by Carlos Munda
Davao City recently launched its new brand and as you would expect it was met with both positive and negative comments. This is par for the course in any creative presentation – some people will share your vision, some people won’t – you just have to live with it.
What people may not understand though is that branding is just one part of the whole marketing process, and it is both a creative endeavor and a strict science that must be backed by statistics and measurable goals to determine its ultimate success or failure.
It is a long and complicated process that begins – just like any journey – with a clear understanding of where we stand at right now. This is the most important part of the trip. This intimate knowledge of our starting point is essential in planning a route to where we want to go.
It isn’t nearly enough that wejust have a passing familiarity with the tourism industry’s present state – what we need is an expert’s grasp of the total picture so that we will be able to plot our course for the future.Anything less will lead to marketing limbo.
After knowing ourselves, we must next understand where we are within the Asian and global tourism industry. This knowledge gives us a three-dimensional view of our relative position vis-à-vis our competitors and other industry stakeholders.
From this we see is that tourism markets have expanded. Not just in the sheer volume of old and new tourists, but also in the ways by which you can reach, connect and interact with all of them.
With the emergence of each new media, the gap between companies and their customers narrows and we constantly have to ask ourselves how we are adapting to the technological evolution in the industry.Nakaka-sabaypa batayo?
What are we doing in terms of utilizing new media, are we upgrading our tourism offerings and strengthening the industry’s human resources, can we streamline the bureaucracy – are we going beyond the obvious to create a truly memorable tourism experience?
We also have to understand that one part of why markets have expanded isbecause people are finding more reasons to travel. Where previously “leisure” was clearly defined, it is now subject to many interpretations. And while there are still those who enjoy vacationing in five-star hotels, sunning by the beach and going on scenic trips to the countryside, there are also a growing number of tourists who now prefer to immerse themselves in the livesof the people they meet in the places they visit.
As the marketplace expands, it necessarily becomes noisier and more cluttered with messages. Everyone involved in the tourism industry is inviting and enticing travelers to visit and experience their country with promises of something extraordinary. We are now in a situation where everything is unique and similar at the same time.
For us in the Philippines, or more specifically in Davao City, what do we have to offer? What is our message? Are the beaches of Davao (or Samal), the cool mountain air of Eden and the slopes of Mt. Apo enough to set us apart? How are we going to tell people about this?
Next week, I’ll discuss the most important part of this whole process – indentifying the strategies that need to be implement in a successful marketing and branding campaign.
