Chairman of the Discover Dominica Authority (DDA), Benoit Badouille, has labeled the government’s injection to the island’s marketing budget for tourism as a “serious improvement.”
He was speaking at the launch of a Tourism Awareness Campaign organized by the DDA last Friday at the Fort Young Hotel.
According to Badouille, funding has increased from $4-million over the years to $8.5-million this year to market Dominica.
“The amount of money put in for marketing is allowing us to do the things that we could not do before, and creates a better awareness of Dominica,” he said.
He noted that there have been complaints surfacing about the little awareness of Dominica being made, and so, changes are being made along the way to afford the opportunity to get Dominica’s name out there.
New marketing reps have been appointed in Canada, the U.S., the U.K., Germany, and in France, he said.
Badouille explained that these appointments have been established so as to re-energize the notion of having people to visit Dominica.
“We have been trying our best to re-energize things as it relates to bringing people to Dominica, and so we have appointed these new market reps in those destinations so that we know where people are coming from,” he remarked.
Meanwhile, Director of Tourism Colin Piper said that strategies, including a series of videos, radio ads, billboards, music videos, posters, voice drops by local persons, and more will form part of the campaign.
“It is a myriad of things that will essentially get the message and communicate the message to the various publics,” he said.
According to him, the campaign aims to increase public knowledge on the importance of the Tourism Industry, and to “foster positive attitudes and behaviors among the local population and students.”
“The campaign will feature service providers highlighting the impact of tourism on their lives, as well as their contribution towards the development of Dominica’s Tourism Industry,” Piper stated.
He expects the message to resonate with the people of Dominica that tourism is “indeed everybody’s business.”
“We all in one way, shape or form benefit from tourism,” he added.
Over the course of the next few weeks, five video ads which form part of the campaign will be made public. They will feature local service providers such as a taxi driver, a local farmer, a local hotel owner, a student, and a local restaurateur.
The campaign runs from the month of March and ends in May.
So if Bardouille is Chairman of DDA, who is head of DASPA?
Even if Skerrit cut the budget, Bardouille will still praise him. What an opportunist!
You see, the thing is, people like Benoit Bardouille and other have no idea what marketing even is. they think it is increased promotions and ads. going to trade shows and conferences and handing out borchures and info on the country in an attempt to try to attract visitors. MARKETING STARTS WITH RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. What new products have we introduced in the past 5 years? what new sites? what new events? what new attractions have we set up and put in place to attract AND KEEEP visitors longer here year round? we boast rivers, yet none of our rivers have become major attractions apart from the indian river. We had the arial tram, that is closed. what new products have we developed to add to our portfolio of products. what new enhancements have we made to existing tourism products in order to effectively promote and advertise them? MARKETING IS NOT JUST ADS AND PROMO! that is the last aspect of it that comes last. you want what you promote & be everything the TARGET wants.
If DA cleans up its’ act, then some tourists will come, however, given the cost, difficulty of getting here and lack of safety these days, tourists have a lot of other options which are more inviting.
Sometimes being harder to reach is a benefit and an attraction. It means that we can become exclusive and high end, if we are serious about it as not everyone will be able to reach us with ease. It is like a rolls royce bently vs a honda civic. However we cannot market ourselves as being on the level of a bently when is only honda civic amenities and service available. the key to marketing is satisfying the clients needs in order to have return sales and to establish viable relationships with your clients so that they can speak very well of you and make recommendations. our focus should never be mostly based on cruise tourism. that should be secondary. Stay over guests spend much more money.
You people have too too too much guts to tell me that thr only and immeditae solution to the poor state of tourism is social awareness? So Dominicans do not know the importance of tourism? No mo new ideas! What is wrong with you people? The same thing over and over and over again. Yall not seeing the state of the capital? Yall not providing proper booths for the vendors rather having them like refugees from Yemen on the bayfront unde4 plastic tents? Yall not smelling Roseau? Yall not seeing the vagrants and Paros? Yall not seeing the gutters? Yall not seeing the old dilapidated buildings? Yall not seeing the parking chaos? Magway sa.
So far so good.The next step will be to allocate funds for access and improvement to the existing sites. Allocations for new sites will be in the pipeline.
That’s significant news! So much negativity has surrounded our tiny island these past few months, it’s like a breath of fresh air knowing that much more will be done to promote our beautiful home. The positives will always outweigh the negative. We have so much to offer, and sometimes so little is done to market it…hopefully with collaborative effort we will do very well these coming years!
Yes, but not with this corrupt bunch in government. You people are not concerned about accountability and transparency and decency in government. A poor island like ours still suffering, with high poverty while these guys in government are well take care of.
Look what someone wrote..
“So far so good. The next step will be to allocate funds for access and improvement to the existing sites. Allocations for new sites will be in the pipeline…..” This nonsense has been said for years and still nothing. When re we Dominicans going to wake up.? The biggest obstacle is Skerrit
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Bardouile, you are a civil servant, a professional, experienced in your field and also tactical when dealing with a government. Your decorum must reflect the position that you hold and that you are not too far away from the logical truth as to the real status of Dominica`s development or lack of it. We know that Dominica is in serious poverty and that we do not have anything substantial now to really attract visitors to nature Isle. It`s the same ole Emerald Pool, Watten Waven, Boiling Lake etc. we hear of but you know as we that these areas are difficult to get to, lacks enthusiasm, entertainment, an uplift in awe of the environment but we continue to read the same old script, ” Nature isle” “365 rivers”, “Fresh Water lake”, but our roads are rough, dangerously outdated, just like this corrupt Labour government, inept PM and their bias surrogates who are blind and oblivious to the truth as it stares in front of them. Bobo key of the day. Bardouille, we feel your pain and of…
viewsexpressed.. you can never be a patriotic Dominican or you’re just too politically blinded. Take some time off, go do some research about world sites and then come make a comment.. SMH…