No, the cholos and the labels «rooms to let», we will not renounce them. These are the folklore of the Greek tourism case.
After all, so many films have been made, internationally, with these elements in their content.
Just in the new reality, as shaped by the hard, tourism competition, we need to find more eccentric features to base our international communication on.
And if to many, eccentricity seems like a novelty, in this case it is, eccentricity is the return to authenticity, in the tradition of this place, in its timeless virtues. Because somewhere we got lost in... translation, with so many foreign things we added to our lives, as Greeks.
The eccentricity is also evident from a new trend that is developing internationally and that our country must follow as a one-way street. Sustainable development, the protection of our natural wealth, sustainability.
And of course, no less eccentric, is synergy, synergy, synergy, synergy of forces, unanimity, cooperation, and so many other synonymous words from the rich Greek vocabulary.
The days of the coronavirus may (and should) pass and not come back, but they will leave us with some useful lessons, about how the ego comes under the we, about how what we thought would take a long time to be implemented such as the digitization, now we live, work, study with it, about how if we do not protect our own nature, the unnatural will come to disturb it.
And in the Greek tourism, which functions as a constituent of the constituents of Greek society, «now is the time», as the Ioanna Dretta, managing director of Marketing Greece, at the online conference «Destination Greece | Communication in challenging times» in order to take the steps towards a holistically sustainable product, having moderation, aesthetics and simplicity in our communication.
The converging views of the interesting online event, had the empathy as a dominant concept, on which the communication of Greek tourism must be built. That is, to know who we are, what we want, how we can achieve it, to identify with the wishes of others and not with our own, to understand how others want to have a better time in our country, offering authenticity, greekness, unique experience and high quality services.
At the same time, sustainable development has become the leading direction for both businesses and destinations, focusing on environmentally and socially friendly practices that will create an important legacy for years to come.
But also the Cooperation, is now the challenge for everyone, both in the coordination of the promotion of individual destinations, so that there is a multiplier benefit for Greece, and the image of the country as a whole.
«The world has changed and we have to adapt to the big changes by showing our best face once again, laying the right foundations for the future. The new era needs knowledge and boldness. In this difficult year, the country's communication will play a key role. The experience of 2020 teaches us that both will and sincerity are needed. For SETE and the MARKETING GREECE, private-public partnership is not an option of opportunity. It is our long-standing strategic ambition. For the good of Greek tourism», he pointed out. John Retsos, president of SETE.
«2021 is a pivotal year for the recovery of Greek tourism and we are already working dynamically for it both at home and abroad. Competition will be tough and adaptation to the new data that emerge is required, innovation and creativity are needed in order for Greece to maintain the leading role it has conquered. Dialogue and cooperation will be of decisive importance for how Greek tourism will respond in the post-Covid era,» said Harris Theocharis, Minister of Tourism.
«In the Initiative of the South Aegean Sea for Tourism, which brought together social, productive and scientific stakeholders in a common representation of the destination internationally and demonstrated the power of cooperation in the greatest crisis in the history of tourism,» said the George Hadjimarkos, chairman of the Tourism Committee of EN.P.E. and regional governor of the Aegean.
«Tourism is a catalyst sector for boosting competitiveness and the local economy and we must always be ready, to have a strategic plan which is not fragmented but comprehensive. And cooperation is the key word. Don't we have to be constantly on our toes. We ought not to make unremitting efforts, we ought to join forces together. And the This is Athens is an example of how when we all connect together we can get results,» said Costas Bakoyannis, mayor of Athens, while the Konstantinos Zervas, mayor of Thessaloniki, said that «for the first time we have a broad partnership for tourism and the promotion of Thessaloniki. Thessaloniki, the largest that has been created in the country. Ο Municipality, the Region of Central Macedonia, the Tourism Promotion & Marketing Agency of Thessaloniki and its counterpart in the Halkidiki, the Association of Hoteliers of Thessaloniki, the Aegean, the Fraport, the Eurobank and Marketing Greece - always with the strategic direction of EEA - we created the great alliance for the tourist promotion of Central Macedonia».
One of the most innovative and dynamic mayors, the Dimitris Papastergiou, president of KEDE and mayor of Trikkaion, he said that «we need to focus on the specific characteristics and advantages of each region and on that basis to design the new strategy having 2-3 alternative plans to deal with any challenges and problems».
Particularly important were the results of the research presented by Dimitris Mavros, managing director of MRB Hellas, with the central theme being the promotion of Greece in the next day. «In the post COVID Nowadays, Greek Tourism must and can overcome the reflexive crisis that is being suffered due to the circumstances and go up to become the engine of the Greek economy again. On this occasion, the crisis should be a springboard for a a radical new design based on purely technocratic criteria, beyond and beyond political and local considerations. Everyone, State, Local Government and private individuals should join forces on the basis of a Unified Strategic Plan that will incorporate and exploit the comparative advantages of the country and the individual destinations, highlighting: Authenticity, Humanity, Magic, Culture and the Dynamism of our Tourism Product», he noted.
The strategy consultant and founder and editor of at The Good Country Index, Simon Anholt, discussed the importance of the nation brand, noting that «everything people see reinforces what they believe. And if it contradicts what they believe, then they will ignore it. I have never seen a correlation between the money a country spends on promoting its image and the quality of that image. Promotion, marketing and PR can be very effective in selling a product or service. Attracting tourism is about «promoting« a product. Advertising and marketing have an effect. If you do good advertising, spend a lot of money and make sure everyone sees it and the result is good, then you will attract more tourists.».
Ο Antonis Cochilas, Executive Partner, Global Brand Strategy Lead at Ogilvy, stressed that «when you do tourism campaigns you do not communicate Greece. You communicate Greekness. Greekness is a 1930s term that now calls for redefinition. A more modern interpretation. Advertising won't do it, but it ought to reflect whatever positive nugget of Greekness there is. That's what the Greece is a state of mind campaign did. This communication to those who somehow dreamed of Greece made them dream of it more and there is no greater invitation than that.».
Ο Jeremy Jauncey, creator of Beautiful Destinations, one of the largest travel online communities, said that «if you invest in content, in digital & social content, you are building and protecting the travel industry for decades to come. Everything now revolves around content creation. At the same time, there is a strong shift towards sustainable tourism.».
«Greece is a huge tourist brand classified in 5th place worldwide and the communication of our country should correspond to a brand of this size. Empathy as an element in communication is not only a trend of the times, but also a key requirement for our message.» Ioanna Dretta and the well-known Peter Economides reiterated what he had said in 2011, «that the rebranding of Greece is directly linked to the rebranding of Greeks. It all starts with a strong common narrative. A belief and value system that reflects the soul of the nation. A belief and value system that shapes behavior. Because it is behaviour that influences experience.».
