Using Personal Selling to Increase Tourists in the Philippines

I did a post two nights ago about my paper for my personal selling class. The topic was about tourism and how personal selling can help increase the tourists in the country. There were no rules on how to do the assignment and the professor made it clear that it's up to us how we will present it.


The Situation:
I will pretend that I am a travel agent who was assigned to go to a foreign country and encourage potential tourists to come see the Philippines instead of some other country. 

I added a few assumptions:

• Budget will not be considered in this paper
• The country has allowed me to have my own space to display my brochures and it must be near a high-trafficked area.  

I was planning to target the following: Tourists who are into diving (entry level or professional) or diving enthusiasts who are looking for something new besides going underwater.

My main marketing communication material would be a brochure showing the travel packages customized for divers.

The positioning of the entire campaign would be to showcase the exotic animals that can only be found in Philippine waters. I would also feature the majestic coral reefs that is incomparable and one of a kind. The marketing materials would have messages that would immediately catch attention and would revolve around the idea of diving together with these animals. One idea would be to have a picture of a diver with a whale shark and using this slogan "When Was the Last Time You Swam with Whale Sharks?" Aside from a catchy phrase, this type of positioning would immediately conjure an image and would most likely trigger a feeling that can urge the tourists to go diving with these great animals.

What I'm after is to ignite that feeling that can only be achieve through experience. Making it more personal and relatable.

The brochure's main highlights are the travel packages that can be customized to fit their need and budget. The purpose is to give the tourist the 'power' to chart his/her vacation giving us an upper hand to other travel destinations that are usually offering one-size-fits-all packages/tours.It will also showcase our world-class service guaranteeing customers an experience of a lifetime.

So how can personal selling help me convince these potential tourists?

As human beings, we are visual in nature. So as an add-on to the brochures, I will dress myself in native Filipino costumes to attract people. I can also dress up in scuba diving suits or diving helmets or even wear festive floral shirts with coconut juice in my hand to catch people's attention. The purpose is for me to cut through the clutter and make that instant connection so that I can properly introduce my product - the Philippines.

I feel good about this paper. Sadly I can't attached my sample drafts here (main reason: they suck.) an eight year old can do a better job. Gawd I need help in my creatives. Anyhoo, I hope I get a 4.0 for this paper.


Nicco Joselito Lopez-Tan is currently pursuing post-graduate studies at the De La Salle Univeristy - Taft Manila, taking up Master of Marketing Communications.