The strategy will be launched before the Christmas season to
entice Namibians to explore the natural beauty and "barefoot luxury"
that their country has on offer.
NTB CEO Digu //Naobeb said the aim is to catalyse domestic
demand with informative and inspirational messaging.
These include four promotions on television, local
languages, social media, accompanied by special offers by the private sector,
at a cost of N$2.3 million funded by the German state-owned investment and
development bank KfW.
On the international market, //Naobeb said the focus shall
be on the primary markets, but NTB will continue to penetrate secondary and
tertiary markets as wider digital platforms will be used.
NTB is working in close collaboration with Namibian missions
abroad in the identified new tertiary markets.
He noted the roll-out of an effective long-term approach is
however dependent on the funding of the NTB.
Further, he stated the NTB will continue to implement a
360-degree, multi-channel strategic approach to reach the targeted
international travellers and will maintain its visibility in the British,
Chinese and German-speaking markets, in particular by means of partnerships
with leading product brands, to reach millions of consumers in the special
interest segment.
"Thus, NTB will mainly execute activities which will be
interlinked to the public relations and media, trade and social media segments
to activate consumer demand which will generate more travel to or within
Namibia.
For the medium term, he said consideration should be given
to attend only the most important trade shows and events in 2021, if the
worldwide Covid-19 surge is controlled.
During this recovery stage, he promised the NTB will
re-activate Namibian events, roadshows and fairs under the umbrella of its
trade promotion programme.
On regional markets, NTB's focus shall be on Namibia's
neighbouring and high-potential regional markets to grow intra-African travel.
"Focus is on South Africa and Botswana, as residents of
these countries are likely to have some disposable income and willingness to
travel outside their borders. The marketing approach is more inclined to use
both print and electronic media and other social media platforms to incentivise
these residents to consider travelling to Namibia post-Covid-19," //Naobeb
indicated.
The Hospitality Association of Namibia (HAN) reported 35% of
respondents claim to have closed down after the pandemic extended beyond June
2021. HAN CEO Gitta Paetzold said the pandemic impact of June and July 2021 was
the worst for Namibian tourism, so the status quo of the tourism sector now is
worse than predicted in February 2021. Further, statistics reveal limits of
tourism to diversify, except for isolation centres, take-away or other shuttle
transport services.
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