If we want to develop or grow our tourism branding, we do not always have to count on the government. Through agreements made by associations having regard for this tourism matter, an advanced and developing tourism brand is going to be built.

Silih Agung Wasesa from Asia PR stated this idea in an International Joint Seminar themed Tourism Branding in ASEAN “Problem and Challenges of Globalization” held by Communication Science Department of Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (IKOM-UMY) in collaboration with Chulalongkorn University of Thailand in UMY Integrated Campus on Monday (7/25). The other speakers in the seminar were Tri Hastuti Nur Rochimah, M.Si, a lecturer in Communication Science Department of UMY and Prof. Parichart Schapitanonda, a lecturer from Chulalongkorn University of Thailand. The moderator in this seminar was Frizky Yulianti Nurnisya, M.Si, another lecturer in Communication Science Department of UMY.

According to Wasesa, every country in ASEAN had several problems in developing its tourism branding, and in Indonesia, the relatively complex problem was the lack of government’s support. Wasesa added, “If this strategy to develop tourism gets a full support from the government, I believe that the branding will be much better.”

In addition, Tri Hastuti Nur Rochimah, M.Si stated that all this time, what the government had done was making marvelous logos and taglines with no real implementation. She said, “The government does not have a good marketing strategy so that the implementation is considered as quite a failure. One of the examples is the tagline Enjoy Jakarta; when the tourists come to Jakarta, the convenience implied in the tagline remains a tagline.”

Rochimah also asserted that the strategy implemented should be based on the field study. She added, “By this study, we will be able to organize the planning by knowing what is needed in developing the tourism and how to face competitors. We should communicate it well and evaluate its implementation. Thus, a good tourism branding will be possible.”

Meanwhile, Prof. Parichart Schapitanonda added that commonly, a brand came from a person’s belief in what he/she had seen and felt, which was told to others until they believed.  Schapitanonda asserted, “Thus, talking about tourism branding is not merely talking about well-made logos and taglines, but also talking about people’s experience on that tourism.”