,400 respondents were:
- Although 90% of the survey respondents are American born, they still have a huge emotional connection with Ireland (average score of 7.7 out of 10).
- 64% go online weekly to find out what is happening in Ireland .
- Of those who have visited Ireland (1,800), 92% score Ireland as an excellent destination and 80% believe that it is better than other destinations visited. However 90% believed that the cost of flights was a negative factor.
- Of those with chlldren 53% would consider sending their children to Ireland to study whie 55 per cent are interested in distance learning Irish studies from an Irish college.
Commenting on the findings Michael McLoughlin, Chief Executive of Amárach Research said: “As a Country we face immense challenges and one solution is to find markets abroad for Irish products. This survey demonstrates the huge potential of the Irish American Market. Our American diaspora are extremely connected to us emotionally, they know what is going on and the survey clearly demonstrates that they want to buy more goods and services from us”.
Niall O’Dowd, the publisher of Irishcentral.com said: "I have always believed that there is a huge business opportunity among the Irish abroad. This survey highlights some of the immediate wins that are possible over the next few months and years in the areas of tourism, education and for well known Irish brands."
11 Comments
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.Ray1Gordon | Dec 18, 2010, 09:40 AM EST
My wife and I have visited Ireland for the past 8 years. We love the beautiful golf courses, the pubs with live Irish music, the spectacular scenery, but most of all, the wonderful, friendly Irish people. We have so many fine experiences interacting with people that we have met in Ireland, some of whom we continue to email with. We tell all of our friends that Ireland is a great place to visit.
GeorgeDillon | Dec 16, 2010, 02:16 PM EST
toscany: I am very familiar with the Savannah Parade. It has as much in common with Irish heritage and culture as does the Dublin parade. Not much, in other words, though the weather on 3/17 is usually prettier in Savannah.
Searlit | Dec 15, 2010, 07:41 PM EST
Yes, the Irish people have done a fine job preserving the Island up until now. Don't let the industrial developers turn it into another parking lot. The Emerald Isle needs to stay green, and full of ancient monuments and castles. There's nowhere else like it.
PolinDeB | Dec 14, 2010, 09:34 PM EST
We need to end the rip off culture, and take care of our heritage. How could we let Bertie Ahern put a motorway through Tara? It's the one spot Americans could be sure that at least one member of their extended family stood at the Monster March in 1843.... still it can be re-route with the Lenister Oribital if sanity ever returns..
CowboyCraic | Dec 14, 2010, 04:25 PM EST
I would also agree that the Car rental issue needs to be addressed and regulated more strictly. Renting a car in Ireland is akin to playing Russian Roulette with a fully loaded gun. The outcome is never pretty. There needs to be an across-the-board restructuring. The worst part of helping any of my clients with their Ireland itineraries is teh Car rental. Not only do teh prices fluctuate wildly between companies, They also vary within a particular company depending on the day, hour and, sometimes, minute. Add to the frustration of the initial rental the extra fees that are tagged on once you arrive, jet-lagged, and you have a serious muddle that is beyond comprhension. I, myself, have prepaid for my rental, been told that no extra monies would be charged upon pick-up, guaranteed the same when I picked up my vehicle only to receive a credit card statement a month after my return with an amount charged equal to what I had already paid. Investigation revealed that these were local fees and taxes with nothing else forthcoming. The rental company's response, when told that their agent had confirmed that here would be no extra charges above what I had paid, was "The agent misspoke and the charges will stand".
paricaliswishes | Dec 14, 2010, 03:52 PM EST
We don't appreciate what a great little country we have til we're away for a while and i learnt that years ago.We come back with a different attitude.
macausheen | Dec 14, 2010, 01:22 PM EST
I am American born whose grandparents were Irish born. Whenever I go to Ireland, its been several times now, I feel like I am home. An Irish person once asked me why come there and I simply answered there was no where else I wanted to go. I'd like to see the rest of the world, but Ireland comes first. I live in a part of Florida that does not have a high Irish community. Still there are Irish pubs, Irish stores, and an Irish/American Club.
greendragon69 | Dec 14, 2010, 10:09 AM EST
This is all very true, and I love Ireland. It is my Anam Bhaile, my soul's home. However, I would visit a lot more often if you could get control of your rental car industry. It's ridiculously complex to figure out the rules that each company has. Regulation of this industry would go far in the Irish-American community of travelers.
toscany | Dec 14, 2010, 09:41 AM EST
Ha! Savannah, Georgia USA, has the 2nd largest Saint Patrick's Day Parade in America! The local population of Savannah would be scorned, ifthey knew of O'Dowd's survey...Most of the South, in America, was settled by Irish, Scottish, and Scotch-Irish immigrants.
beachline | Dec 14, 2010, 09:34 AM EST
I am surprised there was so little response to the survey--2400 out of thousands of Irish Americans is a small number. However, if Ireland returns to the Irish currency-(which I think it should)- many more of us will return to Ireland for vacations , or even to live there.
joanmoody | Dec 14, 2010, 09:13 AM EST
Mr. O'Dowd needs to come to Texas and do some marketing here and I think he would be pleasantly surprised. Irish organizations can be found in Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. Irish enclaves can be found among Celtic groups in Amarillo, Lubbock, Austin, Corpus Christi and McAllen. I doubt if he were aware of that.