ghana national tourism marketing strategy 2009

7/27/2019 Ghana National Tourism Marketing Strategy 2009

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TouristMapofGhana


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TableofContents

AboutGhana............................................................................................i

WelcomeStatement...............................................................................ii

WhatisTourism?....................................................................................1

TourisminGhana:Facts&Figures..........................................................2

Strengths,Weaknesses,OpportunitiesandThreats...............................3

Tourismin

West

Africa

............................................................................

5

Highlights................................................................................................6

Vision,Mission,GoalsandObjectives....................................................7

HowCanWeAchieveourTargetofOneMillionTouristsby2012?.......8

TheCriticalSuccessFactors....................................................................9

ActionPlan

............................................................................................

16

MonitoringandEvaluationMechanisms..............................................18

Glossary.................................................................................................19


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AboutGhana

FORMERNAME:TheGoldCoast.

CAPITAL:Accra.

LOCATION:WesternAfrica,onlatitude

800'Nandlongitude200'W.

BORDERS:AtlanticOcean(south),Togo

(east),BurkinaFaso(north)andLaCte

dIvoire(west).

SURFACEAREA:238,837sqkm(similarto

GreatBritainortheAmericanstateof

Oregon),with540kmofcoastline.

CLIMATE:Tropical,withtemperaturesusually

between21 31C.

NATURALRESOURCES:Gold,Diamond,Bauxite,Manganese,TimberandCocoa.

POPULATION:Approximately23.8millionpeople.

LANGUAGE:OfficiallanguageisEnglish.Therearemorethan70languagesandmajor

dialects,includingAkan,Ewe,GaAdangbe,Dagbani,NzemaandHausa.

RELIGION:TwothirdsofGhanaiansareChristian,another15%areIslamic,andthe

remainderadheretotraditionalanimistbeliefs.

GOVERNMENT:ConstitutionalDemocracy.

INDEPENDENCE:6thMarch1957fromBritishAdministration.

LOCALTIME:GreenwichMeanTime(GMT).

i


6/28

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WhatisTourism?

Tourismcomprisestheactivitiesofpersonstravellingtoandstayinginplacesoutsidetheir

usual environment, for a period of not more than one consecutive year, for leisure,

businessandotherpurposesnot related to theexerciseofanactivity remunerated from

withintheplacevisited.

The tourism industry can be defined as those firms, organisations and facilities that

incidentally or intentionally provide facilities and services for tourists, to cater for their

needsfromthetimeofplanningfortheirtrip,totheirreturnhome.

The tourism industry isoneof the largest industries in theworld, comprising924million

international tourists in2008,andaccounting for30%of theworldsexportsof services.

Globaltourism

generated

US$

856

billion

(

625

billion)

in

revenues,

in

2007.

Globaltourismisforecasttocontinuetogrowinthelongterm,thoughataslowerpacefor

2009,duetothecurrentglobaleconomicdownturn.However,thegoodnewsisthatAfrica,

aswellasEastAsiaandthePacific,therestofAsia,andtheMiddleEast,willhavehigher

growthpercentagesthantherestoftheworld.


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TourisminGhana:Facts&Figures

StructureoftheIndustry

The Ministry of Tourism (MOT) is thepolicymakingbodyforGhanastourismindustry,

with its implementing agency being the Ghana

Tourist Board (GTB). The Ghana Tourism

Federation(GHATOF)istheumbrellaassociation

for private sector tourism organisations and

theiraffiliates.

TourismsContribution

to

the

Ghanaian

Economy

ThetourismindustrycontributesgreatlytotheGhanaianeconomy,throughsuchmeansas

corporate tax, income tax, value added tax, National Health Insurance Levies,

customs/excise duties, GTB licence fees, property rates, property/asset fees, business

registrationfees,visa/workpermits,airportservicecharges,andsoon.

Between 2005 and the third quarter of 2008, the hotel sector had contributed GH

647,296,664.15 directly to government revenue, and GH 35,011,773.43 to non

governmental/quasigovernmental

agencies.

During

the

same

period,

the

restaurant

sector

contributedGH28,129,876.26directly togovernment revenue,andGH1,888,216.42 to

nongovernmental/quasigovernmentalagencies.

ShareoftheWestAfricanTourismMarket

In2004,Ghanahad itshighestevervisitorarrivalfigures,amountingto584,000visitors in

thatyear.However,thisfiguremustbedoubledwithinthreeyears,ifwearetoachieveour

targetofattractingonemillionvisitorstoGhanabymid2012.Thisrequiresanincreaseof

Ghanas

share

of

West

African

tourists

from

12%

to

20%,

by

mid

2012.

BytargetingvisitorsfromtheUK,Germany,USA,TheNetherlandsandNigeria,andbythe

activeinvolvementofallatlarge,weneedtoincreaseourmarketingeffortsandclosethe

wideninggapbetweenGhanaandSenegal,sothatGhanamayeventuallybethetoptourist

destinationinWestAfrica.


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Strengths,Weaknesses,

Opportunitiesand

Threats

GhanasStrengthsasaTourismDestination:

Authenticandunspoiled. Strongculturalandheritagetourismproducts. Natureandecotourism. Safeandsecure.

Plenty

of

sunshine.

Highsatisfactionratingbyvisitors. Friendlypeople. Anglophonecountry. Wellconnectedflightnetwork. Developingtelecommunications. Politicalstability.

GhanasWeaknesses

as

aTourism

Destination:

LackofactivepromotionofGhanaasatouristdestination. Lackofintegratedchannelstrategy. Poorvisaregime. Pooronlinestrategy. Littletouristinformation. Nointernationalinformationoffices(SenegalhasoneinNewYork). Poorinfrastructure(especiallydomesticandinternationaltransportation,roads,rest

stops,and

tourist

information

offices).

Poorproductqualityandlowexcitementoverproductsandservices. Lackofserviceandprofessionaltourismorientation. Inadequateaccommodationfacilities. Highpricesrelativetoquality.


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OpportunitiesfacingGhanaasaTourismDestination:

Worldwidetrendtowardsspecialinterestandadventuretourism. IncreasinginterestonthepartofAfricanAmericansintheirheritage. TouristpotentialfromWestAfricanneighbourssuchasNigeria. Currentlyabestkeptsecret:noestablishedimageontheworldtourismmarket. Attractivetobusinesstravellersduetolocationandsafety(potentialconference

market).

AnestimatedfourmillionGhanaianslivingabroad.

ThreatsfacingGhanaasaTourismDestination:

IncreasingcompetitionfromotherAfricancountriesasemergingtourismdestinations.

HighcostoftraveltoGhana. Lackofappreciationoftourismsimportancebygovernmentandsocietyalike. Increasingworldwidesecurityconcernsaboutoverseastravel. NegativeassociationswithqualitiesgenerallyassociatedwithAfrica(famine,disease,

poverty,instability).

Globalfinancialcrisis.


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TourisminWestAfrica

ItisexpectedthatAfricawillhaveanadditional27millionvisitorsby2010,and57million

visitorsby2020.WethereforehaveagoodopportunitytogrowGhanasshareofAfrican

touristarrivals.

Currently, out of the four subregional blocs in Africa (northern, southern, eastern and

western),WestAfricahasthesmallestshareofvisitors.ThoughWestAfricaseemstohave

lagged behind in attracting visitors compared to other African regional blocs, this might

present the countries in the West African subregion with an opportunity to market

themselvesasvirginandunspoilttouristdestinations.

Thecurrentglobalfinancialcrisisstillcallsforcaution,sincemanyhouseholdsmaycutback

ontravel

spending.

However,

in

the

more

developed

countries,

holidays

are

considered

essential. Research suggests that the economic downturn will have less of an impact on

holidaygrowththanonotherareasofconsumerspending.


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Ghana is

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13/28

Vision,Mission,GoalsandObjectives

Vision

Thevision

is

for

Ghana

is

to

be

the

tourism

hotspot

of

West

Africa.

Mission

ThemissionistooutperformSenegalasthetourismhotspotinWestAfrica.

StrategicGoals

Theprimarygoal istodifferentiateGhanafromthecompetitorcountries inWestAfrica.

Thesecondarygoalsareasfollows:

1. TopositionGhanaasaneclecticmustseedestinationthatoffersdiversetourismopportunitiesinWestAfrica

2. ToraiseawarenessofGhanaasatouristdestination3. To improve the knowledge of Ghana among international tour operators and

packageholidaycompanies

4. To educate Ghanaians living in Ghana about tourism products and tourismspotential

5. ToencourageGhanaiansinthediasporatovisitGhanaand invitetheirfriendstoalso

visit

Ghana.

StrategicObjectives

Theprimaryobjective is to increaseGhanasshareofWestAfrican touristsfrom 12% to

20%bymid2012.

Thesecondaryobjectivesare:

1. ToincreasethenumberoftouroperatorsthatofferpackagestoGhana2.

To

Increase

the

average

expenditure

of

tourists

3. Toimprovethegeographicspreadoftourists4. Toincreasethelengthofstayoftourists5. Tosmoothenseasonaldemand6. Toincreasethepropensitytorecommendtofriends7. Toincreaseloyalty,measuredthroughrepeatvisits.


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HowCanWeAchieveourTargetofOne

MillionTouristsby2012?

Our target of one million tourists by 2012 can be realised if we try to capitalise on our

strengths,minimiseourweaknesses,seizeouropportunities,andovercomethethreats.In

particular,effortsmustbefocusedonthefollowingareas:

AccessibilityofTourismSites AttendanceatInternationalExhibitions DevelopmentofaCrisisCommunicationsStrategy DevelopmentofAirlines,NationalandRegionalAirports

Development

of

Human

Resources

in

Tourism

DevelopmentofIntegratedandConsistentMarketingCommunications

EducatingtheLocalHumanResources EnhancedLinkswithInternationalTourOperatorsandPackageHolidayWebsites EstablishmentofTouristInformationOffices ExploitationofTechnology HeightenedPublicRelationsEfforts ImprovedAwarenessinKeySourceCountries ImprovedDirectMarketing ImprovedPackagingofTours ImprovedQualityandPricingofHotels ImprovedTouristAttractions OfferingBetterValueforMoney SimplerandCheaperVisaRegime UseofGuerrillaPromotionalMethods.


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TheCriticalSuccessFactors

ThecriticalsuccessfactorsforachievingthegoalssetoutinthisStrategyareasfollows:

1. ProductImprovementandDevelopmentAccessibilityofTourismSites

Althoughprogresshasbeenmadeinthelasttenyearswiththe

constructionofroads,theaccesstoandfrommanytouristsites

outsidemajorcitiesremainspoor.Thislackofaccess

significantlydiminishesthebenefitstothelocalcommunitiesof

theirtourism

products.

The

result

is

that

those

that

are

accessibleareovervisited,withtheriskofenvironmental

degradation,whileothersarehardlyvisited.Railandwater

transportremainunderdevelopedinGhana.

DevelopmentofAirlines,NationalandRegionalAirports

ThepopulartouristdestinationsincludingSouthAfricaandKenya allseemtohave

strongnationalairlinesthatservetheircountries,complementedbyinternationalairlines.

In

emerging

destinations

such

as

Ghana,

international

airlines

dominate,

supported

by

weakernationalcarriers.

ThenumberandfrequencyofflightscomingintoGhanahasimproved,withincreasingsub

regionalflightactivity,especiallytoandfromNigeria.ThoughmajorEuropeancarrierslike

BritishAirwaysandKLMflydailytoGhana,thisisonlytoAccra,withnoflightstoother

majorcitieslikeKumasiorTakoradi.AirlineslikeAlitaliaandEmiratescombineflightsto

NigeriaandGhana,probablytoboostrevenuespermile.Thisisunderstandable,butit

createstheperceptionthatGhanaisnotasaccessibleasotherpopularAfricandestinations

likeSouthAfricaorKenya.


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Presently,thevisitorexperienceatKotokaInternational

Airportisamixedone.Staffattheairport,includingthe

immigrationofficials,arepleasantandprofessional,but

informationisscarce,andairportamenitiessuchaswashroom

facilitiesare

below

par.

ImprovedPackagingofTours

Toursneedtobepackagedtoreflecteclecticexperience,andtour

operatorsmustbeencouragedtodevelopinterestingnamesfor

theirtours.

ImprovedQualityandPricingofHotels

Thereisaneedformorereasonablypriced,goodquality

hotelsacrossthecountry,beforeGhanacancomparewith

herregionalrivals,notablySenegal.

Inaddition,theratingcriteriaforhotelsandrestaurants

shouldbereviewedtoreflecttodaysbusinessenvironment.

ImprovedTouristAttractions

Touristattractionsneedtobeimprovedtomakethemmore

engagingandinteresting.Thepresentationofthetourist

attractionslikethecastlesshouldbemademoreengagingand

memorable,perhapsthroughdramatisation.

OfferingBetterValueforMoney

WithGhanaiansbeingfriendlypeople,touristshaveagood

experienceinGhana.However,thepresentationofthe

tourismproducts(sitesandattractions)isthoughttobe

boringanduninspiring.Hotelsandrestaurantsarebeing

improved,buttherearestillissuesaboutprice,qualityand

servicedelivery.VisitorstoWestAfricabelievethat

tourismserviceshereareexpensive,comparedtothe

qualityofservicereceived.


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SimplerandCheaperVisaRegime

Senegalsvisafeesrangefrom3.15to10.50forvisasforoneto

ninetydays.Mostvisasareprocessedwithinthreeworkingdays.

CitizensofEUmemberstates,Canada,Israel,Japan,Taiwanandthe

UnitedStates,

do

not

require

avisa

for

avisit

of

up

to

ninety

days.

In

contrast,visastoGhanacost30forasingleentry,andtake

betweenfourandtenworkingdaystoprocess.

Governmentshouldbelobbiedtoeasevisarequirements:ifnot

completely(whichwouldhaverevenueimplicationsfortheaffected

highcommissions),thenanalternativecouldbetoletvisitorspay

fortheirvisasonarrivalinGhana.Thatway,accessisfacilitated,visitornumberswill

increase,and

tour

operators

will

have

one

big

hassle

taken

care

of.

Attheintergovernmentallevel,theideaofaWestAfricanSchengenequivalentshouldbe

putforward,toboostregionaltouristtraffic.

2. InformationandCommunicationsTechnology(ICT)ExploitationofTechnology

InGhana,theuseofICTamongstindustryplayers

tendstoberestrictedtowordprocessing.The

exploitationoftheinternetandrelatedtechnologies

isstillrelativelylow.Mostplayersdonothave

websitesoronlinebookingplatforms,andtheyare

thereforecutofffromtheglobalsupplychain.

However,halfofallinternetusersworldwidebrowse

travelrelatedwebsitesforinformation.

Withincreasingaccesstobroadband,itiseasierfortravellerstosearchforinformation

aboutdestinations,booktheirtrips,andpostfeedbackonline.Onlinebookinghasdoubled

inthelastfouryears.TotalonlinetravelsalesintheUKareestimatedat10.8billion.Inthe

US,totalonlinesaleswereworth$114.6in2004.Theinternetisbecomingamajor

distributionchannelfortravelrelatedproductsandservices.

The

larger

the

number

of

industry

organisations

that

are

online,

the

better

the

perception

oftheaccessibilityofadestination.HereinGhana,weneedapolicytoencouragethe

operatorsofhotelsandrelatedorganisationstohavewebsites.Deadlinesneedtobesetfor

hotels,restaurants,carrentalcompaniesandthelike,todeveloptheirwebsitesandother


18/28

electronicproducts.PayPalisaverypopularpaymentplatformthatoffersany

organisationswebsiteecommercecapability.

OnlineinitiativesshouldincludetheuseofvideosonYouTubeandrelevanttravelwebsites.

Travelblogsshould

be

maintained,

so

that

visitors

can

share

their

experiences.

Banner

ads

shouldbeplacedonrelevantwebsitessuchasexpedia.comandlastminute.com.

Wealsoneed robustmarketing information systems tohelpwith the collection,analysis

anddisseminationofmarket intelligence fordecisionmaking.This isespecially important

whenitcomestotheallocationofscarceresources.

3. MarketingAttendance

at

International

Exhibitions

Attendanceatinternationaltourismexhibitionsiscritical

forthecompetitivenessofGhanastourism.Exhibitionsin

themajorsourcemarkets(forexample,ITBandWTM)

shouldbegiveninvestmentpriority,andthecostof

attendingexhibitionsmustalwaysbeweighedagainstthe

likelylongtermbenefits.

Developmentof

Integrated

and

Consistent

Marketing

Communications

MarketingcommunicationsmustensurethatGhanaisrecognisedasabrand,andthat

GhanaisperceivedasdistinctfromtheothercompetingdestinationsinWestAfrica.All

effortsshouldbemadetoensurethatallmarketing

communicationsareintegrated,todisseminatea

consistentmessageandthusavoidtheerrorsof

pastinitiativeswheretheretendedtobedifferent

messagesforeverycampaign.

Therecommendedpromotionalmethodsare:

- LocalTVadvertising- Localnewspaperandmagazineadvertising- Local road and pedestrian signage (with universal features) directing visitors to

touristattractionsandshowingdistancestoattractions

- Internationalandlocaloutdooradvertising.


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EnhancedLinkswithInternationalTourOperatorsandPackage

HolidayWebsites

Touristdestinationsthathavestrongrelationshipswithlarge

internationaltouroperatorstendtoperformbetterthanthose

whodo

not.

Thenumberoftouroperatorsandpackageholidaywebsitesthat

featureGhana is very low.Thismakes it difficult for tourists to

accessthemarket,asnooneisreallysellingthecountry.

WemustincreasethenumberoftouroperatorsthatofferpackagestoGhana,andimprove

the knowledge of Ghana among international tour operators and package holiday

companies.

EstablishmentofTouristInformationOffices

Inordertoincreasevisibilityandprovideinformationwithapersonaltouch,wemusthave

touristinformationofficesacrossGhanaandinthemajorsourcecountries.Thesecanbe

complementedbytouristinformationdesks mannedbywellqualifiedpersonnel inthe

variousGhanaHighCommissions.

ImprovedAwarenessinKeySourceCountries

Wemust

build

Ghanas

reputation

as

amust

see

tourist

destinationinWestAfrica.ThefourmillionGhanaiansinthe

diasporamustbeencouragedtovisitGhanaandinvitetheir

friendstoalsovisitGhana.

Ghanashouldbemarketedasa

destinationthatoffersdiverse

opportunitiesforthetourist.

Thiswill

help

to

increase

averagetouristspendpervisit,

averagelengthofvisit,and

loyalty(measuredbyrepeatvisits).

Inviewofthis,thecampaignlogoandcatchphraseadoptedis

Culture,WarmthandMuchMore,completed

with

the

stripe

of

Ghana

colours.Allpromotionalitemsmustbe

brandedaccordingly.


20/28

ImprovedDirectMarketing

Touristinformationshouldbemadeavailablethroughprofessionallyproducedleafletsand

brochures.Thesealsomustbeavailableonlinefordownloads.Allimagesusedonwebsites,

brochures,leafletsandallpromotionalmaterialsshouldbetakenbyprofessional

photographers.The

websites

should

be

developed

to

include

features

that

can

enable

the

captureofcontactdetailsforsubsequentemailmarketingandrelationshipbuilding.

UseofGuerrillaPromotionalMethods

GhanaianfootballerswhoplayfortopEuropeanclubsshouldbe

persuadedtowearVisitGhanatshirtsundertheirstrips.Thesecanbemadevisibleaftermatches.Onandoffthepitch,they

canwearGhanamemorabilia,likewristbands,etc.Thiscan

generatealot

of

PR

in

Europe,

ifit

is

picked

up

by

the

press.

4. PublicRelationsDevelopmentofaCrisisCommunicationsStrategy

Theremustbeacrisiscommunicationsstrategyinplace,

shouldanythingbadhappentotourists.Ourresponseto

crises

will

either

improve

or

diminish

tourist

confidence.

A

publicrelationsfirmshouldhelpplanforsuch

eventualities.

HeightenedPublicRelationsEfforts

PublicRelationsshouldbeusedtoensurethatpositivemessages

areseededinrelevantinternationaltravelmedia.Familiarisation

visitsshouldbeorganisedfortraveljournaliststoexplorethesights

andsoundsofGhana,withpriorityplacedonthosejournalistsfrom

targetsourcecountries,andresearchersfromcompaniesthat

publishtravelguidessuchasLonelyPlanet.Localjournalistsshouldalsobeencouragedtoresearchandreport

positive tourism stories, as a costeffective means of information

dissemination. Local journalists should also be encouraged to

develop competences in travel writing. A suggestion would be to create a category for

traveljournalismintheannualtourismawards,aswellasjournalismawards.

Regulardestinationnewsshouldbewrittenandcirculatedtointernetnewssitesaswellas

traditionalmedia,tokeepGhanatopofmind.


21/28

5. EducationandTrainingDevelopmentofHumanResourcesinTourism

ThequalityofGhanashumanresourcesintourismisstill

poor.Many

tourism

establishments

still

hire

relatives

with

no

knowledgeorexperienceindealingwithtourists.Thisdilutes

thetotalvisitorexperience,andhurtsthedestinationbrand.

Trainingcanhelp increasetheaveragespendpertourist,as

service staff are trained on how to encourage guests to

spendmore.

Industrywidetraining interventionsshouldbe implemented,andevidenceoftrainingand

developmentshouldbeincludedinthecriteriafortherenewalofoperatinglicenses.

Continuousprofessionaldevelopmentmustbeencouraged,perhapsthroughpartnerships

withinternationalorganisations.

Continuous training of frontline staff at various tourist touch points must be seen as

priority. All staff at various information points must have the necessary training to

communicate the rightproduct informationwith the rightattitude.Theymustbehelpful

andprofessional:

this

will

help

reinforce

the

tourists

perception

of

Ghana

as

afriendly

destination,andenrichtheirholidayexperience.

EducatingtheLocalHumanResources

Therearecurrentlyabout38%ofGhanaiansunder

theageof14.Thispresentsanopportunityto

educatetheyoungergenerationontheimportance

oftourismtoGhana,andhelpthemdevelopa

mindset

that

sees

the

connection

between

tourism,nationaldevelopmentandenvironmental

sustainability.

Ghanaians living in Ghana must be educated about our tourism products and tourisms

potential.


22/28

ActionPlanKeyIssues Activity Timeframe

1.

Ghananeed

stodevelopitstourismproposition

(productimprovementanddevelopment)

. Developreceptivefacilitiesforusebytravellers. July2009 June2010;

June2011 June2012

Enforcelaw

on

establishing

and

making

places

of

convenience

accessible

at

reststopsontourismroutes.July

2009

June

2010;

June2011 June2012

Trainstaffattheentrypointsoncustomercareandtheimportanceof

tourism.

July2009 Dec2009;

July2010 Dec2010;

June2011 June2012

Installmoderntoiletfacilitiesatalltouristattractions,airportsandborder

posts.

July2009 June2010;

June2011 June2012

Installtouristsignagetodirecttouriststoattractions,usinginternational

symbolsandcolours.

July2009 June2010;

June2011 June2012

Providedisposalbinsatallattractions,toensurethatthesitesarekeptclean. July2009 June2010

Developproposalstomakethetouristattractionsmoreexciting. July2009 Dec2009

Conductresearch

and

development

into

other

attractions

that

deserve

to

be

includedinthedirectoryofworldheritagesites.May

2010

June

2011;

Aug2011 Jun2012

Improvecapacityformonitoringandevaluatingtourismdevelopmentby

establishingrobustinformationsystems.

July2009 Apr2010;

May2010 June2011

Conducttraining,anddevelopneedsassessmentfortheentireindustry. July2009 Dec2009;

May2010 June2011

Developtrainingpolicyfortheindustry Jan2010 Mar2010

Developminimumrequirementsfordifferentjobpositions,ensuringthatthis

becomesarequirementfortherenewaloflicenses,sothatserviceproviders

havetherequisiteprofessionalbackgrounds.

Jan2010 Mar2010

Coordinatetrainingoftourismpersonnel.Thiswillincludeinhousetraining,

externaltraining

(leading

to

recognised

qualifications

such

as

diplomas

from

theConfederationofTourismandHospitality),targetedskills,workshops,

conferences,etc.

July2009 June2012

EstablishaHumanCapitalMonitoringDepartmentwithinGTBorMOTto

monitorthedevelopmentofthehumanresourceswithintheindustry.

July2009 Dec2009

2.

Ghananeedsto

buildthebrandinsi

de

(withnationwideintegratedcampaigntoinformand

educatethepublicabouttheecon

omicbenefitsof

tourismanditscontributiontonatio

naldevelopment)

. Appointcommitteetosourceforcommunicationsagenciestoundertakethe

internalmarketingcommunicationsofGhanastourismproposition.

July2009 Sept2009

Sourceandshortlistagencies. Sept2009 Sept2009

Briefagencies,andholdpitchingsessions. Sept2009 Oct2009

Appointandbrieftheselectedagency. Oct2009 Oct2009

Developamultimediaintegratedcommunicationsprogramme. Nov2009 Jan2010

Makean

interim

presentation

to

GTB/GHATOF.

Dec

2009

Dec

2009

Finalisetheapprovaloftheinternalcommunicationscampaign. Jan2010 Jan2010

Rollouttheinternalcommunicationscampaign. Feb2010 Jun2012

Conducttourismoutreachprogrammesatprimary,JHSandSHSschools. July2009 June2012

LobbyGEStoincludetourisminthecurriculumofschools. July2009 June2012

Developtourismprogrammesontelevision;quizshowsonradio;etc. July2009 June2012

Setupschoolstourismwebsitewhereschoolchildrencanwriteabouttheir

experiencesattouristattractions,andposttheirpictures.

July2009 Dec2009

Organisefamiliarisationvisitfordomesticjournalists. July2009 Dec2009;

July2010 Dec2010;

July

2011

Nov

2011


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3.

Ghananeedstobuilda

reputationasamustseetourist

destinationinWestAfrica.

Organisefamiliarisationvisitforinternationaltraveljournalists. July2010 Nov2010

Appointcommitteetosourceforcommunicationsagenciestoundertakethe

externalmarketingcommunicationsofGhanastourismproposition.

Feb2010 Apr2010

Sourceandshortlistagencies. Apr2010 Apr2010

Brieftheagencies,andholdpitchingsessions. Apr2010 May2010

Appointandbrieftheselectedagency. May2010 May2010

Agencytodevelopmultimediaintegratedcommunicationsprogramme. Jun2010 Aug2010

InterimpresentationtoGTB/GHATOF. July2010 July2010

Givefinalapprovalofinternalcommunicationscampaign. Aug2010 Aug2010

Rolloutexternalcommunicationscampaign. Sept2010 Jan2011;

July2011 Nov2011

Appointinternetmarketingconsultanttoadviseononlinestrategy. July2009 July2009

ReviewTouringghanawebsiteagainstsearchengineoptimisation

benchmarks.

Aug2009Sep2009

ImplementonlinestrategyfortheGTB.Thiswillincludesearchengine

optimisation;developmentand maintenanceofdatabasesforemail

marketing;

blogging;

website

monitoring;

development

of

relevant

links;

websiteusability;websitetrackingandreporting;onlinecompetitor

monitoringandreporting.

Oct2009 Jun2012

Developmentoftourismcollaterals.Thisincludesvideos,photographsand

highqualitybrochures(forgiveawaysanddownloads).

July2009 Dec2009

GetinternationalsportspersonalitieslikeMichaelEssienandSulleyMuntari

towearGhanabrandedtshirtsundertheirclubstrips.

July2009Dec2009

Setuprepresentativeofficesinmajorsourcecountries,asidentifiedinthe

report.

July2009 June2009

Setupinformationdesksatforeignmissions. July2009 June2009

OrganisetourofGhanatripsforinformationdeskrepresentativesatforeign

missionsand

representative

offices.

Aug 2010 Nov2010;

Aug

2011

Nov

2011

DevelopCrisisManagementStrategy. Sept2009 Sept2009;

Sept2010 Sept2010;

Sept2011 Sept2011

4.

Ghananeedstoimproveaccessibilitytothecountry. Setupcommitteetoreviewtheonlineutilisationofthehospitalitysector,

especiallyofhotelsandtouroperators.

July2009Sept2009

Ensurethathotelsandtouroperatorshavecorporatewebsites. June2010 June2010

Participateinkeyindustryfairsandexhibitions,e.g.ITBandWTM. Sept2009 Sept2009;

May2010 May2010;

Sept2010 Sept2010;

May2011 May2011;

Sept2011 Sept2011;

May2012

May

2012

Lobbygovernmenttorevise/simplifyvisaregime,andupgradetourism

infrastructure.

July2009 Jun2012

Developanannualdirectoryofqualifiedandaccreditedoperatorsinthe

industry.

July2009 Sept2009;

July2010 Sept2010;

July2011 Sept2011

Visitmajortouroperatorsintargetedsourcecountries(notduring

exhibitions).

Apr2010 June2010;

April2011 June2011;

April2012 June2012

ExploreopportunitiestogetontoglobalonlineplatformssuchasPayPaland

ixeo.com.

July2009 Dec2009


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MonitoringandEvaluationMechanisms

For

our

goals

and

objectives

to

be

realised,

it

is

imperative

that

all

initiatives

are

regularly

monitored, to ensure that tasks or projects are being implemented in line with the

marketingstrategy.

Theprogressofthisplanshouldbereviewedquarterly.Thereviewcommitteemusthave

highlevelrepresentationfromMOT,GTBandGHATOF.

TheActionPlanprovidesclear indicationsofthestartandcompletiontimesfor individual

projectswithintheplan.Thiswillserveasausefulbenchmarkwhenevaluatingtheprogress

ofall

initiatives

contained

within

this

Strategy.

It isalsoworth reiterating that someelementswithin theActionPlanarenotwithin the

controlofmarketing,eventhoughtheireffectsand impactsonthetourism industryhave

beenclearlyestablished.


25/28

Glossary

Action

plan

Intentions

for

a

specific

action

that

help

to

achieve

a

particular

goal.

Diaspora Themovementofpeoplefromanynationorgroupawayfromtheir

owncountry.

Directmarketing Sellingbymeansofdirectcontactwiththeprospectivecustomer.

Eclectic Notfollowingonestyleorsetofideasbutchoosingfromorusinga

widevariety.

Guerrilla

promotional

methods

Unconventional,yetveryaggressivewaysofdistributingpromotional

messagestothepublic.Emphasisisplacedontime,energyand

imaginationratherthanalargemarketingbudget.

Heritage

Thehistory,

traditions

and

qualities

that

acountry

or

society

has

had

formanyyearsandthatareconsideredanimportantpartofits

character.

Human

resources

Availablepeopleorpersonnel,alongwiththeirskills,knowledgeand

experience.

Marketing

communications

Messageandrelatedmediausedtocommunicatewiththesectionof

thepopulationthatmightbuyaparticularproductofservice.

Integrated

channelstrategy

Theprocessofmanagingthevariousmeansthroughwhichmarketing

messagesandrelatedmediaareusedtocommunicatewithamarket.

Marketing

strategyA

process

that

can

allow

an

entity

to

concentrate

its

limited

resources

onthegreatestopportunities,toincreasesalesandachievea

sustainablecompetitiveadvantage.

Propensity Atendencytoaparticularkindofbehaviour.

Publicrelations Thebusinessofgivingthepublicinformationaboutaparticularentityin

ordertocreateagoodimpression.

Tourism Theactivitiesofpersonstravellingtoandstayinginplacesoutsidetheir

usualenvironment,foraperiodofnotmorethanoneconsecutiveyear,

forleisure,businessandotherpurposesnotrelatedtotheexerciseof

anactivity

remunerated

from

within

the

place

visited.

Tourist Apersontravellingtoandstayinginplacesoutsidehisorherusual

environment,foraperiodofnotmorethanoneconsecutiveyear,for

leisure,businessandotherpurposesnotrelatedtotheexerciseofan

activityremuneratedfromwithintheplacevisited.

Tourist

attraction

Aplaceofinterestwheretouristsvisit,mainlyforitsinherentor

exhibitedculturalvalue,historicalsignificance,naturalorbuiltbeauty,

oramusementopportunities.

Tourist

destination

Ageographicalareathatisdependenttoasignificantextentonincome

generatedby

tourism.

Touristproduct Theactivitiesandexperiencesthatatouristparticipatesin.

Visaregime Theprocessofobtaininganofficialpermittoenteranothercountry.


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TheNationalTourismMarketingStrategyforGhanaisadeliverableofthePublicPrivate

PartnershipForuminTourism.Thisprojectwascompletedin2009,inassociationwiththe

MinistryofTourism(MOT),theGhanaTouristBoard(GTB)andtheGhanaTourism

Federation(GHATOF),withsupportfromtheJapanInternationalCooperationAgency(JICA)

andSNVNetherlandsDevelopmentOrganisation.

TheprojectconsultantwasPrincewillOsaroOmorogiuwa

ofSimonPageBusinessSchool,Accra.

Partners:

RepublicofGhana

Ministryof

Tourism


27/28


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ghana national tourism marketing strategy 2009

Documents