NATION branding is a vital exercise in the creation of a country as a tourism product, and it is Brunei's time to shine in the industry once it has created its national brand, said Susan M Warren, director of Making Tourism Work (MTW) Associates.
Hot on the heels of the recent World Tourism Conference in Kota Kinabalu, Warren revealed that she is eager to assist Brunei in its nation branding, whether it decides to position itself as an eco-tourist destination or within another niche.
"Well in fact, I visited Brunei for the first time earlier this year and I was very impressed and asked a lot of questions, because truly it's a treasure and (you) have got some great assets and interests, especially as a destination that people are not so familiar with," she said after her keynote speech, titled "Destination branding a key to sustainable success".
"The idea of country branding, is that you can influence the way you are perceived by the people you want to communicate with," she said in her keynote speech, adding that an integrated approach involving country branding versus destination branding is better support for sustainable success in multiple industries as it encompasses a wider range of capabilities across politics, trade, tourism, culture and community.
"It demands (that) the way a country presents, and represents itself, is not as an end in itself but a strategic investment to improve reputation, (and) reputation drives economic value and sustainable practices." Countries who pursue this strategy could expect many economic benefits such as more visitors and higher yields, increased Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows, increased and higher value trade, attraction and retention of skilled talents, and well as increased political influence and clout, she said.
Asked what Brunei would have to do in creating its own nation brand as a relatively unknown destination, Warren said that it would not be much different from nation branding in other countries. "Really, the strategy doesn't matter, whether the place is well-known or not the approach is the same." This, she said, includes good leadership and in a collaborative way, involving all stakeholders to together agree on a vision, and to use research to find how Brunei is perceived by its own people and outside.
"Then, the positioning will come from the research and consultation which then defines the values and then (you) let those values, with fact and flair, thrive (as a) positioning for Brunei."
This would help to identify the true essence and values of Brunei as a destination, she added, which would be used to project not only in marketing communications but also in the way (local) people are behaving, the government is acting, and the brand champions in trade.
"All of those things are going to add up together to help nudge along the awareness of Brunei."
With many countries in the Asia region positioning themselves as eco-tourism destinations, and Brunei logically following suit, Warren said that there are countries with the same assets such as Costa Rica and differentiating itself from other "eco-tourist" destinations would come from evaluating and defining Brunei's own environmental assets.
Warren also said that there would absolutely be challenges for Brunei in this branding process, but added, "I would think that it would be Brunei's time, because it has all these magnificent environmental treasures, and it's been let's say, a secret off the track." Brunei, she added, "is exactly the sort of destination that your new type of, more exploring, traveller who's looking for authentic experiences, is looking for. So I think the time is really ripe (for Brunei)."
Asked if eco-tourism was definitely an element to consider for Brunei's national branding, Sheikh Jamaluddin, Director of Brunei Tourism Board, confirmed saying, "that's our key strength, that's our future because the growth for eco-tourism is about 10 per cent, year on year (globally).
More and more people are sick of looking at eco-tourism from the TV (or) Discovery Channel they want to experience it themselves, smelling, touching, seeing what it's like," he said during the World Tourism Conference, using Brunei's rainforests as an example.
Brunei is unique compared to other Asian countries, he added, in the policies that restrict certain types of nightlife entertainment such as nightclubs and alcohol-serving venues, so Brunei would be focusing a lot on its culture and nature. "There are lots of tourists who like to stay away from (those) type of entertainment, so Brunei is perfect for them, and Brunei is very safe so, we're not going for mass-tourism."
"The best way for us to differentiate is to position Brunei as a wholesome, family destination, focusing on eco-tourism and staying in very high-quality accommodation like The Empire."
He also noted that connectivity is key in Brunei's product differentiation.
This is why China has come up top as a target market, he added, because of the number of tour operators in the country. "When I go to China for trade shows, I have huge numbers (compared) if I go to London or Japan, for example."
"We don't fly to Japan, so the Japanese tourist (figures) are not as high as the Chinese tourists. We (also) fly to Hong Kong and Shanghai, so of course if we increase the frequency, there will be even more (tourists are coming to Brunei Darussalam).
NATION branding is a vital exercise in the creation of a country as a tourism product, and it is Brunei's time to shine in the industry once it has created its national brand, said Susan M Warren, director of Making Tourism Work (MTW) Associates.Hot on the heels of the recent World Tourism Conference in Kota Kinabalu, Warren revealed that she is eager to assist Brunei in its nation branding, whether it decides to position itself as an eco-tourist destination or within another niche. "Well in fact, I visited Brunei for the first time earlier this year and I was very impressed and asked a lot of questions, because truly it's a treasure and (you) have got some great assets and interests, especially as a destination that people are not so familiar with," she said after her keynote speech, titled "Destination branding a key to sustainable success"."The idea of country branding, is that you can influence the way you are perceived by the people you want to communicate with," she said in her keynote speech, adding that an integrated approach involving country branding versus destination branding is better support for sustainable success in multiple industries as it encompasses a wider range of capabilities across politics, trade, tourism, culture and community. "It demands (that) the way a country presents, and represents itself, is not as an end in itself but a strategic investment to improve reputation, (and) reputation drives economic value and sustainable practices." Countries who pursue this strategy could expect many economic benefits such as more visitors and higher yields, increased Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows, increased and higher value trade, attraction and retention of skilled talents, and well as increased political influence and clout, she said.Asked what Brunei would have to do in creating its own nation brand as a relatively unknown destination, Warren said that it would not be much different from nation branding in other countries. "Really, the strategy doesn't matter, whether the place is well-known or not the approach is the same." This, she said, includes good leadership and in a collaborative way, involving all stakeholders to together agree on a vision, and to use research to find how Brunei is perceived by its own people and outside. "Then, the positioning will come from the research and consultation which then defines the values and then (you) let those values, with fact and flair, thrive (as a) positioning for Brunei." This would help to identify the true essence and values of Brunei as a destination, she added, which would be used to project not only in marketing communications but also in the way (local) people are behaving, the government is acting, and the brand champions in trade.
"All of those things are going to add up together to help nudge along the awareness of Brunei."
With many countries in the Asia region positioning themselves as eco-tourism destinations, and Brunei logically following suit, Warren said that there are countries with the same assets such as Costa Rica and differentiating itself from other "eco-tourist" destinations would come from evaluating and defining Brunei's own environmental assets.
Warren also said that there would absolutely be challenges for Brunei in this branding process, but added, "I would think that it would be Brunei's time, because it has all these magnificent environmental treasures, and it's been let's say, a secret off the track." Brunei, she added, "is exactly the sort of destination that your new type of, more exploring, traveller who's looking for authentic experiences, is looking for. So I think the time is really ripe (for Brunei)."
Asked if eco-tourism was definitely an element to consider for Brunei's national branding, Sheikh Jamaluddin, Director of Brunei Tourism Board, confirmed saying, "that's our key strength, that's our future because the growth for eco-tourism is about 10 per cent, year on year (globally).
More and more people are sick of looking at eco-tourism from the TV (or) Discovery Channel they want to experience it themselves, smelling, touching, seeing what it's like," he said during the World Tourism Conference, using Brunei's rainforests as an example.
Brunei is unique compared to other Asian countries, he added, in the policies that restrict certain types of nightlife entertainment such as nightclubs and alcohol-serving venues, so Brunei would be focusing a lot on its culture and nature. "There are lots of tourists who like to stay away from (those) type of entertainment, so Brunei is perfect for them, and Brunei is very safe so, we're not going for mass-tourism."
"The best way for us to differentiate is to position Brunei as a wholesome, family destination, focusing on eco-tourism and staying in very high-quality accommodation like The Empire."
He also noted that connectivity is key in Brunei's product differentiation.
This is why China has come up top as a target market, he added, because of the number of tour operators in the country. "When I go to China for trade shows, I have huge numbers (compared) if I go to London or Japan, for example."
"We don't fly to Japan, so the Japanese tourist (figures) are not as high as the Chinese tourists. We (also) fly to Hong Kong and Shanghai, so of course if we increase the frequency, there will be even more (tourists are coming to Brunei Darussalam).
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