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Sri Lanka Tourism will spend Rs. 1.4 billion over the next 12 months from July to mark a fresh approach to destination marketing including two domestic campaigns.
As exclusively reported in the Daily FT early this month, the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) will roll out its global destination marketing blitz focusing on 16 key markets to boost arrivals.
“We have appointed a strategic and creative agency and the PR and social media agency will be finalised this week. We will then go ahead with a two-phased marketing blitz, where the first phase is focused on rejuvenating Sri Lanka which will start end of July. This is a two-month campaign to counter negative publicity and to create awareness that Sri Lanka is ready to welcome the world. Thereafter, a thematic campaign will be launched targeting tourists from targeted markets,” SLTPB Chairman Chalaka Gajabahu said at a forum on Sri Lanka Tourism way forward yesterday.
He said the SLTPB Board has approved the thematic campaign and has been shared with Tourism Minister to get Cabinet approval.
The UK, France, Germany, India, Russia, Australia, China, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, US, Middle East, Japan and Korea are the key focused markets, whilst he said continuous promotions will be also conducted in other markets simultaneously.
He also said plans are underway to conduct two domestic campaigns to remind 22 million Sri Lankans that the warm-friendly people are ready to welcome visitors from around the world.
“No matter what global campaigns we do, if the local community is not welcoming towards them the efforts put into drawing tourists will not reach its full potential. Thus, a domestic tourism campaign will be launched towards the end of the year,” he said.
One campaign is to remind the importance of tourism to Sri Lanka and the other campaign is aimed at the Sri Lankan diaspora towards luring visitors and investments.
