Lack of Marketing Aranaputa , although located on the Georgetown-Lethem road which is a hub of activity, is only generally known for

its thriving peanut butter industry and not its tourism commerce. This is in part due to the lack of marketing strategies employed by the council charged with advertising and making the tourism venture known. Marketing plays a vital role in making any tourism entity successful however, Aranaputa currently does not have any form of marketing for its tourism activities, whether it be brochures, flyers, adverts or even a webpage, their tourism product is virtually unknown by the travelling public. Most of its marketing takes place in the form of word of mouth and minute assistance from groups such as wilderness explorers, IIC , NRDDB and surama , however , this marketing takes the form of the entire community and its peanut butter co-op but not the their tourism activities. This has impacted the products ability to attract and make the public aware of its activities, rendering it unable to increase its revenue. Lack of Community involvement Community based tourism, in its simplest form is the travel to rural communities in order to observe flora, fauna and any other form of cultural manifestations that might exist in the area. At least part of the tourist income is set aside for projects which provide benefits to the community as a whole. Currently Aranaputa is unable to involve the community in its tourism product due to the inadequate sum of revenues gathered. What revenue is made, it is utilized on administrative expenses such as paying tour guides, cooks, care takers, equipment and the general upkeep of the establishment, practically leaving nothing for community development. As such, community members regard tourism in the area as a meagre industry in comparison to others such as cattle rearing and peanut farming and processing. Tourists visiting the Mount Clarence Nature trail are prohibited from entering the community resulting in no cultural displays.

Lack of Tourism Awareness Aranaputa has been struggling for approximately a decade to make its tourism venture a success. However, as with any industry, it is key to possess both theoretical and practical knowledge in order to have the fluid flow of activities. According to Jerry Benjamin, tour guide at the mount Clarence nature trail, the council that operates the trail, is void of tourism professionals. These professionals are adequately trained to handle the various administrative duties such as the handling of income, product development and general managing of their tourism product. When asked, Mr. Benjamin was the only individual within the venture with tourism training, however, only as a tour guide, still making him inadequate to handle the various sections in the organisation.