How many ‘most beautiful, most amazing’ countries are there?

Destination images don’t emerge over night and they certainly don’t happen accidentally. Developing an image involves careful consideration and keen attention to messaging.

Since travellers have the power of choice, Bonita Kolb, author of Tourism Marketing for Cities and Towns (2006), believes it is important to ‘promote the unique benefits that the tourist will experience while visiting the city, rather than the city itself.’ Therefore, highlighting a location’s diverse nightlife, cultural heritage, historic sites or great shopping, is an important tool for enticing the potential visitor to take a trip and experience the area first hand. (p. 18)

Kolb (2006) believes that image development cannot simply be undertaken by an independent consultant or even an internal communications team. In order to effectively capture the essence of a destination, several groups and individuals, such as government agencies, heritage site managers, long-time residents and members of the local business community, are essential to providing a holistic view of the city or country. (p. 19)

Additionally, when developing a communications plan, it is critical to ensure that the promoted image is an accurate reflection of the destination. (Kolb, 2006, p. 221) No sensational mountain views in Miami, no tropical winter weather in London, no friendly people in New York City... wow, those stereotypes are really pervasive!

A destination’s image is derived from several key elements including its slogan, logo, messaging, images and videos distributed through numerous media such as newspapers, websites, TV, radio, billboards, posters, commercials, brochures and flyers. (Kolb, 2006, p. 223-224) Tourism Australia (2007), for example, stocks film, video and image libraries as a means to promote the country as a desirable destination and to ensure there is a level of consistency in its media portrayal.

Image development is an on-going process. Although a well-established image may work for a long period, it important for marketers and PR officials to routinely evaluate it and make adjustments whenever necessary.

Next post: those fabulous logos and catchy destination slogans


References

Kolb, B., (2006). Tourism Marketing for Cities and Towns: Using Branding and Events to Attract Tourists. Burlington: Butterworth-Heinemann.

Tourism Australia, (2007). Tourism Australia Image Library. [online] Available from: <http://www.tourism.australia.com/Marketing.asp?lang=EN&sub=0325> [Accessed 31 December 2008]

Reputation Management- Pay Attention World Dictators

According to author Simon Anholt (2007), national reputation is built through various channels including a country’s products, its citizens and personalities, local laws and international policies, culture, tourism promotion, major events and the personal experiences of tourists visiting the nation. Some countries enjoy a longstanding positive reputation, while others are unable to escape a lasting negative image. (p. 25-28)

There are countries that are famous and enjoy the benefits of their popularity such as Brazil, The Bahamas and Spain, others are virtually unknown to those outside its region including Lesotho, Moldova and Akrotiri, while the infamous such as Iraq, Zimbabwe and Sudan, due to their ongoing conflicts and political corruption, are unable to reap the benefits of tourism. (Anholt, 2007, p. 7-9)

Countries and cities are renowned for their technology and innovation, such as Japan, others for fashion including Paris and Milan, while some are closely associated with activities such as skiing in Sweden and surfing in Australia. (Anholt, 2007, p. 9-12)

Some countries are popular in one aspect and not so respected in another. You may think very highly of German car engineering, visions of Mercedes comes to mind, but you might be less inclined to think about its fashion sense, though to its credit it did produce Heidi Klum and Hugo Boss. (Anholt, 2007, p. 91)

Reputations are also heavily dependent on stereotypes. Sometimes people find it very difficult to let go of opinions they have cultivated of a particular region even when presented with evidence to the contrary. So all these years that you’ve convinced yourself that Nokia is Japanese, you’d be surprised to learn its actually Finnish, yes as in Finland.. no I’m not joking, and yes, I really did check it. Trust me, it wasn’t easy to find; apparently not even Nokia wants you to know where it was born. When you hear Finland you’re more likely to think of...ahm.. ah.. Ace of Base.. nah that’s Swedish.. ah.. something other than mobile technology. (Anholt, 2007, p. 92)

Governments must recognize the fragility of reputation and take a proactive approach to developing it to create a strong brand, amending it to reflect a changing nation and defending at the first sign of negative publicity.

Next post: the all too important image.

Reference

Anholt, S., (2007). Competitive Identity: The New Brand Management for Nations, Cities and Regions. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan.

Branding a Country???

We are living in a global world. Globalization is the vehicle that has transported the US-originated credit crisis to the rest of the world and concurrently allows me to buy shoes in Paris from London.

In this time of borderless societies, countries find themselves competing for everything: business, events, investment capital, David Beckham, tourists and the list goes on.

According to Simon Anholt, author of Competitive Identity: The New Brand Management for Nations, Cities and Regions (2007), ‘all responsible governments, on behalf of their people, their institutions and their companies, need to discover what the world’s perception of their country is, and develop a strategy for managing it.’ (p. 2)

So can you really brand a country? Treat it like a pair sneakers, a box of cereal or a laptop? It is possible as many countries and cities have successfully done so. In the process of branding it is important to consider several vital components:

• What is the destination’s current reputation?


• What kind of image does the destination want to portray?


• What important components should the logo incorporate?


• What are some the key messages?


• Who is the target audience?
  

As with any other branding, national tourist organizations must be careful to ensure that a cohesive ‘identity’ is being tailored and delivered to the media and potential visitors.

Next post: reputations of countries across the globe: good, bad and ugly!

Reference

Anholt, S., (2007). Competitive Identity: The New Brand Management for Nations, Cities and Regions. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan.

A Look At Tourism PR

You’ve never been there and your memory of high school geography class is shaky at best. Despite having heard from your mom’s best friend’s niece’s sister how wonderful a place it is, word of mouth, though part of the reason, isn’t completely it either.

Somehow, when someone utters the name of a place, be it Thailand, Fiji, Barbados or Las Vegas, a distinct, vivid image comes to mind. You daydream about that visual, sometimes, you even long for it.

You didn’t suddenly wake up one morning and create those thoughts. You’ve been continually consuming meticulously produced messages through TV shows, newspaper articles, movies, websites, music videos and calendars.

Although much of the promotion is done through advertising and marketing avenues, destinations are also using PR techniques as a more ‘credible’ means to promote the fabulousness of.... well.... themselves!

Tourist boards and visitors bureaus across the globe are partnering with PR agencies to find creative, cost effective ways to ensure millions of tourists know their destinations. Many have done so in such a successful manner that the audience is unaware of the subtle messaging and implicit promotion. It’s the ultimate form of product placement, except this time the client spends little capital and gains maximum returns.

This blog will explore the role of public relations in developing a destination image. It will look at some cities, regions and countries, which have successfully used PR as a means to promote themselves as the definitive ‘must visit location’. Finally, it will explore the ageless theory that ‘any publicity is good publicity’ (try not to laugh too hard North Korea and Afghanistan), specifically focusing on the impact of negative publicity on a destination.