Department of Tourism Archives

Manila, Philippines – The Department of Tourism (DOT) has recently announced a new tourism slogan ‘Love the Philippines’, which was met with mixed reactions from the general Filipino community. The slogan, which replaces the old ‘It’s More Fun in the Philippines’ tagline, was conceptualised by the creative agency DDB Group Philippines, replacing long-time creative agency partner BBDO Guerrero.

Many netizens have pointed out that the new slogan is less appealing, compared to the old tourism slogan, conceptualised by BBDO Guerrero back in 2012.

To learn more about how social media and the rest of the online community reacted to the announcement, MARKETECH APAC‘s deep-dive series Inner State has tapped social insights and analytics solutions provider Meltwater and social media monitoring company Digimind to learn more about the numbers and insights regarding the DOT tourism slogan revamp.

Positive Sentiment, Yet Driven by Influencer Reach

Meltwater noted in its data that social media mentions of the hashtag #lovethephilippines were mentioned over 26.2k times in total from June 26 to June 30. Twitter led the discussion with over 23.2k mentions, followed by Facebook (2.14k mentions), news (356 mentions), Reddit (273 mentions), and Instagram (111 mentions).

Despite the mixed reactions from the general public, Meltwater’s media monitoring data notes that there was an overwhelmingly positive sentiment online, comprising 74.8% of all overall sentiments. Meanwhile, neutral sentiment comprised of 17.1% of overall sentiment, followed by negative sentiment (4.8%) and not rated (3.4%) pertaining to content without definite context.

While sentiment on the DOT campaign was measured as being ‘positive’, Meltwater also pointed out that a large chunk of the positive sentiment across social media can be attributed to posts made by influencers and local personalities, including of current president Ferdinand “Bong-Bong” Marcos, Jr., actress Ruffa Gutierrez, as well as TV personalities Samantha Bernardo and Joj Agpangan.

For Weldon Fung, area director for client acquisition and expansion for SEA at Meltwater, with DOT pushing for the new slogan’s implementation through influencer messaging, it could be a case of brand recall by repetition and inundation, though lacking in any form of resonance initially.

“This might be a great case study on when not to fix something that’s not broken. The previous ‘It’s More Fun in the Philippines’ slogan was much loved by the public and really spoke to the hospitality and warmth of the nation, something that everyone could identify with domestically and internationally,” Fung told MARKETECH APAC.

He also added that the new DOT Philippines slogan fiasco could be also likened to the ‘Hello Hong Kong’ campaign.

“While it’s understandable for a new agency to give it a fresh new look, the current ‘Love The Philippines’ slogan has reminiscence of the ‘Hello Hong Kong’ campaign, which offers very little to go by as far as an emotional connection, to the point that some Filipinos online have said that it came off sounding desperate and needy. However, the long-term success of the new branding and slogan is still to be determined.”

Sentiment for Old Slogan Still Evident

Following the launch of the ‘Love The Philippines’ campaign, netizens were quick to draw comparisons with the older ‘It’s More Fun in the Philippines’ tagline.

This was evident from Digimind’s data, which saw that the old slogan almost had a share of voice (SOV) in the ongoing social media discussion on the ‘Love The Philippines’ tagline. It also noted that the old slogan picked up at least 19% of the mentions.

Discussions between the ‘Love The Philippines’ and ‘It’s More Fun in the Philippines’ are not far between, with only a ~700,000 reach difference between the two, in favour of the new tagline.

According to Digimind, netizens appeared to contrast the old slogan against the new one, particularly airing their preference for the former as being the wittier take to attract tourism, while branding ‘love’ into the slogan was seen as being too strong and incongruous from how locals viewed the state of the country.

Considering the huge clamour for the old slogan, Jared Silitonga, marketing lead for Digimind, noted that the tourism department should have dug first into social media insights to check if a tourism campaign revamp was necessary.

“In order to effectively handle critics, it is absolutely essential to make use of social media listening to gather both positive and negative feedback. By doing so, it becomes possible to refine future communications and strike the appropriate tone that accurately reflects people’s current sentiments. With the help of social intelligence, brands and agencies can easily analyze public opinions and create consumer profiles, thereby providing PR and communication professionals with invaluable data that can inform their strategies from a multitude of different perspectives,” Silitonga told MARKETECH APAC.

How The Stock Footage Fiasco Contributed to Discussion

In the days that followed the campaign launch, DOT also came under fire for its video using stock footage from other countries. DDB Group Philippines, the agency behind the new campaign revamp, has apologised for the video released, saying that it was only intended to promote the slogan and no public funds were being used.

Digimind noted that while discussion on the campaign waned after a discussion peak on June 29, a spike in the discussion started from July 1 following the stock footage fiasco. The agency, and the phrases ‘footage of locations’ and ‘non-original’ popped up as some of the mostly-used words across the social media sentiments.

Meanwhile, Meltwater’s keywords also noted several phrases voiced out during the fiasco, such as phrases related to how many times the tourism slogan has changed, and how the concept was ‘lazy’ and ‘without substance’.

“In the media, sensational news can often turn what is believed initially to be a well-meaning concept into a potential crisis, especially as negative news is known to circulate quicker and form groupthink in the masses. While there is no foolproof process, like many public sectors, before launching a statement, the Philippines’ DOT will need to “read the room” and ensure that their messaging has gone through multiple assessment rounds with various stakeholders, including focus groups with locals,” Silitonga added.

Manila, Philippines – DDB Group Philippines, the agency of record for the Department of Tourism (DOT) Philippines, has apologised for the misuse of several stock footage assets as part of its promotional video for the recently unveiled ‘Love The Philippines‘ tourism campaign rebranding. This comes after several netizens have pointed out that several of the scenes on the ad were not based in the Philippines but rather from other countries.

In the days following the campaign launch, netizens took notice of how the video used stock footage that misrepresented various tourist spots in the country. They include a fisherman throwing a net which was actually stock footage of a Thai fisherman; the country’s Rice Terraces which was actually stock footage of a similar structure in Bali, Indonesia; and a dune racing footage which was actually shot in Dubai.

In a statement, the agency said that they take full responsibility for this matter and that the video was only intended to excite their internal stakeholders regarding the new tourism campaign.

“While the use of stock footage in mood videos is standard practice in the industry, the use of foreign stock footage was an unfortunate oversight on our agency’s part. Proper screening and approval processes should have been strictly followed. The use of foreign stock footage in a campaign promoting the Philippines is highly inappropriate, and contradictory to the DOT’s objectives,” the agency said.

DDB Group Philippines has also stated that the video has been taken down across all channels, and will be working closely together with the DOT in investigating said matter. It also noted that succeeding ad campaigns for the new tourism slogan have yet to be produced.

It has also clarified that no public funds have been used to produce the video and that it was only made by the agency to pitch the slogan to the public. It also hopes that following the fiasco, it would not diminish the public’s reception regarding the campaign.

This was not the first time an agency has been caught under fire for various campaign fiascos alongside the Department of Tourism.

In 2010, DOT released a slogan named ‘Pilipinas Kay Ganda’ alongside agency Campaigns & Grey. However, many pointed out that the slogan’s artistic interpretation resembles Poland’s tourism slogan ‘Polska’. Then in 2017, DOT came under fire as well when it released a promotional campaign titled ‘Sights’ alongside creative agency McCann Worldgroup. Netizens then pointed out that the campaign’s storytelling resembles of South Africa’s tourism campaign back in 2014. As a result, DOT terminated its PHP650m contract with the agency.

UPDATE: As of this writing, the Department of Tourism has terminated its PHP50m contract with DDB Group Philippines following the stock footage misuse fiasco. DOT says that no payments have been made to the agency. This was made in a public statement by Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco.

“As DDB Philippines has publicly apologised, taken full responsibility, and admitted in no uncertain terms, that non-original materials were used in their AVP, reflecting an abject failure to comply with their obligation/s under the contract and a direct contravention with the DOT’s objectives for the enhanced tourism branding, the DOT hereby exercises its right to proceed with termination proceedings against its contract with DDB,” Frasco said.

Manila, Philippines – The Department of Tourism (DOT) has announced a new tourism slogan ‘Love the Philippines’, a departure from the country’s ‘It’s More Fun in the Philippines’ tagline that was conceptualised back in 2012.

The ‘Love the Philippines’ tagline was conceptualised alongside DDB Group Philippines. According to Marie Adriano, the agency’s brand and strategic planner, the word ‘love’ is the positive theme evident amongst travellers in the country.

“While fun remains a positive theme and certainly part of the Pinoy DNA, there’s less volume of mentions. Coming from a culture shift, naturally, changes in the consumers follow. Who are they? We call them the ‘changed traveler’ for the very reason that travelling has come to mean more than just leisure,” Adriano told the Philippine News Agency.

Meanwhile, Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco commented, “The campaign Love the Philippines is not a mere branding campaign, but rather a call to action to every Filipino citizen to remember the beauty of our country, to honour our past, and to look forward to the future armed with the virtues, (and) values of being a Filipino.”

The previous tagline ‘It’s More Fun in the Philippines’ was conceptualised by BBDO Guerrero in 2012. It also renewed its partnership with DOT in 2021 alongside the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) to promote the country’s tourism amidst a new normal.

Manila, Philippines — A new digital campaign entitled ‘Future Farms’ has been recently launched by the Department of Tourism (DOT). The campaign intends to promote farm tourism, one of the sector’s promising gems, and to offer pandemic-weary travellers a refreshing environment and new experiences. The Future Farms video series can be viewed on the ‘Tourism Philippines’ YouTube channel.

The Farm Tourism video series has featured must-see farms possessing unique characteristics of the touted ‘’future farm” — innovative, scenic, product-centric, and machine-oriented.

‘Future Farms’ is the fruit of the government agency’s efforts to redevelop tourism products and seek out new types of destinations and activities for travellers in the new normal. This innovation allows farm owners to maximise the potential of their property, employ more people, and give tourists more destinations to discover and agri-tourism products to enjoy.

The farms to be featured are located all over the Philippines and include sites such as Diaspora Farm and Resort in Bacolor, Pampanga, Amancio Nicolas Agri-Tourism Academy in Cordon, Isabela, Yamang Bukid in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, Orchard Valley Farm in Pavia, Iloilo, among others.

Since 2018, the DOT has been strengthening the development and promotion of farm tourism as a major tourism product. It supports stakeholders in innovating and diversifying farm sites around the country to include recreational and leisure activities for tourists in addition to food and wellness.

The DOT said its farm tourism campaign ‘will definitely awaken the farmer in you as you explore the unique and fascinating farms in the country.’

Those interested in the project can visit DOT’s dedicated website for more information on DOT’s Farm Tourism partner destinations.

‘Future Farms’ is one of DOT’s original initiatives for tourism in the past month. Other notable projects include the inclusion and consideration of women and PWDs in the tourism industry, and a new ‘podumentary’ on the different rich cultures and traditions the Philippines offers, entitled ‘Escape: Stories from the Road’.

Philippines — The Department of Tourism (DOT) presents its first podcast entitled ‘Escape: Stories from the Road,’ showcasing the best destinations in the Philippines through stories from different personalities. The podcast will be available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and other platforms.

This five-episode ‘podumentary’, a combination of podcast and documentary, infuses an element of storytelling, veering away from the usual question-and-answer formats of podcasts. Through these stories, the DOT hopes to reach out to the various audiences and inspire them to participate in meaningful tourism through unique experiences and local interactions.

Each episode follows a theme, such as adventure, identity, fiestas, music and food. Among the notable individuals interviewed for this podcast are National Artist Kidlat Tahimik; Dr Felicidad Prudente, who is one of the leading Filipino ethnomusicologists in the country today; and former tourism secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat.

The first episode on adventure features some of the best outdoor experiences in Nueva Vizcaya, Kalinga, and Camotes Island; while the identity episode brings the audience from Baguio to Davao to share stories of people who, in finding the path to gain their identity, found the path to greatness.

The episode on music explores the sounds of the islands, from the city to the remote forests of the Philippines, emphasizing that music not only serves to entertain but to preserve history in our soundscape. The fiesta episode discusses how Filipino festivals have evolved from honouring patron saints to highlighting the best of the towns and provinces.

For the food episode that was recorded in May, ex-tourism secretary Puyat shared her advocacy in supporting local farmers and how this led to further development of food and farm tourism in the country.

DOT’s ‘Escape: Stories from the Road’ podcast is hosted by travel filmmaker and photographer Aaron Palabyab along with guest co-hosts, national athlete Maureen Schrijvers; designer, musician, and filmmaker Kate Torralba; and the sports broadcaster and podcaster Cesca Litton.

Philippines — The advocacy programs of the Department of Tourism (DOT) take centre stage in ‘It’s More Fun for All’, a new campaign that promotes inclusiveness and accessibility in the tourism sector.

The campaign features a video series on stories and case studies of actual tourism workers who have benefitted from the DOT’s advocacy programs. Among them is the Association of Boat Operators president, Ka Tung Samson; community tour guide, Rubelyn Sarigumba; Virginia Dominguez, a weaver from Ilocos Sur; Isang Ibrahim, a community tourism worker of Sta. Cruz, Zamboanga; Manila deaf tour guide, Emerson; and PLT. Maricel Guevarra, commander in chief of the Boracay Investigation and Detective Management Section.

The campaign highlights DOT programs namely: Tourism Integrates, Supports and Minds Women’s Rights and Child Safety (TouRISM WoRCS); Barrier-free Tourism (BFT); and the Filipino Brand of Service Excellence (FBSE).

TouRISM WoRCS is an advocacy program of the DOT that aims to educate tourism stakeholders on their role in eradicating women and children abuses within the tourism sector. Meanwhile, the BFT advocacy program enables travellers with accessibility needs, such as PWDs, senior citizens, and pregnant women to participate in and enjoy tourism experiences with utmost comfort and convenience while providing opportunities for physically challenged individuals to be part of the tourism industry.

Lastly, the FBSE program is envisioned to enhance and uplift the quality of tourism services in the country. It is designed to promote service excellence in all tourism establishments by capacitating the country’s tourism workforce with a unique and exceptional way of delivering customer service.

Berna Romulo-Puyat, DOT secretary, said, “Through this campaign, we believe that our advocacies on women empowerment, persons with disability, and the protection of children in tourism, will get the much-needed support from our local governments and tourism stakeholders in making our industry more inclusive, accessible, safe, and fun for all.”

Puyat added, “The DOT’s advocacy programs are envisioned to represent everything that is good about our tourism industry. They serve as a guide to all our partner agencies and stakeholders in properly dealing with all kinds of tourists, providing opportunities for all kinds of people, and protecting the vulnerable groups of the sector.”

Manila, Philippines – The Department of Tourism (DOT) in the Philippines has announced its digital magazine ‘7641’, in a bid to further promote the various destinations in the country and fast track tourism recovery, as well as provide readers travel inspiration and information about the tourist spots in the Philippines.

The digital magazine’s microsite’s name was inspired by the verified number of islands in the Philippines, which through the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), through the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA), had been verified through an ongoing islands inventory.

The ‘7641’ magazine supplies travel information through feature articles that provide detailed itineraries, suggested activities with accompanying reminders for a safe adventure, and interesting stories for each place.

As part of the magazine launch, the DOT invited feature and non-fiction writers, some of whom travelled to the destinations themselves, for more immersive writing. The DOT also collaborated with regional creatives, including SinoPinas and Playground Films of Zamboanga City, to document the sites and motivate people to travel through images and videos.

Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat, said, “In 7641, we went in-depth into the stories of a destination, a cultural tradition, a dish, a personal affiliation to a place, while also providing the basic information you need as a traveller.”

She added, “We want to promote all tourist destinations in the archipelago that have already reopened to visitors. Each month, we will highlight different places so that the public can discover the marvellous sites that our 7,641 islands can offer.”

Manila, Philippines – As part of the country’s move for the eventual resumption of the tourism industry, the Department of Tourism (DOT) of the Philippines has launched its Halal Culinary Heritage Series, a campaign that encourages dining discoveries for our Muslim counterparts, as well as highlights the country’s food traditions.

Launched in July 2021, the initiative showcases unique food finds in Mindanao through a video series posted on the Department’s social media platforms including Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

“Food is an important part of a tourism experience. It gives us a glimpse of a place’s culture and heritage. Through the development of our Halal Culinary Tourism, we are encouraging the discovery and familiarity with the culinary traditions of our Muslim brothers and sisters in the Philippines,” says Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo Puyat.

Said campaign is part of the Mindanao Halal Culinary Tourism, a project of the DOT with the Brunei Darussalam–Indonesia–Malaysia–Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA). Aside from promoting the heritage of Mindanao and familiarity with its culture, the project also aims to document culinary practices of the area through food mapping.

“With this initiative, there will be more knowledge and a better understanding of Filipino Halal cuisines and cooking traditions. The Philippines is creating new experiences and attractions in its different regions, so there is always more to explore,” the tourism department said in a press statement.

Through the campaign, tourists visiting Manila will be able to find restaurants and eateries that offer Halal-certified food, ranging from the stalls located at the area known as Muslim Town near the Golden Mosque in Quiapo that offer culinary delights such as ‘bakas’ or Bamboo-smoked tuna and a glutinous rice cake called ‘dodol’.

The campaign also showcases El Prado dining outlet of the Berjaya Hotel Makati which offers dishes such as tinolang Manok (chicken in ginger broth with vegetables), a halal ‘nilagang baka’ (boiled beef with vegetables) and ‘sinigang na baka’ (beef simmered in a clear sour soup with vegetables).

The region of Mindanao offers a rich trove of halal Filipino items, ranging from dry curry ‘beef rendang’ or its fusion version as a ‘beef rendang penne’ at a restaurant called Torogan Kape in the city of Cagayan de Oro, ‘sinina kambing’ or goat meat stewed in spices and served with crab rice from Hashy’s Cuisine in Cotabato, ‘buntot (tail) ng tuna’ in curry sauce and ‘palapa’ (sweet and spicy Filipino condiment) by Tambilawan Kamayan Restaurant in General Santos City, to name a few.

The tourism department adds, “There are even more food discoveries to be found in the Philippines, with a culinary heritage that has been passed down from generations. While there are new dishes that have evolved from the basic recipes through the years, the flavors are just as rich and exciting.”

Manila, Philippines – As the lead creative partner of Philippines’ tourism department, creative agency BBDO Guerrero has long been spearheading the department’s campaigns, but this time, an upcoming collaboration between the two takes on a different view – a campaign that will see promoting Philippines’ tourism amid the new normal.

On Thursday, the agency revealed that it has bagged Tourism Promotions Board’s (TPB) account, an agency under the country’s Department of Tourism (DOT), to develop two promotional campaigns.

The first one is the ‘Domestic Tourism Welcome Back’ which aims to encourage local tourists to visit Philippine destinations in order to help rebuild the economy, while the second assignment, dubbed as ‘The New Normal for Travelling’, is a campaign targeted at informing people of the travel safety protocols as they visit and explore the country.

BBDO Guerrero is most notably known for being the creative brains behind DOT’s highly acclaimed ‘More Fun In The Philippines’ campaign, which was first launched in 2012. The two upcoming projects with TPB will be complementing the said campaign.

“BBDO Guerrero has played a significant part in Philippine tourism promotions ever since the DOT developed ‘It’s More Fun in the Philippines’. We are delighted to have them as partners as we invite the local touring public to help the tourism industry bounce back from the challenges of the pandemic,” said TPB Chief Operating Officer Atty. Maria Anthonette Velasco-Allones.

In April, DOT and BBDO Guerrero launched a campaign called ‘Wake Up in the Philippines’

The assignments will cover a broad range of materials including videos, virtual tours, outdoor placements, and a variety of digital assets. In April last year, the agency has already helped DOT’s communications adapt to the new normal by releasing a series of films called ‘Wake Up in the Philippines’, aimed at making the country a top destination for foreign tourists as travel restrictions ease.

BBDO Guerrero Creative Chairman David Guerrero shared, “It is an honor for us to be involved in the reopening of the country to local tourism. And we are excited to share this with everyone as we help our local tourism workers rebuild their livelihoods.”