Towards a Mekong Tourism Brand

Abstract

In early 2008, the Bangkok-based Mekong Tourism Office (MTO) led a noteworthy regional tourism brand development exercise, the objective of which was to create a more recognizable identity for the Greater Mekong Subregion's (GMS) burgeoning hospitality and tourism industry. This paper provides a synopsis of the stakeholder-inclusive approach taken by the MTO to develop a tourism logo and slogan for the GMS. The branding exercise was part of a larger marketing plan for the subregion and applied a very practical methodology. In total, the Mekong Tourism brand development was conducted in five phases, each of which is described in this paper along with any relevant and pertinent lessons learned. The paper ends with a summary of implications for the practical implementation of the study findings.

Keywords:

• destination marketing
• destination branding, stakeholder approach
• case study