Comments on: What Aruba’s Doing Right

By: julie

julie — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 13:24:00 +0000

Tanya-
Great observation! I think what happens is that someone in a company or tourism board gets assigned to social media as an add-on to their regular position when it’s really a full time position. There is SO much potential for the hospitality industry to use social media to monitor what customers are saying about them, to intercept gripes before they become big problems, and to provide value-added service. Management, however, doesn’t always get it. I’d love to know if you come across a company that does social media well– I’ve seen a few that have been using it well, but not consistently, and I think that’s key, too.

By: Tanya

Tanya — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 12:40:17 +0000

Icelandair recently joined Twitter. I started following them because I love Iceland and I love their airline, but I haven’t seen a lot of tweets. I know it’s usually rough going in the beginning with social media for any of us, but countries and companies really need to know what they’ll be tweeting and how often they’ll be doing it before they start.

By: julie

julie — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 15:58:49 +0000

Sarah- You’re absolutely right (and this issue could be the subject of a post all its own). When I went to the Brazilian consulate to apply for a visa and was handed a big glossy book highlighting the “best of Brazil,” I was very troubled by what I saw. Everyone was white. In fact, everyone was foreign. The tactic, it was explained to me when I asked, was to show tourists (with face paint, which was a whole other bizarre element) having a great time in Brazil, showing the country is safe and fun. “But I don’t want to see tourists,” I said. “I want to see real people. And real people in Brazil aren’t all white!”

Obviously, a country isn’t going to showcase its poverty or its social problems. But as you point out, quite rightly, is that beyond a flashy tourism campaign is a much more profound question we should be asking as travelers, namely: How does this country treat all of its people? And are certain groups of people either being exploited by their ad campaigns or being left out of them entirely?

By: Sarah

Sarah — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 15:52:23 +0000

Really interesting piece and something definitely worth thinking about when traveling–how does the country/region you’re visiting market itself? Mexico’s marketing campaigns trouble me sometimes because they’re highly contradictory with the country’s actual social/economic realities. They juxtapose images of white women diving into crystalline waters with images of beaming indigenous women in woven dresses showing their artisan goods…and these two realities don’t exactly coexist peacefully. I think in a lot of places, in Latin America and elsewhere, the government embraces the folkloric/exotic power of the indigenous while at the same time neglecting them politically and economically. The Aruba campaign sounds really interesting because it sounds like it has the complicity, and even active participation of, the people there.

By: julie

julie — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:03:05 +0000

Hal- Thanks! I didn’t pay much attention to these things either until I started talking with tourism and PR folks so frequently.

DES- You’re right– the Natalee Holloway case was a major blow to Aruba tourism, but since I don’t know much about how it has quantitatively affected tourism rates or how it has shaped their campaign, I didn’t address the issue. Still, I’m very interested in how adverse events affect travelers’ perceptions of places and their willingness to visit other countries., When Francisco attended the NY Times Travel Show, a group of protesters outside were complaining about Mexican resorts, accusing them of negligence that caused deaths. I’m actually working on a piece right now to study this issue more.

By: Data Entry Services

Data Entry Services — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 13:33:12 +0000

The Natalee Holloway disappearance and aftermath was very well reported in the states and made many parents have second thoughts about Aruba. Wonder if they have been greatly affected.

By: Hal

Hal — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 11:59:49 +0000

Wow, a very well-presented rundown of both tourism campaigns in general and Aruba’s in particular. I learned a lot! I don’t have anything constructive to add, as I’ve never really been conscious of these things before. But now I’ll start paying attention.