“Contestable” Italy
Tourism, which is worth 13.2% of national GDP (233 billion euros), generates 14.9% of the employment force (3.5 million employees) with a value for all developed in equal parts by flows of tourists foreigners (50.5%) and locals (49.5%), however, it must also deal with an ease of travel (in the pre-Covid era and in the future, hopefully, even after the emergency) which makes the Italy increasingly contestable.
Investments in sub-average communication
This includes the theme of communication, to be considered more and more as an element to be valued and to be referred to as a strategic lever in competition with the rest of the world. The data, cited during the presentation by the general director of Marketing of Publitalia ’80, Matteo Cardani, are from this point of view also a clear signal to keep in mind: what is a strategic sector for GDP ultimately invests below average in advertising: 0.07% against the 0.5% average of the sectors. If we look at how much Italian operators invest abroad, communication spending can then be quantified in a range between 0.03% and 0.05% in relation to the sum of the “revenues” generated by tourists from the main 4 Countries of the Old Continent (Germany, France, Spain, United Kingdom).
The right mix
Yet 3 of the seven main attraction drivers reside in the work unloaded on the ground by tourism companies, whether it is food and wine richness, quality of accommodation facilities, quality of the human factor in hospitality. The possibilities for communicating today are also amplified by the union between TV and ultra-broadband which finds its result in the addressable TV. But be careful not to sacrifice the right communication on the altar of a thrust of modernity. In identifying the communication channels that have contributed to shaping the image of the Italian Regions in the minds of Italians and Europeans, a “hybrid” paradigm emerges, with a mix of Touch points (TV, press, radio, out of home) and digital (search engines, social media, blogs, influencers) but also with an important role for physical Touch points (agencies and tour operators, books, exhibitions, conferences, fairs). All with a preponderant weight, in the latter case, for the good old word of mouth. Which combined with the memory that can arise from the images of advertisements, films or TV series on the excellent outdoor set distributed along the boot, can really represent that extra value to make a difference.
The Mediaset campaign
Mediaset for its part wants to lead the way. In this sense, the Cologno group is committed to launching a social campaign «Mediaset cares about the future – for tourism in Italy». And in June and July the episodes of “Journey into the Great Beauty” will be broadcast on TV: a journey in 5 stages through the beauties of Italy told by Cesare Bocci. On Channel 5.