14 December 2009 05:10 am Views - 13394
The new communication strategy largely encompasses TV as a primary medium to communicate with potential tourists and lure them to Sri Lanka in the year 2011.
The channels that will air the campaign include - BBC, Al Jazeera, CNN and Discovery Travel & Living, where the new campaign will be launched on the November 20 and span for a period of 20 weeks. The campaign will kick-start with a 60 second TV commercial for 5 weeks after which time the 30 second will air for the remaining period of the campaign.
'We would like to move with the times and not remain stuck in traditional methods of promoting Sri Lanka as a destination. It is an experiment for us two-fold, we are using marketing tools that are new to us and marketing Sri Lanka for the first time in 30 years as a peaceful destination. It marks an exciting period in Sri Lanka's history and we are delighted to be a part of it' said Minister of Tourism Promotions, Faiszer Musthapha at a press briefing in London.
The new campaign will position Sri Lanka as a premier tourist destination of Asia.
'We are proud to move forward rapidly after the conflict and this campaign couldn't have launched at a better time with inbound tourist arrivals showing a marked month on month growth when compared to the corresponding period in 2008. Sri Lanka will once again be on the international map' said Chairman of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, Bernard Goonetilleke.
The overall inbound tourism figures have seen a marked improvement during the second half of this year with increasing trends recorded month on month. The arrivals for September alone jumped a resounding 28.6 percent when compared to the same period in 2008.Al Jazeera had been acclaimed the Most Popular International News Channel on YouTube and was voted Best 24 Hour News Programme at the 48th Monte Carlo Television Festival. In October 2004, The Washington Post surveyed 120 international TV channels received in the Middle East and found that Al Jazeera Channel was the most popular with 51.7% of viewers deeming it the news source of choice.
According to Dileep Mudadeniya of Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion bureau campaign will reach over 137 million homes worldwide and will broadcast on the English and Arabic feed. This makes it an ideal platform for Sri Lanka Tourism to gain a firm stronghold in the Middle East market. The campaign will reach 362,032,723 television sets through the Discovery network. This includes a reach of 10,574,018 in the UK alone. On a weekly basis the campaign will be viewed by 7.2 million upscale consumers. Meanwhile the campaign will also reach more than 18.6 million homes in Asia through the time & tested media stalwart BBC. While CNN is synonymous with America, it has a very strong reach in Europe, a traditional strong market for Sri Lanka Tourism, as well. The campaign will reach 80 percent of households in France, 97 and 56 percent in Germany and the UK respectively.
In addition, for the first time a 360 degree social networking campaign will be launched on CNN through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Flicker and a contest whereby the winners get their dream itinerary will be launched on a CNN microsite.
Sri Lanka Tourism also encourages the general public to blog on Sri Lanka. Interested bloggers are invited to write in to Sri Lanka Tourism if they are keen to be a part of this venture.