By Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Reporter
THE PHILIPPINES’ new tourism slogan has failed to capture some of the country’s best qualities and does not give tourists compelling reasons to come, according to brand analysts.
“Love the Philippines,” which replaced “It’s More Fun in the Philippines,” sounds like a command and lacks flexibility in terms of brand execution, they said.
“The imagery used right now, while colorful and playful, is a bit too much and might not be as cohesive,” Martin Cervantes, brand manager for Smart Philippines, Inc.’s prepaid home wifi, said in an e-mail.
He said most tourism campaigns use adjectives “because in the fewest of words, they are able to make people visualize or imagine what is in store for them in one go.”
“It’s something that ‘It’s more fun in the Philippines’ captures succinctly — set alongside the one image of the Philippine map using the strands of a weaved banig, which also became a clear symbol of culture, experiences and values that solidify the slogan,” Mr. Cervantes said, referring to the previous slogan.
The Department of Tourism has been drawing flak since it launched the campaign, which cost P49 million, on June 27.
“It’s more fun in the Philippines” was launched in 2012 by the Tourism department under the late President Benigno S.C. Aquino III and Filipinos loved it instantly. It also won international awards during its lifetime.
It replaced “Wow Philippines,” which was launched in 2002 under then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and which also easily got the thumbs up of many Filipinos.
Aside from sounding like a command, the new slogan is also being criticized for its lack of creativity.
Paolo Herras, co-founder of Komiket, Inc., said the new slogan is prone to negative feedback because it “commands or demands love.”
“It’s clear the Department of Tourism wants foreign and local travelers to love the Philippines, so they choose to travel here,” he said in a Facebook Messenger chat.
“But anyone who’s ever fallen in love knows — you cannot command or demand love. You have to earn it, give many reasons to believe in it and commit to it, so people stay in love,” he added.
Any brand’s claim has to be a true experience, said Mr. Herras, who used to work in advertising as a creative director. “‘Love the Philippines’ is only partially true if we’re completely honest.”
‘DISTURBING’He cited the Philippines’ poor tourism services — from the hassles at airports, the high cost of tourism activities in various destinations and the lack of incentives for tourists.
“Compared with other Southeast Asian destinations that also have beautiful beaches, tropical forests and hospitable people, the Philippines is not cheap in comparison, and with poorer services, that means less value for money,” he said.
The slogan could’ve have been so much better had a comma been used after the word ‘Love.’
“It would be as if we’re sending a love letter to the world,” Mr. Cervantes said. “That’s exactly what tourism is. We are after all wooing people to come over, not telling them to do something.”
At the weekend, the Tourism department faced another backlash after it was pointed out that the official video for the campaign had used nonoriginal clips taken outside the country.
In a statement, the agency said DDB Philippines, which won the bidding for the project, had assured them in previous meetings “that the originality and ownership of all materials are in order.”
The agency said it held a “competitive bidding” process for the campaign. The new branding campaign must introduce a Filipino brand that is “unique, attractive and creative” and spark “a sense of pride in our Filipino identity and rich cultural heritage through a country brand,” according to the terms of reference published in February.
Antonio Contreras, who used to teach political science at De La Salle University in Manila, lamented that the country’s tourism brand had been changed several times since the administration of Ms. Arroyo.
“The changing of brands is actually disturbing,” he said by telephone. “We have changed our slogan five times while other countries are retaining theirs.”
He cited Thailand, which he said kept its slogan “Amazing Thailand” despite a change in government.
He said Tourism secretaries in the Philippines have the penchant for getting the sitting president’s attention by proposing new tourism campaigns without considering the costs.
“The Department of Tourism should take the lead and first fix the customer’s experience from going through our airports, regulate the costs in tourist destinations, create tourist incentives and promote these benefits,” Mr. Herras said. “So it won’t just be more fun in the Philippines, we (including locals) will love the Philippines.”