Brazilian tourism agency Embratur and Google have just launched a tool to promote Brazil tourism overseas. An exclusive channel on site YouTube brings videos of several tourist destinations, as well as statements by foreign tourists and national celebrities speaking about the country.
“We want the world, those who visit us, talking about our experience,” said Embratur president Jeanine Pires at a press conference marking the release of the tool in São Paulo.
“We sell experiences, not tangible products,” said Pires, on explaining the decision of associating the videos and images of sites to statements about Brazil made by visitors and famous people.
Among the celebrities participating, for example, is tennis player Gustavo Kuerten and Globo TV presenter Maria Paula.
The videos, narrated in Portuguese or English, are subtitled in 68 languages, including Arabic. Initially, there are already recordings about 88 sites, but the number of tourist destinations promoted abroad by Embratur should reach at least 280.
Another attraction of the tool is its association with Google Maps. While the web user sees the video about a specific destination or Brazilian state, the site shows its position on the country map.
Google took six months to produce this project exclusively for Embratur. Still in the first half of this year, Internet surfers may add their own videos and statements.
According to figures supplied by Embratur, 27.6% of the foreign tourists who traveled to Brazil in 2008 used the Internet as the main source of information for the trip.
Pires did not inform the amount invested in the tool, which she said is part of a greater strategy for promotion of Brazil abroad. “It is the fruit of a something we noticed was missing for those interested in visiting Brazil.”
However, she said that 30% of the Embratur investment in advertising is turned to digital communication.
“This experience is, in the tourist point of view, a global case,” pointed out the Embratur president, adding that other countries have already got in contact with Google to develop a similar tool.
“While other destinations simply have video brand channels, this combination channel designed for Brazil offers innovation and experiential reviews for travelers because of our integration with Google Maps,” said Pires.
“Our goal is to allow travelers to experience Brazil before they arrive. We want the world to know Brazil as a modern destination, one that starts international trends online, as we know many tourists look to these sources. Foreigners may not know Brazil is a continental country and for the first time, we are showing our destinations’ diversity through videos and maps.”
According to Jaderson Alencar, the Marketing manager at Embratur and also the person responsible for the project, there should be “massive promotion” of the site, with its inclusion in all the social networks belonging to Google, for example, and the sending of a list with over 400,000 names of people related to the tourist sector, among other activities.
Also participating in the interview were Alex Dias, the director general of Google Brazil, and Jorge Dib, director of the Tourism area at Google.
Ready to Host the World
As host of the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games, Brazil is positioned to gain heightened promotion as a global tourism destination before, during and after the events. To help define tourism goals for 2010 and beyond, EMBRATUR has created the Aquarela Plan 2020, setting forth objectives over the next ten years.
Goals of the Aquarela plan include:
– A 113% increase in international tourism from 2010 to 2020,
bringing 11.1 million foreign visitors to Brazil
– Increase foreign spending by 304% within Brazil, totaling $17.6 billion.
– An increase totaling 500,000 tourists in Brazil in 2014 and a 15
percent increase in 2016, the year of the Olympic Games in Rio, in
relation to the previous year.
– Maintain sustained growth of at least one percentage point above the average growth rate in South America.
– Consolidate tourism leadership in South America, with 27% share of the tourists on the continent.
Americans are main targets of Brazil’s tourist promotion as the United States is the second largest source of tourists to Brazil behind Argentina.
In 2008, 625,506 American tourists visited Brazil noting sun and beach as the top reason for leisure travelers at 33.7%. Culture was also an important driver at 27.3% and importantly, 94.6% of American visitors noted they intend to return.
Service:
Web Sites:
http://www.braziltour.com/
http://www.youtube.com/visitbrasil
Anba/Bzz
