In his complaint relayed personally during the APEC summit to leaders of countries that issued a travel advisory warning their citizens about going to the Philippines, President Aquino mentioned about the November 15 launching of a new tourism logo.
Less than 24 hours after “Pilipinas kay Ganda” was previewed (it was not yet the launching, Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim stressed) the accompanying site – www.beautifulpilipinas.com- was taken off because they found out that there’s an existing porn website also using the key words “beautifulpilipinas.”
Why they didn’t find this out before the preview defies common sense.
Tourism Undersecretary Vicente Romano said they have created a new website – www.tourismphilippines.com – to promote the P100 million new Philippine tourism brand that they have created.
He said during last Monday’s launch , “the Pretty Young Thing group performed a sexy number for the representatives of the International community. It was not appropriate and it gave a totally wrong mental image about the campaign.”
It would do well for DOT to heed his suggestion:“Let’s use our world-class talents like Lea Salonga, Arnel Pineda, Charice Pempengco and world-class broadway talents to launch the campaign.”
I was able to browse through the site Monday night before it was taken down and was horrified by the inferior quality of the articles. The writing is atrocious, the grammar, bad. Take this opening article:”The Philippines; being an archipelago, offers countless of destinations to see, adventures to experience and activities to do. The country is blessed with a rich environment…”
I was not able to copy the full text before it was taken down. It’s a good thing Dennis Garcia, musician and advertising executive, pasted a portion of it on his Facebook wall. Dennis said, “I would love to meet the writer of these classic lines and finance his/her writing workshop with John Silva. Para nyo nang awa…”
There were so many senseless phrases I noticed in the short time that I browsed through the pages online.New media expert Carlo Ople also noticed a number of them. He asked, “What does ‘Feast your Plate’ mean? “
Cebu-based tour guide Bino Guerrero said whoever wrote the section on Cebu does not know Cebu because it said, “You will also see cliffs that tower above crashing surfs, virgin forests, clear rivers, mossy jungles, and cool mountain ridges.”
Guerrero asked, “Where in Cebu can you find it?
An article about Cebu’s nightlife mentioned Ayala Mall. Doesn’t the writer know that malls close at the latest, 9 p.m?
Romano said they were short of time for last Monday’s event and his writers just lifted from past brochures and travel articles. He said after reading the comments, they will have to revise the whole website. Meanwhile, he said, they will revert to the old promotional materials.
As to the use of Tagalog to attract non-Tagalog speaking foreigners to come to the country, Romano said they tested the phrase “Pilipinas Kay Ganda” to foreigners and the reactions were good. He said by using a Tagalog phrase, the Philippine promotion would be different from that of other Asian countries like “Amazing Thailand”, Malaysia’s “Truly Asia” and others.
Secretary Lim, in his speech during the preview , revealed that the Pilipinas Kay Ganda brand is a result of a four-month study. “It is relevant, distinctive and believable. It extols our innermost beauty, and not just of our destinations, but also of our people and everything else that we do. It is something that we can distinctively claim, and every foreigner who has visited our shores will attest to it. It is also relevant and appealing to a market constantly searching for a more beautiful place and experience,”he said.
There is no question about the merits of extolling the beauty of the Philippines. It is the mediocre presentation that the critics are harping about. Dennis Garcia captured the sentiments of many of us who care for this country on his Facebook page: “Somebody asked me why I’m wasting time, fussing about DOT’s ‘harmless’ slogan and feeble communications thrust. Three answers: 1) I have no tolerance for mediocrity, 2) My high expectations for the President are being eroded by idiots working for him, and 3) most important..I give a damn, it’s my country.” 
Click here for Secretary Lim’s speech
if you are not a tagalog speaking person, the promo would not connect…if the DOT wanted to drum up the beauty of the country, its people, cultures and landscape and many undiscovered beauties,why not use the International language to relate to the whole world…what about…”Philippines, the Beautiful, discover her” or simply…”Beauty for your pleasure” or “Pilipinas, simply beautiful”…
Ellen, that poster with dancing go-go girls is a magnet for pervert tourists…
And those dancing go-go girls’s show launched the Philippines as a tourism destination? Gosh! What effing shitheads have they got at DOTC? Naknampucha!
Yes, Anne. I understand that was a number during last Monday’s preview. Haaay naku.
Bagay yang ganyang act sa Phuket. The name says it all.
Too bad Thailand already owns the name.
“Romano said they were short of time for last Monday’s event and his writers just lifted from past brochures and travel articles.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
excuses, excuses! show some originality and resourcefulness. junk that “puwede na ito” mentality and come up with a campaign that reflects excellence and pride in your work.
Cambodia, Laos and a few others are very well-known tourist destinations for ‘pedos’ as in some of these places, they are “tolerated” and authorities looking the other way…and the Western world where most of these pedos coming from, came up with the law that will enable them to prosecute their national in the home country for sex crimes committed in these countries, yet do not provide enough resources to implement the law. case in point…only one or two cases in Canada has been successfully brought before the court…the U.S. has a better record, but don’t know about the European countries.
Secretary Lim, in his speech during the preview , revealed that the Pilipinas Kay Ganda brand is a result of a four-month study. “It is relevant, distinctive and believable.
————————————————————–
What were they sniffing during those four months of study?
Distinctive? Pakistan already got the line “It’s beautiful, it’s Pakistan”
Believable? It is believably inferior.
Seriously, how much money was wasted on this garbage?
Hindi lang mediocre ang mga trumabaho nito, below average pa!
The easiest thing to do in Pinas government now is invent excuses. Ano ba naman…?!
Ah??? So, why did they take down the site? Shows even they don’t think it’s relevant, distinctive and definitely not believable.
Yep, I’d like to know too…
Sigh… what a waste of megre govt rations those dumbheads are!
ok. so who bagged the P100 million contract??? hahaha!!!
Take the ultimate adventure. Travel through Maguindanao with your Press ID.
Experience the country’s rich environment, as you are served by its poor people.
Visit the countless destinations, after waiting countless hours in Manila’s traffic.
Earn while traveling by being employed as an English tutor to our tourism department.
Yep, different…the main difference is in “success.” Thailand’s and Malaysia’s taglines are so effective that they have become brand identities that surely stick to one’s mind.
Like “Coke” (or “Pepsi”) for soft drink, “Amazing” and “Truly Asia” for drawing tourists to Thailand and Malaysia, respectively, were a hit.
—–
WOW Philippines could have been ok but then “Wow” became a byword for a videoke brand rather than a tourism slogan.
An emphasis this time on the meaning of “WOW” may be put to a test. “Wealth of Wonders Philippines”…a bit long…but it says all.
Imbis na ang DOT ang magsasabi ng wow…
ang mga turista na lang ang mapapa-wow!
“Awesome Philippines” is not bad…but Anton Diaz already has his “awesome planet.” OAP is already a hit especially to my wife…
Medyo gasgas na rin sa mga travel agencies ang “awesome.”
PKG is similar to ABS-CBN’s UKG…
Umagang kay ganda sa ngayo’y bumabasa!
Or “Wonderful Philippines (and its 7110 islands…)”
That’s for Baycas… 🙂
I suggest: re-package WOW Philippines…
http://www.ttgasia.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=10500
…and make it a “Wondrous Philippines.”
anna,
i already googled “wonderful philippines.”
here:
http://www.google.com.ph/search?hl=en&source=hp&biw=1126&bih=484&q=wonderful+philippines&btnG=Google+Search
Can we have the P100 million rebate? The logo looks like something that comes out of a highschool project.
Amateurism struck again.
Generous people.
Splendrous places.
Numerous events.
Flavorous foods.
WONDROUS PHILIPPINES.
Baycas,
Just clicked on link — seems it’s taken… can not DOT perhaps buy it?
Surprise, surprise! Yung go-go dancers number na ang true pinas. Actually, ang idea ninyo ng pinas ay yung noon pa. Yung may nagsasayaw ng tinikling, yung mga igorot sa Baguio, yung mga mangingisda sa Laguna, yung Mayon Volcano, Yung Rice terraces, etc. Ang bagong pinas, pinas na dinadayo, masakit man isipin, e yung katono na ng go-go dancers, yung halos hubad ang pananamit.
Yung squaters sa Maynila. Actually, halos lahat na lugar na siudad ay may squater. Yan ang beauty ng pinas, kahit saan maari kang tumirik ng matitirhan. At paglipas ng ilang taon, pede mo ng ankinin. Tanungin mo si PeNoy. Tutulungan ka niya.
Palpak na naman ang tao ni PeNoy.
You have a point there Isagani. Perhaps pervs comprise the largest share in the tourism market.
In Cebu “You will also see cliffs that tower above crashing surfs, virgin forests, clear rivers, mossy jungles, and cool mountain ridges.”
Juicekopo! Kung buhay lang si Lapu-lapu naipakain na sila sa pating! Hahaha!
Romano said they were short of time for last Monday’s event and his writers just lifted from past brochures and travel articles.
Naman… ang dami kong kagagandang brochures sa Cebu Tourism para sa international clients, ano ang pinagsasabi ni Enteng? Ang nakopya nila ay yung para sa bundok ng Tralala! 🙂
Sana nagpa-contest na lang sila ng pagpili ng catchy AD. Nandyan ang internet and our people and even the whole world would participate. The prize can be a all paid for trip to all the beautiful destinations in the Philippines, first class accommodations siyempre. Although it is patriotic to have a slogan in Filipino, an English ad would be more universal. Hindi naman yung mga kababayan natin ang ating iniimbitahan. We are saying “come and vist our beautiful country” to tourists and most of them are Americans, Europeans and Asian who hardly understand a Filipino word.
Having a catchy AD does not require a hundred million fee.
Wala, wala, wala. Walang wala talaga!!! Mga amateurs ba lahat ang nasa administrasyon ni Nonoy?
Ako’y anak ng lupang hinirang
Kung saan matatagpuan
Ang timyas ng perlas ng Silangan
Nagniningning sa buong kapuluan
Taglay ko ang hiwaga ng Silangan
At saan mang bayan o lungsod
Maging Timog, Hilaga at Kanluran
Ang Pilipino ay namumukod
If patriotism was truly in their hearts, from those two stanzas alone, of the song Tagumpay Nating Lahat, they could have drafted a double edged sword of a slogan…that pierces right into the heart. 🙂
My goodness. Wala nabang natirang magaling sa Pilipinas???
Tama si parasabayan. Ipinakontest na lang sana yan. Magsasawa sila sa magaganang entries. Yung ibang maganda pero di mapipili pwede nang gamitin sa sub-programs habang yung nanalo ang main slogan.
Bakit hindi nila kinuhang consultant si Lito Lapid? May tatalo pa ba sa slogan ni Lapi na “Let’s Makati Happy”?
Syet, napipi na naman yung “D” ng keyboard ko.
“…magagandang entries…”
“…slogan ni Lapid…”
Shouldn’t slogans be catchy and effective at selling the commodity/experince to the targeted audience?
“Pilipinas kay Ganda” is okay if aimed at Filipinos/balikbayans to boost domestic demand. But to target the international market maybe we should stick to a tourism slogan in English.
Japan didn’t do well with the slogan “Yokoso! Japan.” even when Japanese is popular as a second language (interest fueled by popularity of anime and manga). The tourism board changed the slogan this year to “Japan. Endless Discovery.” Apparently the previous slogan “lacked sufficient impact, as the Japanese word for welcome is not widely recognized by non-Japanese speakers” according to the tourism board. The new slogan aims to attract repeat visitors thus the phrase “endless discovery.”
Finding the right tourism slogan is difficult. DOT may find it helpful to get as much suggestions as it can get.
Vietnam (where unfortunately the wine sucks and there are no handsome men) launched an international slogan/logo contest to replace “Vietnam-The Hidden Charm.” The slogan/logo “must match the goals under the Vietnam Tourism Development Strategy for 2011-2015 and reflect the country’s tourism strengths (beautiful beaches, rich culture and interesting eco-tourism) to attract international tourists.” The price may be modest at 50 million Vietnamese dong (roughly 112,000 pesos) but the idea (of launching a contest) is brilliant.
Here’s a compilation by one travel writer (Note: Each one is written in English except for France’s which is an adopted English word anyway):
Albania A New Mediterranean
Amazing Thailand
Anguilla Feeling is Believing
Aruba One Happy Island
Belize Mother Nature’s Best Kept Secret
Brazil Sensational!
California Find Yourself Here
Canada Keep Exploring
Croatia The Mediterranean As it Once Was
Ecuador Life at its Purest
Viva Cuba
Egypt Where It All Begins
El Salvador Impressive!
Visit Finland Breathe
Visit Florida
Florida Keys Come As You Are
France Rendez-Vouse En France
Germany Affordable Hospitality
Grenada Rhythms of Spice
Hong Kong Best Place Best Taste
Hungary A Love for Life
I heart New York
Incredible India
Indonesia Admit It You Love It
Italy Much More
Jamaica Once You Go, You Know
Cool Japan
See the world. Visit London
1 Malaysia
Maldives Sunny Side of Life
Montenegro Wild Beauty
Namibia Land of Contrasts
New Zealand 100% Pure
Romania Land of Choice
Discover Peru
WOW Philippines
Uniquely Singapore
Slovakia Little Big Country
Slovenia I Feel Love
Smile! You are in Spain
Switzerland Get Natural
Taiwan Touch Your Heart
Tanzania Land of Kilimanjaro Zanzibar and the Serengeti
Texas (visual representation of ‘Everything’s bigger in Texas’ – I think)
That’s what makes Noynoy comfortable, at ease and happy – To be surrounded with incompetents and mediocres.
That way he can claim that he is the best among them.
Why not promote the real beauty of the Philippines?: Dare would be tourist to swim, ski or surf in neck-deep Metro Manila floods, dare to try their luck by getting on board the often overloaded and creaky ferries and boats, experienced to be a crime or kidnap victim of kidnappers, muggers, pick-pockets and hold-uppers in the streets of Manila, in the provinces or in the country side and many more.
First of all, our supposed leaders should concentrate in cleaning and solving all these problems especially the peace and order situation and crime-realted activities before they convince other people to visit our Pilipinas kay Ganda. Philippines is a very beautiful country with beautiful people but bad reputation as kidnapping center of Asia, hold-upping and killings often are the discouraging factors in the order of tourist priorities and destinations.
Until there’s a really sincere and real effort to restore peace and order, until crimes and killings continue to be in the news, no amount of campaigning and sloganeering will connect to would be visitors.
All people without exception care for their lives and always avoid being in harm’s way.
Pilipinas Kay Ganda, it’s very ABS-CBN. Sino image model, si Vice Ganda?
Marami-rami na rin akong napuntahan na lugar sa mundo. I can say that if we improve the security, infrastructures, sanitation and relocate the slums in the cities (para hindi matakot ang mga dayuhan), we can compete in tourism sa mga sinasabi nilang exotic destinations. Maganda talaga ang Pilipinas but foreigners are afraid to come to the Philippines. Yung iba, paalis pa lang sila ng airport, gusto na nilang bumalik sa pinanggalingan nila. Nakakatakot talaga ang mga squatters natin. For us Pnoys, parte na sila ng “flavor” ng Manila but to tourists, nakakatakot talaga.
Tongue, gee, talk about originality…bokyang bokya!
The French look down on the English language. Tuwang tuwa sila kung namumura ka nila sa salita nila. They are a different breed. Akala nila sila lang ang may “breeding” and “culture”. Sa totoo lang, mayayabang sila, lalo na sa lower classes nila. Subukan ng Pinoy na kumuha ng taxi sa airport, magtuturuan ang mga French and they will give you to a Chinese or Indian or any other nationality. Mas maganda naman dahil ang mga dayuhang drivers ay mas hospitable and warm. Bubuhatin pa nila ang mga luggages mo, unlike the French. But in the South of France, the people are friendlier.
Okay, baka sabihin puro lang tayo pintas, why don’t we come up with our own suggestions?
Here’s mine:
Philippines, 7,107 surprises, 95 million smiles, 24/7 fun.
“Amazing Thailand” built on the existing good image of Thailand abroad. The slogan defines the Thai experience as “breath taking.” The Thai brand is selling “amazement.” Specifically, Thailand is promoting:
-shopping: SHOCKINGLY low prices
-beaches: UNBELIEVABLY beautiful
-palaces and temples: BREATHTAKING
-Thai massage: INCREDIBLY relaxing
The slogan “Amazing Thailand” is all encompassing. It effectively sells the experience of “amazement.”
“Wow Philippines” is selling the same experience. It is successful but not at the level of Thailand’s. “Wow” is more a Filipino colloquial than a universal expression for “amazement.” There is also a lingering perception that the Philippines is unsafe (with the kidnappings) making it difficult to sell the Philippine brand.
I would go for Fantastic Philippines for the international market and Pantastik Philippines for the local market.
We describe an experience as “Fantastic” when it is “superb and excellent.” BUT we also use “Fantastic” when an experience is “unreal and anomalous.”
“Fantastic” is the only all encompassing word that I can think of that appropriately describes the current Philippine state.
The food, beaches, diving spots, churches are “fantastic” (in the superb sense) but so are the oddities in the country (in the anomalous sense). The slum beside the towering scrapers of Makati is “fantastic.” The colorful and festive fiestas even when financially constrained (borrowing money to celebrate) is “fantastic.” The iconic and colorful but fuel-inefficient jeepney is “fantastic.”
Our ability to laugh and be happy despite difficulties, our genuine smile, is “fantastic.”
Di ba pwedeng “orgasmic”?
“yung mga igorot sa Baguio” – You call this a tourist attraction? How these two old farts got dressed in a supposed to be “sacred traditional” clothing; sanctioned by some idiots within the city government and continued thru this day is totally absurd. I’m sure this idiotic display at the entrance of Imelda Park started after martial law.
And it’s no wonder when manilenyos and lowlanders (educated and non) come up here in Baguio, they pretend to be disappointed when they don’t see men in g-strings running around session road, harrison road, or the whole city. You have to drive at least two miles to see the “igorot attraction”, where the botanical garden used to be until some dimwit first lady renamed it.
Older and single foreign men should be banned from entering the country, they’re up to no good. We already have some theologians up to the tasks in this country.
“My goodness. Wala nabang natirang magaling sa Pilipinas???” – pilipinaskongmahal
Some of them are here in Ellenville!
Sana nagpa-contest na lang sila ng pagpili ng catchy AD. Nandyan ang internet and our people and even the whole world would participate. The prize can be a all paid for trip to all the beautiful destinations in the Philippines, first class accommodations siyempre. Although it is patriotic to have a slogan in Filipino, an English ad would be more universal. Hindi naman yung mga kababayan natin ang ating iniimbitahan. We are saying “come and vist our beautiful country” to tourists and most of them are Americans, Europeans and Asian who hardly understand a Filipino word.
– parasabayan
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I totally agree with this. They should’ve done this and get some citizens’ participation in the process and we could all get a chance to earn extra money too.
I also like the “WOW Philippines!” concept…the girls will always be there, take Las Vegas, etc., nothing wrong with that unless you prefer seeing guys instead…which is not acceptable…
They should’ve made time, anyway, why rush it?
Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, all have their share of negative issues and scary stories to boot…the only difference with the Philippines is that they manage their news quite efficiently, tayo mas madugo, mas controversial, mas pangit – yun ang hina highlight…when will we learn?
…but I always believe that IMPOSSIBLE is just a hyphen away from I’M POSSIBLE…so we keep believing in ourselves and have a “can do” attitude! we have what it takes
Which is better, ‘Wow Philippines’ or ‘Pilipinas Kay Ganda’?
Answer:
Pilipinas, kay ganda na ng “WOW Philippines!”
Those who would say that the logo is impressive, beautiful or “pwede na yan”, have a questionable taste in arts. Mas magaling pa ata yung gawa nang mga illustrators sa komiks ng tabloid.
@N°41: parasabayan – November 17, 2010 11:04 am
Amusing take you’ve got there Parasabayan. That was some generality you posted there. As ever, generalities about a people (a nation) don’t quite stand up to detailed scrutiny.
How does this sound to you?
Could it be because their broadsheets or mainstream print media (and broadcast media) are generally written in a language that’s not quite universal, i.e., English? Whereas in Pinas, your daily broadsheets scream their headlines in English?
yun ba talaga yung logo ng bagong “tourism brand” natin?
if you have a promotional logo that contains a pronunciation guide and a dictionary entry for it to be understood, then you’re in big trouble.
Let me share you what I have captured in that diabolically criminal site soon at it went gasping on cyberspace:
GETTING THERE: “Rest assured that options are endless for getting around, some typical and others quite unique.”
“Others are quite unique!” I don’t think I have the heart to go there and I don’t want to know how unique that is.
MORE TRAVEL TIPS:
O, laban kayo? Walang sinabi ang magnolia ice cream.
Anna,
Thats an interesting observation, coming from a bisaya like me, honestly its something you have to deal with moving to manila and all. in our family i’m the only one who speaks the dialect so my manila born and raised kids look at me funny when i’m on the phone with my mother…
———————-
Philippines, 7,107 surprises, 95 million smiles, 24/7 fun.
– this is original more catchy, and more apt to attract visitors!
“Tagalogs look down on the Bisayan speaking in English. Tuwang tuwa sila kung namumura ka nila sa salita nila. They are a different breed. Akala nila sila lang ang may “breeding” and “culture”. Sa totoo lang, mayayabang sila, lalo na sa Igorot in G-string and Aeta among them. Subukan ng Igorot in G-string and Aeta na kumuha ng taxi sa airport, magtuturuan ang mga Manileno drivers and they will give him to any other driver, eg., Bisayan or Basilan driver. Mas maganda naman dahil ang mga Bisayan drivers ay mas hospitable and warm. Bubuhatin pa nila ang mga luggages mo, unlike the Igorots and the Aetas. But in the South of the Philippines, eg., Maguindanao, the people are friendlier.” – #53 above
This happen only in the dreams of non-Filipinos.
“The Philippines is made up of 7,107 different flavors that you will want to take home with you.”
———————-
Maganda rin to! dapat kasi nagpa contest na lang sila… 🙂
Jug, Duane,
Precisely!
That was a transformation of post no. 41 (@N°41: parasabayan – November 17, 2010 11:04 am) to point out that generalisations about a people/nation are, as ever, a double-edged sword.
Btw, Toots Ople has a contest in her Facebook page about finding the right slogan with Dennis Garcia donating a prize… 🙂
Was with a group of friends (all non-Filipinos but all foreign expats like me); social niceties led to a bit of conversation about Pinas after I was asked where we would be spending Xmas. Most have been to Asia at one time or the other for professional reason; two or 3 have been to Pinas both for work and on holiday reasons.
Non made a scathing remark about Pinas, perhaps in “deference” to me 😉 but everyone agreed that the flow of news from or about Pinas has always been alarming (every single one of them has a Filipino domestic helper). Overall conclusion: Pinas is messy.
The gist was: never mind the political upheavals, almost a normal occurence in an ambitious nation, never mind the petty crimes, every country has its share of crimes; never mind the petty corruption, every country is somehow plagued with a bit of that (obviously my guests were being polite :-); never mind the poverty, some countries in the world are in worse impoverished condition but what makes it almost “unacceptable” is the news (or more like the general perception) reaching the outside world that Pinas or authorities are not doing anything about the problems.
And that’s the negative image that we basically need to get rid of if we need to attract bona-fide, family oriented holidayers to beautiful Pinas.
When FVR was president, he went about going on the DO mode, aggressively showing the world that government was doing something to fix the problems. Never mind if he was actually achieving it — what was important was that he was out there giving the impression that he was on top of things, trying his darnest best to make things work and showcasing a national determination to make things happen.
It worked. The overall perception that Pinas was doing something about the problems was good for RP. Foreign investors got interested in Pinas. Europe seriously became interested in the Philippines. On the tourism front, I bet tourism intakes were proportionally significant too.
Often, it’s all about perception where the outside world is concerned, and depending on what that perception is, could either or break a country’s reputation, particularly on the tourism side.
Ooops, “could either make or break a country’s reputation, particularly on the tourism side.”
Ellen, just in case you missed this, you’re on ABS-CBS News website:
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/11/17/10/dot-takes-down-beautifulpilipinascom
Your articles are getting more and more popular among news orgs. Congratulations and more power to you.
Also, here is a man who promotes the Philippines to the world without any gimmicks. Actually, his fans, celebs in their own rights, who do all the talking.
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/video/entertainment/11/16/10/exclusive-harry-potter-star-pacman-fan
Sori, I do not intend to promote abscbn site. nataon lang na sila ang nagcover ng balita.
Anong pakontest ang sinasabi ninyo? E di mababawasan pa ang P100M na budget nila. Kaya nga namulot na lang ang mga mokong ng kung ano-anong linya at paragraphs from other brochures at isinalpak basta kung saan-saan para buo, walang-dagdag walang-bawas ang P100M sa bulsa!
Hindi sila amateurs sa DOT, tinutuloy lang nila ang panggagago ni Gloria sa tao!
It’s old but…
Philippines, pearl of the orient seas.
Or if there’s any contest, here’s my entry:
“Philippines Fantastic!”
Ricelander,
What about “Fantastic Philippines”… easy to remember?
You guys are better at this than i am. Good thing they took it down though, the only mental picture I get from it is of petrang kabayo (vice ganda)…
Ibalik si Dicky boy sa Tourism kundi nila kaya!
Here’s one of ’em islands in Fantastic Philippines! http://www.asiaclassictours.com/philippinesvacation-palawanadventure/64
My entry 😀 Philippines. Your Paradise for life.
Nice… but targetted holiday makers might find it a bit pompous or presumptuous…
Enchanted Kingdom – Gloria?
Drink and be merry Philippines – Erap?
The Philippines, where Roses (Arenas) bloom – FVR?
The Philippines “At the end of the day” – PNoy’s fave quote?
Hehehe wala lang. 😛 😛 😛
Anna, nakana mo. Even in our our country, may “Frenchlike” attitude too. But seriously, I was in Paris a few times and this taxi incident happened all the time. Siguro kung kasingtangkad kita Anna (I am just 5’2″) and has a light brown skin kaya siguro and tingin ng mga French eh iba. Anyway, if I had bad experiences with the airport taxi drivers, I had lots more of good experiences with the young and old French in the Southern part.
If the slogan is too long, it will not be catchy. The most would be three words.
Si Pacman daw ang ilalagay nilang spokesperson sa ating tourism. I hope they will not do this. Our tourism should be on the sites and places and not personalities.
psb @#77: You’re 5’2″!! You tower over Gluerilla, uunahin ka ng mga taxi drivers before her, now that she is less powerless.
“If the slogan is too long, it will not be catchy. The most would be three words.” – psb
That’s quite true or maybe two words like below.
Slogan for going to Northern Luzon is: “Very good road” and when translated to Ilocano means “okay ngarud”.
Because of the colors, “Pilipinas” is hard to read. One would suspect that the main subject is the distracting tarsier or the nonsensical smiley palm tree.
And If I were a Russian tourist, wtf is “adj.”?
@parasabayan,
Interesting experience in Paris. To some other Europeans also, Parisians are snobbish, so I don’t think it has something to do with your height or skin color. As you have said the south of France are more “pleasant” than in the cities. This is generally true in other countries, however.
Heh,heh,heh…matangkad ako ng di hamak kay midget evil bitch.
Matangkad lang ng konti sa akin si Binay.
Some quick thoughts…
Fantastic Philippines – reminds me of Maria Ressa’s initial remark re: Aug23 incident
Enchanting Philippines – more of gloria’s time
Wonderful Philippines – not going for radical change from the award-winning WOW Philippines; if new branding has to be decided on it should be at par, if not greater, with the encompassing “wealth of wonder” of the Philippines
Wondrous Philippines – nearly sounding “Dangerous;” might as well say, “Survive Philippines”
Friendly Philippines – got this from Mari Lim (over at The POC website); easy to be friendly to tourists but not to bungling government functionaries
Explore Philippines – it appears PH is not on the map
Aim Philippines – almost like “Air Philippines;” also a cutting of Dick Gordon’s “Aim High” Olongapo; how about “Try Philippines”?
Awesome Pilipinas – already taken by Anton Diaz; why not change it into “Awesome Philippines?” or the ambiguous “Come (to) Philippines”
I (heart) Philippines – gasgas na gasgas; try this: “I’ll be there Philippines”
…I’m sure there’s one out there. I also predict that a patriot among us will rise and will not ask for any reward or intend to receive an award (from a contest) for a concept he/she has thought of…mere recognition must do…
Hi PSB… going back to your Paris experience, you sure the folks you approached for help were even French? 😉 Anyway, I who was a diehard “Parisienne” cannot now stand the stench and the mess in Paris.
My son’s girlfriend asked me recently what it was like when I first arrive in Paris (she hadn’t been born yet) and I told her the truth. Not messy, cleaner too… Paris was singularly charming despite surly waiters or waitresses (who used to be mostly French French) but today, hard to find French-French waiters who can speak decent French. Lots of foreign hooded individuals in areas where at the time you wouldn’t find any 🙁
And as NFA rice said, nothing to do with your height or colour… 5’2″ is a very decent height!!! And light brown is a very good skin colour which any decent French would love you for (you can’t imagine the number of hours my children spend under the sun to be brown-skinned and this despite my warning that too much exposure to sun could be dangerous to their skin and to their eyes…)
In fairness to Binay, he’s quite tall!!! 😛 He’s almost 5’3″ I think 😉 Now, Gloria, as ever, the bleeding liar that she is, likes to say she’s 5′ or 5’1″ but it’s next to impossible. Her flat head only reaches my chin even in her high heels. If she’s 5’1″ then I must be close to 6 feet tall (which, thank God, I’m not!) She measures at the very best 4’9″. 😀
Anna, I love your public tranpo though. You can get around without taxis even but I always like to get a cab when I am carrying heavy luggages.
Yes Anna, they were french french. Even if I do not speak the language, I know their accents and I know when it is spoken well.
Binay is almost my height and if I wear heels, I may be taller than him.
The midget is probably 4’9″ but she sure is worst than the smallest bedbug!
Nababanas na si Miriam:
Naka-sick leave yan dahil sa thyroid (o mental?) imbalance pero dahil confirmation ng ambassadors kailangan andun siya. Alam nyo na kung bakit. Ayun aprubado na sila, Baby Puyat-Reyes, Mercedes Tuason, Noe Wong, Manolo Lopez, Salinas (Spain) at Villacorta (ASEAN).
That is not true. The domain name is still for sale.
More from motormouth Miriam:
How true what I heard in the radio that the ad agency who handled this is the ad agency of Boy Abunda?
What are friends for again!!!
Remember it was announced before that he will be made the Tourism Secretary!!!
Renaldo, it was not Boy Abunda who handled the DOT ad.
It was Campaigns and Grey.
Here’s Stella Arnaldo’s article in Business Mirror:
http://businessmirror.com.ph/home/top-news/3879-dot-open-to-changes-in-its-slogan-but-
ignorance is boring,” Santiago said.
————————-
This came from the “Discovery Channel” ad. Can Miriam be cited for plagiarism? 🙂
They should let Dick Gordon handle this. I hope they would put aside political party issues and enlist tested leaders/shakers/movers to help out…
…this administration may just serve as a transition one from Gloria’s plundering, hopefully they remove the termites in the SC, GOCCs, and other institutions…then we go for a Dick Gordon presidency…he was my first pick by the way…
…regarding this latest DOT ad, its not even mediocre, its downright idiotic, I wouldn’t pay for this if you ask me…
“also a cutting of Dick Gordon’s “Aim High” Olongapo;” – baycas
Spraying Dick got away with this “Aim High” Olongapo for decades, another plagiarist. Aim High is owned by the U.S. Air Force.
“Wow” or “Pinas kay Ganda”??? Wow! The moment tourists aboard their planes make the descent, the view on the right side minutes prior to landing is already an eye sore, rows and rows of squatter shacks.
Since we’re trying to bs the tourists and improve our tourism industry, I’ll go with; “Thrilling 7,100 Islands”
From Junix Gaspar:
Night life in malls do extend way past midnight.
Have you eaten and watched a live band in Trinoma, SM North Edsa, Ayala Town Center and etc?
Get the facts straight by actually asking people who do go out at night.
Ivan Henares’ Travel Blog is the best I’ve seen so far. Ivan seemed to have travelled every town in the country and othe parts of the world.
He’ll make a decent Tourism Secretary. Just a thought.
Yes, Ivan Henares has an intelligent view about Philippine tourism.
From Ernie del Rosario:
I give a damn too, it’s my country ! In the rush (teka muna, why the rush ? may very tight deadline ba ?) to
project “Pilipinas Kay Ganda” what seems to be bandied around in the process is a “Pilipinas Kay Bobo” image.
Mediocrity cannot, must not be absolved for reasons of lack of time, etc. I saw the name Vicente Romano as one of those responsible for this dreadful thing. If he is the same Vicente Romano who was a very visible Black and White Movement convenor not too long ago, the more the mediocrity cannot be forgiven.
Mr. Romano (Enteng) is supposedly a project management guru for he teaches and runs a project management school before he became a Usec.
Quality management is one of the critical disciplines in
good project management. It seems it was thrown out because of the rush.
The AES implementation too suffered from such sin with the CF card mess, UV issue, the bloated number of registered voters (150+ and 250+ million respectively)reflected in the Comelec and Congress canvassing servers, etc. But Venezuelans were the ones involved who don’t give a damn about our country!
Fools rush in….nangangapa,nadadapa! 🙂
Walang mangyayari sa Pinas kung puro pintas ang alam natin sa buhay?
Why not…e promote natin ang Pinas with dignity…kami dito sa Middle East, encourage namin ang mga Arabo na pumasyal ng Pinas.
Proud nga sila sa Pinoy…ngayon tayo namang mga Pinoy laging nagsisiraan at pintas dito, pintas doon.
Bakit di tayo magtulungan para sa ikabubuti ng ating bansa once and for all.
Kailangan unahin muna nating e promote ang sariling likas na kagandan ng Pinas sa ating munang mga Pinoy to prove na maganda ang Pinas sa mga banyaga.
Kaya may last vacation sa Pinas last March-April…inikot namin ang buong Norther Luzon…galing kami ng Central Luzon my birth place at tinahak namin ng buong pamilya from Bulacan going to NE…Tarlac…Pangasinan…San Fernando…Ilocos Sur…Ilocos Norte…Cagayan…
Isabela…Nueva Viscaya…Quirino back to NE…to Bulacan again.
Grabe happy ko nang makita ko personally ang beauty ng mga lugar na ito…naisip ko na instead gastusin ang PISO sa ibang bansa e dapat e promote natin ang Pinas.
Ngayon…sa halip na puro kritisismo gawin natin e try to help our gov’t to promote our beautiful sceneries di ba.
Naikot ko na din ang buong Cebu, Bohol, Dugamuete, Leyte, Samar, Bicol region back to Manila…ang gandang puntahan ng mga lugar na ito.
Kaya dapat ipagmalaki natin ang Pinas! Wala namang taong perpekto except si Perfecto…hehehe!
Incidentally, have just been skyping (this instant) with my son’s girlfriend, an MBA student in marketing, about the logo; here’s the cut and paste of that skyped conversation (btw, I’m Mummy):
[13:10:37] Audrey: ok looking at te logo now
[13:11:49] Audrey: is the definition and phonetic thingy going to be on the logo too ?
[…13:11:55] Mummy: yes
[13:12:12] Audrey: what country is the agency in ?
[13:12:22] Mummy: philippines, why?
[13:12:39] Audrey: is the definition really essential ?
[13:12:45] Mummy: what do you think? is it essential?
[13:12:55] Audrey: i think it’s too much
[13:13:23] Audrey: or i think that if they really think it’s essential, they need to replace the main “kay ganda” bit with “so beautiful!”
[13:13:47] Audrey: also, the monkey thing on the “I” is a bit too much
[13:13:55] Audrey: adds to many colours and clutters up the logo
[13:15:54] Audrey: hang on, is Pilipinas the name of the agency ?
[13:16:16] Mummy: no, Pilipinas is the country’s name in the national dialect but overall, will you think of holidaying in Philippines if this logo was published in the UK
[13:17:30] Audrey: and if i were any UK resident, i wouldn’t understand what pilipinas was
[13:17:39] Audrey: and kay ganda makes it infinitely more confusing
[13:17:51] Audrey: plus the definition on the side is a bit confusing
[13:20:12] Audrey: and it looks slightly like a cartoon logo
[13:20:14] Audrey: for a cartoon
[13:20:29] Audrey: the monkey clutters up the image
[13:21:27] Audrey: if it is to be advertised in the uk, i’d anglify everythinbg
Re: “Wow” or “Pinas kay Ganda”??? Wow! The moment tourists aboard their planes make the descent, the view on the right side minutes prior to landing is already an eye sore, rows and rows of squatter shacks.~tru blue
Oppps, Igan…sino bang tourist ang tinutukoy mo? Pasintabi Igan…yong mga nabanggit mong bagay e di yan ang problema…ng mga banyagang turista.
Ang problema e yong peace & order sa ating bansa…gaya ng nangyari sa Luneta hostage drama at marami pang drama ng kaekekan.
Sa kabila ng pangyayaring ito e di naman takot ang mga turista na mamasyal sa Pinas kasi mostly sa kanila e sanay na sa mga ganyang sitwasyon lalo na yong mga taga-Middle East kasi yong bombing e normal lang yan sa kanilang pamumuhay.
Ang advisory ng Western countries e mayroon yang hidden agenda na gusto mapressure ang Pinas pati ang tourism sa atin e naaapektuhan.
Alam mo ba na ang mga kilala ko dito sa aming balwarte na namamasyal ng Pinas e mga prominenteng tao…mga matataas ang katukulang sa kanilang mga respective institutions.
Mga military offiers from General to enlistedmen ang pumapasyal o namamasyal ng Pinas pero enjoy sila sa Pinas…ngayon makakarinig kami ng negative feedback sa inyo na kesyo ganito, o ganoon.
Nageencourage nga kami to mamasyal sa Pinas e kayo naman na nakabase diyan e discouragement naman ang maririnig mo especially ang newsmedia puro patayan ang balita o kaya rapepan.
“Renaldo, it was not Boy Abunda who handled the DOT ad.
It was Campaigns and Grey.” …Ellen
Sorry about that Ellen and to Boy Abunda’s agency. I could have misheard the discussions being made in the radio.
I stand corrected.
Follow on:
[13:22:59] Audrey: the average UK resident is lazy
[13:23:03] Audrey: and will want easy information
Nakakainsulto naman pati yong identity na gustong e-promote ng Dept. of Tourism e ating pupunahin…ko mo ba sa sariling wika natin ito nasusulat e parang bakya na sa inyo ang dating…common sense naman!
Masyadong kolonyal ang ating pag-iisip ko mo ba sa impluwensya ng Western culture kaya masyado natin minamaliit ang pagiging Pilipino natin kung di tayo mag-e-ingles?
Dapat taas noo tayo sa pagiging Pilipino natin at makilala nila ang ating National Language…dito sa Middle East very proud ang mga Arabo kasi trying hard sila to learn Pilipino at masurprise kayo na marami na sa kanila ng fluent magsalita dito.
Kung magpupunta ka ng downtown lalo na sa gold market…ang mga tindera dito na Arabo, Yemeni at iba pa e very fluent magsali ng Pilipino.
Ngayon ko mo ba Pilipino ang ginamit ng Dept. of Tourism e bakya na sa inyo ang dating?
Pagdating naman nila sa Pinas e Ingles naman ang pagtanggap natin sa kanila…ano problema?
Maging maka-Pilipino naman tayo…lalo na sa mga Migrante na niyakap ang banyagang kultura…but we Pilipinos buy birth and still living sa Pinas e taas noo sa ating pagiging Pilipino.
Balweg,
Are you referring to the discussion I posted?
First of all, I pretty much suppose that the purpose of this major tourism campaign project is to target foreigners, hence, it’s quite normal that the language should be understandable to foreigners.
Furthermore, the opinion of foreigners (which my son’s girlfriend is and one who has never been to the Philippines nor knows anyone from the country except me) should be sought, if indeed the advertising campaign is meant for foreign audience.
Nothing about maligning the national language or whatever intended. It’s all a question of whether the logo works or doesn’t work abroad or where foreigners are concerned.
Don’t you think DOT investment would be better served, which, by extension, is taxpayers’ money, if opinion from targetted audience is gathered correctly?
Realistically, the Philippines, unfortunately, is not in a position to impose its national language on the world… perhaps in the next life 😉
RE: Realistically, the Philippines, unfortunately, is not in a position to impose its national language on the world… perhaps in the next life~Anna
Well,hope so…but the point is…we need to share the beauties of our pagka-Pilipino.
Atleast, ngayon e open na sa buong mundo na nageexist ang Pinoy not only being an OFWs or Migrinte…but many known professionals sa larangan ng Boxing etc. etc. at ngayon nga dapat maging proud tayo dahil mayroon nang Biyo planet.
13241 Biyo (1998 KM41) is an asteroid named after Filipino teacher Dr. Josette Biyo,[1] a high school teacher cited for winning the 2002 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Louisville, Kentucky. She was the first Asian teacher to win the Intel Excellence in Teaching Award.
In addition sa fame ng mga Pinoy…ang pagkapanalo ni Pacman bilang 8th title holder from different divisions kaya di dapat maliitin ang Pinoy at pagka-Pilipino.
But who is making maliit ang Pinoy, Balweg?
The purpose of the DOT’s extremely expensive exercise if for Pinas to be a tourism attraction for foreigners, isn’t it?
So, commenting about the logo and it’s near uselessness is not about denigrating the Pinoy or the Filipinohood of people of the islands. On the contary, an honest opinion will contribute to putting the right message across effectively, don’t you think?
Your susceptibility it seems is clouding your judgement and might I add, is sadly not constructive.
Just wondering, how can you share “the beauties” of your being a Filipino if nobody understands the message you are putting across because the message is cluttered or not easily understandable by the people whose national language is not remotely Tagalog?
Ellen has put it quite clearly (a perfect rebuttal to your denigrating the beauty of Filipinohood/country complaint):
The beauty of our beloved Pinas is extraordinary, dapat extraordinary rin sa ganda ang presentation to the world via websites, brochures, etc…. hindi kopya!
There is too much attention on the logo and the search for a catchy slogan. Nnasa harap ang karuahe, sa likod ang kabayo (putting the carriage before the horse). Let us get back to marketing basics.
Who is your target market? You will note, Armani has older models (Lakers Coach Pat Riley, and other Richard Gere types). Why? It is the middle-aged male who has the money, except for a few computer geeks, athletes, and drug lords. Similarly, the message to Americans and Europeans may require a message different from that targeting the Chinese. You cannot just emphasize economy, because if it is the beach and economy that is the sole consideration, the American may just opt for Florida, Mexico or Puerto Rico; the European may opt for Las Islas Canarias in Spain, Portugal, or even Croatia. (Tongue’s post above shows that Croatia is marketing itself as the “other Mediterranean”.)
If we want to target the Europeans and Americans, we need to differentiate ourselves from other sun and beach, cheap locations, like Florida, et al. This is the other marketing basic; product differentiation – whether real, or contrived by marketing. You will note that a car is just some contraption with four wheels that takes you places. But there are “differentiated” perceptions of say, a Toyota, an Audi, or a Hyundai. Similarly, would the differentiation for the Philippines be the scuba-diving sites? A German husband and wife, and a French woman acquaintance say there is no better scuba-diving place than the Philippines, with emphasis on Romblon.
That old saw about hospitality would not be a differentiating matter, because there are many cultures that are hospitable; although we pride ourselves in thinking nobody outdoes the Pinoy in hospitality (I mean the genuine kind, not the hospitality girl). You view any DVD by Rick Steves, Rudy Maxa, or others, and they all extol the hospitality and friendliness of the places they visit, be it Turkey, Slovakia, or even Iran.
Once we have decided what market we will target, and what product differentiation to push, that is the only time that a slogan and logo should be designed. As it is, the logo and slogan is more like Jeepney art – too colorful, too crowded, and with no theme or thrust.
Sax,
I don’t know (am not at all a brand marketing expert) but I think the philippine tourism logo should be a kind of brand logo (like Pepsi? Coca Cola), a unique or uniform concept of some sort, otherwise, variations of the logo according to country where it will be advertised may just lead to confusion. Perhaps, the language may differ if you wish, eg., Arabic inscriptions for Middle Eastern targets, etc., etc. but the logo used should, in my opinion, be one and the same…
The marketing spiel, of course, needs to be hashed and rehashed according to target audience…
what is this overemphasis on foreign tourism to improve the nation’s overall economic situation? the philippines has other resources to explore and develop without us spoiling the natural and pristine beauty of our country (e.g. boracay, vigan) which comes with promoting and catering to foreign tourists. remember that tourism was not even in the government agenda and not a cabinet portfolio pre-marcos. as i see it, we filipinos should always have the priority, this is our country. foreigners are welcome but not at the our expense.
i need to add that tourism was not a major concern pre-marcos but the country was doing fine economically.
Marcos did focus on tourism later; but his target audience was the overseas Pinoy. That is when the term balikbayan was coined. Considering the increased number of overseas Pinoys, it would not be a bad idea to target this audience again.
I do agree that tourism should be a lower priority in terms of income generation. Investments in the exploitation of natural resources could be done employing overseas Pinoy money. Instead of floating bonds to be purchased by “institutional investors” (JP Morgan, etc.), overseas Pinoy should be targeted. $50 dollars each, multiplied by several hundred thousand Pinoys would be a tidy sum for a company. The Americans did the same when they sold war bonds in the second world war.
u-s-history.com/pages/h1682.html (Please supply the three w’s)
Cebuana Naomi Larazabal-Dado, editor of Blog Watch, said that the slogan should scrap the word “ganda” or “kay ganda” because some foreigners might understand it to mean “Filipina kay ganda” or “Beautiful Filipnas,” which focuses on a stereotype that exploits Filipinas.
She said the logo, which has inputs by President Aquino himself, needs improvement since it has too many elements that clutter it: a tarsier, a sun, a coconut tree, and water. She suggested a slogan contest to draw the best creative minds at work.
Forgot the link to the quote above:
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/cebudailynews/news/view/20101118-303893/New-DOT-tourism-logo-website–withdrawn
saxnviolins has a point.
THe DOT’s campaign should stress what sets the country apart from other destinations, what is it that when people see or hear, they are reminded of the country? (Not referring to squatters, rampant crime, and natural or man-made disasters though.
Anna #110, I’m amused by Audrey’s question:
Audrey: hang on, is Pilipinas the name of the agency ?
That should give the proponents of this “brand” an idea of the confusion that they would create
Now that we are talking about the country’s uniqueness,why not put a thousand pair of shoes on the logo?
“Oppps, Igan…sino bang tourist ang tinutukoy mo? Pasintabi Igan…yong mga nabanggit mong bagay e di yan ang problema…ng mga banyagang turista.” – balweg
Sermon kaagad si Pader without reading closely my point. There is a disconnect if the ad is “wow pinas” or “Pinas kay Ganda”, and what you see as a tourist from above ain’t pretty or maganda. Sober up Pader, slow down on the Mompo.
“Who is your target market? You will note, Armani has older models (Lakers Coach Pat Riley, and other Richard Gere types).” – snv
This is pure double standard where feminists can’t counter. The late Walter Cronkite’s sagging face and others were widely accepted by millions of TV viewers BUT certainly not any of their female counterparts. With the magic of facelifts, some are hanging in there with the likes of Barbara Walters, and maybe Tina Monzon of Pinas (sorry Tina).
“foreigners are welcome but not at the our expense.” isaganigatmaitan
Dang! Shakespeare’s typewriter went astray. Ang pinakamatalinong english professor nalilito na rin.
#49: “My goodness. Wala nabang natirang magaling sa Pilipinas???” – pilipinaskongmahal
Some of them are here in Ellenville! — tru blue
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
talaga kasama ka ba sa magaling? at least now you know that there is such a thing as philippine airlines and philippine star. wink! wink!
mine is typographical, yours is simply bad grammar and nonsense, which from your latest posts have not improved a bit. sorry, hindi ka kasama sa magaling dito.
Those who know gay comedian Vice Ganda may suggest him to be the model for “Pilipinas Kay Ganda”. Sources say the brain behind this name and campaign was Boy Abunda. Let’s not forget that Boy Abunda used to be GMA’s campaign endorser together with Kris Aquino for a cool P10M.
Ellen, #110, “I’m amused by Audrey’s question:”
Me too… in fact caught me a bit off guard there for a split of a second — and true that while Pilipinas might sound obvious to you and me, and to those who have been to Pinas, not quite that obvious to people who don’t know Pinas at all and by extension, the Pinoy word for Philippines.
“sorry, hindi ka kasama sa magaling dito.”
Didn’t said I was, in fact, i’m zinging you as one smart ass here, eh bobo din pala. Admit your faults and move on, nagmamarunong kang english expert, correcting others here under different names; stick with your own avatar. Huwag ka nang magmultiply…tsk tsk tsk.
Anna, I tested the perception of my colleagues at the office too. Dalawa lang kaming Filipina dito. Most of them said, what is “Pilipinas”? I said Philippines. Sabi nila, as it is hindi pa nga masyadong kilala ang Philippines sa tourism dahil takot ang mga tao sa security issues sa atin and using another word for Philippines is rather confusing. One of my colleagues was planning to go to Pinas, Vietnam and China. But he scrapped Pinas last minute because of the advisory on the threat of terrorism.
I also have a very close Indian friend and he said the word “ganda” in their country is not a good one.
On the logo, a picture of the 7107 Islands would say it all and on top of it, Philippines 7107 possibilities as a blogger earlier suggested. That would be catchy! Tourists would be curious to see that there really are a lot of islands in our country. Another one would be to have a collage of world famous Filipinos like Pacman, Charice, world famous inventors, scientists and even the Nobel prize winner married to a Filipina. This is to stress the fact that it is not just the islands to explore but to get to know the Filipino people who made us proud as Filipinos-the famous and the locals.
Hi PSB…
Ganda in India lanuguage is not pretty at all? Oh boy, oh boy — it’s time for DOT to really really think this concept through before they launch the campaign with the “ganda” inscription.
Agree with the visual concept of 7107 islands.
Incidentally, had similar experience at home tonight after I showed the logo to my husband; asked for his opinion without elaborating at all.
He looked at/read it for a short while then asked me, “Is it for a mail order bride website?” (I almost fell off my seat :-D)
So I corrected him and told him that the word is Tagalog for Philippines and not only for Pinay women. He explained that he thought the word “Pilipinas” in the logo might have something to do with the women of the Philippines by extrapolating (He knows that Philippine nationals are called Filipinos or Filipinas.) I discovered tonight that my own husband — and all my children (all asked me what Pilipinas was in their email messages), didn’t know “Pilipinas” is the Pinoy word for Philippines the country (none of them speak a word of Tagalog but do understand Pinoy bad words because they hear me swear “from time to time” ;-))
Anyway, in short, my husband thought there was too much info, quite confusing…slogan not understandable; he also asked me why the choice of so many colours… why not just use the national colours as in our national flag.
They should just stick to English, not to be less patriotic about it, but to communicate with the target market, its a universal language, and Filipinos everywhere in the world can read/understand English…if there are some who do not, then definitely they are not the target market – for they can’t afford afford to be tourists for sure.
Re 138, Marz, Boy Abunda has nothing to do with the Pilipinas Kay Ganda ad. It’s Yoly Ong’s Campaigns and Grey. And Yoly stands by her agency’s ‘creative’ output, according to Boo Chanco.
Campaigns and Grey, by the way, was the ad agency that crafted Aquino’s campaign ads.
“And Yoly stands by her agency’s ‘creative’ output, according to Boo Chanco.”
Yeah, read that bit of texting on Boo Chanco’s FB page.
Malaysia’s tourist arrival numbers are tricky. So is Singapore’s. Both countries’ nationals criss-cross the borders regularly, especially on weekends, in MILLIONS, we can’t be sure they are counting only the tourists in the real sense of the word since most Malaysians are in Singapore for work.
The more reliable numbers are those of Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam.
Let me clarify that. Most Malaysians in Singapore are there for work. They return home on weekends.