The direction of travel: three strategic approaches to destination branding

This year, people aren’t just travelling again. They’re making up for lost time with truly epic holidays, booking longer trips, venturing further afield, and ticking off those bucket list items with a vengeance. For tourism boards, this means one thing: the race to attract travellers is on.

To keep our fingers on the pulse of the burgeoning travel landscape, we attended the World Travel Market in London. Wandering through the dizzying exhibition of dozens of tourism boards got us thinking: how can placemakers make a destination brand stand out in a crowded marketplace? And even more interestingly, is there a recipe for success? This week, we’re breaking down three strategic approaches that deliver a memorable destination campaign and unpacking what makes them compelling in the post-pandemic travel world.?

1.????A trip out of this world

?‘Iceland. Better than space.’ This is inspired by Iceland's response to Virgin Galactic’s announcement that it’s delaying space tourism flights yet again. Iceland’s previous tourism campaign, ‘Icelandverse’, was just as topical – featuring a Mark Zuckerberg look-alike promoting Iceland as ‘an immersive open-world experience millions of years in the making’.

Both campaigns strongly play into the idea of travel as an escape. While you may not be able to fly to space and you might find the idea of the metaverse a touch dystopian, here’s a place that’s within reach and yet a total departure from reality. Iceland’s tourism board intentionally dials up the otherness of Iceland’s already unique landscape to tap into customers’ longing for a complete escape from the everyday.

‘Come and say G’day’, a new campaign by Tourism Australia, achieves a similar result through a different creative approach. Rather than opting for edgy and tongue-in-cheek, the creators of G’day went for a joyful and wholesome blend of live-action and animation. The video starts with Ruby, a souvenir kangaroo, trapped inside a box and dreaming of going on an adventure… Perhaps not the most subtle analogy but the overall message is clear: there is no better place to finally get out there and enjoy a well-deserved vacation than this fairy-tale-like land of stunning landscapes and friendly creatures. ??

Iceland and Australia are not the only tourist boards going for the extraordinary. Travel Oregon’s ‘Only Slightly Exaggerated’ campaign intentionally plays into the other-worldly escape convention with a whimsical, fully-animated video – and demonstrates just how much creative potential can be unlocked in this strategic direction.

2.????It’s the journey, not the destination

Many destinations centre their marketing around sights and to-dos, but Bhutan has a more holistic vision. The country reopened this year with a new brand positing under a boldly minimalist slogan: Believe. It positions Bhutan as a place to experience, rather than one to tick off the list, using language like ‘sanctuary’, ‘peace’ and ‘harmony’. The result? A refreshing national brand that feels authentic to its roots, and yet skilfully taps into a very timely sentiment that quiet, rest, and contemplation are the true luxuries of today.

Singapore’s Think you know Singapore? campaign also takes the path less travelled, inviting visitors to participate in the country’s placemaking. At only 50 years old, Singapore has already invented itself as Asia’s financial centre and one of the world’s most digitally advanced countries. What’s next? The campaign shows Singapore as an exciting place that’s being endlessly reimagined, drawing the viewer in with the element of surprise and the promise of possibility. Perhaps tapping into broader cultural trends which are seeing younger generations prioritising experiences over objects, the place-branding of Singapore and Bhutan suggest that the best travel memories are made by fully immersing yourself in the place. ?

3.????The unconventional choice

You could say that national branding for Australia or Iceland is an easy task: these countries are already among the world’s favourite holiday destinations. But what about places that are yet to make it onto everyone’s radars? Rather than sidestepping this awkward reality, some of them choose to lean into the fact that they’ve got their work carved out for them. The results can be intriguing.

Sweden’s Discovering the originals campaign hilariously tackles a touchy subject – the unfortunate fact that many of the country’s beautiful locations gave names to some less-than-romantic IKEA products (we’re looking at you, Bolmen toilet brush). Sympathy may not be at the top of the list when it comes to emotions place-brands want to evoke, but the video is funny, relatable, and enlightening: a solid recipe for a memorable brand touchpoint.?

Approaching destination branding with a healthy dose of self-deprecation is a strategy that’s proven wildly successful in the past. In 2016, Faroe Island was catapulted into international fame thanks to Sheep View 360. Tired of being overlooked by Google Street View, the small island nation used one of its biggest resources – sheep – to map the terrain and showcase the surreal beauty of the country in the process. With a budget of only $200,000, Visit Faroe Islands’ campaign generated two billion media impressions and an estimated PR value of around $50 million.

Lithuania, and its capital Vilnius in particular, is known for playing up to the fact that many people wouldn’t be able to place it on the map. Fully embracing that truth, the local tourism board launched The G-spot of Europe campaign in 2019. Complete with a quiz and a Tinder-like swiping mechanism, it allows travellers to build their own ‘pleasure map’ of the city’s main sights and activities. While an X-rated campaign is certainly not the right choice for everyone, the risqué ads did find their audience, attracting more visitors from the target markets – the UK and Germany.

Where to next?

Like any good travel itinerary, the most successful destination brands have several key attributes: clear, realistic, and tailored to the user. Rather than advertising everything they have to offer, they focus on a single objective. Whether that’s positioning themselves as the ultimate post-pandemic getaway, offering a journey of self-exploration, or cutting through the noise with an unexpectedly disruptive campaign, every memorable campaign starts with understanding the perception of the brand and the target audience.

At Hunter, we’re specialists in place-branding. If you’d like to talk about how your brand can resonate with the right audiences, get in touch.