A new global survey comes to confirm that encouraging film shooting in a destination proves to be a very efficient driver for attracting new visitors!
According to the global benchmarking survey TRAVELSAT© Competitive Index, last year around 40 millions international tourists chose their destination mostly because they saw a film shot in the country.
The survey also reports that regions and cities can widely benefit from this driver for attracting first time visitors, young travellers and city breakers in particular.
In average and depending on the destination and market, 1 to 10 visitors of 100 would choose a destination mostly thanks to movies. Moreover BRIC markets tend to be especially sensitive to this channel. The analysis extracted from the global TRAVELSAT Competitive Index Survey is based on 25.000+ representative international travellers (leisure, MICE and VFR).
Commenting on the results, CEO Olivier Henry-Biabaud adds: “Supporting film shooting in a destination can offer higher ROI than traditional communication campaigns and may offer an indirect yet efficient promotional media for destinations as part of their marketing mix. DMOs have therefore all interest in tightening their relationship with the cinema industry if they wish to rival better vs international competition”.
As for destination marketing, the latest example comes from India where the government has launched a tourism campaign aiming to take maximum advantage of the worldwide popularity of “Life of Pi“, which has been partly shot in the beautiful locales of Puducherry and Munnar in Kerala.
The “Land of Pi” campaign will be launched across all media, including print, online, electronic and outdoor, to promote Puducherry and Munnar as tourist destinations in the country.The Tourism Ministry has already announced special National Tourism Awards for Ang Lee, Director, and Yann Martel, author of the book “Life of Pi”, for promoting India through the film.Recognising the importance of cinema as a powerful tool for development and promotion of various tourist destinations, the ministry has undertaken several initiatives for promoting film tourism through films shot in India.
As per the campaign plan, “Land of Pi” posters will be displayed worldwide through India tourism offices overseas. They will also organise road shows to promote Indian destinations in China and Taiwan, where the film has been very well received. T-shirts and caps branding the two destinations of Pi will also distributed as per the massive campaign. Luxury buses plying between Chennai and Puducherry and Kochi and Munnar will be branded with “Land of Pi” creatives; Special “Land of Pi” tours and walking trails will be organised for tourists visiting Puducherry and Munnar. Also, short films on the tourist attractions in Puducherry and Munnar which have been depicted in the film have been created and being put on Youtube and other social media networks.
Source: India Today
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