Southern Laos launches tourism destination brand
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The new brand "Southern Laos, Charming by nature", has been officially launched to promote the four southern provinces of Saravan, Xekong, Attapeu and Champassak as one tourism destination.
The event took place recently in Champassak province and was attended by high level public and private sector representatives from Saravan, Xekong, Attapeu and Champassak provinces, as well as the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism.
In his opening speech, Deputy Governor of Champassak Buasone Vongsongkhone said “Like the anniversary of our country, today's brand launch event is about our identity, about who we are, about what we stand for.”
He further stressed that, “The brand reminds us about what we need to treasure and what kind of tourism we want to promote such as a sustainable tourism which is respectful to our culture, to our environment and which helps to share economic benefits amongst all members of the society in southern Laos.”
The brand was developed in a participatory process over a period of 10 months, facilitated by Swisscontact and supported by international branding expertise from the marketing agency QUO, based in Bangkok.
According to Tim Gamper, country manager of Swisscontact in Laos, the most important element of the branding process for southern Laos was not its output of a logo and a tagline, but the fact that it brought tourism stakeholders together from the public and private sector, across provincial borders and across business interests.
CEO of QUO David Keen underlined that the brand launching event was just the start of a journey which is likely to contribute significantly to the economic success of the four southern provinces of Laos.
But he stressed the importance for local stakeholders to take ownership of the brand and to live it in their day-to-day operations.
The event was surrounded by cultural performances from southern Laos and brought to life by large picture banners, giving a glimpse of the charming n ature of the destination.
A big list of media tools was also launched for stakeholders to incorporate with their own material creatively. Part of the media package is a new website (www.southern-laos.com) filled with highlights on things to do or see, as well as an area for tourism trade professionals.
