THE Guam Visitors Bureau has launched a new program to promote Guam and boost tourism by utilizing social media.
At GVB’s 6th Annual Global Media Gathering yesterday held at the Outrigger Hotel, GVB representatives announced the “Shop Guam Festival 2012” campaign under which eight individuals from target markets will be chosen as Shop Guam Festival Ambassadors.
The eight key markets are Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Russia, the Philippines and North America.
It was initially anticipated that the Shop Guam Festival would bring in $2 million worth of free media exposure. However, the estimate has since increased to $4 million.
On Oct. 26, GVB will announce the eight ambassadors who were chosen based on their social media popularity, their retail, and fashion and travel industry influence in their home country, among other criteria.
From Nov. 23 to 30, the ambassadors will come to Guam for a $6,000 shopping tour. The ambassadors will visit Guam’s best attractions and restaurants. All the while, the ambassadors will be posting pictures, videos or Tweets to document their experiences. The ambassadors will also be required to buy one item with the "Made in Guam" product seal to promote Guam-made products.
The project is Guam’s first social media campaign involving various countries and cultures.
Jason Lin, GVB’s social media strategist, stated: “Through our very extensive research, we found a lot of the online conversations about Guam, really almost 30 percent, are about shopping and the culturally relevant items that Guam has.”
Strategies
The strategies of the media campaign include marketing Guam as a trendy, modern shopping destination; promoting Guam’s tax free shopping; promoting Guam’s friendly staff; generating visitor awareness of retail trends such as holiday shopping; and increasing social media exposure and followers.
“Social media is the new way of getting our message across to our markets that Guam is where America’s day begins. We’re America in Asia, and also America’s gateway to Asia. We offer a second-to-none, world-class shopping experience. We are tax-free,” said GVB General Manager Joann Camacho.
