Indonesia gets the hard sell in upcoming tourism mart

Indonesia gets the hard sell in upcoming tourism mart

By Rita A. Widiadana

JAKARTA (JP): Bali and Indonesia are one and the same to many
foreigners, but the Indonesia Tourism Promotion Board is trying
to bring name recognition to the rest of the archipelago.

Lack of integrated promotional campaigns and poor information
have contributed to the skimpy understanding of what the country
has to offer, said Wuryastuti Sunario, the board's managing
director and chairperson of the upcoming Tourism Indonesia Mart
and Expo (TIME).

"Aggressive yet accurate campaigns are badly needed to sell
Indonesia, and to open the eyes of overseas visitors to the fact
that our country has abundant natural and cultural attractions
that are worth seeing," Wuryastuti said in a recent interview.
"Bali is just one of the country's 17,000 islands."

She said TIME, also known as Pasar Wisata, has been one of the
most effective tourism campaigns in setting the record straight.
It will be held for the fourth time at the Jakarta Hilton
Conventional Center from Sept. 23 through Sept. 28.

TIME will comprise a mart, expo and conference. The former
involves 186 domestic sellers -- including hotels and travel
agencies -- from 20 provinces and 189 foreign buyers from 34
countries. At the expo, domestic and foreign participants are
allowed to exhibit their products to buyers as well as the
public.

Seminars and discussions are also planned. Meetings will
discuss tourism in preparing for the 21st century. Economist
Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti and Minister of Tourism, Post and
Telecommunications Joop Ave will be among the speakers.

"This is an important tourism event which has already been
included in the international tourism calendar," Wuryastuti said.
"Every September, foreign tour operators and people from other
related tourism industries will flock to Jakarta to see whether
they can make profitable deals here. Thus, we have to use this
opportunity to promote our products to these potential buyers."

Regional tourism organizations from Singapore, Malaysia,
Thailand and India will also participate in the expo.

The organizing committee has reminded participants to send
senior and capable representatives. These should be people with
the savvy to negotiate and clinch deals with buyers. Failure to
be assertive and active in promoting the products will mean lost
opportunities, Wuryastuti said.

At previous events, some companies lived to regret their error
in sending subordinates who did not have the power to make
decisions.

"They thought TIME was just an exhibition where they didn't
have to send their top managers," she said. "This was a big
mistake. When buyers were interested in the products, they were
unable to meet the right contacts."

She said people should understand that this is an
international-scale mart and expo. Sellers should understand
their market and be ready to meet buyers' demand.

"The three previous events proved very effective in attracting
buyers and yielding profitable business contracts," she added.

Eighty percent of sellers met new buyers, established contact
and initiated contract negotiations, according to a satisfaction
study conducted by Frank Small & Associates on last year's TIME.

The study also found visitor totals of 27,000, compared to
21,000 in 1995. This year's TIME is expected to draw 50,000
visitors.

TIME is a part of the board's promotional activities in line
with the government's ambitious goal to mold tourism as the
backbone of Indonesia's economic development by 2005. Expected
arrivals of eight million visitors are projected to bring US$15
billion in foreign exchange earnings by that year.

For this year, the government has targeted between $7.2
billion and $7.8 billion in earnings from about 5.7 million
overseas visitors. Tourist arrivals in the country through seven
major gateways in the January-June period of this year totaled
about 2.01 million, up 1.6 percent from the first half of last
year.

Foreign tourist spending in Indonesia increased 6 percent to
$2.64 billion in the first half of this year over the same period
in 1996. Last year, the country gained $5.13 billion in foreign
exchange from five million visitors.

With the targets in mind, the board has launched effective
promotional activities in cooperation with tourism-related
industries including airlines, hotels, telecommunication
companies, financial services firms and the media.

The "A World All Its Own" campaign spotlights the country's
abundant natural and cultural attractions; it is aimed at more
affluent visitors.

Target groups differ in separate nations. Market segments are
middle to upper income tourist and business travelers in
Australia; young, wealthy travelers in Taiwan; middle to upper
income families and the affluent young in Singapore; working
women, honeymooners, senior citizens and businesspeople in Japan.
For European countries and the United States, promotions hone in
on upper income tourists and businesspeople.

Budget constraints have contributed to the focus on overseas
tourists. "Due to a lack of funds, promotional activities are
mainly aimed at attracting overseas tourists although we realize
that domestic market is very potential," Wuryastuti said.

Indonesia's tourist promotion budget -- $20 million in 1995 --
is paltry compared to other nations. UNDP reports show Thailand
set aside US$72.5 million, and Australia and Canada each
allocated no less than $100 million in the same year.

"It requires a lot of efforts to achieve the government's
goal," she said. "Promotion is not enough. Integrated cooperation
among related-tourism industry as well as governmental agencies
and the society is a must."

Poor coordination among related sectors has also been a
problem in attaining the government's goal.

Promotion is also less effective if it is not supported by
comparable services from tourism-related industries including
hotels, transportation and communications.

Many Indonesians still make negative assumptions about
tourism. It is often associated with prostitution, crime,
environmental damage and cultural degradation, a stigma
acknowledged by Minister Joop Ave.

"It may need quite a long time to change people's perception
toward tourism," Wuryastuti said. "What we have to develop now is
tourism industry which is in line with our national, cultural and
environmental condition. And that is not an easy job."