National Tourism Offices (NTOs) are discovering digital. It wasn't such a long time ago when NTOs shared prime real estate with airlines downtown of the world's major cities. It wasn't such a long time ago that tourism was a card played by the 'less fortunate' nations which tended to be remote, poor in resources yet which had an attraction for the stressed out populations of the first world. Post industrial nations had, as the theory goes, became affluent from industrialising processes and there was nothing left than to enjoy the fruits of it. The information age, the leisure society were labels toyed with earlier. 'Clean' white collar occupations were to generate wealth here on in, with finance and insurance at the helm.
Then the tsunami hit; the Global Financial Crisis (GFC).
One sees the post industrials clambering to play the tourism card in any source country with potential. They join the considerably less-resourced as all and sundry combine to produce a bewildering environment of clutter. It is the consumer who benefits in such an environment.
What now is the ultimate NTO mandate, and how is it to be carried out in such an environment, and importantly, just how can the 'less fortunates' compete ?
With these new arrivals seeking tourist revenue have come buzzwords. One talks of a 'digital backbone' to national tourism promotion. Where once it was branding, now it is conversion.
Whether the consumer ordered it or not, change is now the main dish of the day. The once rigid 'seasonality' is being replaced by dynamic pricing and price discrimination, turning the act of purchasing travel into something akin to a casino. This demands systems which can deliver on a real time basis. The beauty of a digital platform is that information distributed is the most-up-to-date. It allows its promulgators to be more flexible and to promote material based on relevance and proximity, among other variables and it makes it possible for tourism operators, irrespective of location, to feed offers into the pipeline, where formerly this was the domain of the select few which had paid their dues.
Syndication and aggregration are now the norm, with all content available across all platforms, amplifying the thrust. Formerly channels were chosen based on the supposed medium favoured by any given target segment. With digital, while a medium is now spoken of in terms of device, linkage and cross fertilisation is imminently more workable.
We are not seeing a wholesale dumping of traditional media and neither should we. The use of traditional media remains, and becomes a subset of digital. NTOs talk of 'tools to marry their content to collateral', meaning ways of linking the overall digital campaign with such media as print and TV. With attention spans being measured in seconds, it is surmised that this 'increases the stickability', meaning it retains the attention of the audience for that much longer. Long enough to move to the next stage which NTOs are now dealing with, and a stage which was the sole interest of the private sector, conversion.
Dynamic packaging was a (industry) buzzword earlier this century, and it referred to the action of consumer assembling ones own itinerary from different sources (read platforms) disregarding the efforts of tour companies. Information it is said is power, and it became possible once the end user of travel had wholesale access to information. It happened around about the time Google was born.
Industry feels it has let the consumer down in 'not educating to create one's own package, but labels aside, consumers are savvy and connected enough to create their own itineraries, whether industry facilitates this or not.
Until the Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) arrived, noone had the technology, insight and vision to provide this platform; a one stop shop to use the old cliche. The world's leading OTAs such as Priceline, Travelocity and Expedia have very recently been seen to be heading towards this, away from just hotel provision, but it is the NTO that perhaps rightly could emerge as the best aggregator of them all.
Savvy NTOs are seeking to tie together the inspirational and functional aspects of planning a holiday. The technology has been around for a decade. From an industry view, "consumers have been trained to buy flights in one place and then a last minute hotel style deal somewhere else.”
It is now the best-resourced visionary NTOs which stand to benefit.
We will over the year be addressing topics such as the use of QR codes, NFC, mobile applications, the latest in content marketing, and whether social media is after all the panacea some are making it out to be.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Friday, January 27, 2012
またかよ？
 |
| 読売新聞 ２０１２・１・２７ |
またかよ？
道後温泉本館の窓口の人から見えない場所にある6か国語のパンフレットは、ずっと前からその存在自体が知らされていません。窓口の職員も外国人観光客に渡そうとしていませんでした。
そのパンフレット自体、かなりひどいものです。見づらく、わかりにくく、注意点ばかり…
今回のような調査の視野が狭すぎるのではないでしょうか。名所を数ヶ所見るだけでは意味がありません。外国人リピータを作るためにはもっと深く見ないといけません。
観光振興は「表示とパンフレット」だけではありません。こういった観点から調査を行うと、この狭い観点で終わってしまいます。議員達が時間とお金をより効果的に使うには、留学生など教育関係者に聞くだけではなく、外国人専門の観光業のプロにも聞くべきです。
そうすると、愛媛の観光業がにぎやかになり、危機に陥っている愛媛の歴史的な風景をちゃんと保存できるのではないでしょうか。
--------
This article reports that the Matsuyama City Council have invited nine random foreigners to check out the city's famous landmarks and rate them for tourist friendliness. Their response included comments noting that the foreign language pamphlets at Dogo Onsen aren't displayed, and there's no notice to the effect that they even exist.
Again?
The pamphlets at Dogo Onsen Honkan have been ‘invisible’ for a very long time. It’s just a matter of common sense that you’d need a sign saying that they exist. The ticket sellers don’t even try to offer them to foreign visitors.
The pamphlets themselves are pretty bad – crowded layout, hard to understand, unfriendly.
The scope of these surveys is too limited. What’s the point in checking just a couple of famous places? That’s not how to get repeat visitors.
There’s much more to tourism promotion than just ‘signs and pamphlets’. These little exercises start off with that viewpoint, and not surprisingly, they end with that viewpoint. Instead of asking only students and teachers, these public representatives should spend their time and our money more wisely by inviting tourism professionals to give advice that is both broader and more detailed.
Then Ehime’s tourism might become more lively and we can preserve the historical landscape more effectively.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Brand Japan
BRANDING JAPAN
All of us love a good hierarchy, but none less than Japan. Venerable Futurebrand and its Country Brand Index (CBI), an organisation which pits the world's nations (well mostly the first world ones it turns out) against each other and ranks them on several criteria. To be expected, the media in each of the named countries 'retweets' this and one Friday in late November a few comments are swapped over the respective beverage, a handful of folks go home glowing, and it's all over until the next year, or the next ranking.
But Japan ? The number one country for tourism ? “Japan has always been a strong country brand and enjoys enormous popularity as a destination for business and leisure" it is said.
The CBI is a comprehensive study of approximately 3,000 international business and leisure travelers from nine countries-the US, the UK, China, Australia, Japan, Brazil, the UAE, Germany and Russia. This is the sample chosen, and Futurebrand is not exactly forthcoming with the distribution or the methodology behind it. Neither does it bother to distinguish business from leisure. If your clients or suppliers are in Japan, do you really have a choice as to where to go for business ?
Care should be taken also in the use of the word ‘destination’, as – and this is a function of airline activity – it sees not insignificant traffic when chosen as a ‘stopover’ en route to Europe.
Strange things happen when you throw the 'brand' word around at random. We suspect Futurebrand might be overusing it. It holds that the most important factors that truly differentiate a nation brand are its associations and attributes – the qualities that people think of when they hear a place name, or look at a photograph or plan a trip.
Natora interprets brand as a 'picture in mind that helps consumers chose your product over another'. One talks of 'well branded' and 'strong brands' and that is what this article is about.
Nations are all playing the tourism card and even post-industrial giants like Japan are investing heavily. Hundreds of countries are throwing resources at selling themselves in any market in which they see potential. This produces clutter, ups competition and calls for smart branding alongside smart marketing.
Lamentably, the CBI information appears to be being taken very seriously by tourism promotion bodies in some countries who work with this to focus on strengths, as if they are unable to soul-search themselves.
Of the many criteria for selection, the concept of authenticity is noteworthy - experiences which are unique and cannot be replicated. Early tourism stressed this. Well healed tourists would travel to locations, however remote to see superlatives; the highest, the lowest, the biggest, the smallest.
Japan is unique yes, but so is Korea and so is China. The modern world sees instant replication of anything which works commercially meaning authenticity is harder and harder to find.
How do the experts do it ?
The US is no expert. To date and thanks to the movie theatre, television and other powerful media, we've all known about the US, and the pull is strangely strong. They simply haven't had to think too much about pulling even more folks to their shores. But they are now. The Corporation for Travel Promotion (CTP) has started on solid ground and is building 'Brand USA'. Adopting the slogan “fresh, unexpected, welcoming and inclusive,” and featuring colourful dots joining to compose the letters USA, the logo was designed to remind the world that “the United States of Awesome Possibilities welcomes everyone”
The US has a branding job on its hand. No one thing can explain who they are as a nation.
Use of personal pronouns you and me is fashionable, and acknowledges that no two travelling styles are alike. Asian tourism giants have been using a single adjective such as 'incredible', 'amazing' and we see the sophisticated marketers moving into personalisation using You and Me. FijiMe is a case in hand which has been extrapolated to ‘RomanceMe’ and others.
From its 'Uniquely Singapore' beginnings, this island state is now particularly impressive. It's 'YourSingapore' destination branding has outranked others. The Singapore Tourist Board (STB) is careful to bring in diverse stakeholders into executing ideas. Singaporean images are already strong, and in successfully reinventing the city thereby securing more material for the brand, the STB is now encouraging visitors to 'scratch below the surface' to 'rediscover'.
New Zealand is regarded as a maverick. It's '100% PureYou' message regularly receives accolades and is meticulously 'stewarded'. Until recently, this read '100% Pure New Zealand' as they highlight the many individual experiences available. Beautiful scenery and the environment is now taking becoming the backdrop as New Zealand focuses on what it feels as its actual leads.
Australia is going beyond branding for tourism purposes to a national brand per se. Simon Anholt of the Anholt City Brand ranking has stressed, “I have never seen an example of a country in all the years I’ve been working in this field that has succeeded in altering its image through marketing communication”
Branding can and does take place at regional, prefectural, metropolitan levels as well as at groupings with essentials in common. The city of Sydney is growing its brand, and involves stakeholders in business, culture, tourism, events and education as it embodies the stature, spirit and strengths of the city. The Anholt City Brand ranking has awarded Sydney the number one spot for a number of years.
Australia's Port Stephens has an interesting take on branding as it makes use of the initial letters in 'PS I Love You'. Simplistic yes, but the research has revealed that the locals have an affinity with the town which might endear them further if presented as a 'post script'.
Elvis Presley was a brand. These days, a country aspiring to grow its tourism activity needs to be Elvis: stand out and stand for something distinctive; do iconic work, one big thing at a time; making sure that it is part of the future.
Brand is organic and it can no longer be constructed unilaterally from on high without the input of actual travellers. Social media conversations these days are market research and are used to fine tune the brand as in “Is the message you’re communicating the message your guests are receiving?”
A brand its logo and tagline should have the clarity of a bell as it conveys the soul, or DNA of a country. A brand is one of the most valuable assets a country has. Brand equity is that portion contributed by a country to supplement existing consumer knowledge. Where knowledge is scant, the opportunity is great to build this equity, and with it, value.
In searching for what Japan is, a useful angle is to isolate what it isn't. Few Asian countries have managed to contain 'chaos'. Japan has. Developing Asian nations thrive on noise and sheer numbers. Japan has these, but is able to contain them. Its people share a quiet dignity and certainly don’t share brashness, but is this marketable ?
Island nations such as Fiji and Tonga play the friendliness card and it generally works. 'Polite and kind' are adjectives often applied to the Japanese, but is this marketable ? Yes it is 'civilised', a label we hear less and less as a descriptor for a society.
Natora sees the brand dialogue as vital. We pursue the following sequence in order to construct brand:
1. Identify Japan’s core competencies – the successful habits ingrained into Japanese society and culture.
2. Identify the key focal areas being developed to strengthen the Japanese brand.
3. Understand awareness of these competencies and areas of focus by the target audience (visitors).
4. Understand what additional expectations are desired from these people.
5. Which of these can be credibly owned and become a reason for visitors to habitually choose Japan?
6. Which key habits does Japan need to develop so that the brand promise can be delivered on at every touchpoint (and which habits need to be erased)?
7. What are the key touchpoints that need to be created / improved to provide a consistent, positive experience?
8. Is a change to Japan’s visual identity necessary?
Natora is starting to see Japan addressing the branding task. Currently it has ‘Japan – Endless Discovery’ and uses the predictable red globe, with cherry blossoms even though these latter are not immediately recognisable as a Japanese icon. Japan persists in using ‘Visit’ in its campaigns where others have left this behind.
Regionally, Shizuoka is commendable and has at last branded itself ‘The Fuji State’ although the message as yet to get out. Few other examples exist.
Nationally, Fotopedia from its US origins has partnered with Hakuhodo for the Narita Airport Authority and is exploiting new platforms such as iphone and iPad, considering these ‘the modern watering holes of the traveller. Japan has stopped short of labelling itself on this occasion, and we suspect it will be the users and how they interact with the content who will give birth to something of value, Brand Japan.
All of us love a good hierarchy, but none less than Japan. Venerable Futurebrand and its Country Brand Index (CBI), an organisation which pits the world's nations (well mostly the first world ones it turns out) against each other and ranks them on several criteria. To be expected, the media in each of the named countries 'retweets' this and one Friday in late November a few comments are swapped over the respective beverage, a handful of folks go home glowing, and it's all over until the next year, or the next ranking.
But Japan ? The number one country for tourism ? “Japan has always been a strong country brand and enjoys enormous popularity as a destination for business and leisure" it is said.
The CBI is a comprehensive study of approximately 3,000 international business and leisure travelers from nine countries-the US, the UK, China, Australia, Japan, Brazil, the UAE, Germany and Russia. This is the sample chosen, and Futurebrand is not exactly forthcoming with the distribution or the methodology behind it. Neither does it bother to distinguish business from leisure. If your clients or suppliers are in Japan, do you really have a choice as to where to go for business ?
Care should be taken also in the use of the word ‘destination’, as – and this is a function of airline activity – it sees not insignificant traffic when chosen as a ‘stopover’ en route to Europe.
Strange things happen when you throw the 'brand' word around at random. We suspect Futurebrand might be overusing it. It holds that the most important factors that truly differentiate a nation brand are its associations and attributes – the qualities that people think of when they hear a place name, or look at a photograph or plan a trip.
Natora interprets brand as a 'picture in mind that helps consumers chose your product over another'. One talks of 'well branded' and 'strong brands' and that is what this article is about.
Nations are all playing the tourism card and even post-industrial giants like Japan are investing heavily. Hundreds of countries are throwing resources at selling themselves in any market in which they see potential. This produces clutter, ups competition and calls for smart branding alongside smart marketing.
Lamentably, the CBI information appears to be being taken very seriously by tourism promotion bodies in some countries who work with this to focus on strengths, as if they are unable to soul-search themselves.
Of the many criteria for selection, the concept of authenticity is noteworthy - experiences which are unique and cannot be replicated. Early tourism stressed this. Well healed tourists would travel to locations, however remote to see superlatives; the highest, the lowest, the biggest, the smallest.
Japan is unique yes, but so is Korea and so is China. The modern world sees instant replication of anything which works commercially meaning authenticity is harder and harder to find.
How do the experts do it ?
The US is no expert. To date and thanks to the movie theatre, television and other powerful media, we've all known about the US, and the pull is strangely strong. They simply haven't had to think too much about pulling even more folks to their shores. But they are now. The Corporation for Travel Promotion (CTP) has started on solid ground and is building 'Brand USA'. Adopting the slogan “fresh, unexpected, welcoming and inclusive,” and featuring colourful dots joining to compose the letters USA, the logo was designed to remind the world that “the United States of Awesome Possibilities welcomes everyone”
The US has a branding job on its hand. No one thing can explain who they are as a nation.
Use of personal pronouns you and me is fashionable, and acknowledges that no two travelling styles are alike. Asian tourism giants have been using a single adjective such as 'incredible', 'amazing' and we see the sophisticated marketers moving into personalisation using You and Me. FijiMe is a case in hand which has been extrapolated to ‘RomanceMe’ and others.
From its 'Uniquely Singapore' beginnings, this island state is now particularly impressive. It's 'YourSingapore' destination branding has outranked others. The Singapore Tourist Board (STB) is careful to bring in diverse stakeholders into executing ideas. Singaporean images are already strong, and in successfully reinventing the city thereby securing more material for the brand, the STB is now encouraging visitors to 'scratch below the surface' to 'rediscover'.
New Zealand is regarded as a maverick. It's '100% PureYou' message regularly receives accolades and is meticulously 'stewarded'. Until recently, this read '100% Pure New Zealand' as they highlight the many individual experiences available. Beautiful scenery and the environment is now taking becoming the backdrop as New Zealand focuses on what it feels as its actual leads.
Australia is going beyond branding for tourism purposes to a national brand per se. Simon Anholt of the Anholt City Brand ranking has stressed, “I have never seen an example of a country in all the years I’ve been working in this field that has succeeded in altering its image through marketing communication”
Branding can and does take place at regional, prefectural, metropolitan levels as well as at groupings with essentials in common. The city of Sydney is growing its brand, and involves stakeholders in business, culture, tourism, events and education as it embodies the stature, spirit and strengths of the city. The Anholt City Brand ranking has awarded Sydney the number one spot for a number of years.
Australia's Port Stephens has an interesting take on branding as it makes use of the initial letters in 'PS I Love You'. Simplistic yes, but the research has revealed that the locals have an affinity with the town which might endear them further if presented as a 'post script'.
Elvis Presley was a brand. These days, a country aspiring to grow its tourism activity needs to be Elvis: stand out and stand for something distinctive; do iconic work, one big thing at a time; making sure that it is part of the future.
Brand is organic and it can no longer be constructed unilaterally from on high without the input of actual travellers. Social media conversations these days are market research and are used to fine tune the brand as in “Is the message you’re communicating the message your guests are receiving?”
A brand its logo and tagline should have the clarity of a bell as it conveys the soul, or DNA of a country. A brand is one of the most valuable assets a country has. Brand equity is that portion contributed by a country to supplement existing consumer knowledge. Where knowledge is scant, the opportunity is great to build this equity, and with it, value.
In searching for what Japan is, a useful angle is to isolate what it isn't. Few Asian countries have managed to contain 'chaos'. Japan has. Developing Asian nations thrive on noise and sheer numbers. Japan has these, but is able to contain them. Its people share a quiet dignity and certainly don’t share brashness, but is this marketable ?
Island nations such as Fiji and Tonga play the friendliness card and it generally works. 'Polite and kind' are adjectives often applied to the Japanese, but is this marketable ? Yes it is 'civilised', a label we hear less and less as a descriptor for a society.
Natora sees the brand dialogue as vital. We pursue the following sequence in order to construct brand:
1. Identify Japan’s core competencies – the successful habits ingrained into Japanese society and culture.
2. Identify the key focal areas being developed to strengthen the Japanese brand.
3. Understand awareness of these competencies and areas of focus by the target audience (visitors).
4. Understand what additional expectations are desired from these people.
5. Which of these can be credibly owned and become a reason for visitors to habitually choose Japan?
6. Which key habits does Japan need to develop so that the brand promise can be delivered on at every touchpoint (and which habits need to be erased)?
7. What are the key touchpoints that need to be created / improved to provide a consistent, positive experience?
8. Is a change to Japan’s visual identity necessary?
Natora is starting to see Japan addressing the branding task. Currently it has ‘Japan – Endless Discovery’ and uses the predictable red globe, with cherry blossoms even though these latter are not immediately recognisable as a Japanese icon. Japan persists in using ‘Visit’ in its campaigns where others have left this behind.
Regionally, Shizuoka is commendable and has at last branded itself ‘The Fuji State’ although the message as yet to get out. Few other examples exist.
Nationally, Fotopedia from its US origins has partnered with Hakuhodo for the Narita Airport Authority and is exploiting new platforms such as iphone and iPad, considering these ‘the modern watering holes of the traveller. Japan has stopped short of labelling itself on this occasion, and we suspect it will be the users and how they interact with the content who will give birth to something of value, Brand Japan.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
How to squander an opportunity: a Japanese favourite, the questionnaire
Natora was recently at the annual Japan Festival in Sydney, Australia. We tried hard to understand what the the Organisation to Promote Japanese Restaurants Abroad, the JRO below was thinking in this questionnaire. Question five is a die hard from time immemorial, and well, expressing a favourite as a dish just doesn't come easily does it. Kudos to the JRO in the Iron Chef mention. This is one Japanese export which has captured the world's imagination.
Food glorious food ... might one way to a potential visitor to Japan be through his or her stomach? Natora thinks so and is putting its money where its mouth is in supporting the burgeoning JapanTourist network, a large scale initiative designed to 'remake' Japanese tourism from the inside out. JapanTourist will be covering the nation as it canvasses establishments including eating houses in English, followed by Chinese and Korean.
JapanTourist is kick starting the process which will see users generate their own content in the form of reviews and ranking of these establishments. This on-going coverage goes on to become a vital reference source for the visitors of the future to Japan. It is envisaged that a given establishment may receive such a glowing review as to incite travel to that region, wherever it may be.
One could realistically surmise that anyone who steps foot in a restaurant serving Japanese food abroad is predisposed to that country, and that if the right chords are struck, could be tempted in some way to go in search of the 'real article'. We've all seen them ... the JAL posters of Fuji and cherry blossoms in perhaps the not-so-endowed Japanese eateries abroad. If done in a tactful, tasteful way, and in the name of 'experiential tourism', surely the darling of the industry worldwide, Natora can see options for campaigns, either spot of on-going in the sector.
Food glorious food ... might one way to a potential visitor to Japan be through his or her stomach? Natora thinks so and is putting its money where its mouth is in supporting the burgeoning JapanTourist network, a large scale initiative designed to 'remake' Japanese tourism from the inside out. JapanTourist will be covering the nation as it canvasses establishments including eating houses in English, followed by Chinese and Korean.
JapanTourist is kick starting the process which will see users generate their own content in the form of reviews and ranking of these establishments. This on-going coverage goes on to become a vital reference source for the visitors of the future to Japan. It is envisaged that a given establishment may receive such a glowing review as to incite travel to that region, wherever it may be.
One could realistically surmise that anyone who steps foot in a restaurant serving Japanese food abroad is predisposed to that country, and that if the right chords are struck, could be tempted in some way to go in search of the 'real article'. We've all seen them ... the JAL posters of Fuji and cherry blossoms in perhaps the not-so-endowed Japanese eateries abroad. If done in a tactful, tasteful way, and in the name of 'experiential tourism', surely the darling of the industry worldwide, Natora can see options for campaigns, either spot of on-going in the sector.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Japan inbound tourism - where to? A case for intelligent branding
Japan is slogan land. 'Beautiful resilient Japan' runs alongside 'Ganbaro Nippon', a couple to keep the spirits up. Inbound tourism has been decimated it is said, and folks at home just haven't been willing to go too far afield for fear of being seen as 'escape artists'. It's perhaps time to bring back the 'wish you were here' line which found its way onto postcards and other media of the day several decades ago.
Just how bad is it? Natora spoke to Inside Japan Tours Ltd, based in Bristol UK and was told of the three things making life difficult for their tour operation:
- Ongoing radiation fears and lack of clarity / closure on Fukushima situation
- Very strong yen making Japan more expensive*
- General economic issues making people tighten their purse strings and forego some discretionary spend
*Mr King was quick to add that it is still good value once people actually get to Japan.
We next talked to Mr Endo, Director of Sales at Park Hotel Tokyo, a favourite of UK visitors. It would appear that while numbers were hit on the advent of the quake and radiation with the traditional April peak sustaining the biggest drop, there has been some recovery into the Japanese Summer. It remains to be seen how the October peak fares, as September was two thirds the number received in 2010. King at Inside Japan Tours was optimistic saying, "despite this, we have seen a steady improvement in departure, enquiries and bookings - September was only about 15% down on 2010 on all 3 counts"
Slogans should not be taken lightly. Japan's 'Enjoy yourself in Japan' goes nowhere, and it is this which graces the current VisitJapan programme, visible at http://www.visitjapan.jp/eng/coupon/index.html
The 'Visit xxx year' campaigns are now well and truly tired with only a few countries persisting where others are getting scientific about the visitor attraction exercise.
Australia's been at the slogan game too, as that country sees a dearth of inbound visitors relative to the numbers of its own nationals going abroad. There's been the much-lambasted 'Where the bloody hell are you', but then that sort of language was never going to go down in PC-Japan. For quite some time now Australia has been running the 'no leave, no life' slogan, and it has gained some traction although the message here is to get up and about in generic terms, with no push onshore nor offshore.
Other slogans come to mind which resonated well in their era, including 'don't leave home until you've seen the country', designed to reacquaint a local with his or her locale.
The director of Japan Association of Travel Agents believes the recovery of outbound travel from Japan is the first step towards recovery of the inbound market.
“Cheer Up Japan, Smile Through Travel” campaign has been launched to get people traveling and, in turn, help the economic recovery in the country.
Poster displays at mainline rail stations are encouraging Japanese to travel and those going overseas are being encouraged to take part in a postcard distribution campaign. Another odd, almost quaint attempt, perhaps one might surmise being sponsored by the postal service?
The idea goes that Japanese travellers are to hand the postcards - which bear the message “Hope to See You Again in Japan” - to their overseas friends in the hope of stimulating inbound travel to Japan.
Shizuoka's branding efforts brought a smile to our eyes. Mt. Fuji is one icon that the whole world can identify with and Shizuoka is home.
But before plucking a motif out of the air and branding a region should come data mining. It is incumbent on authorities to, well, not be so authoritarian, and to listen to public opinion, expressed in the form of User Generated Content, or UGC. Called 'brand auditing', this process should pre-empt the actual formulation and communication of brand which should be done via modern channels.
Natora firmly believes in the language of brand. Now more than ever in a tourism world cluttered with marketing messages, intelligent branding machinery must be deployed.
Robert Scott
Manager
IslandTravelMarketing
www.islandtravelmarketing.com
robert@islandtravelmarketing.com
T 0415.140.430 Vodafone
T 0413.363.135 Optus
02.8014.8229 ext. 878
Skype: rbtsct
Just how bad is it? Natora spoke to Inside Japan Tours Ltd, based in Bristol UK and was told of the three things making life difficult for their tour operation:
- Ongoing radiation fears and lack of clarity / closure on Fukushima situation
- Very strong yen making Japan more expensive*
- General economic issues making people tighten their purse strings and forego some discretionary spend
*Mr King was quick to add that it is still good value once people actually get to Japan.
We next talked to Mr Endo, Director of Sales at Park Hotel Tokyo, a favourite of UK visitors. It would appear that while numbers were hit on the advent of the quake and radiation with the traditional April peak sustaining the biggest drop, there has been some recovery into the Japanese Summer. It remains to be seen how the October peak fares, as September was two thirds the number received in 2010. King at Inside Japan Tours was optimistic saying, "despite this, we have seen a steady improvement in departure, enquiries and bookings - September was only about 15% down on 2010 on all 3 counts"
Slogans should not be taken lightly. Japan's 'Enjoy yourself in Japan' goes nowhere, and it is this which graces the current VisitJapan programme, visible at http://www.visitjapan.jp/eng/coupon/index.html
The 'Visit xxx year' campaigns are now well and truly tired with only a few countries persisting where others are getting scientific about the visitor attraction exercise.
Australia's been at the slogan game too, as that country sees a dearth of inbound visitors relative to the numbers of its own nationals going abroad. There's been the much-lambasted 'Where the bloody hell are you', but then that sort of language was never going to go down in PC-Japan. For quite some time now Australia has been running the 'no leave, no life' slogan, and it has gained some traction although the message here is to get up and about in generic terms, with no push onshore nor offshore.
Other slogans come to mind which resonated well in their era, including 'don't leave home until you've seen the country', designed to reacquaint a local with his or her locale.
The director of Japan Association of Travel Agents believes the recovery of outbound travel from Japan is the first step towards recovery of the inbound market.
“Cheer Up Japan, Smile Through Travel” campaign has been launched to get people traveling and, in turn, help the economic recovery in the country.
Poster displays at mainline rail stations are encouraging Japanese to travel and those going overseas are being encouraged to take part in a postcard distribution campaign. Another odd, almost quaint attempt, perhaps one might surmise being sponsored by the postal service?
The idea goes that Japanese travellers are to hand the postcards - which bear the message “Hope to See You Again in Japan” - to their overseas friends in the hope of stimulating inbound travel to Japan.
Shizuoka's branding efforts brought a smile to our eyes. Mt. Fuji is one icon that the whole world can identify with and Shizuoka is home.
But before plucking a motif out of the air and branding a region should come data mining. It is incumbent on authorities to, well, not be so authoritarian, and to listen to public opinion, expressed in the form of User Generated Content, or UGC. Called 'brand auditing', this process should pre-empt the actual formulation and communication of brand which should be done via modern channels.
Natora firmly believes in the language of brand. Now more than ever in a tourism world cluttered with marketing messages, intelligent branding machinery must be deployed.
Robert Scott
Manager
IslandTravelMarketing
www.islandtravelmarketing.com
robert@islandtravelmarketing.com
T 0415.140.430 Vodafone
T 0413.363.135 Optus
02.8014.8229 ext. 878
Skype: rbtsct
Friday, October 14, 2011
10,000 Free Tickets to Japan
We all remember Captain Kirk getting damage reports from the engine
and other rooms after each Clingon attack. The Enterprise sustained
damage but teams went to work to soon restore it. But the Japanese
tourism effort after the quake and ensuing radiation episode ? We've
had our reports and well .. we've sorted of fixed a few things. In the
meantime, tourism, namely the movement of people into, out of, and
around a country for in the first instance, leisure and recreation,
has all but hemorrhaged.
Crisis management is a label used for containing the fallout from a
catastrophe, and is inherently reactive. This suggests that a
definitive goal is reached whereby the crisis is no longer, and
therefore no longer needs managing. Japan's inbound tourist industry
is deemed to be in crisis as arrivals have plummeted from highs
reached just prior to the quake. The number of Australian visitors to
Japan had been booming in January and February, due in part to the
popularity of ski resorts in Tohoku and Hokkaido. These numbers
plummeted in March also, by about 47 per cent. A few months on,
tourist numbers remain well down, with 36 per cent fewer visitors to
Japan in June compared with a last year and about 42 per cent fewer
from Australia. Domestic tourism has also suffered; Matsushima - one
of the three most famous scenic spots in Japan (along with Kyoto and
Miyajima, near Hiroshima) - has recently been receiving only 20 to 25
per cent of the usual tourist numbers.
There are good explanations, of course. Travelers feel diffident about
holiday-making in a region hit recently by such tragedy. They don't
want to intrude on grief, or perhaps get in the way of relief efforts.
In the case of Australia now, the flavour of the month is the US and
the media is wasting no time in fueling this binge.
and other rooms after each Clingon attack. The Enterprise sustained
damage but teams went to work to soon restore it. But the Japanese
tourism effort after the quake and ensuing radiation episode ? We've
had our reports and well .. we've sorted of fixed a few things. In the
meantime, tourism, namely the movement of people into, out of, and
around a country for in the first instance, leisure and recreation,
has all but hemorrhaged.
Crisis management is a label used for containing the fallout from a
catastrophe, and is inherently reactive. This suggests that a
definitive goal is reached whereby the crisis is no longer, and
therefore no longer needs managing. Japan's inbound tourist industry
is deemed to be in crisis as arrivals have plummeted from highs
reached just prior to the quake. The number of Australian visitors to
Japan had been booming in January and February, due in part to the
popularity of ski resorts in Tohoku and Hokkaido. These numbers
plummeted in March also, by about 47 per cent. A few months on,
tourist numbers remain well down, with 36 per cent fewer visitors to
Japan in June compared with a last year and about 42 per cent fewer
from Australia. Domestic tourism has also suffered; Matsushima - one
of the three most famous scenic spots in Japan (along with Kyoto and
Miyajima, near Hiroshima) - has recently been receiving only 20 to 25
per cent of the usual tourist numbers.
There are good explanations, of course. Travelers feel diffident about
holiday-making in a region hit recently by such tragedy. They don't
want to intrude on grief, or perhaps get in the way of relief efforts.
In the case of Australia now, the flavour of the month is the US and
the media is wasting no time in fueling this binge.
The word 'crisis' embodies 'turning point' and little negativity can
be felt in that label. Japan is fond of making reference to
'Phoenix', and rising from the ashes. What better a way to ponder
Japan's touristic future than to look to the past ? A report of a
Tokyo Radio broadcast on September 4, 1945 - about a month after the
Hiroshima bombing and about three weeks after the surrender - quotes
Gyoji Arau, the director of the Japan Tourist Industry Association. He
announced a "new start" for tourism in Japan and urged his members to
pay attention to hotel facilities and supply of souvenirs.
The quake and the ensuing radioactivity crisis gave birth to the
coinage 'flyjin' referring to the flighty 'gaijin', Japan-resident non-
nationals. A derogatory term used of residents who flew the coop, the
label might usefully be applied to a Band-Aid measure Japan is
concocting right now.
Preposterous even to the countries who rely on tourism for their
livelihood - which Japan does not - Japan is proposing to fund the
airfares of 10,000 'overseas tourists' to visit the country in 2012.
The Yomiuri Shinbun has revealed, "In an attempt to boost the tourism
industry hit by the nuclear disaster following the March tsunami, the
Japan Tourism Agency plans to ask would-be travellers to submit online
applications for the free flights, detailing which areas of the
country they would like to visit. The agency will select the
successful entrants and ask them to write a report about their trip
which will be published on the Internet. Tourism authorities hope that
positive reports from travellers about their experiences in Japan will
help ease international worries about visiting the country, the
newspaper said. If approved by the Diet, they will start accepting the
applications via online. After the trip, the winner may be asked to
complete a survey and asked to give suggestions to JTA".
Calamities occur almost on a daily basis now, and see tourist
recipient nations jump into recovery mode. They very quickly go to the
travel trade and sponsor visits to reassure agents of the safety
aspects. The JNTO is currently inviting 60 Australian agents as part
of a campaign to convince the industry that it is a safe holiday
option. Australia has been Japan's sixth most important market behind
South Korea, China, Taiwan, the US and Hong Kong, and numbers have
halved.
Turning members of the travelling public into publishers via their
respective social networks is the ostensible aim, as JTA is hoping
that the winners would help promote Japan tourism by using social
media and/or blogs. It is handing out candy in the hope that these
'writers' would 'leave breadcrumbs' to borrow an internet marketing
term, and it courts nasty issues, not the least of which the
possibility - God forbid- that some of these writers would like it
enough to 'overstay'. The communiqué continues by saying, "The
applicants must submit their travel plan in addition to the passport
information. The Japanese government will judge the plan, and
investigate if the applicant has the intention to overstay illegally
or not. If the applicant passes, she or he will given a free round-
trip ticket to Japan"
Not long ago, well thought out PR campaigns would create viral
conditions which would see participants feverishly record their
impressions for all and sundry to see. The award winning 'The Best Job
in the World' campaign done in Queensland is one such example, but
here we have Japan doing something it can ill-afford to do, and
something only it would consider doing. While the statistics confirm
the sources of tourists - and one could argue demand is at a developed
stage - there are hundreds of other countries with populations
unexposed in a latent demand situation. It will be interesting to see
which countries are 'allowed' to send a would-be ambassador, and how
these visitors are spread geographically.
One could also surmise that this is in fact a gigantic PR exercise
designed to go viral and if so all kudos to Japan.
Content is king so they say, whereever it resides. Well-thought out
initiatives are already in place inside Japan such as JapanTourist.jp,
a ranking/reviewing engine which promotes discussion at the grass
roots level thereby swaying consumer behaviour. The constant stream of
items gives a feeling of activity and effervescence, and with
stringent quality control bolsters credibility. Unlike the 'one-off
hit' which Japan is considering, this approach feeds off itself and
creates momentum which endures, something Japan desperately needs
rather than a Band-Aid.
Begging the world's public to produce content, stealing or borrowing
it from other sites raises the 'artificial' flag very quickly and
would do more harm than good.
Japan is nothing if not resilient. Arrivals into Japan will quickly
spot the two mottoes 'gambaro Japan' and 'Beautiful resilient Japan'
which hail this, but much much more thought needs to go into campaigns
which are poised to indebt the Japanese taxpayer even more. High level
assemblies such as the WTTC Global Summit to be held in Tokyo April
2012 will see lesser meetings held in Sendai to focus on risk and
crisis management, with the WTTC President saying "The recovery of
Japan is one of the most compelling issues facing global travel and
tourism"
Robert Scott
Manager
IslandTravelMarketing
www.islandtravelmarketing.com
robert@islandtravelmarketing.com
T 0415.140.430 Vodafone
T 0413.363.135 Optus
02.8014.8229 ext. 878
Skype: rbtsct
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