2 January 2001MANILA – The Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) is developing a strong brand image for "Rediscovery Philippines", that will unify all marketing materials for a "one-look, one image" approach to tourism promotions.
Tourism Secretary Gemma Cruz-Araneta said "the country’s tourism industry needs a branding strategy that will communicate highly-positive and desirable feelings, values, perceptions, both tangible and intangible that are strongly associated with the Philippines and which foreign and local tourists find believable."
DDB Philippines is the advertising agency commissioned by the DOT to produce the strong branding visuals and messages which will support thematic taglines.
According to Araneta, the "Rediscovery Tourism" programme aims to increase tourism arrivals by 10 percent by the end of the second quarter of 2001 and by another 10 percent at the end of the same year. It will also strengthen the country’s presence in North East Asia (Japan, China, Korea, Taiwan); penetrate new markets like People’s Republic of China; re-establish its presence in the winter countries of Northern and Eastern Europe; and make a comeback in Australia and New Zealand.
The tourism programme also aims to create marketing programmes that will help boost the image of the Philippines for Vacation/Holiday travel with emphasis on culture and arts and adventure sports like wind and wave surfing and sports fishing, white-water rafting, kayaking, scuba-diving and sports fishing.