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MARKETING DESTINATIONS | FEATURE


ON THE TOURISM OFFENSIVE


TOURISMCAN BE A CASUALTY OF REGIONAL TURMOIL, BUT THE SECTOR IS DEPLOYING INNOVATIVE STRATEGIES TO OFFSET NEGATIVE PERCEPTIONS CREATED AFTER UNCERTAIN TIMES AND TO BOUNCE BACK ONCE STABILITY RETURNS


The temple at Karnak in Luxor, Egypt


facing crisis build confidence among travellers through a series of tax incentives, workshops and marketing efforts, as Egypt has done. For Jordan, the answer is to


take a multidimensional approach to support the country’s strategy in promoting it as a standalone destination. Yazan Al Khadir, Director of Marketing at the Jordan Tourism Board, said: “It’s been a hard couple of years for us because of the Arab Spring and the turmoil and unrest in the region. However, the numbers didn’t fall dramatically – we noticed only a slight decrease in arrivals. “We are trying to promote


G


eo-political events can at times present something of a challenge for those


who are marketing destinations. Most countries have at one time or another been faced with the task of highlighting the best of a destination to visitors amid potentially offputting headlines. A combination of focusing


on the many positives and ensuring the right message gets across is at the heart of marketing strategies aimed at overcoming negative perceptions resulting from difficult times. On the eve of Arabian


Travel Market, HE Hisham Zaazou, Egyptian Minister of Tourism, announced a raft of new special offers aimed at regaining the country's previously high tourism levels. It is hoped the upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections will increase political stability and security in the coming months. Zaazou also unveiled a number of exclusive offers that will be available throughout May for visitors from the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. This comes after recent figures showed visitor numbers to Egypt fell by five million from 2010 to 2013 amid tensions in the country.


The Sphinx at Cairo, Egypt


Jordan as a standalone destination at the moment, as part of a combined package with Egypt or Syria.” For Al Khadir, social media


Egypt is not alone; the


issue is a global one. London’s tourism figures fell two percent in the immediate aftermath of the 2005 bombings in the capital, contrasting against an average 12 percent increase in foreign visitor numbers in the two previous quarters. New figures from the


Tourism Council of Thailand also reveal that around US$2.5 billion (THB82 billion) has been lost in expected tourism


revenue since a state of emergency was declared in Bangkok earlier this year. Despite experiencing turmoil,


countries such as Egypt and Jordan are working hard to encourage international visitors to return to their shores by considering a range of marketing strategies to try and protect tourism revenue after troubled times. According to the World Travel


& Tourism Council (WTTC), it is crucial that destinations


Despite experiencing turmoil, countries such as Egypt and Jordan are


working hard to encourage international visitors to return to their shores by considering a range of marketing


strategies to try and protect tourism revenue after troubled times


The Dead Sea, bordering Jordan, Palestine and Israel


now has an important role to play, alongside the traditional targeting of news media, exhibitions and conferences, when promoting Jordan. “Our strategy really focuses on the importance of media. Be always in touch with media representatives and constantly bringing trips to the country. “We’re also focusing more


on online and social media, using the testimonies of visitors to send the message about the country and promote the experience of being in the country, while they’re actually here,” he added. Jordan has established four


‘earth camps’ that broadcast real-time videos of Amman, Petra, the Dead Sea and Aqaba. Bloggers are also a key component of the new digital strategy with a focus on not just the country’s main markets, such as the US and western Europe but also new visitor markets for Jordan, such as Asia, South Korea, Japan, China and also Southeast Asia, particularly Malaysia and Indonesia. Al Khadir said: “We had been focusing on the English-speaking


market, but we are now widening the scope to include bloggers from France, Russia, Italy and the Far East to blog while they are here. I believe this will convey the message that we’re a safe place for travel.” The BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India


and China) nations are viewed as another key growth area and Jordan has established a new programme where scholarships are offered to tourist guides looking to learn languages such as Chinese, Korean and Portuguese. In addition to turning to the


BRIC nations as a new source for visitors, Jordan is pursuing religious tourism, according to Al Khadir. “Malayasia, Indonesia and Turkey have large Muslim populations who want to visit the region’s holy sites and, of course, undertake the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages. We’d like to see people coming to the region, stopping in Jordan for our sites and also those in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Nazareth. We can facilitate visas and transport from here. "As the biggest Muslim


country in the world, Indonesia is the biggest exporting country for Hajj and Umrah, These are big markets for us.”


Petra, Jordan Citadel in Amman, Jordan


ADDRESSING OBSTACLES


When marketing destinations after uncertain times, the best campaigns encompass robust strategies in a bid to navigate external barriers to growth


Easyjet’s recent withdrawal from operating flights to Amman in Jordan, citing a lack of demand, highlights the difficulty in attracting and retaining airline routes.


Al Khadir said: “We are in the middle of negotiating with Ryanair and EasyJet to add flights. Ryanair will connect European destinations with Jordan and we hope that EasyJet will fly to Aqaba now that they have pulled back from Amman. “We’re trying to make Aqaba a hub in its own right. It’s not only a coastal resort, but also encompasses Wadi Rum and Petra.”


Travel advisories also act as a major barrier to growth. Such an impact can be lessened if embassies can be convinced to lift or ease travel warnings, as mass-market visitors will then feel more confident, the WTTC argues.


For example, in January, Hong Kong gave Bangkok a ’black’ designation, a rating it currently has bestowed only on Egypt, Syria and the Philippines. This led to the number of air travel bookings to Thailand to fall by half over one month, WTTC reported. While Hong Kong has since shifted its warning to a “less risk” amber position, travellers remain cautious.


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