Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Seeking space between state and USA

By ROBERT TRIGAUX
Published August 17, 2005

Florida's governor was in full cheerleader mode this week at the state's annual tourism conference.

And why not? Despite hurricanes galore, tourism in Florida was up 7 percent last year in visitors, and up even more in taxable sales at hotels and restaurants. This year's looking even better.

But all the high-fives did not stop Visit Florida, the state agency that promotes tourism, from indicating it may be time to retire its tourism brand - FLA USA - and replace it with the less confusing if uninspiring slogan: Visit Florida.

I mean, what is a FLA USA, anyway? At first glance, it kind of fits in a dictionary somewhere between Flaubert (Gustave, French novelist) and flauta (a stuffed corn tortilla). Even the governor, as his remark at the top of this column indicates, acknowledges that the 8-year-old FLA USA may lack universal appeal or adequate comprehension.

FLA USA, of course, stands for Florida, USA. And therein lies a potential international marketing problem.

Unpopular or unpatriotic as this notion may be, a brand name that hypes USA probably is not the smartest way these days to lure foreign tourists to the Sunshine State. "Florida" probably still has plenty of overseas sun-'n'-fun allure, but USA conjures up some pretty negative opinions in more than a few countries.

Many folks who travel overseas often, communicate regularly with citizens of other countries or at least talk to frequent travelers hear the stories. There is a lot of resentment in many parts of the world against the United States and its recent actions, especially in the Middle East.

Some of that resentment has been quantified. In June, a Pew Research Center survey of attitudes in 16 nations shows that anti-Americanism in Europe, the Middle East and Asia remains high. Even among some of this country's closest allies.

In Britain, Germany and Canada - three countries Florida's tourism industry depends on - favorable opinions of the United States fell from the comfortable 70- and 80-percent rankings five years ago to the 40s and 50s this year.

That's not a good sign for luring more overseas tourists to Florida. But it's probably one reason the FLA USA brand appears headed for the scrap heap.

This is not pure conjecture. Nationally, the travel industry is embroiled in a debate over how to refresh a tarnished U.S. image at a time when global tourism is finding more compelling places on the planet to visit.

On Tuesday, for example, attendees at a multiday conference of the Travel Industry Association of America, listened to the warnings of Keith Reinhard, chairman of the giant DDB Worldwide advertising agency. He said America's declining overseas reputation will endanger not only America's tourism industry, but imperil U.S. companies competing in foreign markets.

Reinhard recently formed a nonprofit organization called Business for Diplomatic Action to try and mobilize the private sector to reverse America's declining overseas reputation.

Tech Data Corp., a Fortune 500 Clearwater company with extensive international operations, is one business that is not feeling overseas backlash.

"We have seen zero impact on our business in Europe or, for that matter, even in Dubai," says Tech Data chief executive Steve Raymund. But Raymund notes his company sells its services to businesses, not foreign consumers.

"The issue is likely of greater concern to consumer companies where brand image is a key component," he said, such as Coca-Cola, Ford or Procter & Gamble.

If international opinions of the United States are down, then why isn't the tourism industry suffering? Here are two arguments. First, the cheap U.S. dollar masks overseas weakness by luring foreign visitors who find this country a vacation bargain.

Second, though many foreign tourists continue to visit this country, they increasingly would prefer to be traveling elsewhere.

That insight shows up in a study called "How does the world see America?" issued late last month by Simon Anholt, an authority on country brands, and Global Market Insite, a research firm. The two created the Anholt-GMI "nation brands index" that measures the power and appeal of a nation's brand image.

"America's reputation is going through a bad patch," concludes the study. It ranks the brand image of countries based on its people, culture, governance, exports and brand products and, yes, its tourism.

The study shows that the United States ranks No. 3 worldwide based on the number of tourists who visit. But it really ranks No. 6 as the world's "most desirable" tourism brand. More people now would rather visit Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Canada or Switzerland. Many do not do so because of distance or cost.

"In today's globalized world," the study warns, "it is naive and dangerous to think how a nation is viewed by the world will not have consequences from an economic, geopolitical and national security standpoint."

That's a highfalutin way of saying that Florida's tourism industry - in fact, the state's whole economy - ignores the bigger world at its own peril. So long, FLA USA. Hello, Visit Florida.

Robert Trigaux can be reached at trigaux@sptimes.com or 727 893-8405.

Percentage of people with favorable views of the United States.

'99/'00 2003 2005

Source: Pew Research Center, Global Attitudes Survey, June

[Last modified August 17, 2005, 01:08:12]