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Cool
Ideas...Ripe for Stealing
Taken
from Autumn/1999 issue of the ZEITGEIST Client Newsletter
SAY IT LOUD: I WORK IN TOURISM AND I'M PROUD
 Even
when it means putting your less than complimentary high school picture
in the local paper for all to see (at right). This great idea from Spero
Batistatos at the Lake
County (IN) CVB took a lot of nerve...but it also took
top honors at the IACVB
Idea Fair. Show that tourism is a meaningful career path by showcasing
the growth of several professionals in the market, from bus boy to general
manager.
WELL, HE DID SAY BIGGER....
"We will be doing a whole lot more to make sure we have a bigger,
more visual and fully integrated presence in Japan." Those were
the words of the Hawaii
VCB's Tony Vericella earlier this year. Makes sense, as
Japan is one of Hawaii's biggest feeder markets.
So how to make good on the "bigger presence" promise? How
'bout a quarter-ton sumo wrestler floating in a huge inner tube and
singing "Blue Hawaii." Hawaiian-born former sumo champion
Konishiki, who weighs in at about 585 pounds, will grace TV commercials,
railway station billboards and magazine and newspaper ads.
CAPTURE AN ICON
CLAIM AN EVENT
OWN A NICHE
It started as a boast by a radio announcer in 1927; that Santa Claus
lived just outside Lapland's Rovaniemi.
Today, thousands from around the world migrate to his home. And parents
are cautioned to take care when ordering the local delicacy for fear
that their kids will flip out when served reindeer.
The German
Tourist Board has launched an advertising campaign designed
to attract wealthy but sick Belgians, Italians, Arabs, Russians and
Americans to the country's many thermal baths and spas, health and wellness
centers. Miami has launched a similar campaign, directed at Latin and
South America. Oh bring me your tired, your sick....
300 years ago, Jamaica's
Port Royal was home to pirate Henry
Morgan and was called the "most wicked place on earth."
Next year, a $50 million renovation of this nefarious port is expected
to draw over 5000 pirate-wannabes each week Aaarrghh matey.
A DESTINATION
GUARANTEE THAT WORKS
How do you counter a perception that your hotel inventory is sub-par?
Try offering the guarantee that Jerry Preston's Flint
(MI) CVB did this past winter. Guests get a Guarantee card
at check-in, asking them to report any dissatisfaction to the hotel
management in order for them to make it right. If they don't, write
Jerry. He then passes the complaint back to the hotel management for
resolution. If the hotel refuses, Jerry calls the guest and gives 'em
an offer: stay free at another property on your next visit or get a
refund.
Preston
reports just 4 complaints lodged on the 25 properties in the program.
His total payout: $0.
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