HONG KONG: The Hong Kong Tourist Board (HKTB) has shifted its
marketing communications strategy to focus on tactical initiatives in
intra-regional short-haul markets following the terrorist attacks on the
United States last month.
Previous campaigns were more thematic-focused and the change in
direction was made as the tourist board was looking to encourage a quick
consumer response to special offers. "The activities concentrate on
trying to bring into Hong Kong more travellers from Asia, especially
China. As such, the campaign includes price or value added promotions in
co-operation with airlines and travel agents," said Gary Tse, chairman
and chief executive officer of FCB, which handles the HKTB account.
The promotions are predominantly targeted at Asian markets because
short-haul flights have not been as severely affected as
intercontinental services following the September 11 attacks.
However, Hong Kong's hotel industry has felt the brunt of the slowdown
from the sharp decline in arrivals from the West. The hope is that the
intra-regional focus will go some way to make up for the current
shortfall.
"Thematic campaigns would not work right now because we want something
which people can react to quickly. We want to give people more incentive
to buy into certain promotions," said Tse.
However, Tse added that the total amount the bureau planned to spend had
not changed much year-on-year.
"Basically, a lot of the money that used to be spent on thematic has
been shifted to tactical." FCB is also conducting a survey across the
region to determine if travellers in Asia were interested in visiting
Hong Kong in the near term because of the current climate.
