In a context of a drop in the number of tourists arriving in the Dominican Republic, the authorities announced that they are implementing a new campaign to reposition the destination, which will be focused on the U.S. market.
With the strategic development of the Guatemala Country Brand, there are expectations in the business sector to jointly promote investments, exports and tourism.
In Panama, the National Assembly approved a law initiative, whose purpose is to establish the annual contribution of $20 million for the Tourism Promotion Fund.
Regarding the approved initiative, establishes that the fund will have legal identity, own assets and autonomy in its administrative, economic, tax, financial and functional system, whose assets will be managed through an administrative trust fund, informed the Assembly in a statement.
The international and local campaign that the tourism authorities has started running includes, among other things, advertising spots on board United Airlines flights.
Representatives of the Nicaraguan Institute of Tourism (Intur) reported that the market segments that will be promoted are low-density sun, beach, adventure or active tourism, nature, culture and identity tourism, rural community tourism, agrotourism and ecotourism and gastronomy. It also includes business tourism, wellness, cruises and nautical tourism.
The Ministry of Tourism in Honduras is putting out to tender the creation and execution of an advertising campaign for the period between April 2018 and March 2020.
Honduras Government Purchase 01-CNP-IHT-2018:
"Requirement for hiring a professional advertising agency for proposal, creation, conceptualization, development and implementation of a conventional and digital strategic umbrella campaign for the promotion of tourist destinations, aimed at national and international markets, for the period April 2018 to March 2020."
The Salvadoran Tourism Corporation will be hiring professional services for advertising campaigns and promotional activities internationally.
El Salvador Government Purchase DR-CAFTA El -07/2017:
"The object is to hire a natural or legal person or association of these, to provide professional advertising services, being responsible for the design, production and implementation of communication campaigns and promotional activities; for dissemination internationally in 2017.
The Ministry of Tourism has announced plans to publish this month a tender to develop an international tourism promotion campaign, worth $2 million.
The tourism minister, Jose Napoleon Duarte, said that the contract for the international advertising campaign will be for $1.9 million and the request for proposals will be published before the end of February, on the state procurement website.
The first stage begins with promoting of digital media targeting 12 cities in the US, Spain and Canada in the cities of Montreal and Toronto.
From a statement issued by the Tourism Authority of Panama:
The Minister of Tourism in Panama, Gustavo Him, announced the start of an international digital media tourism campaign this week, as part of the inauguration of the Chamber of Tourism of Panama for the period 2017, held last night in a hotel.The first stage of the tourism campaign for Panama, by the international agency VLM, INCwill target 12 cities in the United States, Spain and Canada in the cities of Montreal and Toronto.
Ten advertising agencies have shown interest in obtaining the contract for the international promotion of Panama as a tourist destination.
An article on Prensa.com reports that "... The contract to manage international tourism promotion in the country has generated interest from major foreign advertising agencies. To date, the Tourism Authority of Panama (ATP) has received 10 proposals and it is expected that this number will increase in the coming weeks. "
In light of the direct hiring of an international promotion for Panama, the business association is demanding transparency in the process and an award which is well-founded.
From a statement issued by the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama:
It has been almost two years since we recommended that authorities promptly make a strong investment in international promotion campaigns in order to attract visitors, to resolve mismatches in the performance of the tourism sector, due to an excess in the available supply of hotels and restaurants, among other goods and services.
The Tourism Authority of Panama will directly hire an advertising agency to develop two years of international promotion campaigns.
The head of the entity, Gustavo Him, told Prensa.com that "... the call began last week and they expect to receive six proposals in the month of May." The decision not to invite tenders and make a direct hire was made by the National Tourism Council, who came to this conclusion because of the delays that occurred in the process of defining the tender.
The consortium of advertising agencies Team Tourism 16-17 Team won the contract to design and implement the internal tourism promotion campaign with a proposal of $4.5 million.
According to the evaluation committee, the consortium made up of the companies P4 Ogilvy, Cerebro Y & R and Nexos Grey submitted the best technical proposal and met all the requirements for creativity and experience requested by the Tourism Authority of Panama (ATP).
After three years without any tourism marketing, the authority for the sector has announced that $10 million will be spent on international promotion, aside from the $5 million already being tendered in a domestic campaign.
The uneven internal and external promotion of tourism in Panama could have seen better days. The general manager of the Tourism Authority of Panama, Gustavo Him, announced in a statement that there will be a budget of $10 million for the international promotion, in addition to the $5 million for domestic tourism promotion.
The agencies BBDO, BB & M, and the consortia Team Tourism 16-17 and La Union Zaga submitted similar bids for $4.5 million to design and produce the country's tourism campaign.
From a statement issued by the Tourism Authority of Panama:
The Tourism Authority of Panama, held on Monday, March 28, tender act 2016-1-45-0-08-AV-008 805 to select an advertising agency to be in charge of the design and production of a national tourism advertising campaign.
After having canceled the first contest, there has now been a second postponement of the date for receipt of bids in the tourism promotion tender worth $5 million.
The tender to design and implement a campaign of domestic tourism promotion in Panama has in the past had its reference amounts changed, time limits and specifications changed, and the contest has even been declared void.