I find it very interesting that there is little tv promotion by the current government on North American television. Barbados, Jamaica, Antigua, the Bahamas and many other West Indies destinations regularly promote on national networks. The only advertising I see in Canada is by the tour wholesalers. The current DR government seems loath to do the same. Friends tell me the president has a farmer mentality with little interest in tourism especially on the north coast. My personal opinion is that if this is the case, the DR is going to be a big loser once Cuba opens up for legal American tourism which is quite possibly going to happen in the very near future. Right now is when the DR should be bringing Americans in droves to discover what a wonderful country is at their doorstep.
- Thread starter richard
- Start date
Why Little Tourism Advertising?
richard i don't know about all the islands but i do know that Jamaica has been unable to advertise this season (2001-02) in Europe or the US because of an outstanding bill of $5million US owed to international ad agencies. this is not the first time Jamaica has found itself in this situation.
does RD have the money to advertise? are the agencies willing to extend credit to the government or its affiliated tourist board?
mob
does RD have the money to advertise? are the agencies willing to extend credit to the government or its affiliated tourist board?
mob
If there wasn't so much corruption
in gov't the DR would have significant funds for advertising. However IF THEY DON'T MAKE A CONCERTED EFFORT to clean up the country and improve the infastructure and tourism areas they will have a hard time attracting substantial numbers of American/Canadian tourists who will visit the island more than once!
I have spoken to people who visited the island more than 10 yrs ago and have no interest in returning due to the conditions they found when here the first time. They don't stop to think that conditions have changed over time and then there are those who have been here in the past two years who are "put-off" by the garbage and disarray that they have seen.
Disclaimer:
This post is based entirely on the author's experience. Author is an elder and has no knowledge of basically anything. The author could not find any publication of repute that could confirm this statements. The author takes no responsibility of any harm caused by the Reader's having taken this post too seriously. No explanatory charts and or quotes from world experts are provided. If you are allergic to sarcasm please see your doctor before reading this post.
in gov't the DR would have significant funds for advertising. However IF THEY DON'T MAKE A CONCERTED EFFORT to clean up the country and improve the infastructure and tourism areas they will have a hard time attracting substantial numbers of American/Canadian tourists who will visit the island more than once!
I have spoken to people who visited the island more than 10 yrs ago and have no interest in returning due to the conditions they found when here the first time. They don't stop to think that conditions have changed over time and then there are those who have been here in the past two years who are "put-off" by the garbage and disarray that they have seen.
Disclaimer:
This post is based entirely on the author's experience. Author is an elder and has no knowledge of basically anything. The author could not find any publication of repute that could confirm this statements. The author takes no responsibility of any harm caused by the Reader's having taken this post too seriously. No explanatory charts and or quotes from world experts are provided. If you are allergic to sarcasm please see your doctor before reading this post.
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Promotion
In simple terms the D.R. does not have the money or the will to advertise in the North American market. It requires a substantial amount of money to research what market they want to reach and how to advertise in U.S. and Canada. Also, if they do find the money and the will, they will have to change the Domincan tourist facilities to the standards appreciated by the North American market they wish to capture. Regards, PJT
In simple terms the D.R. does not have the money or the will to advertise in the North American market. It requires a substantial amount of money to research what market they want to reach and how to advertise in U.S. and Canada. Also, if they do find the money and the will, they will have to change the Domincan tourist facilities to the standards appreciated by the North American market they wish to capture. Regards, PJT
Re: Promotion
Although I personally believe the resorts at Playa Dorada are quite suitable and other Canadians must agree as witnessed by the plane loads of Canadians flocking to their golden gates at reasonable prices it still doesn't answer any questions as to what will happen when the Cuban market opens up. If their are any problems now competing with other destinations for tourist dollars it won't get any better.
PJT said:In simple terms the D.R. does not have the money or the will to advertise in the North American market. It requires a substantial amount of money to research what market they want to reach and how to advertise in U.S. and Canada. Also, if they do find the money and the will, they will have to change the Domincan tourist facilities to the standards appreciated by the North American market they wish to capture. Regards, PJT
Although I personally believe the resorts at Playa Dorada are quite suitable and other Canadians must agree as witnessed by the plane loads of Canadians flocking to their golden gates at reasonable prices it still doesn't answer any questions as to what will happen when the Cuban market opens up. If their are any problems now competing with other destinations for tourist dollars it won't get any better.
Spanish based advertising agency...
I here a Spanish based advertising agency won the governments tourism advertising contract and that most of the $$$ is being used in Europe. Does this make any sense? Not to me, then again, I here lots of things that the government has signed checks for relating to tourism that make no sense.
I here a Spanish based advertising agency won the governments tourism advertising contract and that most of the $$$ is being used in Europe. Does this make any sense? Not to me, then again, I here lots of things that the government has signed checks for relating to tourism that make no sense.
I agree that there is a big need to advertise in the US. The only advertising I have heard of is lots of word of mouth!
As for the Spanish ad agency, on ever other bus depot there is an ad with a gorgeous picture of a deserted DR beach advertising DR tourism. It says 'vivir un sue?o' or something like that. And all travel agencies advertise packages to all parts of the DR heavily. In most all of the minds of the Europeans I have met, the DR is known as a vacation destination primarily. For Americans, it is known as a immigrant producer!
As for the Spanish ad agency, on ever other bus depot there is an ad with a gorgeous picture of a deserted DR beach advertising DR tourism. It says 'vivir un sue?o' or something like that. And all travel agencies advertise packages to all parts of the DR heavily. In most all of the minds of the Europeans I have met, the DR is known as a vacation destination primarily. For Americans, it is known as a immigrant producer!
Just the other day I was wondering the same thing...
that is, why no Dr advertisements in the US. We did have a little of the Sammy and Pedro spots on CNN once in awhile. But everyday going to and from work I hear ads for The Bahamas, Aruba, Grand Cayman, Mexico. MTV has spring break in Cancun everyday. Puerto Rico has commercials. Air Jamaica has giant billboards on the side of the highways. You gotta spend money to make money.
Just think, one day Punta Cana could be the big spring break destination and I could turn on my TV set and see 16 year old girls half naked and puking on the beach.
On second thought, maybe we should continue to keep the place a secret. Hell, it has grown too fast already.
Just a comment,
Bob
that is, why no Dr advertisements in the US. We did have a little of the Sammy and Pedro spots on CNN once in awhile. But everyday going to and from work I hear ads for The Bahamas, Aruba, Grand Cayman, Mexico. MTV has spring break in Cancun everyday. Puerto Rico has commercials. Air Jamaica has giant billboards on the side of the highways. You gotta spend money to make money.
Just think, one day Punta Cana could be the big spring break destination and I could turn on my TV set and see 16 year old girls half naked and puking on the beach.
On second thought, maybe we should continue to keep the place a secret. Hell, it has grown too fast already.
Just a comment,
Bob
Cuban Market
Richard, see the thread in Travel "U.S. travel group eyes forbidden Cuba", about the Cuban impact. It may help you.
Also, maybe one of the reasons why there is not much promotion done in the North American market is that you have to look that the ownership of many of the resorts is European based and are operated upon European standards. One has to understand that some of the other business interests these owners have in Europe earn revenues directly or indirectly from the Europeans going to the D.R.
Regards, PJT
Richard, see the thread in Travel "U.S. travel group eyes forbidden Cuba", about the Cuban impact. It may help you.
Also, maybe one of the reasons why there is not much promotion done in the North American market is that you have to look that the ownership of many of the resorts is European based and are operated upon European standards. One has to understand that some of the other business interests these owners have in Europe earn revenues directly or indirectly from the Europeans going to the D.R.
Regards, PJT
The DR DOES have the money to advertise in the US. It's just that too much of it is "leaking" out of the budget process and too many US ad agencies have been burnt in the past so they are wary of handling the account unless it's CASH ON THE BARREL. There's also the matter of a government not progressive enough to understand that we must promote, promote and PROMOTE.
There is also no coherent marketing strategy at the national, regional or local levels. Everything I've seen is woefully inadequate and accordingly most advertising to the world's markets is being done by small promoters such as myself with Samana Net. The Spanish ad agency handling the DR's account must be doing a great job. Did you see the numbers for the 1st quarter of this year? ALL the European market numbers are down. But the American market is up despite what happened last September and to advertise to the US market? Out of the question despite what the numbers portend. Forty-one per cent of Samana Net's readership is North American based and hell, I couldn't even get the local Minister of Tourism to renew his page for his marine transportation company. Promoting the local area to the up-and-coming US market is even lost on him. The concept of local merchants banding together to promote the local area is completely lost on these people. None want to spend one peso that would certainly help Samana's dismal 55% occupancy rate.
I've stood up in local tourism meetings and explained what must be done and am ignored. They tell me that the government will promote Samana. If you believe that one and I've got a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you! Even at the local level many Dominican and foreign business owners don't want to spend one peso to promote what the government won't. Spend money to make money? Let someone else do it.
I wish you readers could attend some of these meetings with me. We go through all the motions; identify needs, propose solutions, set goals and then,...nothing. It's a complete farce. And when Cuba opens the DR is going to reap what it has (or "hasn't" as the case may be) sown.
There is also no coherent marketing strategy at the national, regional or local levels. Everything I've seen is woefully inadequate and accordingly most advertising to the world's markets is being done by small promoters such as myself with Samana Net. The Spanish ad agency handling the DR's account must be doing a great job. Did you see the numbers for the 1st quarter of this year? ALL the European market numbers are down. But the American market is up despite what happened last September and to advertise to the US market? Out of the question despite what the numbers portend. Forty-one per cent of Samana Net's readership is North American based and hell, I couldn't even get the local Minister of Tourism to renew his page for his marine transportation company. Promoting the local area to the up-and-coming US market is even lost on him. The concept of local merchants banding together to promote the local area is completely lost on these people. None want to spend one peso that would certainly help Samana's dismal 55% occupancy rate.
I've stood up in local tourism meetings and explained what must be done and am ignored. They tell me that the government will promote Samana. If you believe that one and I've got a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you! Even at the local level many Dominican and foreign business owners don't want to spend one peso to promote what the government won't. Spend money to make money? Let someone else do it.
I wish you readers could attend some of these meetings with me. We go through all the motions; identify needs, propose solutions, set goals and then,...nothing. It's a complete farce. And when Cuba opens the DR is going to reap what it has (or "hasn't" as the case may be) sown.
When Cuba opens to Americans?
It would seem to me that the pent-up demand for Cuban travel and tourism in the US is huge. People who can now choose between the DR and Cuba (Canadians, Europeans, etc.) are already choosing DR in many cases. Since most Americans don't come here now, the "loss" of these tourists to Cuba will not occur.
So Cuba's opening to Americans is a false issue. What is a real issue is the possible diversion of AA flights to Santiago from POP. Another real issue is indeed cleanliness and levels of service. Another real issue is highway safety--perhaps some attempt to control kamikaze driving is in order.
It is my observation that the Dominican people are by far the nicest, warmest, not to mention the most physically attractive, people in this part of the world. Therefore, efforts must be made to build on this most important resource--people--since that is what so many tourists remember best about their vacation stays.
Hospitality training is a big, big need in the country. Especially because there is a diversity of economy that means that people who really don't like working in hospitality don't have to--unlike other islands where there is truly no other viable industry.
So the younger Dominicans who want to be in the people business need to get real professional training--and increase the level of service. The hotels on the North Coast appear to have closed because they didn't measure up--facilities-wise and service-wise. Not because tourists didn't want to come to the country itself--if serious efforts can be made to upgrade the vacation experience--apart from the generally positive experience that the Dominican people can provide when tourists step outside the property--Cuba will not be a threat.
The country has everything it needs to lead the region in tourism--except, thus far, the will to do it.
It would seem to me that the pent-up demand for Cuban travel and tourism in the US is huge. People who can now choose between the DR and Cuba (Canadians, Europeans, etc.) are already choosing DR in many cases. Since most Americans don't come here now, the "loss" of these tourists to Cuba will not occur.
So Cuba's opening to Americans is a false issue. What is a real issue is the possible diversion of AA flights to Santiago from POP. Another real issue is indeed cleanliness and levels of service. Another real issue is highway safety--perhaps some attempt to control kamikaze driving is in order.
It is my observation that the Dominican people are by far the nicest, warmest, not to mention the most physically attractive, people in this part of the world. Therefore, efforts must be made to build on this most important resource--people--since that is what so many tourists remember best about their vacation stays.
Hospitality training is a big, big need in the country. Especially because there is a diversity of economy that means that people who really don't like working in hospitality don't have to--unlike other islands where there is truly no other viable industry.
So the younger Dominicans who want to be in the people business need to get real professional training--and increase the level of service. The hotels on the North Coast appear to have closed because they didn't measure up--facilities-wise and service-wise. Not because tourists didn't want to come to the country itself--if serious efforts can be made to upgrade the vacation experience--apart from the generally positive experience that the Dominican people can provide when tourists step outside the property--Cuba will not be a threat.
The country has everything it needs to lead the region in tourism--except, thus far, the will to do it.
Abe, you're probably not old enough to remember weekends in Havana during the 50's. It was jam-packed with Americans and will be again when Cuba opens up. The pent-up demand is there.
Now for the DR; all the desire in the world won't bring people to these fair shores,...advertising will. And yes, there are a host of internal problems that must be addressed if the DR is going to prosper in the tourism trade. Cuba WILL hurt the DR, how much so is anybody's guess.
Now for the DR; all the desire in the world won't bring people to these fair shores,...advertising will. And yes, there are a host of internal problems that must be addressed if the DR is going to prosper in the tourism trade. Cuba WILL hurt the DR, how much so is anybody's guess.
Spend Money
I can agree with you Andy. You have to scratch your head as to how many times the owners have lost business because they are playing their cards to tight to their chests. An example of this is how many times have you gone to purchase something or pay for a service when the provider in the person of some lowly worker with no authority at all tells you he has no change. The boss or owner has all the money secured for the business in an underground vault, a-la Jack Benny, and will not part with it, even to make change at the request of the lowly worker. So what .happens, you either overpay or say screw this and leave frustrated without the benefit of the service or product. Net result, ill-will and no return business. The owner has the money he can count in the underground vault, no business sense, no foresight, no growth and no future.
It is like the story of the man dying of thirst in the desert crawling up to a well outfitted with a hand pump. At the base of the pump is a small bottle of water. A sign hangs from the pump begs him to use the bottle of water to prime the pump and doing so will bring up an unending supply of water to quench his thirst and to refill the bottle. It cautions if he drinks direct from the bottle he will survive for the moment, not the future. He is caught up in an act of faith, a gamble to go without a drink and use the bottled water to prime the pump, hope that the well water comes up and have enough to survive for days or drink direct from the bottle and survive for the day. The behavior of the local level businessmen at Samana per Andy leads you to believe they are drinking direct from the bottle. What a loss!!!
Regards, PJT
Andy B said:
I can agree with you Andy. You have to scratch your head as to how many times the owners have lost business because they are playing their cards to tight to their chests. An example of this is how many times have you gone to purchase something or pay for a service when the provider in the person of some lowly worker with no authority at all tells you he has no change. The boss or owner has all the money secured for the business in an underground vault, a-la Jack Benny, and will not part with it, even to make change at the request of the lowly worker. So what .happens, you either overpay or say screw this and leave frustrated without the benefit of the service or product. Net result, ill-will and no return business. The owner has the money he can count in the underground vault, no business sense, no foresight, no growth and no future.
It is like the story of the man dying of thirst in the desert crawling up to a well outfitted with a hand pump. At the base of the pump is a small bottle of water. A sign hangs from the pump begs him to use the bottle of water to prime the pump and doing so will bring up an unending supply of water to quench his thirst and to refill the bottle. It cautions if he drinks direct from the bottle he will survive for the moment, not the future. He is caught up in an act of faith, a gamble to go without a drink and use the bottled water to prime the pump, hope that the well water comes up and have enough to survive for days or drink direct from the bottle and survive for the day. The behavior of the local level businessmen at Samana per Andy leads you to believe they are drinking direct from the bottle. What a loss!!!
Regards, PJT
Andy---we agree; I am not sure you got that.
Andy--I believe that, upon rereading my post, you will see that I absolutely agree that there is enormous pent-up demand for Cuban destinations among American tourists. That's not news.
However I have heard two distinct schools of thought re: promoting the DR to the US. One is that the Americans will quickly run off to Cuba the minute it opens, so why bother spending $ to get them to come in any great numbers to the DR. Better to concentrate on getting more Canadians, etc. who already come.
The opposing view is that Americans have given up on Cuba opening and are opting to invest, etc. in the DR. Examples are: the Jack Nicklaus, Ritz-Carlton, etc. initiatives.
If I knew which view was right, I would have done better in investments in my lifetime. I lean toward the first.
I would love to hear more views, but the fact remains that pure, old fashioned advertising in a world of cyberinfo may be ill-advised too.
Perhaps hosting the next "Survivor" here would do it. Failing that, the Pan Am games certainly represent an opportunity to boost (or not!) the country's image.
Andy--I believe that, upon rereading my post, you will see that I absolutely agree that there is enormous pent-up demand for Cuban destinations among American tourists. That's not news.
However I have heard two distinct schools of thought re: promoting the DR to the US. One is that the Americans will quickly run off to Cuba the minute it opens, so why bother spending $ to get them to come in any great numbers to the DR. Better to concentrate on getting more Canadians, etc. who already come.
The opposing view is that Americans have given up on Cuba opening and are opting to invest, etc. in the DR. Examples are: the Jack Nicklaus, Ritz-Carlton, etc. initiatives.
If I knew which view was right, I would have done better in investments in my lifetime. I lean toward the first.
I would love to hear more views, but the fact remains that pure, old fashioned advertising in a world of cyberinfo may be ill-advised too.
Perhaps hosting the next "Survivor" here would do it. Failing that, the Pan Am games certainly represent an opportunity to boost (or not!) the country's image.
Abe, yes we are in agreement. No argument there! But my entire point is that even with the best product in the world, if no one knows about it, it is useless. That's the real problem the DR is facing. Get the people to come and then we can fine tune the system with needed infrastructure improvements.
We have the chance to woo the US market right now. Castro will live a little longer and then when he dies, even if a pro-democratic form of government is established, there will still be a period of instability. If we establish a niche in the American market now, our chances for sucessfully surviving the opening of Cuba will be greatly enhanced. I saw the same thing happen in my hometown of Daytona Beach when Disney World opened in Orlando. Tourism dipped for a few years until the newness of the "mouse house" wore off and then picked back up as people returned to a familar destination, the "World's Most Famous Beach." In a best case scenario, the same would happen here.
As far as concentrating on the Canadian market, until the Canadian dollar becomes stronger, Canada is no longer a viable market. At the current exchange, our $50usd room becomes an almost $80usd room. We've seen a big drop in Canadian tourists the past 5 years because of this and the high airfares from Canada; $900 Canadian dollars, Montreal to Puerto Plata RT this year. I lost more than just a few Canadian reservations at my hotel because of this. On the other hand, our American visitors to the Samana Peninsula (and my hotel) actually increased this year despite recent world events. We are starting to make a dent in the market and almost every American I asked said they found Samana on the internet.
If we can make the DR a well known destination in the US market, we WILL survive the 800lb Cuban gorilla. And by the way, they are shooting an episode of Survivor (or a similar show) in Los Haitises National Park right now. Also, Disney has an advance team here in Samana in preparation for shortly shooting a movie tentatively titled "The Caribbean Pirate." Our location is superb, now if we can just get a few more people to visit...
We have the chance to woo the US market right now. Castro will live a little longer and then when he dies, even if a pro-democratic form of government is established, there will still be a period of instability. If we establish a niche in the American market now, our chances for sucessfully surviving the opening of Cuba will be greatly enhanced. I saw the same thing happen in my hometown of Daytona Beach when Disney World opened in Orlando. Tourism dipped for a few years until the newness of the "mouse house" wore off and then picked back up as people returned to a familar destination, the "World's Most Famous Beach." In a best case scenario, the same would happen here.
As far as concentrating on the Canadian market, until the Canadian dollar becomes stronger, Canada is no longer a viable market. At the current exchange, our $50usd room becomes an almost $80usd room. We've seen a big drop in Canadian tourists the past 5 years because of this and the high airfares from Canada; $900 Canadian dollars, Montreal to Puerto Plata RT this year. I lost more than just a few Canadian reservations at my hotel because of this. On the other hand, our American visitors to the Samana Peninsula (and my hotel) actually increased this year despite recent world events. We are starting to make a dent in the market and almost every American I asked said they found Samana on the internet.
If we can make the DR a well known destination in the US market, we WILL survive the 800lb Cuban gorilla. And by the way, they are shooting an episode of Survivor (or a similar show) in Los Haitises National Park right now. Also, Disney has an advance team here in Samana in preparation for shortly shooting a movie tentatively titled "The Caribbean Pirate." Our location is superb, now if we can just get a few more people to visit...
Andy--apples and, well, mangoes?
I appreciate the dialog, but the experience of Daytona Beach doesn't seem to offer real parallels. The attractions are very different when you compare Orlando to DB--the theme parks versus the beach. The attractions of Cuba and the DR seem to be the same--beaches, sun, nice people, rum, cigars, music, bargains, etc.
Except that the lore of Cuba in the US greatly outweighs that of the DR--and always will. So why bother wooing the Americans now just to lose them soon?
But, for the moment, I will join your camp just for the brainstorming exercise. So if the idea is to promote the DR to Americans then how about going with the strengths--baseball for one.
American families might come to the DR if there were baseball programs organized for the kids that would involve them with Dominican kids--cross-cultural opportunities that would highlight, but not dominate the family vacation.
The DR tourism people should simply take the offensive in the wake of the overage player scandal last year and approach the American Little League to do a cross-promotion. Let's show how sports and statesmanship can mix and let's get the kids together.
"A little child (with a Rawlings glove) will lead them."
Consider how huge the outreach to American families might be if the entire Little League organization linked with DR tourism to create family vacation experiences. Major league baseball already has academies in the DR, so they could be approached as well.
I realize that the American families with real money have soccer playing kids--usually. But with the relatively inexpensive cost of DR vacations, perhaps the first trip here could be spurred on by baseball.
Obviously it would have to be a sports experience based on goodwill versus competition, but what school system in the US wouldn't want to promote real learning about other cultures by kids--via sports?
I could go on, but you get the point.
Brainstorms, please.
I appreciate the dialog, but the experience of Daytona Beach doesn't seem to offer real parallels. The attractions are very different when you compare Orlando to DB--the theme parks versus the beach. The attractions of Cuba and the DR seem to be the same--beaches, sun, nice people, rum, cigars, music, bargains, etc.
Except that the lore of Cuba in the US greatly outweighs that of the DR--and always will. So why bother wooing the Americans now just to lose them soon?
But, for the moment, I will join your camp just for the brainstorming exercise. So if the idea is to promote the DR to Americans then how about going with the strengths--baseball for one.
American families might come to the DR if there were baseball programs organized for the kids that would involve them with Dominican kids--cross-cultural opportunities that would highlight, but not dominate the family vacation.
The DR tourism people should simply take the offensive in the wake of the overage player scandal last year and approach the American Little League to do a cross-promotion. Let's show how sports and statesmanship can mix and let's get the kids together.
"A little child (with a Rawlings glove) will lead them."
Consider how huge the outreach to American families might be if the entire Little League organization linked with DR tourism to create family vacation experiences. Major league baseball already has academies in the DR, so they could be approached as well.
I realize that the American families with real money have soccer playing kids--usually. But with the relatively inexpensive cost of DR vacations, perhaps the first trip here could be spurred on by baseball.
Obviously it would have to be a sports experience based on goodwill versus competition, but what school system in the US wouldn't want to promote real learning about other cultures by kids--via sports?
I could go on, but you get the point.
Brainstorms, please.
Read
Please read te topic "Price excursions" , you have to do something about this , tourists wil stay away look for cheaper destinations , already te tourism is going down , 2,3 years agoo te dominican republic tourism was in te elevator in europe now it is going down by more than 20 % because te high price people want for a small hotel or 1/2 day excursion .
It could be te next Spain for people from europe but first te must get those prices down else te wil stay away complete in a year or 2 or just stay on te gronds of te ressorts .
Harry
Belgium
Please read te topic "Price excursions" , you have to do something about this , tourists wil stay away look for cheaper destinations , already te tourism is going down , 2,3 years agoo te dominican republic tourism was in te elevator in europe now it is going down by more than 20 % because te high price people want for a small hotel or 1/2 day excursion .
It could be te next Spain for people from europe but first te must get those prices down else te wil stay away complete in a year or 2 or just stay on te gronds of te ressorts .
Harry
Belgium