MVA appoints Access Inc. for Japan marketing

The Marianas Visitors Authority has hired market research agency Access, Inc. to market the Northern Mariana Islands of Saipan, Tinian, and Rota to Japan beginning next month.

Access Inc. was established in 1984 and is a member of Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA), Visit USA-Japan Committee, and Travel Industry Communications Society. Its clients have included Hawaii Tourism Authority, Tourism Massachusetts, Minnesota Office of Tourism, Wyndham Vacation Resorts, Inc., and Dollar Rent-a-Car.

“The Marianas Visitors Authority is pleased to announce that Access, Inc., led by company president Takashi Ichikura, has been selected to represent the MVA in the Japan market effective Oct. 1,” said MVA managing director Christopher A. Concepcion. “After careful review and scoring by an eight-member selection committee, Access, Inc. garnered the top position amongst a group of six proposals. We are pleased with the proposal Access, Inc. submitted and are very excited with their marketing and promotional plans for the Japan market. This is an incredibly important market for the Northern Marianas,and we look forward to working with them to revitalize and then stabilize arrivals from Japan.”

Ichikura has also served as executive director of Hawaii Tourism Japan and Account Director at Dentsu, Inc., Japan’s largest advertising and marketing company and the fifth largest branding agency in the world.

Meanwhile, PR and marketing consultancy AVIAREPS Marketing Gardens was selected to continue as the MVA’s representative in Korea, Taiwan, and Russia, while communications agency Skywalker Communications Group will represent the MVA in China.

Each company has developed a country-specific media plan outlining public relations and media activities to expand and stimulate the CNMI’s tourism market over a five-year period. The companies are also responsible to provide timely market information affecting outbound travelers to the CNMI, respond to all in-country inquiries, advise the MVA on the economic condition in each country and its influence on investment and travel to the CNMI, negotiate and coordinate ad placements and familiarization tours, represent the MVA at travel fairs and consumer events, coordinate sales seminars, conduct sales calls and in-house sales presentation with tourism partners, maximize web marketing activities and optimize social media presence, and more.

So far this fiscal year, the Northern Mariana Islands have received 428,225 visitors, a 4-percent increase over the same period last year. (PR)