Get Ready, World: Gray Research Solutions Is Entering the Blogosphere

We're bringing human connection to the research party.

Maybe chips, too.

At Gray Research Solutions, we’ve decided it’s time to put all those hundreds of surveys, interviews, and focus group insights to good use. We’ve been quietly gathering data, analyzing human behavior, and helping destinations thrive—and now we’re ready to share what we know. 

So, yes, we’re officially bloggers. But don’t worry—we won’t just be posting charts and tables. Instead, we’ll be diving into understanding travelers from a human perspective. From uncovering the deeper motivations behind travelers' decisions to helping destinations and tourism businesses create unforgettable experiences, we’ll be sharing the insights and stories that really matter.

Sarah, Shannon, & Laura tossing leaves, just like we'll be tossing out awesome blog posts.

People Trust People: The Human Connection

Coming from a social science background, we’re all about people. And people? Well, they’re driven by emotions. Sure, we’ve got all the apps, algorithms, and retargeted ads telling us what to buy, where to go, and who we should follow. But guess what? A recent State of the American Traveler study shows that word of mouth is at an all-time high—68% of travelers say opinions from family and friends influence their next destination.

What does that mean for your marketing? Well, it means your ads are probably driving incremental growth, but the real game-changer is what your visitors are telling their people about your destination. Give them a great experience, and they’ll do your marketing for you. That’s the goldmine.

Speaking of which, Shannon once worked at a branding firm where her boss used to say, “Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not around.” He probably borrowed that from Coach John Wooden (who was a bit more philosophical about it), or maybe Jeff Bezos, but either way, it’s spot on. Why? Because in a world where we have instant access to everything we could ever want to know, what we really trust is authentic human connection—not bots, ads, or AI. And that’s not changing anytime soon.

So your destination might have a dashboard that tells you where people are coming from, how long they stay, and what they spend. That’s great for understanding your visitors and showing how your local economy benefits from tourism, and honestly? We’d love to see that data. We’d probably start chattering about significance and weighted averages. It’s good stuff. But what it won’t tell you is what visitors think and feel—what they’ve heard from others, why they chose your destination in the first place, if their expectations were met, and whether they’ll be singing your praises to their friends. That’s the most valuable data you can have.

What’s Coming Next

In the coming months, we have plans to pontificate on how emotions drive decision-making for destinations, which research methods yield the best insights for the right questions, success stories from destinations, and much more. We’ll always keep things casual and easy to follow. Whether you're a tourism professional, marketer, or just someone curious about what makes travelers tick, we’re here to break down all things tourism research.

Conclusion

So, here we are—officially bloggers. We’ve spent years gathering data, listening to travelers, and analyzing human behavior to help destinations attract more visitors. Now, we’re sharing that knowledge with you in a new way. Our goal is simple: to make complex tourism research accessible, humanized, and—dare we say— a little fun.

We’re here to cut through the jargon and give you the insights that really matter—what visitors think and feel, not just what they spend or where they go. Because at the end of the day, your destination isn’t defined by the data on a dashboard, it’s defined by the stories people tell about their experiences. And those stories? That’s the most powerful marketing tool you have.

So, grab a cup of coffee, get comfy, and let’s chat about how Gray Research Solutions is helping to shape the future of tourism with data, stories, and a lot of passion for what we do. Check out our fresh website— we’ve got research solutions, speaking services and a little something about ourselves.