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Ad firm selection enters final phase
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Posted on Dec 21 1998
The Marianas Visitors Authority begins this week the final selection process in the hiring of an advertising firm that will help promote the CNMI in Japan, said board chairman Dave M. Sablan.
The seven firms which have been short listed by the selection committee will make a presentation before the board on December 22 and 23. Sablan said this will serve as a basis in choosing the firm that will get the $2.1 million advertising contract.
MVA has earlier hired Tokyo-based Dentsu, Young & Rubicam to carry out a 90-day campaign in Japan by using materials previously made by its previously hired ad firm I&S Corp.
Tourism officials have been looking for ways on how to effectively market CNMI in Japan, its main source of tourist, amid the continuous decline in visitor arrivals.
In a meeting last month, board member Bart Jackson said the PR & Ad Committee believes that the $2.1 million budget must not be spent in the hiring of an advertising firm alone. Instead, at least $1 million must be geared toward providing support to the Japanese wholesalers.
Unlike Guam, the CNMI is a difficult destination to sell, thus, the importance of getting the help of the wholesalers in selling the island.
Likewise, Sablan noted that the Northern Marianas has become more expensive than Indonesia, Malaysia or Thailand where packages are sold for $200 to $400.
With limited budget, the CNMI is constrained to implement an all-out promotional campaign which will allow the CNMI to recapture its lost market share in Japan. MVA is pinning its hopes on the Visit the Marianas ’99 Campaign which will go on full blast next year.
This month, however, the Northern Marianas will see an increase in the number of visitor arrivals from Japan as Japan Airlines began its promotional campaign.
All JAL regular flights from December 23 to January 10 are already fully booked as Japanese escape the winter season in their country.
