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By RACHEL CASTRO BARAWID
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Date Posted: 17:03:55 07/13/05 Wed
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‘I love RP’ tourism campaign launched
By RACHEL CASTRO BARAWID
In a bid to boost domestic tourism, the Department of Tourism (DoT) and its partners in the private sector launched yesterday the country’s biggest travel advocacy campaign called "I Love the Philippines, Biyahe Na" at the Westin Philippine Plaza Hotel in Pasay City.
The year-long campaign, a joint venture with Smart Communications Inc., targets local residents and Filipinos living abroad, especially in North America. Other partners in the project are Jollibee Foods Corp., Shell Philippines, Shoemart, and Pfizer.
It was titled "I Love the Philippines, Biyahe Na" to rekindle among Filipinos here and abroad a sense of love and pride for the country by urging them to travel and rediscover their motherland.
An offshoot of last year’s "Wow Philippines, Biyahe Tayo" which was a mere invitation, this reinforced campaign was a "call to action."
"Our message to the domestic market is to spend your vacation here, instead of going elsewhere. By doing this, you will be able to help boost the country’s economy. If you love the Philippines, be a tourist in the Philippines," Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano said in a speech before officials and representatives of the various companies participating in the project, DoT undersecretaries, regional directors, and members of the media.
The campaign will be divided into three phases. In anticipation of the summer months where domestic travel is at its peak, the first phase will feature different tourist destinations and fiestas/festivals of the country. The second phase is during the rainy months, focusing on food and shopping while the third phase which will be during the Christmas holidays to showcase the country’s rich culture and its people.
The latest scheme, with a new theme, slogan, and jingle, will be promoted mainly through print, radio and television advertisements, the latter to be shown here and on Filipino TV channels abroad. Colorful drop banners will domain thoroughfares of major cities and destinations across the country.
Smart has adopted the song "Biyahe Tayo" written by veteran public relations man Rene Nieva (of last year’s WOW Philippines, produced by Pfizer), commissioning the Villegas brothers to rearrange it by making it more upbeat and contemporary to reflect the new theme of the domestic campaign which is what one loves about the country.
Originally performed by leading Filipino artists, the telecommunications company got Regine Velasquez to record the song and serve as the official product endorser.
Smart also produced an engaging, 60-second TV advertisement made by BBDO-Guerrero Ortega, showing Velasquez in various tourist attractions such as Boracay, Cebu, Bohol, Bicol, Benguet, Baguio, Palawan, Manila, Laoag, Vigan, Camiguin, Davao, Clark and Subic. The ad was directed by Jun Reyes, a popular advertisement director.
Merlee C. Jayme, executive creative director of BBDO- Guerrero Ortega said the places shown in the advertisement are the priority destinations of the DoT. Other places/provinces will be shown in future "I Love Philippines" advertisements during the second and third phases of the campaign.
"We are certainly lucky enough to come across Smart Communications Inc. and are smart enough to let Smart take the lead in this campaign," Durano said.
Under the campaign, Smart will act as a mobile travel portal, providing subscribers with descriptions and scenic images of certain priority destinations. It will also serve as a tourism directory for foreign travelers to receive necessary information about getting around the country. It will provide regional and provincial downloadable contents, promoting nationalism and fiesta and event calendars for visitors’ reference.
"Tourism has always been one of the Philippines’ strongest offerings and it is for this reason that Smart seeks to help promote the country in its own innovative way," said Boy Martirez, head of SMART personal communications and mobile services division.
He also expressed hope that the alliance will help the DoT attain its economic objectives, which, in turn would contribute to the betterment of the country.
"I hope the new ‘I Love the Philippines, Biyahe Na’ campaign will deliver the tourism industry to greater heights of growth and to a whole new wealth of wonders," he said.
Ricky Isla, head of SMART’s product marketing, said the campaign is worth the company’s investment of its time, effort, and finances.
"This is one way of fulfilling our corporate social responsibility and serving the Filipino community by sharing our resources with the DoT," he added.
Towards the second and third phases of the campaign, other partners will also launch their complementing domestic promotions in the form of a "Biyahe Na Sale" for Shoemart’s chain of malls; "Biyahe Na Special" for all Jollibee food outlets; as well as a "Biyahe Na "promo for Pfizer, and in all Shell gas stations.
The DoT reported that six million residents of the Philippines traveled within the country in 2004 while more than 400,000 Filipinos from North America visited local destinations last year.
http://www.mb.com.ph/MAIN2005022029111.html
http://www.philippinenforum.net/thread.php?threadid=1361
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