As a mature market, TAT looks at new ways to campaign in the UK. It launched a blog contest to attract travellers to visit Thailand at the last edition of World Travel Market, which will finish today.
LONDON – The Tourism Authority of Thailand has teamed up with the World Travel Market, one of Europe’s major global travel industry event under way between Nov 6-9, to attract bloggers and writers to visit the show and win a free trip toThailand by blogging about the country’s tourism attractions.
Called Thailand Reunited #ThaiTales, the travel blogger contest, was launched in early November to encourage them to visit WTM and share their blogs about their experiences during previous visits to Thailand, offer recommendations on things to do and places to visit and list reasons to visit specific places in Thailand.
Even those bloggers who have not been toThailand can enter by writing about a Thai experience, food or festival in the UK itself.
The prize for the winner is a free trip toThailand in June 2013 called “Discover the Other You”. The winner will experience Thai culture at its best including Thai cooking classes, Muay Thai boxing lessons, arts and crafts, Thai spa and massage, a homestay with a Thai family, plus a relaxing 5 night beach holiday.
Bloggers had to first register for WTM, and visit the landing page of theThailand blog to find out further details. They had to visit the Thailand WTM stand in Asia Hall to collect their info pack and/or visit the Amazing Thailand website.
After entering their WTM badge number, bloggers had to submit their blogs (max 500 words including photos) on the Thailand Reunited Facebook App before 4 pm on 7 November. The winning blog and #ThaiTales Travel Blogger Award was announced on 8 November at the Social Travel Market event.
Managed by Face Marketing on behalf of the TAT, the project is one of numerous high-profile events being organised by the Thai tourism industry at the WTM London.
According to Mrs. Juthaporn Rerngronasa, TAT Deputy Governor for International Marketing Europe, Africa, Middle East & America, “the bloggers award is line with our strategy to step up digital marketing as the most cost-effective means of marketing and promoting our products and attractions to a wider pool of niche-market travellers.
“Such campaigns are very effective in spreading a much more credible message via word-of-mouth marketing by people who are trusted by their target audience. In countries with high Internet penetration factor such as theUK, this strategy is by far the best way of getting high-value returns on investment,” she said.
The United Kingdom has consistently been one of the major tourism source markets for Thailand. More than 589,000 UK visitors came toThailand in 2011, with an average length of stay 17.35 days per person per visit, well above the 9-day average of all visitors to Thailand. They also had one of the highest rates of repeat-visitors, 67% in 2011.
During January – September 2012, the UK was the second largest market from Europe with total arrivals of 628,880, up 0.54 percent over the same period of last year. The target for the full year 2012 is 810,000.
The TAT considers the UK a mature market, and has adjusted its marketing strategies to attract senior citizens, the honeymoon market, Families, Students, and Eco-tourists. Specific Thai products and services being promoted to these customer segments include Thai cuisine and Thai cooking classes, Thai massage, Thai culture and hospitality.
A major objective now is to diversify destinations away from the popular spots, especially the beach resorts thatUKvisitors like so much. New resorts being recommended to UK visitors are Satun, Trang, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Khanom, Ko Mak, and Ko Kut.
TAT London recently supported ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents), Travel Foundation, TUI Travel Plc and Virgin Holidays to send their representatives to Thailand for a 12-day trip to scope out a destination partnership around sustainable tourism with both Thai public and private sector organisations.
ABTA is also one of six European travel organisations that has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Thailand Ecotourism and Adventure Travel Association (TEATA) to promote a range of specially designed “Green Routes” in Thailand. These routes have been carefully researched to appeal to European tourists searching for authentic, inspiring, sustainable experiences.
Last August, about 40,000 spectators gathered at the King Power Stadium in Leicester City to see the “Thai Fight In England” which combines boxing, kick boxing and entertainment to raise the level of competition. The event was watched on TV by an estimated 1.5 million worldwide and generated further interested in this very scientific Thai sport.
Said Mrs. Juthaporn, “Although arrivals from the UK slowed down this year, due to the economic situation in the UK and the impact of the highly successful Olympics and Paralympics, we are projecting a turnaround in the last quarter of 2012. Our marketing efforts at the WTM London are entirely designed to serve that purpose.”
Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.
