Due to the seasonal nature of their travels, information on the global population of digital nomads is limited. Nonetheless, the majority of reports show that they are becoming more numerous. There were 10.9 million digital nomads in the US as of the end of last year, up from 7.3 million before the swine flu pandemic.
Consulting, coaching, and research are some of the most popular employment among US nomads. Sales, marketing, public relations, Technology, and creative services are further careers. The group of digital nomads frequently includes writers, photographers, and designers.
According to a 2019 research report, the main motivation for digital nomads to lead this lifestyle is the desire for greater flexibility and autonomy at work. Together with professional independence, technical, geographic, and mental freedom are gradually becoming the tenets that many people who choose to take this route follow in their daily lives.
A digital nomad seeks much more than just freedom from the workplace cubicle and commute. We want to be freed from the constraints of the 9–5 workday, synchronous contact all day, and the antiquated notion that productivity is measured by the amount of hours we spend at our desks in relation to the worth of our output.
There are people who like to travel. Some choose to work in the morning and go hiking in the late afternoon. But, the constant need to leave a circumstance is what ultimately motivates digital nomads to become mobile. This way of life, in our opinion, is sustainable. There is little doubt that the digital nomad lifestyle is a novel way of life that has the potential to advance society.
This article will talk about some of the different ways that you can attract digital nomads to your location.
How do You Attract Digital Nomads?
As we continue to work everywhere, working remotely or as a digital nomad will become the norm. A greater white-collar culture is preferred as this way of life becomes more widespread.
Read Also: How do I Become a Digital Nomad in the US?
Special visas were made available by the governments of many nations to entice Americans to immigrate. Barbados, Estonia, Bermuda, and Georgia opened their doors to American tourists, enabling them to work, pay taxes, and contribute to the economies in light of the Covid-19 and their struggling economies.
State governments are creating schemes to draw remote employees to their areas as a strategy to revive the stagnating economy. Here are 5 areas that nations need to focus on more if they want to draw in more digital nomads and profit from their increasing amount of mobility.
1. Pay Attention to How Digital Nomads Choose Where to Travel
Before making a decision, a digital nomad who is moving to a new location to live and work for a longer time does a lot of study. A complete examination takes into account factors like taxes, health insurance, and how simple it is for you to enter and exit a location.
Digital nomads also need to know if they can place orders for supplies from behemoths like Amazon. Knowing the admission criteria, particularly the testing and quarantine, and feeling safe about the health facilities at the destination, in addition to having a choice of accommodations, play a significant influence in deciding where to relocate.
When considering people who travel as digital nomads, there are many considerations that need to be taken into account. Making a map of all these factors will be quite beneficial because it will produce several personalities that might wind up being respected citizens in the host nation.
2. Offer Great Connectivity Infrastructure
The presence of a strong communications infrastructure is essential for luring new customers and motivating current employees to look into new opportunities. It is crucial to figure out the best strategy to seize this new development opportunity because remote workers typically need a strong and consistent internet connection.
Without an internet connection, it is now impossible to connect with the world. This makes it easier for countries to work together on important issues and to share knowledge and skills, both of which support their economies.
Therefore, it is critical to make sure that infrastructure and transportation options meet the needs of digital nomads. Almost as important as digital infrastructure is transportation infrastructure. Digital nomads frequently have a strong reliance on transportation. Although digital nomads may have autonomous vehicles, having a robust transportation infrastructure in the host and transit countries will unquestionably enhance their ability to operate remotely.
To further boost local economies through digital nomadism and tourism, solid digital infrastructure and efficient, dependable transit infrastructure are essential.
3. Encourage Remote Work Communities Through Hubs
The infrastructure for remote work must include a dedicated coworking space. They not only give remote employees like digital nomads a ready-made business network but also help them avoid feelings of loneliness and isolation. They also aid the environment by reducing commuter journeys and carbon emissions.
They offer physical space as well as support, innovation, facilities, services, networking, and other things that are difficult to quantify and duplicate. They are making every effort to assist and service the neighborhood business community.
Hubs will need to be acknowledged for both their services and their environmental impact as they work to persuade professionals to leave their homes offices in favor of open, comfortable environments.
4. Invest in Adequate Accommodation
Following a disastrous year for the hospitality sector, hotel chains are leveraging the increase in remote work by enticing digital nomads with unique offers.
High-end hotel companies all across the world offer monthly membership memberships designed for digital nomads, claims InsideHook. Subscribers frequently get discounts on food and drink, fitness equipment, and coworking spaces, as well as free roaming around the various buildings that the same management company oversees.
Digital nomads frequently have a strong desire to travel and try new things. It is crucial to provide as many options as possible. It doesn’t matter if the extended stay is in an Airbnb or an apartment for a month or more. Consistency and safety must always be considered while making these concessions. It’s crucial to offer digital nomads tools for working remotely.
A nation’s hospitality industry must have a solid plan in place that takes each persona’s requirements and advantages into account. After all, not all digital nomads are the same. While some people might choose to travel affordably and comfortably, others would prefer to travel in elegance and luxury.
5. Enable Digital Nomad Visa Programmes
Digital nomads offer more than just hotels a profitable business opportunity. These are also perfect for the national tourism offices. Estonia introduced a “digital nomad visa” earlier this year, allowing non-Europeans to live and work there for a full year.
Similar to the Barbados “Welcome Stamp,” which was created to make Barbados more appealing to digital nomads, it is generating a lot of interest elsewhere. The purpose of the visa, according to Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley, is to “offer workers the possibility to work remotely from paradise in the next 12 months.”
Other options might include:
Give Stability: While the majority of digital nomads are independent contractors or business owners, financial instability is widespread; thus, combat it and avoid putting undue financial strain on them. Companies may provide discounts for advance payments or recommend flexible payment options. It is likely to be desirable to promote long-term stays and any other means of offering a schedule or other stability.
Build Communities: Provide advice on how digital nomads might create a neighborhood community to combat loneliness. Digital nomads desire a sense of community locally, which they can achieve through meeting other travelers and connecting with the locals, in addition to remaining in touch with friends and family back home. Destinations could plan special events specifically for this purpose or work to inform digital nomads about current local events.
Encourage Collaboration: Ensure that digital nomads can communicate and collaborate with the people they need to. In keeping with the connectivity theme, many digital nomads prioritize earning money in order to fund their travels. They will be drawn to locations with fast internet, open 24 hours a day to suit different time zones, and amenities like a coffee and snack bar to keep them nourished throughout the day.
How do you Benefit From Attracting Digital Nomads?
Let’s have a look at some of the benefits related to digital nomads.
1. Digital nomads spend their income in the Host Country’s Economy
In a study titled “Work and Wander: Meet Today’s Digital Nomads,” the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) discovered that 87% of this group of workers had a job that enables them to generate money while traveling ($4,500 per month on average), extending their stay overseas. 36% of the compensation of a remote worker is often spent on travel.
They can work from anywhere in the globe using technology, with no boundaries. According to ATTA personnel statistics, 17% of employees write, 14% work as digital marketers, 8% blog, and 7% work as programmers. Because to their dependence on technology, these professions are typically associated with higher wages than the general population. Because of this, nations should surely not ignore this advantage and instead concentrate on luring in more digital nomads who fulfill these criteria.
2. Strengthen the Tourism Industry
In the past, tourism has been a potent instrument for boosting the economies of host nations and bringing in foreign money.
More than half of digital nomads, or 51%, are between the ages of 25 and 34, which indicates they are older millennials who are eager to discover the local sights and eateries. Those that fall into this age group are typically passionate about learning about a particular nation’s culture, natural parks, historical places, etc. For the nations receiving these visitors, this in turn generates fantastic tourism potential.
Digital nomads’ increased travel contributes to society’s growth and encourages a spirit of inclusion and openness. Several business people and community members will be able to profit from the ability of the residents of the neighborhood to live in a more integrated manner.
3. Generate New Jobs
Also, boosting dining out, shopping, consumption, and services in general will guarantee that locals may reactivate their employment opportunities. As a result, expanding the job market for locals becomes a viable strategy for maintaining the economy.
Since they aren’t vying for locals’ jobs, remote employees are already fostering new enterprises by spending money there. Also, economies are given an opportunity to thrive through the ongoing migration of these employees, their families, and their enterprises from abroad, which benefits local communities tremendously.
Read Also: How Long Does it Take to Become a Digital Nomad?
The diaspora is more likely to return if the host country’s economy develops and investment possibilities are made available. As a result, emigration will decline, and the disastrous “brain drain” that is hurting so many developing nations and rural regions will be reversed.
4. Attract an Affordable Source of In-Demand Technology Skills
Due to the increased appeal of living in more economical and roomy regions, there is a surge in “digital nomads” who work remotely from wherever. Employers can find affordable digital skills from digital nomads, and governments are also giving them more benefits.
Nomads are technologically sophisticated people, as their name implies. More than any other industry, MBO Partners discovered that 12% of digital nomads are employed in IT. In contrast to non-nomads, 71% of nomads claim that adopting technology increases their ability to compete, and a greater proportion of them identify as early adopters of technology.
Because they are getting increasingly used to working remotely, digital nomads are becoming a less expensive source for in-demand computer skills.
Final Words
Digital nomads are becoming more and more important in the tourism industry nowadays. Many cities are revising their plans for enhancing visitor economies, enhancing international competitiveness, and repositioning themselves internationally in the wake of the epidemic and its impact on tourism.
To fully profit from what we can provide, hosting nations must concentrate on lowering the cost of living by providing exceptional job and educational possibilities, lodging discounts, and more in coworking spaces for the digital nomad community. We’re all here to succeed together, after all. In order to advance society as a whole and advance personally, we must do both.
