Safety as a tourism product

By IRENE CHAPPLE

New Zealand's clinching of the "world's safest country" title is a double-edged sword for its promotional armoury.

On the one hand, promoting our safe-haven status is regarded as tempting fate.

On the other, it is lauded as a key to the structured Japanese tourism market and, in the wake of the terrorist attacks, a bait for the safety conscious who might otherwise visit the US or Europe.

New Zealand's scoop of "safe country" accolades by British magazine readers is a major opportunity to grab the international spotlight, says Inbound Tour Operators Council director Don Gunn.

He says New Zealand must use it in a marketing strategy, particularly for the Japanese industry.

He suggests that Tourism New Zealand procure a letter from Prime Minister Helen Clark promoting New Zealand's "safest" stance, then publish it widely in Japanese newspapers.

A letter from Tourism Minister Mark Burton, requested by the Japanese Government after the terrorist attacks, is already being circulated to reassure travellers, but Mr Gunn says New Zealand can go one up.

If the Prime Minister writes a letter, he says, she is representing the whole country - not just the tourism industry.

Mr Gunn also suggests that New Zealand get the word out via CNN.

Television is a major part of life in Japan, he says, and to have the "safe haven" title flicked into Japanese living rooms would be a major coup.

Japan is the obvious target, he says, because the British market might not respond to such a campaign and marketing money spent in the US would be money wasted.

Kathy Slater, who leads the Auckland University of Technology's bachelor of business/tourism studies programme, suggested that New Zealand promote a "culture transfer" within the Japanese, European and US markets.

New Zealand's culture provided an alternative to the fear felt internationally, she said.

It could complement the 100% Pure theme.

Mrs Slater suggested catch phrases "NZ - a long way from the cares of the world", or "100% Culture Transfusion" backed by peaceful images.

But within both the tourism and advertising industries, the idea of promoting New Zealand as a safe haven buckles under criticism.

Peter Moore, general manager of the advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi, is sceptical of the virtues of promoting safety.

"It is a true vanilla attribute," he said. "It's akin to being described as nice - when we know that people who are artistic, cosmopolitan, beautiful, exciting, even dangerous are probably going to be more interesting.

"I wouldn't be too excited about being described as safe - it may well have been a polite response for lacking a pulse."

And among the tourism groups, safety isn't just a weak promotional tool - it's downright dangerous.

Destination Queenstown chief executive David Kennedy is aghast at the thought of using it to promote New Zealand.

The rule, unwritten and written, he said, is never market safety - leave it to market itself.

"The world is simply not a safe place, and marketing safety backfires so easily. You say we're safe then a coach would fall off a cliff somewhere."

Mr Kennedy believed New Zealand is already a possible target for terrorists - bragging about safety, he said, would make the country an even more tempting target.

His advice is clear - just don't do it.

Auckland University senior marketing lecturer Dr Judy Motion also preaches caution. While she doesn't believe New Zealand is a likely terrorist target, she said safety as a key brand value was risky.

Branding campaigns should always begin with identifying a constellation of values to underpin a marketing programme.

Surely, she said, it was better for people to come here because of the wonderful experiences we offer, rather than just being safe.

George Hickton, Tourism New Zealand chief executive, said it was just tacky to promote safety at this time. "It seems insensitive to try and benefit from others' misfortune."

While he was pleased New Zealand took top place for the safety vote, he said it was inappropriate to base a marketing campaign around that.

New Zealand offered a quality tourism experience, he said.

"If you wanted safety you could go and sit on Rangitoto for a month.

"It is important that's not the main motivating factor."

He said New Zealand as a safe destination was promoted by talking to tourists anyway, but it was not a major marketing tool.

New Zealand is still being pushed as 100% Pure, a campaign launched in 1999.

But backpacker Martina Roth, who arrived in Auckland yesterday from Chicago on a trip planned after the attacks, said safety was a selling point for her.

"I figured New Zealand would probably be safer than the US right now," she said.

The 22-year-old said her mother had been concerned she might have problems flying home if more terror attacks closed the skies again. "But if I get stuck somewhere [New Zealand] can't be a bad place to be stuck."

Martina Roth said that when she decided to leave the US, New Zealand and Australia were the only countries she considered safe enough to travel to. She chose New Zealand because she had travelled here before.

The Tourism Action Group has predicted a 10 per cent fall in international bookings following the terror attacks. This equates to 59,000 fewer people visiting New Zealand.