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Friday, March 29, 2024

Still, It’s More Fun In The Philippines

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Those of us in the travel industry were excited when we learned that Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat was going to launch the reinvigorated tourism slogan. Although she already mentioned that she would maintain the current tagline, still, we were thrilled to see how it will be enhanced.

The invitation came for all of us to assemble at the National Museum of Natural History, the former Department of Tourism building, at 2:00 p.m., for the unveiling of the new tourism campaign. Industry leaders were there, together with prominent personalities in Manila’s social and business circles. The media representatives must have been just as excited as we were because they came in full force.

I love the new tourism ad. It is 100 percent crowd-sourced, which makes it so real, so honest, so genuine! The popularity of the previous campaign has encouraged a little over 4 million domestic and foreign tourists to post their photos, videos, and comments online, showing how much they enjoyed various destinations in our country. 

Still, It’s More Fun In The Philippines
The new, refreshed Department of Tourism slogan

Since the numbers continue to grow each day, the Tourism department was inspired to use the images, footage, and reviews shared online by tourists. These visual stories further enhance the tourism slogan because they come on as truly authentic, being experienced first-hand by those who share them.

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In fact, during the launch, the Tourism Secretary invited everyone, local and foreign tourists, to share their photos and videos online, using the #ItsMoreFunInThePhilippines hashtag for a chance to get featured in future advertising materials of the department. 

Taking a closer look at the ad campaign, one will notice that a distinct font, which the ad agency called “Barabara,” has been used. It imitates the Filipino style of hand-painted lettering that one often sees in the names of sari-sari stores, on jeepneys, or on almost everything else that Filipinos label by hand.

The new logo, inspired by local woven textiles, banners a fresh graphic identity that symbolizes fun, contemporary, and sustainable tourism offering. The weave on the logo is made of different colors that symbolize things truly Filipino—the red is the predominant color of the Cordillerans’ woven materials; the orange reflects the glorious sunset we see anywhere in the country; the blue stands for the refreshing blue waters surrounding our archipelago; and the green reflects our verdant countryside.

Still, It’s More Fun In The Philippines
The beautiful dome of the National Museum of Natural History, under which the launch was held.

And if we talk of sustainability, what could be more sustainable than this refreshed and vibrant campaign? Because it is a 100 percent crowd-sourced material, it will continue to excite tourists who will be encouraged to share their Philippine experience and be part of the slogan’s perpetually unravelling display of how much fun tourists have in our country. 

During the press conference, which was also participated in by DILG Secretary Eduardo Ano and Tourism Undersecretary Benito Bengzon, Jr., the Tourism Secretary stressed that she adopted the same tagline used by the two previous Secretaries because she “believes in continuity” and pointed out that other Asian countries have done the same. For so many years now, India has used “Incredible India” and Malaysia has been claiming to be “Truly Asia” for the past decades.

For his part, Sec. Ano declared that his department is committed to ensure the safety and security of all tourists in our country, which is very reassuring for us in the industry. In spite of the various travel advisories issued by some countries, Usec. Bengzon announced that these have not affected the continuous increase of foreign arrivals in our country.

With this “refreshed” tourism slogan now primed to further charm the world, I have no doubt that we will reach the 8.2 million foreign visitors targeted for this year, a hefty 15 percent increase over last year’s 7.1 million arrivals. It certainly is a most commendable performance by our tourism industry, especially because it has given livelihood to approximately 5 million of our countrymen, and its revenues now account for a little over 12 percent of our economy.

With these healthy figures in place, those of us in the tourism industry cheer on and congratulate our Secretary Romulo-Puyat and her team for giving us the reason to have “more fun in the Philippines.”

For feedback, I’m at bobzozobrado@gmail.com.

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