Tourism Ambassadors: Show them what we've got!

Utilizing local people and their experiences,  as representatives of the tourism brand  is a method that several Tourism Boards have used in order to strengthen the "local knowledge-authenticity" factor and their brand proposition. In order to have positive results based on set targets there appears to be one essential condition: that the selected ambassadors are true  representatives of the brand essence.

Scottish ambassadors as the face of Scotland's brand essence

2011 will see the continuation of International Marketing’s flagship ‘Scotland. Welcome to our Life’ Pan-European Touring Campaign, featuring a “Meet the Scots” theme - a group of people whose lives and work link to key Scottish tourism themes.

VisitScotland's major European tourism campaign, Meet the Scots, has delivered almost £97million in additional tourism revenue for Scotland.

The Scots are the conduit for the campaign messages and represent the “Human” element of the brand essence “Dramatic, Human, Enduring”. They represent the warmth and passion of the Scottish people and offer insider knowledge to consumers.

Car touring remains the largest leisure tourism market to Scotland from Europe and the campaign promotes touring holidays with a particular focus on Seasonality - to attract visitors in the shoulder seasons, thus addressing one of the levers for growth, Capacity Utilisation.  Additionally the campaign aims to generate higher spend per trip and to contribute to VisitScotland's geographic spread objective by encouraging visitors to explore more of Scotland.

Authenticity is an important driver in holiday choice for its target consumers, as is a desire to engage with the locals of the country they are visiting. The Scots are utilised in VisitScotland's marketing activity to underline the authentic nature of a holiday in Scotland, whilst also pushing the scope for social engagement. Each Scot represents a particular theme and delivers information and tips associated with that theme. They are also featured on the campaign websites with information on who they are, what they do and they also provide consumers with personal tips and suggestions for things to do in every month of the year.

Source: www.pressandjournal.co.uk, www.visitscotland.org

Jessica Watson promotes 2011 Queensland Season of Sailing campaign

The $100,000, 2011 Queensland Season of Sailing campaign will promote all the fantastic sailing events along Queensland’s stunning coastline between April 22 and September 6, with regattas in Brisbane, Sunshine Coast, Central Queensland, the Whitsundays and Townsville.

Queensland is Australia’s premier sailing destination and this campaign encompasses a wide range of stay and sail experiences which are bound to make Sydneysiders and Melbournites want to leave the cold southern winter to live it up on the Queensland coast. The premise behind this year’s campaign is to encourage visitors to experience a sailing event and book a holiday package with their friends and family. It’s about promoting opportunities for visitors to experience Queensland’s sailing events first hand, enjoy all that the sailing destinations have to offer, take to the water and learn how to sail, have a bareboat adventure or enjoy a charter cruise.

Ms Jarratt, Minister for Tourism, Manufacturing and Small Business said Tourism Queensland was thrilled to have Queensland sailor and Young Australian of the Year Jessica Watson onboard again as the 2011 Queensland Season of Sailing ambassador. “Jessica is a genuine Queensland inspiration who has developed an international profile, which makes her the perfect fit for Queensland’s Season of Sailing campaign. She is also a proud Queenslander who has the ability to raise the profile of Queensland’s Season of Sailing even further in 2011.”

This initiative provides people with a unique incentive to visit Queensland’s regional holiday destinations during the traditionally slower winter months.Queensland’s 2011 Season of Sailing campaign will be promoted through print ads in newspapers and sailing magazines, online and via social media as well as at a grass roots level via Yachting Australia’s members.

Source: tourismqld.blogspot.com

Tourism Calgary turned to Calgarians to help advertise their city

Tourism Calgary is turning to Calgarians to help advertise their city with a fully integrated and user-generated regional marketing campaign that kicked off in March.

The “Capture Wow” campaign invites locals to upload descriptions and photos of their biggest “wow” experiences in Calgary at CaptureWow.ca, said Gisele Danis, vice-president of Tourism Calgary. The best photographs will be used in an online and traditional advertising campaign called “Experience Wow” later this year in Alberta, Saskatchewan and B.C.

Danis said user-generated photography was a way to extend Tourism Calgary’s “small” marketing budget. “We can’t afford the half-million dollars many cities spend on photography for their campaigns, so we turned to the locals, the real experts.”

All pictures will remain on the Capture Wow and Tourism Calgary websites throughout 2011, said Danis, “and we believe they will tell the inside story that Canada’s fourth largest city is a place that offers world-class experiences. The campaign supports the 100th anniversary of the Calgary Stampede next year and the city’s bid to be the 2012 Cultural Capital of Canada".

Source: www.marketingmag.ca, CaptureWow.ca

Real Madrid's Football Players as Brand Ambassadors for Madrid and Spain

Legendary football club Real Madrid has signed a deal to promote Spain and Madrid as tourist destinations.

The deal means that the club’s star players such as Cristiano Ronaldo will act as “brand ambassadors” for both the Spanish capital and the country as a whole through the “Visit Spain, Visit Madrid” campaign. Tourism authorities expect the three-year agreement will reach a potential audience of over 300 million people because of Real Madrid’s worldwide fan base.

A Spanish Tourist Office spokeswoman said: “This is a groundbreaking agreement in which both Madrid and Spain will be promoted internationally through one of the most renowned clubs worldwide promoting both tourism brands to all corners of the globe.

“The agreement, valid for three years, will allow the public institutions to use the main players of the club as ‘Spain and Madrid brand ambassadors’ in various international advertising campaigns. The agreement also provides for the utilisation of advertising space in each of the official matches in the league and the Cup to be held in Santiago Bernabeu Stadium organised by Real Madrid.”

Mayor Alberto Ruiz Gallardon: "This city's most important asset, and that which we feel most proud of, is Real Madrid and its values, which is what we want to promote around the world. In large part it belongs to all Spaniards, because you are ambassadors of Spain."

Minister of Industry, Tourism and Commerce Miguel Sebastian: "Real Madrid is an icon of Spain. It is a winning team and one of the most visible clubs on an international level, but what we must promote is its culture of hard work and the excellence in its genes."

Source: www.realmadrid.com, www.ttglive.com