​Beautiful day here in Cowal yesterday so we took the day off, along the coast to Colintraive and caught the 5 minute ferry over to the Island of Bute. 

There’s a well known town there called Rothesay which in Victorian times was a hugely popular spa town. It stayed that way right up to fairly recent times. 

My folks used to take us there for holidays when we were kids but now sadly it’s a pretty run down looking place. Actually a very good example of the consequences of not moving with the times.

Right up to the late 70’s Rothesay was a hugely popular holiday destination for Scots. It’s the home of many a millionaire and was once a pretty grand place. The Island itself is still lovely as are some of the smaller towns and the scenery is truly gorgeous - if you go by car and get away from Rothesay itself.

What happened? Well for one thing when package holidays to Spain etc became affordable, towns like this just weren’t as tempting as they used to be. 

Since the recession it has picked up a little but the old victorian Pavillion and pier are looking very run down. The shops, pubs, amusements and bars are stuck in a 70’s time warp. 

On such a beautiful day we just wanted to drive around a bit with the roof down then have a look at the shops and find a nice place to have an al fresco lunch. 

The shops took about 10 minutes - aside from the tourist crap they were as I say - pretty old fashioned (but not in a good way) 

Then we just couldn’t find anywhere to have a decent  lunch. If this had been anywhere else in Europe there would have been a ton of cafes and restaurants open with tables outside. All there was on offer here was greasy fish and chips or sandwiches.

Eventually we asked some locals and were pointed to a place 10 miles along the coast and got our outdoor lunch. 

My point here - as always - is that if you don’t move with the times you’re sunk. 

One of the things that places like Rothesay could use to improve would be digital marketing.

Not only could internet marketing bring in much more tourist trade but it could provide income for many more people there. 

There’s really no excuse to say - “oh well - nobody comes here any more” (not twice at least!) 

Just like there is no excuse for anyone to say “My life/job/business sucks - such is life” 

The internet has and will continue to turn many traditional jobs and businesses into virtual “Rothesays” 

But at the same time it’s providing much more opportunities for positive change than it’s removing. 

People with digital marketing skills can make a living anywhere and are much sought after by traditional - Stuck in their ways - businesses. 

Embrace change ! Be The change! 

Cheers!