BTA End Marketing Agreement Focusing On Italy
[Written by Don Burgess]
The Bermuda Tourism Authority has ended its marketing agreement that focuses on the Italian tourist.
Glenn Jones, director of public and stakeholder relations at the BTA, told the Bernews: “With the launch of the new gotobermuda.com website and the constant review and analysis of our social media channels, it was decided having one social presence in Europe [mostly targeting the U.K.] and one in North America [mostly targeting the US] are sufficient. This streamlining helps us stay true to one brand voice for Bermuda in the markets where most of our visitors come from.”
The Ente Turismo Bermuda Twitter account had 7,183 followeras before it was suspended. It was ranked 26th in the Bermuda Twitter rankings. The associated Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest accounts have also been suspended.
Concetta Rossetti, sales and marketing director at Destination Srl which handled the Italian social media accounts for the BTA, told Bernews the relationship was severed on January 1.
She said it is easier to appeal to the UK and German markets as the weather isn’t as pleasant as Italy.
“The Italians already have everything, being a peninsular, has beaches all over, lovely weather, great cuisine, amazing fashion, they can ski at Cortina in the winter and eat an ice cream while walking around the Colosseum etc. so for them to go anywhere you have to have lots more to lure them.
“Bermuda is expensive, that they know, as they compare Bermuda with other islands and most of the other islands have fully inclusive rates and a lot more hotels which allow them to be able to keep the prices affordable.”
She added she has no hard feelings and has “heartfelt regards to a beloved island I have grown so immensely fond of.”
Really …..who’s idea was it to go after the Italian Market….???…..and if you are going to concentrate on German market you had better secure a direct flight or one with better connections. The choices now are to flight to London change airports and a 4-7 hour layover, or to fly to USA or Toronto ……..or just go to Italy since you make it sound extremely good..
A relationship inherited from the Department of Tourism, and discontinued at the first available opportunity.
You cannot market to a region where you do not have direct flights to Bermuda.
What does it take to get an airline from continental Europe, say, Switzerland or Germany where we do a lot of business with to come to Bermuda (even ONCE A WEEK!). What is the Department of Tourism doing to entice flights from continental Europe?
I don’t see any action!
Bermuda is ASLEEP when it comes to tourism and its product!
I have always thought it wise to fish where the fish are & where they are biting.
Most of our visitors come from the US. Most of them live east of the Appalachians. I would think that the bulk of them live within a couple hours drive of an airport with non stop service to Bermuda. Those areas are where we should be fishing.
NO that is not how you build diversity. we need to have out more than one cast line when fishing. many people is China don’t know what Bermuda holds for them. We need to get someone in the main business area of China. They have more money then they know what to do with now. once we get it it will spread like the plague.
Think about it people, China has smog all over and they swim in water that has green algae slime growing in it and the Lord only know what the drinking water taste like.
Are you telling me they would pass up a place like Bermuda that is a total opposite to what the want to take a vacation from?
bruh it is only common sense to get marketing done up in places like China
This is why you only catch grunts, brims and chubs. Smart people troll and bring in the tuna, mahi mahi and wahoo thats out here. you keep fishing in the same place you limit your self
The only Italian tourists I saw in any numbers in Bermuda were either family and friends of the Italian restaurant owners and workers or when we had Italian beach tennis players coming here!!
A bit tongue in cheek, but I would have kept social media feeds going, since they had a following – there are enough Italians in Bermuda to man that !!
But I am sure if the BTA have made a decision, it is because they see clearly the market Bermuda is reaching…and more importantly where the visitors are coming from.
Rich Italians (the Ferrari crowd) can easily afford us, but a vast majority of Italians do not have the $$$$ for Bermuda.
The recession in Italy has been severe and shows no sign of abating soon.
I know what you mean, but one small correction. Italy is not in a recession…its economy grew in 2016. In the late 2000s Italy went into recession for 7 quarters. It got into a lot of debt, and it has its problems, but its recession was one quarter of the length of Bermuda’s recession, which lasted 7 years.
Living in Italy, the vast majority of Italians in Northern Italy have buckets of money and love the beaches. Do you know that Italians, per capita, are richer than Germans? Having said that, where is all the money? In the NORTH.
Where do they go on vacation? CUBA / ANTILLES – places where they can get DIRECT flights! They don’t want to go to London or NY to get to Bermuda. They want to drive to Milan and hop on a direct flight. Absolutely ludicrous that in 2017 we don’t have one single direct flight (not even ONCE A WEEK) from mainland Europe!
Tons of business workers in Bermuda have to travel to Switzerland and Germany from Bermuda and it is so bloody inconvenient to have to go to London. Enough with the overpriced BA monopoly. Don’t you think if we offered flights to Bermuda from mainland Europe the visitors would come?
Forget about the websites!!!
We need new fish. Why fish in an overcrowded market…
Right now in this time in Bermuda’s history, we need a vision that isn’t myopic. First of all, we are fighting against the currents of the times. We no longer live in the Industrial Age. Tourism is an Industry and most Indusrties have been deregulated and dismantled slowing. In some cases quickly. We now live in the Information Age has been gaining traction eversince Sputnik went up in orbit in the late 50s and went pretty much official when the Cold War ended and the Berlin wall fell. Bermuda needs to reinvent itself and evolve or get left behind…We need Direct flights to markets in Africa, Continental Europe, and Asia with direct flights from Key Cities….
YES, direct flights from everywhere will bring the tourists! Wake up BTA!!!
We need the Chinese market.