From remote corners of the globe to some of the world’s busiest travel hot spots, the trend toward authentic destination marketing campaigns is growing — and fast. This year, campaigns are sending all sorts of unexpected messages, all in the name of staying true to themselves and their residents. Check out three of our favorite campaigns below.
The Faroe Islands
In the case of the beautiful Faroe Islands, an archipelago between popular tourist destinations of Scotland and Iceland, there is much to offer the curious traveler, but reaching them in the first place is a never-ending challenge. After waiting years for Google’s troop of mapping cars to reach them, the Faroe Islands took it upon themselves to show their beautiful destination to the world, with a little help from the islands’ most populous residents: sheep. After strapping 360° cameras to a few of the islands’ 83,000 freely wandering sheep, project manager Durita Dahl Andreassen downloads the images onto her phone and uploads them onto Street View, or, as Andreassen cleverly coined it, “Sheep View.”
The result is a fun, unique look at the islands that just over 49,000 people call home. And while Visit Faroe Islands still invites Google Street View to come map out the area, their creative fix is an authentic way to represent life in this remote destination, and all the benefits of traveling there.
Bowen Island
Another burgeoning trend alongside authentic destination marketing is the “anti-marketing” campaign. Seen last year in Salt Lake City’s “There’s Nothing To Do In Salt Lake” campaign, anti-marketing can have serious stopping power, encouraging travelers to rethink their aversions to certain destinations. In the case of Bowen Island, however, travelers might actually think twice about visiting. And the island is fine with that.
In order to preserve the quiet, nature-centric atmosphere of Bowen Island, located in Canada’s British Columbia province, a foursome of aloof cartoon animals instructs visitors to “Tell your friends it’s awful here.” Of course, the island relies on tourism as a source of revenue, but it hopes those visitors who do come will truly appreciate what the island is all about: peace and quiet. Bumper stickers featuring the campaign’s tagline, along with postcards with lines like, “Proudly resisting change since 1847,” help drive the playful campaign home (literally) and will likely create a wealth of intrigue as the campaign continues to roll out.
Sweden
Who can truly understand what makes a destination unique more than the people who live there? While Sweden is much more well known than our two previous destinations, the country still managed to retain a refreshing authenticity in its latest tourism campaign. “The Swedish Number” enabled people from all over the world to talk to Swedish locals (who signed up to be in the program) over the phone in real time.
The Swedish Tourist Association developed this marketing campaign with ideas of painting Sweden as a personable and welcoming place, and to help ease the tension around international travel as of late. The creative campaign won big at Cannes Lions this year, and stands as a testament to the genuine and friendly nature of the locals.
Whether it’s putting your four-legged residents to work or connecting curious travelers to the locals, there are many creative ways to showcase your unique destination. What would you share about your destination, or your favorite place to visit? Post your ideas in the Comments!