TIRANA, May 20 – U.S-based APCO Worldwide and its StrawberryFrog ad unit have been announced the winner of an international competition on branding Albanian tourism which in the past four global crisis years has suffered a decline in income.
“Albania, Go your own way.” That’s the slogan of the global ad campaign that will be led by StrawberryFrog and APCO Worldwide.
“Beaches, mountains, cafes, ancient cities, Every European country has them, but Albania has something they don’t have. The Future. Albania is wide open, ready to be discovered, by adventurous travelers and innovative businesses. Go your own way will make Albania the most exciting new discovery in Europe,” says the winning video in subtitles.
The five shortlisted companies also included CNN (France), Hemington (England), Interface Tourism Group (France), MEC Medianetwork (Greece) and StrawberryFrog APCO (U.S).
“I am convinced it will a great day in the history of the design of Albania’s image abroad, and no doubt the image ends with the logo but begins and is built with the work that really should be carried out,” said Prime Minister Edi Rama.
“We have been suffering a negative image since years. It is undisputable that Albanians have contributed to this image, but it is also indisputable that perception on outdated thinking or bias we never managed to oust has had a big part,” added the Prime Minister.
Tourism Minister Eglantina Gjermeni said the branding process will convey a positive image of a small country with the extraordinary energy and vitality of its people.
“We will convey the huge development potential, the tradition of hospitality, rich culture and extraordinary historical heritage, the wonderful destinations and landscapes,” added the minister.
Albanian tourism got a boost earlier this year when the country landed at No. 4 on the New York Times’ 52 Places to Go in 2014 list published in January, noting the Maryland-sized country combines the rugged beauty of Croatia with undiscovered ruins of Turkey or Greece.
Scott Goodson, CEO, co-founder, StrawberryFrog, described Albania as the unknown pearl of the region.
“We look forward to helping Albania deepen its connections with key audiences that will help the country as it continues to build a modern economy and a brighter future,” said APCO’s president of international, Brad Staples.
The new international advertising and marketing campaign that will include creative advertising as well as PR, digital and social media, and a short film competition.
The initiative targets increasing the number of foreigners visiting Albania and making the country more attractive to foreign investors in the tourism sector.
“We target launching a new image of Albania and its tourism potential, as an entry gate for foreign investments in the Balkans, a country which is a factor of stability, security and peace in the region, a European Albania of the next generation,” the tourism minister has said.
The Albanian government is also working on a new law on tourism and a mid-term strategy in the tourism sector which has been facing crisis impacts in the past four years.
“The whole work targets turning Albania into a tourist destination by making full use of national resources, the beauty of Albania’s landscape, the cultural and historical heritage, hospitality, the historical and cultural values by respecting environment protection and promoting sustainable tourism to decently represent the country,” Gjermeni has earlier noted.
The new image will be built through participation in international fairs, promotional coverage in international media by introducing the particular thing about Albania in the region and Europe.
Albania has also earlier promoted its tourism potential on CNN, BBC, Euronews and Eurosport.
A rising destination
Albania offers a miscellaneous picture of coastal and mountain tourism and has been attracting more and more foreign tourists in the past few years being nicknamed as “A New Mediterranean Love” and “Europe’s Last Secret”.
In January 2014, The New York Times ranked Albania as one of the top four global destinations to go to for 2014, placing the Balkan country as the single European destination on top of the list. The prestigious daily newspaper ranks the Albanian coast the number four destination to visit, describing it as Europe at its best on a rugged shore.
The rating by New York Times comes after Lonely Planet tourist guide ranked Albania as the top destination for 2011 and the country was placed sixth in CNN’s top 10 destinations for 2011.
Back in 2012, the Globe and Mail, Canada’s largest national newspaper, selected Albania as a top tourism destination in 2012. In a travel slideshow on its website, the newspaper placed the Albanian Riviera as the top destination among the six best places to visit in 2012.
Tourism suffering tough times
For the first time in more than a decade the number of foreign tourists visiting Albania registered a slight decline in 2013 while tourism revenue continued their downward trend for the fourth year in a row, unveiling the critical situation in one of Albania’s most promising sectors.
Data from the country’s state statistical institute, INSTAT, show the number of foreign tourists to Albania dropped by 1.5 percent to 3.46 million in 2013, down from a historic high of 3.51 million in 2012, registering the first decline since 2000. Ethnic Albanians from Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro account for three-fifths of foreign tourists visiting Albania, with local experts often referring to this market as ‘patriotic tourism.’
Meanwhile, tourism revenue registered a drop for the fourth consecutive year in 2013. Central bank data show tourism revenue dropped to 1.1 billion euros in 2013, down from 1.14 billion in 2012 registering the lowest level since 2007.
Albanians’ spending on trips rose to 1.1 billion euros in 2013, up from 1 billion euros in 2012 and the peak 1.12 billion euros in 2011 when Albania’s visa regime to the Schengen area was lifted.
For the first time in a decade the tourism sector registered a negative balance sheet of around 6 million euros in 2013. The tourism sector has positively contributed at 50 to 100 million euros annually in Albania’s current account.
Albania lost six places in the 2013 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index, ranking worse to its regional competitors mainly due to poor business environment and infrastructure. The report published by the World Economic Forum surveying 140 global economies ranked Albania 77th, compared to 71st a couple of years ago, with a total score of 3.97 on a 1-to-7 scale, sandwiched between Ukraine and Armenia, leaving behind only landlocked Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Moldova among European countries.
A key sector
In its latest report, London-based World Travel & Tourism Council says the direct contribution of Travel & Tourism to Albania’s GDP was ALL 68.1 bn (Euro 478 million) accounting for 4.8 percent of total GDP. The direct contribution primarily reflects the economic activity generated by industries such as hotels, travel agents, airlines and other passenger transportation services (excluding commuter services). But it also includes, for example, the activities of the restaurant and leisure industries directly supported by tourists.
The total contribution of Travel & Tourism to GDP (including wider effects from investment, the supply chain and induced income impacts) was 16.7 percent of GDP in 2013, and is forecast to rise by 4.6 percent in 2014, and to rise by 5.4 percent pa to 20.9 percent of GDP in 2024.
In 2013 Travel & Tourism directly supported 41,000 jobs (4.3 percent of total employment). This is expected to rise by 5.2 percent in 2014 and rise by 3.5 percent pa to 61,000 jobs (5.7 percent of total employment) in 2024, says the World Travel & Tourism Council.
In 2013, the total contribution of Travel & Tourism to employment, including jobs indirectly supported by the industry, was 15.2 percent of total employment (146,500 jobs). This is expected to rise by 4.1 percent in 2014 to 153,000 jobs and rise by 3.2 percent pa to 210,000 jobs in 2024 (19.5 percent of total).
Visitor exports generated ALL 154 bn (Euro 1 billion) (23.2 percent of total exports) in 2013. This is forecast to grow by 6.3 percent in 2014, and grow by 5.6 percent pa, from 2014-2024, to ALL 282.5 bn (around 2 billion euros) in 2024 (22.2 percent of total). Visitor exports includes spending within the country by international tourists for both business and leisure trips, including spending on transport, but excluding international spending on education.
Travel & Tourism investment in 2013 was ALL15.4bn (Euro 108 million), or 4.3 percent of total investment.
Out of 184 countries, Albania ranks 46th on long-term growth 2014-2024 and 39th for Travel and Tourism’s total contribution to GDP at 16.7 percent in 2013.
