The news that matters
■ IN DEPTH The cost of politics for nation brands
Riots, political instability and financial turmoil are all hitting the headlines, but what does it mean for the countries’ advertising? Martina Lacey reports
What happened? Thailand, Greece and Jamaica have all been in the headlines for the wrong reasons, and riots, instability and gang warfare are all having an effect on their brands and tourism potential.
Thailand’s Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij has estimated that the number of tourist arrivals to the country will be “decimated”; hotel occupancy in Bangkok was already down 30%. The Greek Government has plans to set up a committee to address its tourism crisis. It is believed that since
Why it matters? Travel and Tourism is a big money earner for international media. But when working with countries such as Greece, which was already running a ‘refurbished’ ad campaign due to financial constraints, media owners are potentially putting themselves at risk.
Jonathan Howlett, director of ad sales, BBC Worldwide, says the channel gets around this issue by asking for payment upfront from new clients. “In the past people have said that governments are less likely to default, but they also tend to be slow payers.” For the destinations, knowing when to advertise or not is a big decision.
M&M VIEWPOINT
This past year has made everyone an amateur risk assessor. The love affair with international media and destination marketers will never end, but both need to wear protection. Despite any current turmoil that a nation brand maybe facing there is a legacy
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factor with all countries that past visitors and future ones will always hold to. Even though Thailand is currently being described as a ‘war zone’ it still has beautiful coastlines that most will want to visit again. But media owners must safeguard their business nonetheless.
the Athens riots started, an estimated 20,000 hotel bookings have been cancelled in the Greek capital and nearby resorts. And Jamaica is facing its own publicised trouble with drug lords. “It‘s a pity the number of countries that could be added to this list,” says Anita Mendiratta, lead consultant on CNN’s TASK Group. “But it is important that when a nation brand is under threat it is assessed. What kind of damage is it? It is an act of god like a Tsunami, or man- made like a terrorist attack or political unrest. These are all factors that dictate how a country can respond.” ○
CNN’s study ‘Bang for your Buck’ suggests that an additional 10% of spend by tourism boards on international media can result in an increase of 70,000 visitors per year. Once activity is pulled, Total Media’s Thomas Laranjo, whose client list has included Israeli tourism, believes that the timing to return should be made on a case-by- case basis, but should be at least six weeks. “There needs to be both political will to return and positive public sentiment. With social media, you can get that very quickly.” Mendiratta warns that if a destination gets the timing wrong for their return, it can appear to be insensitive to the events that put them in the spotlight to begin with. ○
We read it all so you don’t have to
Is Thailand’s idyllic image threatened by the Bangkok riots? It is important when a nation brand
is under threat that it is assessed. What kind of damage is it? That will dictate how to respond
QuickInsight
• IN THAILAND Hotel occupancy in Bangkok is down 30%
• IN THAILAND There has been a 41% drop in online searches in the UK for flights to the country
• IN GREECE 20,000 hotel bookings have been cancelled as a result of the riots in Athens
• IN THE US BP is giving oil soaked Florida a $25m tourism grant to boost its image
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• IN MEXICO Tourist arrivals dropped 86% during the first two weeks of the swine flu outbreak
M&M Q2 2010 9
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