by Todd Lucier on April 29, 2009
Hint for Tourism DMO and regional marketing organizations: use images from your region . . .
or you run the risk of significantly damaging your credibility.
When the province of Alberta spent over 20 Million dollars on their advertising campaign, they didn’t ensure that the media company chosen for the project would use images from within the province.
As a result, images of Northumberland Beach in the U.K. are being used to promote Canada’s heartland province.
Alberta, a province with an international image that is as scarred as the Tar Sands that drive much of its economy has its image tarnished even further by this marketing strategy that clearly lacks of credibility.
What kind of a message does it send travel consumers when you don’t even use pictures from your own destination in your marketing materials?
Note to Marketing Agencies and Destination Marketing organizations about credibility:
Use images, video that best represent people enjoying time, events, attractions and landscapes within your region. In this Creative Commons era, it is important to spell out the requirement to “use only local images” in contracts with marketing agencies who are contracted to promote and market your region.
The story in the U.K.
by Todd Lucier on April 23, 2009
In travel and tourism, earned media can be an important way to raise awareness and enhance sales.
Travel Bloggers
A new breed of media specialist is making significant impact on the travel and tourism industry today – the Travel Blogger.
Recruiting bloggers can generate more interest in travel & tourism than traditional media:
- bloggers generally start creating buzz before they travel to your location, while at your location, and after they return home.
- many bloggers live blog, tweet, and stream video – live as they are having travel experiences, bringing real time hear and now web to your business or region.(Live content is also archived and available online after the event.)
- bloggers listen, inviting the outside world to share their experiences and create buzz about your region.
- travel bloggers are masters of many media: print, photography, video, audio – many bloggers use them all.
- bloggers have followers, regular readers who ensure the stories they create get lots of eyeballs.
- bloggers love love love linking to your site and since their content is online, blogs deliver traffic to your site. (Some traditional publications outright edit links from copy -leaving the reader on their own to search, in order to learn more.)
- travel bloggers know SEO and can write text that finds its way into search engines.
- bloggers have niche audiences that can take your niche products and put them in front of audiences you want to reach.
- bloggers are easy to find – find hundreds of travel bloggers at: www.travelblogexchange.com (just be sure to pitch stories individually and match your pitch to what the blogger writes about.)
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