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How Brand USA will reach its fastest-growing international market - China: Brand USA Chinese strategic public relations plan

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How Brand USA will reach its fastest-growing international market - China: Brand USA Chinese strategic public relations plan

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Content HOW BRAND USA WILL REACH ITS FASTEST-GROWING INTERNATIONAL MARKET- CHINA BRAND USA CHINESE STRATEGIC PUBLIC RELATIONS PLAN by Zijun Lu ______________________________________________________________ A Thesis Presented to the FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF ARTS (STRATEGIC PUBLIC RELATIONS) AUGUST 2018 Copyright 2018 Zijun Lu TABLE OF CONTENTS Background ……………………………………….....………….....…….....….……. 1 Business Goal ………………………………………….………................…............. 3 Statement of Problem/Opportunity ………………...…………………………….…. 4 Communications Goals …………………….…………………………….......….….. 8 Research ……………………………………….……….......…………………….…. 9 Situation Analysis …………………………………………………………………... 19 Objectives ……………….………………………………………………………….. 25 Target Audiences …………………………………………………………………… 27 Key Messages ………………………………………………………………………. 30 Strategies and Tactics ………………………………………………………………. 32 Evaluation ………………………………………………………………………….. 50 Timeline ……………………………………………………………………………. 53 Budget ……………………………………………………………………………… 56 Appendix…………………………………………………………………........……..57 Bibliography…………………………………………………………...…........……. 62 1 Background Brand USA is a national destination marketing organization that is committed to promoting tourism in the United States. Originally created by the Travel Promotion Act of 2009, Brand USA officially started operations in May 2011; since then, it combined a globally coordinated marketing effort in generating incremental international visitation and increasing its international tourism market share for the United States. Benefiting from its international marketing initiatives and programs, leveraging its over 700 close partner organizations worldwide, Brand USA educates and advocates for international travelers to discover the United States of America as one of the most dynamic and diverse destinations in the world. According to Oxford Economics, Brand USA has successfully delivered 4.3 million incremental tourists to the States in the last four years, and the incremental rise in global visitation also contributed approximately $30 billion revenue to the U.S. economy, and on average, had created 50,900 American jobs a year. In the grueling competition of global travel industry, its major competitors include but are not limited to Tourism Australia, Atout France, Visit Britain, Visit Singapore, Japan National Tourism Organization, etc. China, currently the world’s largest outbound travel market, is a unique market for all global travel destinations and travel marketers. It is different than its Japanese and Korean counterparts in Asia or any other market the world has ever seen. It has been the world’s largest outbound tourism market for consecutive years, 2 reaching 122 million people in 2016 and projected to grow to 130 million trips by 2020 (China Tourism Academy, 2016). The China market is uniquely complex and challenging to navigate and impact, not only because of its size. The consumer profile in China is multi- segmented, travel trade/media is extremely fragmented, and the government and other stakeholders are all key players to manage and leverage. With over 751 million internet users and over 1 billion mobile internet users (CINIC, 2017), it is imperative that any local or foreign brand should leverage and integrate social media to reach and connect with Chinese consumers. However, the social media landscape of China is completely different from that of the western world. It is inevitable that traditional tourism representation and strategy is no longer sufficient to make an impact in China’s complex and competitive market, which makes China a place that is contested by all global travel destinations and marketers even more. In 2013, Brand USA started to fully deploy its eight major foreign markets which at that time were Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Mexico, Japan, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. This effort successfully generated $3.4 billion for the U.S. economy from direct travel spending from overseas travelers. To expand its presence and marketing efforts to the growing China market, Brand USA launched its Shanghai office in 2015, and delivered various marketing campaigns to the target markets and travelers in China. Thanks to the rapid growth in China’s middle class and nationwide disposable incomes, the rapid increase in availability of direct non-stop airline routes, and powerful public relations, travel trade marketing, and digital campaigns in the 3 Greater China market, the number of Chinese tourists to the US has increased over the past year. However, Brand USA’s existing strategy and programs are not sufficient to support its strategic goal of increasing the number of travelers from China considering the potential of the soaring Chinese outbound tourism market. Brand USA needs to truly arrive in China in force with new strategies and capabilities to tackle Chinese opportunities and challenges. Therefore, Brand USA needs to design a more dynamic, robust, and tailored strategic marketing communication plan for the unique China market. Business Goal According to Brand USA’s official website, its marketing budget comes from a variety of sources such as: international visitor spending, travel destinations across the nation, travel-related private-sector organizations and travel brands, and matching funds provided by a $10 fee paid by international visitors from countries that are members of a non-visa-waiver program. Brand USA has proved its success in spurring the U.S. tourism industry by delivering 1.1 million incremental global visitors and increasing direct travel spending by nearly $3.5 billion, which makes its return on its marketing investment close to 47:1. Indeed, Brand USA’s goals are interrelated: in order to gain more operating and marketing funds, it needs to help increase numbers of overseas visitors to the US. China, a unique market with significant untapped potential, comes to the fore for Brand USA. The business goals of designing and executing a brand-new Brand USA strategic marketing 4 communication plan for the China market include: • Achieving an incremental international travel share for U.S. destinations from the China market. • Boosting sustainable revenue for U.S. travel-related businesses and brands, and creating more job opportunities by welcoming more Chinese visitors to the US. • Increasing awareness and creating a more positive image of the US in China, and bringing more opportunities to impact the U.S. economy. Statement of Problem/Opportunity To understand the following plan, it’s important to look back at the situation the organization found itself in during the first decade of the century. Despite USA welcoming over 60 million international visitors in 2010, its market share of global travel had fallen steeply from 17.2% in 2000 to 12.4% in 2010 (NTTO, 2015). Brand USA had to find solutions to reinvigorate the USA’s image and regain its market share of international outbound travel. This plan will examine what has taken place since then to boost visitors/revenue. Aside from the genuine concern to recapture the market of global travel, there are four salient issues in identifying the business problem in establishing a marketing plan for Brand USA to promote U.S. destinations 5 as the leading choice of global travel for Chinese tourists: Firstly, despite the immense potential and size of the China market, it is important to remember that it is still a developing market in general; much education work and basic tourism infrastructure development still needs to be done. Given the dynamic nature of the China market, it is still necessary to maintain awareness of the various market factors. For instance, despite high receipts mostly from shopping, Chinese consumers are still relatively price-sensitive, and the US (a long-haul destination) is considered relatively expensive. This has also resulted in unhealthy market practices such as “shopping” tourist traps. It may take time to educate people in both the travel trade and the consumer market and create a more sustainable and higher quality/margin. Despite increasing numbers of Chinese airlines launching incremental direct flights from China to the US, the limited frequency is still far behind the demand from the Chinese outbound travelers market (Statista, 2017). In addition, most of the flights depart merely from major cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou. As the number of international travelers from secondary cities such as Hangzhou, Chengdu, Nanjing, and Xi’an is soaring, the lack of U.S. flight routes from such cities becomes one of the biggest obstacles for Chinese visitors to the US. Secondly, in China’s dynamic, competitive market place, being a generalist as “a jack of all trades, master of none,” is no longer enough to make an impact in and influence the market. Brand USA’s current marketing programs are not sufficient to support its 6 organizational goal in China; it needs to catch up with the unique and constantly changing China market. For instance, Brand USA relies heavily on digital social platforms and resources such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for domestic campaigns and even for campaigns in most other foreign markets such as Canada, Mexico, and Europe. Google and Bing are their primary search engines for search engine marketing (SEM) campaigns and advertising placements. However, in China, the online and social media landscape is vastly different. Chinese social networks are dominated by platforms such as WeChat, Weibo, Zhihu, and Toutiao, and Baidu is the most popular search engine in China. Therefore, as the author will elaborate on later in this plan, Brand USA needs to launch a variety of tailored social campaigns and programs to target its Chinese audiences. To cite another example, Chinese outbound tourists like group travel; however, independent travelers and customized tours are increasingly popular. Travel sites such as Ctrip, Qunar, and Alitrip are widely used by these independent travelers as references, booking sites, and peer- recommendation discussion boards (Phocuswright, 2017). How Brand USA targets this segment of tourists via Chinese travel sites is one of the keys to increasing the rising independent travelers and customized tours markets in China. Thirdly, Brand USA needs to overcome the language and culture barriers to better educate and communicate with its Chinese target audience. It not only needs bilingual and bicultural staff, but also a team with deep on-the-ground knowledge of both the U.S. and China. It is important to develop strategies that are the “best of both worlds”; those that 7 blend not only “what is best for the China market” (pull), but also “what leverages what is best for/from the U.S. market” (push). Traditional destination representation in China is normally either a straightforward push strategy with little localization of products or a traditional pull strategy in which the local representation does not have in-depth U.S. knowledge to know how best to work with U.S. destinations and suppliers to maximize the potential of their product and deliver the most authentic American experiences. Lastly, despite the fact that the U.S. has already had a strong national presence as one of the top long-haul travel destinations in the China market for the last decade, there are a great variety of competitive long-haul and short-haul travel destinations and travel brands in the market. Thailand, Japan, and South Korea are the major short-haul travel competitors for the US to attract outbound travel tourists. The key competition for the US in China's long-haul international travel market are destinations such as Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. For instance, Europe competes with the US based on its rich and varied history and culture, while Australia and New Zealand are well known for their nature, outdoor activities, and lifestyle (China Business Review, 2012). This strong competition means the US must continue to be promoted in China’s target market as one of the most desirable destinations in the world. 8 Communication Goals Brand USA’s strategic public relations plan for the China market will establish two extensive communication goals aimed at achieving significant outcomes. The short-term communication goal is to raise awareness and strengthen the US as one of the top choices among international travel destinations for Chinese tourists. The long-term communication goal is to increase positive brand affinity for the US and to establish a positive image and reputation as the market leader in China’s outbound travel market. In doing so, the key goal is to build a strong reputation for the US as the premier travel destination via word-of-mouth among its target audience and strategic partners. To this end, the sub-goals of executing the campaign are: 1. To build awareness and understanding of Brand USA and its member destinations’ commitment to providing a Chinese-friendly, aspirational, cultural, and dynamic travel destination. • Highlighting the USA’s diverse travel resources and choices, and continuing its welcome messaging to the Chinese visitors will showcase its compelling competitive edge. 2. To increase engagement and interaction with current and potential visitors and partners on appropriate social media networks. • Strengthening the connections between the US and its target audiences and strategic partners through clear communication will gain a 9 favorable impression; this will allow it to establish and maintain a high market share and build a strong word-of-mouth reputation to attract more visitors. 3. To cultivate substantial positive media coverage to establish a positive brand image. • Positive word-of-mouth and grassroots-style reviews from visitors, key opinion leaders (KOLs), and partners’ channels will shape a positive audience attitude toward the US. Research Research objectives are to: • Quantify the extent of Chinese visitors’ awareness and understanding of U.S. travel options. • Identify the channels through which Chinese visitors access travel information. • Determine the factors that encourage or discourage Chinese travelers from visiting the US. • Examine the nature of the disconnect between Brand USA’s current communication strategies and the Chinese audience. • Craft the kinds of messages and strategies that should be employed to 10 increase Chinese visitors’ awareness of and tendency to travel to the US. Background and Secondary Research Brand USA wants to investigate how it can improve its Chinese marketing communication strategies in order to increase brand awareness and visitation to U.S. destinations. Some secondary research was conducted to make some initial observations about the challenges in tourism marketing and how Brand USA’s current strategies can be improved in terms of reaching out to more Chinese travelers and increasing brand awareness and visitation. A key observation from this secondary research is that the United States tends to be among the top choices for Chinese international outbound travelers. According to a report by Travel China Guide, in 2017 the US ranked as the 6th most visited destination by Chinese outbound travelers (Travel China Guide, 2018). However, in another survey, the US ranked as the number one most preferred long-haul destination, followed by France and Australia (Australia Tourism Commission, 1999). This data indicates the popularity of the US among Chinese travelers, while the actual number of visitors is not as high as expected. The following primary research needs to dig deeper for the reasons behind this discrepancy. Another finding from the secondary research is that China has been the world’s largest outbound travel market since 2014 (CNTA, 2015). In addition, based on the annual market plan from Brand USA, China is one of fastest growing markets for the US, and 11 Chinese travelers also represent the top national travel group in terms of travel spending in the US (Brand USA, 2017). According to Brand USA ’s 2018 business plan, it is shifting its budget to focus on these markets with the highest return on investment, which again raises the urgency for Brand USA to create a better marketing plan tailored to the China market. Another insight gained from the secondary research is that most Chinese first-time international travelers tend to choose short-haul destinations in Asia, due to issues of language and affordability (Grant, 2013). Similar statements were found in another important study that mentioned that a lack of information, language barriers, and the financial situation could all have a major impact on consumers’ travel decisions (Conrady & Buck, 2007). From this, it was decided that questions should be asked in the survey of Chinese consumers to find out if these factors are also true for Chinese travelers, and if there are more factors that discourage Chinese travelers from visiting the US. Developments in technology have been among the major sources of change for international marketing in various industries (Cavusgil, Sinkovics & Ghauri, 2009). In addition, the development of social media and other digital channels have also been shown to have had a great impact on both the demand and the supply sides of the tourism sector (Minazzi, 2015). Can social media and other digital channels enable Brand USA to increase its presence in the Chinese outbound market, and potentially maximize its market share? In other words, are Brand USA’s current digital strategies insufficient for it to achieve its 12 ultimate goal? These questions shall be addressed in the next stage of research. Methodology The secondary research highlighted some useful information and several general ideas on factors that influence the travel decision-making process, along with some facts and insights about Chinese travelers. Based on those, the primary research was conducted in two stages: qualitative then quantitative research. The first stage included an interview with Jason Pacheco, a senior international marketing consultant for Brand USA. This interview provided several insights into current Brand USA strategies and the challenges in its practice. Also, the interview was used to narrow the research spectrum in the second stage and to identify areas worthy of further examination in terms of the success of Brand USA’s marketing strategies. The second stage was a survey of general Chinese consumers from both tier-one and tier-two cities to study a larger cross-section of Chinese travelers and to gain a more accurate understanding of their attitudes and perceptions regarding the US as a travel destination. The interview questions and survey questions are included in the appendix. Qualitative Research  Interview After the secondary research was conducted, it was important to find out the status of Brand USA’s current strategies towards the China market. Therefore, Pacheco was chosen for the in-person interview as he had the accurate information regarding Brand 13 USA’s current Chinese outbound market strategies, and was also likely to have insights regarding the current challenges and obstacles, as well. The questions focused on Brand USA’s understanding of the Chinese outbound market and current strategies specific to Chinese travelers. The interview enabled the researcher to understand the opportunities and obstacles for Brand USA in the China market so that the later research could be more specific and focused. Quantitative Research  Survey Based on the first stage of primary research, several factors were identified as potentially affecting Chinese travelers’ decision making and effective ways of communication marketing. A survey was designed to explore these factors; it featured 18 questions in total, including two screening questions, five questions on Chinese international travelers’ general preferences and habits, six questions specifically about the US, plus five for demographic data. There were a total of 267 responses, 203 of which were valid (the other 64 were not able to go through the screening questions). The sampling frame was made up of Chinese travelers who possessed a passport and had traveled at least once before. The ratio of participants from tier-one and tier-two cities was nearly 50:50, which ensured 14 that the participants were sufficiently representative of general Chinese travelers. The sampling method was non-probability sampling. The researcher recruited respondents online and offline. In order to ensure the accuracy of samples, two screening questions were set to eliminate those who had never traveled internationally before, since according to the secondary research most Chinese first-time international travelers would choose short-haul destinations in Asia, which means they are not the potential target audience for Brand USA. The respondents were anonymous, and the questions for the US were placed at the end so that the respondents could give unbiased answers as the survey unfolded. Cross-tabulations were used to analyze the data, which was then compared to the findings from the qualitative research. All of these research results were put together to balance the generalization and specific ideas. With the responses from the interview and the results from the survey, the researcher was able to get information from two perspectives: the brand and its target audiences. This helped to create a clear comparison between the ideal and reality, so that more useful insights from the research could be used to design a more effective marketing communication plan. Insights from the Primary Research Online travel agencies, social media, and peer recommendations are the top 15 three channels for Chinese travelers to gain travel-related information. However, over 70% of Brand USA’s marketing budget of China market is focused on the traditional trade side, and most of its media and advertising budget is spent on outdoor advertisements and traditional media. Sixty-seven percent of the respondents selected “Online travel agencies” as one of their main channels to get travel-related information; around 54% of the respondents selected “Social media”; around 34% selected “Peer recommendations”; and around 26% selected “Traditional tour agencies.” However, based on the interview, Pacheco stated: “More than 60% of Brand USA’s budget for China is still in the trade section.” He explained that most of the budget was invested in representatives, trade shows, and outdoor and traditional media advertising. Pacheco said: “It’s because we need more trade partners to help us to develop and promote products, and most of the business for us has come from tour groups over the past decade.” He also mentioned the lack of knowledge of the Chinese digital and social media landscape and the lack of trustworthy Chinese digital agency partners as reasons for Brand USA’s preliminary stage of developing the China market. However, according to Pacheco, the organization had realized the issue and increased its budget allocation on digital from two years ago. He also said: “I think one of the biggest problems in Brand USA’s current strategies is they don’t have enough partnerships with the rising Chinese online travel agencies (OTAs) such as Ctrip, Fliggy, etc.” Four out of five Chinese travelers have never been to the US because they are 16 worried about costs and language barriers, and suffer from a lack of information. Eighty-two percent of the 230 respondents said they have not been to the US . The most common reason stated by those who have not traveled to the US was “Price,” which was selected by over 55% of the respondents. In addition, around 42% of them said “Language barrier”; nearly 35% said “Not enough information”; 10% identified the “Visa” issue as the reason; and 8% of the respondents thought that the “Safety concerns” was one of the reasons as well. One in five Chinese travelers have visited the US before. Peer recommendations, attractive photos or reviews shared by others, and good deals are the top three motivations for Chinese travelers to visit the US. Eighteen percent of the respondents said they had visited the US. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the demographic factor that was most significantly correlated with respondents having ever traveled to the US was “annual income.” Among the respondents who had been to the US, the most common motivation for traveling to the US was “Friends’ or relatives’ recommendations,” which was selected by 43% of them. Meanwhile, around 22% of them said, “Photos or reviews shared by KOLs, celebrities and bloggers”. The third most common response, selected by around 19% of them, was “A good deal.” Also, 11% of them selected “To visit a friend or family member,” which was the fourth biggest motivation selected by respondents. This indicates that the people who live in the US have a relatively substantial impact on their friends’ and families’ travel decisions. However, 17 according to the interview with Pacheco, Brand USA is aware that there is a large Chinese population living or studying in the US, but: “Unfortunately, Brand USA doesn’t have specific major strategies developed around these people yet.” He further indicated that Brand USA ought to develop such a strategy. Three in five Chinese travelers like to share their travel experiences and photos on social media, with females being more likely to do so. Fifty-nine percent of the respondents said they are “likely” or “very likely” to “share travel pictures and experiences on social media or with [their] friends”. The percentage of female respondents was 82%. One in twenty Chinese travelers have heard or followed Brand USA’s digital outlets. Less than 5% of the respondents had ever heard or followed at least one of Brand USA’s social media accounts or GoUSA.cn. However, among the respondents who had heard or followed Brand USA’s accounts or website, 40% had visited the US. This finding seems to support Pacheco’s concern about Brand USA’s current digital strategies; he said: “We all know free independent travelers are the future; social media and word-of-mouth will be the main drivers. But I am a little worried about our current digital strategies are not fully developed, and these numbers like followers and engagements on social media 18 are not good enough, in my opinion.” Four out of five Chinese travelers lack knowledge of the US as a travel destination, but eight in ten Chinese travelers want to visit the US in the future. Eighty percent of the respondents said they have “little” or “very little” knowledge of “the US as a travel destination.” More encouragingly, 83% of the respondents said they “want” or “really want” to “visit the US in the future.” Similarly, based on secondary research and the interview with Pacheco, China is currently the fastest-growing market to the US, and Chinese travelers are the groups with the biggest spending power. As Pacheco said: “We believe Chinese travelers love America and, in fact, it has become one of the most important international markets for Brand USA.” Recommendations All in all, Brand USA is in a decidedly advantageous position to expand its network of visitors to include Chinese international visitors. As the secondary research, interview, and survey results aptly demonstrate, the US is already one of the most popular long-haul destinations in the China outbound market. All that remains now is for Brand USA to convert that sense of general familiarity into regular, loyal consumer behavior. The recommendations mainly center on the importance of developing digital outreach strategies and optimizing traditional trade strategies in order to attract more first- time and repeat travelers. If these new strategies are properly implemented, Brand USA 19 should expect to see a rise in social media presence and numbers of visitors. If Brand USA hopes to achieve these desirable results, it is important to once again note that Brand USA needs to continue broadening its social media presence and other digital strategies regarding online travel agencies, search engines, etc, thus allowing this multi-platform coverage to help build a more interactive and engaging experience for the target audience. To recap, Brand USA should also offset Chinese travelers’ concerns about the price, language barrier, and lack of knowledge of U.S. travel options by conveying the messages that the US is a Chinese-friendly, instantly bookable, and easily travelable destination with unique and diverse travel experiences. Furthermore, Brand USA should pursue more proactive and innovative strategies towards its existing partners, and it should establish new partnerships and relations with other online travel agencies and burgeoning social platforms. It should engage and leverage more key audiences such as Chinese people living in the US and influential travel-related opinion leaders. Situation Analysis In order for Brand USA to execute a structured and effective campaign while utilizing resources optimally, it is critical to clearly evaluate its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. 20 • Strengths: o Abundant and distinctive tourism resources: The US has abundant travel destinations, resources, and infrastructure. Each state and metropolitan area has its own distinctive culture, nature resources, and attractions. o Well-known cities and travel brands: Major cities such as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Francisco have already built strong awareness and reputations in the market. Famous travel brands and institutions such as Disney Resorts, Universal Studios, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art attract millions of visitors annually. o Well-established services, facilities, and public transportation: The US’s tourism transportation system is well-developed. Its air, rail, and shipping connections as well as its pristine highway system provide great support to the nation’s tourism industry, and its developed hotel industry also sets the foundation for welcoming incremental visitors. o Professional and well-trained team in global tourism marketing: Brand USA brings a team with strong expertise and experience in global travel. It also recently appointed a regional director for China to develop and execute its annual strategic plan in China. o Flexible budget: As an edge over its competitors, Brand USA benefits from contributions from destination members and travel brands and matching funds from the U.S. government. Its annual promotional budget ranges from $3 million 21 to $4 million specifically for the China market, and this continues to grow, offering a degree of flexibility for diverse campaigns and programs. o Unified efforts from local destinations’ marketing organizations: Many cities and states in the US also have their own marketing organizations or associations. With the combined efforts of all these allies and partners, Brand USA is able to execute its plan on a wider scale. • Weaknesses: o Insufficient knowledge and understanding of the unique China market: Although the US is not a newcomer to the China market and most of its team members are well-trained and experienced global tourism professionals, the China market is unique and complex. Brand USA’s China team needs more bilingual and bicultural experts and travel marketers who have deep on-the- ground knowledge of both the US and China. o Few key partners and up-to-date programs: China’s tourism industry is changing rapidly, Brand USA ’s current traditional programs and partners are not sufficient to keep up with the changing market. Besides its traditional media and trade partners, Brand USA does not have enough ongoing programs or partnerships with the rising online travel platforms or new media channels that are playing increasingly important roles in Chinese tourists’ researching and booking stages. o Minimal social media reach: Brand USA has a relatively poor presence and 22 low engagement on Chinese social media platforms such as WeChat, Weibo, and Zhihu. Brand USA’s current third-party marketing agency partner in China does not perform as well as expected. Competitors such as Tourism Australia have had more success in terms of social media performance, social media coverage, pinpointing the key influencers, and so on. • Opportunities: o China’s economy remains strong: China’s GDP growth is expected to be around 6–7% for the next few years. The economic outlook and consumer outbound travel trends for China are expected to continue to be favorable. o Significant travel motivation and market potential: According to the Market Research Report on Chinese Outbound Tourist (City) Consumption 2015–2016, 76% of Chinese travelers consider that travel is an important way to improve their quality of life and happiness. In all, 29% of Chinese travelers regard travel as being as important as marriage, family wealth, career development, and education for their children. However, the number of China's current outbound tourists is still less than 10% of its total population. o Number one spending group among all visitor nationalities: What makes Chinese travelers such a desirable target group is not only the rapidly rising number of travelers but, just as importantly, the propensity of these travelers to spend. With average spending per capita per trip to the US of $7,566, long-haul Chinese travelers are the highest-spending group among all inbound visitor 23 nationalities. In 2016, China dominated the tourism-related spending ranking in the US with $34.8 billion in total, followed by Canada with $19.8 billion (National Travel and Tourism Office, 2017). o China's middle class is rising rapidly: Chinese outbound travel demand is currently being driven by middle-aged and older affluent middle-class Chinese (aged 35 to 60 years). The young, affluent middle class (aged 18 to 34 years) is forecast to be a future main driver of demand for outbound travel. Over the next five years, the number of affluent Chinese consumers will grow from 4 million to 20 million. o A Chinese American population of 3.8 million, and 350,000 Chinese international students: The large number of Chinese nationals living and studying in the US has had a significant influence on the travel decisions of their visiting friends and family. They are also the most active audience segment on social media. o The 10-year U.S. visa for Chinese citizens: The 10-year U.S. visa for Chinese citizens should continue to be made available. Currently, there are five offices in China through which travelers can apply for such visas. These offices are located in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, and Shenyang. Recently, there have been significant steps taken to reduce processing times, including the waiving of interviews for qualified applicants who have held valid visas in the past 48 months. 24 o The currency exchange rate remains stable: China reverted back to a prudent monetary policy, after letting its currency be relatively loose, when in 2008 they experienced, along the rest of the world, the financial downturn. A combination of a strong and steady economy and appreciating currency has led to rising disposable incomes for the Chinese middle class. • Threats: o A wide variety of competitors: The dominant destination for both leisure and business, driven by issues of proximity, cost, and language, is still Asia for Chinese outbound travelers. Thailand, South Korea, and Japan are the three most popular destinations among Chinese outbound travelers; the US falls behind as number six on this list. Among the competitors for China’s long-haul market, other long-haul destinations such as Europe, Canada, and Australia have long been influential. Competition in China will only intensify between destinations vying for their market share in the coming years. o Capricious political relationships between China and the US, plus regulations and policies affecting the tourism industry: China’s government and business travel will continue to be negatively impacted due to stricter government regulations on government and business spending, especially on overseas travels. On the U.S. side, Donald Trump and his government advocate restrictive immigration and travel policies that could negatively impact the travel market, as well. 25 • Strategic implications: By embracing the significant potential of China’s outbound travel market and by developing joint marketing efforts with strategic partners to cater to the target Chinese audience, Brand USA will be investing in prospects for strengthened brand image and leading in the competition of China’s global travel market. There are strategic implications for Brand USA in terms of an emphasis on tailored communication programs, carefully designed welcome messaging, and clear communication throughout the select channels in the China market. With explicit directions, straightforward strategies, and achievable goals, the campaign has the potential for significant success. Objectives There are four objectives that this public relations plan aims to accomplish by engaging with the Chinese target audience through online and offline channels, with the ultimate goal of sustaining and increasing the incremental visitors and incremental travel spend from China’s outbound travel market. 1. Within the second quarter of FY 2019, to initiate or engage at least 800 U.S.-destinations-related topics and conversations on social media and online travel agencies’ discussion boards and travel forums. • This objective can be accomplished with the hiring of a designated social media team to respond quickly, or through initiating inspiring, 26 travel-related discussions on Weibo, blogs, and/or other Chinese online travel agencies’ discussion boards. 2. Within the third quarter of FY 2019, to achieve a 150% increase in the number of followers for Brand USA’s WeChat and Weibo accounts, and a 300% increase in engagement and interaction with current and potential target audience on social media sites • The audience currently interacts minimally with Brand USA’s Chinese social media accounts. Every status or post updated by Brand USA receives between five and 30 “likes” on average, and an average of fewer than five comments per post. • The goal is not only to promote interaction and conversation between followers and Brand USA, but also to develop organic dialogues and user-generated content among enthusiastic tourists. 3. By the end of FY 2019, to achieve a 300% increase in positive media coverage and user-generated content such as reviews, travel guides, and photo albums. • This achievement will help to build towards the goal of increasing awareness and brand reputation of U.S. destinations. It will help Brand USA to increase the market share via word-of-mouth. 27 Target Audiences Bold, determined middle class living in tier-one and tier-two cities Young, affluent Chinese middle class living in China’s tier-one and tier two-cities are a key target audience that is forecast to be a main driver of demand for Chinese long- haul travel in the future. In the next five years, the number of affluent Chinese consumers will grow from 4 million to 20 million. According to the Chinese Millionaires Wealth Report 2011 (Hurun, 2012), the percentage of wealthy Chinese people who had traveled overseas in the past three years was 29%, which was a large increase compared to 2009 when the figure was only 16%. The four largest cities, Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen, represent over 100 million people. In addition, tier-two cities such as Nanjing, Hangzhou, Wuhan, Chengdu, and Chongqing each have populations of over 10 million. Most Chinese travelers are looking to get away from the constraints of home or family life; most of them are sophisticated travelers seeking authentic experiences in destinations that can mix both urban and rural elements. They are looking beyond the well-known gateway cities and also favor new experiences over material possessions. Therefore, travelers from tier-one and tier-two cities are more likely to be repeat visitors to the US and to hold ten-year travel visas. Free Independent travelers (FITs) China’s free independent travelers are well-educated and affluent elites 18 to 40 years old. They are college-aged students; young white-collar professionals; mid-career 28 professionals with young children; and high-level executives at large corporations. On average, they take three overseas trips in a year, and are looking to plan and travel on their own and be more independent in travel decisions. They have higher spending power than the other travel groups, and they have been the main contributors to the luxury travel leap in recent years. In the past three years, there has been a sharp rise in the number of Chinese FITs traveling to long-haul destinations: from 30% of all Chinese outbound travelers to 40%. Senior Group Tour Series travelers and traditional tour operators While Chinese free independent travelers are the future, group tours still represent a popular and fast-growing sector of Chinese travelers to the US (Brand USA, 2017). Most group-tour travelers are first-time visitors to the US looking for iconic destinations and experiences. Therefore, it remains vitally important to build relationships with key traditional travel and trade partners. There are around 30 leading tour operators focused on selling travel to the US in China, and another 40 top receptive operators focusing on building tour stops as part of the itineraries sold in the US. Traditional tour operators offer highly competitive pricing on tour packages to attract customers for long-haul trips. Group series tours are popular among less-sophisticated travelers with fewer language skills looking for the comfort of larger group experiences and who tend to book in person through travel agencies. Travelers of this kind tend to favor experiencing and taking photos of the new culture, food, natural beauty, theme parks, etc. 29 Newly thriving Chinese Online Travel Agents (OTAs) As a result of a dramatic rise in the number of free independent travelers and the rapid development of the Chinese digital landscape, there Chinese OTAs such as Ctrip.com, Qunar.com, Alitrip and Tuniu.com have experienced phenomenal growth over the past five years (China Daily, 2017). Chinese outbound tourists are most likely to choose domestic tourism websites for outbound travel information and peer recommendations so it becomes important for Brand USA to build a strong presence on these newly thriving Chinese OTA sites, and to establish strategic partnerships with these sites to increase awareness and sales. Chinese living and studying in the US. There are approximately 3.79 million Chinese now living in the US, and Chinese immigrants now represent the largest group of new arrivals to the US (U.S. Census Bureau, 2012). Chinese Nationals living and studying in the US have significant influence on the travel decisions of their visiting friends and family. They will often take trips away from the cities where they live when friends and family are coming to visit. There is an obvious opportunity in developing content and campaigns to target the local Chinese in key feeder markets. The substantial Chinese millennial demographic in North America is the key target audience segment; they not only have significant influence on their friends and relatives back in China, but they are also trendsetters and digital drivers. There are over 30 460,000 Chinese millennials in North America, and their numbers continue to grow (Open Doors, 2017). They are making a combined net contribution of some $15 billion to the U.S. and Canadian economies. Luxury goods and travel are a substantial portion of their expense, and most of them are highly active on various social media channels. Opinion leaders and media Travel-related media and travel and lifestyle opinion leaders and influencers are important sources that Chinese international travelers look to for information and grassroots recommendations on travel destinations. Tapping into the audiences of these influencers and media would broaden Brand USA’s reach and encourage positive media coverage. Key Messages To reach these key audiences effectively, Brand USA needs to strategically tailor its messages to each segment. Due to the competitive nature of social media, there is a need to stand out by using a cross-platforms media approach. Paid, owned, and earned media should be activated around the key pieces of content to increase the presence and deepen the engagement – using GoUSA Web, WeChat, Weibo, OTA sites, travel and lifestyle blogs/news outlets, and video-sharing websites. Key messages should include information relevant to the communication marketing plan while emphasizing the following ideas: 31 • The US is a desirable destination that offers a wide array of unique travel experiences and adventures. o The US is not a once-in-a-lifetime destination. It is a place like no other; it has variety of choices for different types of travelers to repeatedly come to the U.S., from metropolitan cities to rural nature, from coastal scenery to flourishing forests and national parks, from shopping havens to outdoor adventures, etc. • The US is a Chinese-tourists-friendly nation. The cities and destinations of the US are making their best efforts to welcome, cater to, and thank Chinese travelers. o By connecting with current and potential tourists and travel enthusiasts on Chinese social media and travel sites, Brand USA will demonstrate its commitment to communicating with and welcoming Chinese travelers. o By having conversations with target audiences and monitoring the conversations among stakeholders, Brand USA will develop a better understanding of what Chinese travelers are looking for and concerned by. For example, Brand USA should promote its ten-year visa program to more of the target audience, and offer Chinese-language travel guides and detailed itineraries to first-time visitors. • Though the USA is a premier travel destination, it has become more 32 affordable and accessible to mass Chinese travelers. o There are nine airlines offering 49 flight services across 13 U.S. airports and 11 Chinese airports, and most airlines are planning to operate more non-stop flight services in the next three years. This provides significant time and financial benefits to Chinese tourists traveling to the US. o The US is a destination that offers both rural and urban travel experiences with both luxury and economical choices for tourists of all ages. Strategies and Tactics To achieve its business goals, ensure sustainable growth in terms of numbers of visitors, and maximize its return on investment, Brand USA needs to execute a holistic communication plan with various tailored strategies and tactics aimed at covering three different aspects of communication efforts from digital marketing, public relations and media buy, travel trade and co-ops. Strategies and Tactics in Digital Before discussing the detail of digital strategies and tactics, it is essential to look at China’s communication environment, which is the foundation for designing the following strategies and tactics. Today, China’s communication environment is complex and unique. Consumers are 33 savvy, their attention is short, and their expectations are high. The US is facing strong competition for this attention, making it challenging to convert a consumer from a “like,” a “follower,” an “email address,” or a “website visitor” and get them to physically visit the US. Consumers use multiple digital channels with a variety of devices for different purposes. Every platform and every digital channel has its own rules and presents different challenges and opportunities. It is important for Brand USA to know how to act and engage on these specific platforms. Along with consumer behavior and the online travel industry, digital platforms are evolving at rapid speed. There is a substantial gap between what the destinations normally communicate to their audiences and what the Chinese tourists really care about and are interested in. There are five major phases for a Chinese consumer’s online journey, and these must inform the development of digital strategies. Below, the role of each phase is outlined and with a discussion of the optimal channels and actions for each: 1. Dreaming: to create interest to move the traveler from mere curiosity to active consideration of the destination. Relevant channels and actions include: • Social media • Co-branding and cross-over campaigns with other industry partners • Integrated digital advertising 34 • KOLs tailored tour • Film and TV shows 2. Planning: to influence the travelers’ choices by offering added value beyond the competitors’ offerings. The emphasis should be on “showing off,” helping people discover, answering their questions, having conversations, building advocacy, and humanizing destinations. Relevant channels and actions include: • Targeted and personalized advertising on search engines • Social media content and conversation • OTA sites and partner airlines’ co-ops 3. Booking: to make it easier to identify relevant offers and make reservations. The focus should be on providing relevant, timely information to grab consumers’ attention and solve their problems with the right information on the right platforms. Relevant channels and actions include: • Online channels of partner airlines and hotels • OTA sites’ co-ops • OTA sites’ community management • Call-to-action campaigns 35 • Destination-owned sites 4. Experiencing: to increase the spending at the destination point and prompt sharing. Relevant channels and actions include: • Social media content and conversions • Booking platforms • Incentive-driving campaigns 5. Post-Trip: to aggregate and amplify the positive word-of-mouth testimonies. Relevant channels and actions include: • Social media user-generated content • OTA sites’ community engagement and management Based on the discussion above, and given the increasing importance of the internet and its cost-effective benefits in terms of reaching mass consumers and target audiences, the digital strategic element should be the essence of Brand USA’s communications plan. Its main strategies and tactics should be: 1. To establish more comprehensive Chinese social media networks to reach the target audience on a wider and deeper level via a variety of content formats. • For most tourism marketing people in dealing with the China market, 36 it has always been a challenge to define the right channels to communicate with the target audience. The importance of WeChat and Weibo has been increasingly recognized in recent years, but the Chinese digital world is not only unique; it is also changing rapidly. Besides creating and managing Brand USA WeChat and Weibo accounts, it is also vital to keep up with the pace of the Chinese social world by establishing a presence on the rising social sites such as Toutiao and Zhihu. In addition, Brand USA should not only post video content on traditional video sites like Youku and iQiyi; it also needs to develop its seeding content creator in increasingly popular short video- clip-sharing apps such as Tik Tok, Kwai, and others. 2. To design and implement a new content strategy that promotes exciting, authentic, “brag-worthy,” and diverse travel experiences to emphasize the USA as a clearly defined, instantly bookable, and easily travelable destination suitable for both first-time visitors and repeat travelers. • Beyond simply translating Brand USA’s content into global social channels, it is important to create localized content around four major categories about which Chinese tourists care the most: food and drink, shopping, sightseeing, and hotel stays. • Brand USA should create a “Chinese Social Copywriter” position to 37 help it keep up with trending Chinese topics and stories and to capitalize on both Chinese and American festivities. It should create editorial calendars, topics, and hashtags that relate to Chinese consumers’ daily lives and inspires to explore the states. This should involve leveraging on holiday seasons (Chinese New Year, Golden Week, summer holidays, Christmas, etc.); releasing tailored, festive- themed materials and messages highlighting popular travel products; and devising promotions focused on targeting both group tour families and free independent travelers. • Brand USA should also create a “Gateway+2” paring content strategy: Every time an iconic or familiar U.S. destination is mentioned on social media, two other relatively unfamiliar but geographically proximate destinations should be highlighted so that Chinese audiences will learn more travel options in the US. This can inspire Chinese travelers to use well-known U.S. cities as bases for exploring more of the nation when they visit. • Brand USA should develop partnerships with major airlines and tour operators to create specific content to introduce airports and direct flight options across China to showcase that the US has become an instantly bookable and easily travelable destination for most Chinese travelers. 38 3. To execute promotional plans to boost follower numbers and increase media reach. • The usage of well-designed H5 sites and mini-programs in apps such as WeChat has a proven record of success in terms of fan and user acquisition. Brand USA could launch an H5 or mini-program campaign entitled: “Where you would live if you were an American?” The audience could enter the event by answering simple questions relating to favorite lifestyles, celebrities, music genres, professions, places, and so on, and an algorithm can match the participant with one of the destinations or states of the US. Participants could upload their photos to generate pictures of themselves against iconic backdrops from their matched destinations, which they could then share on their social media platforms. People can be incentivized to participate with a raffle, the winners of which will be rewarded with a trip to explore their selected destinations. • Brand USA should partner with KOLs and travel bloggers to share travel experiences and appealing visual content, leveraging on the fan base of KOLs and travel bloggers to drive web traffic to Brand USA’s social media channels. • Brand USA should also create a campaign to celebrate rises in follower 39 numbers. When a social media account reaches milestones such as 1 million, 1.5 million, and/or 2 million followers, a raffle should be held with the opportunity to win cash prizes and flight tickets. 4. To develop community management systems for follower engagement to create a well-maintained target audience community. • Brand USA should create a “Community Manager” position to begin to respond to and engage in reviews and conversations on social media and OTA sites’ forums and discussion boards. This would allow Brand USA to establish a positive image among the online community. From this base it could begin to take the initiative to answer followers’ questions, organize conversation topics, and encourage users to generate content. • It should also create a loyalty program that rewards the most active and productive contributors to Brand USA’s social channels with discount flight tickets, shopping coupons, gift cards, and so on. They can share these offers with their friends or use them on return trips to the US. • Brand USA should hold seasonal webinars with key tour operators and airline partners in the market, to share the latest travel information, offers, and insights. It should make full use of its social media channels 40 to amplify its message and reach a wider audience. 5. To drive the social media traffic to booking pages to convert interest into increased bookings and sales. • An easy-to-use microsite should be set up within Brand USA’s official WeChat account to further develop this social channel, and to deliver more consistent, timely, and relevant content that inspires travelers to experience U.S. destinations. The microsite should be a platform where all necessary information about the destination can be found, such as themed trips, itinerary recommendations, travel tips, etc. This microsite will also provide a direct booking window in the form of hyperlinks to partner hotels, attractions, and parks to provide a one-stop solution for social media followers. • Links or embedded QR codes to the microsite should also be shared on online forums and online travel agency discussion boards where people can discover more information. People should be able to book tickets and hotel stays directly through the microsite to further potentially drive sales. • Brand USA should devise a campaign that leads members of the target audience to follow the KOLs’ travel footprints. Brand USA would collaborate with KOLs and celebrities to ask them to take selfies in 41 front of particular places on their trips, and then share the selfies on their social media platforms. Within the following six months, their followers could visit the same places and take selfies in the same spots to win a chance to attend in-person meetings with these KOLs and celebrities. A raffle should be held in the offline meetings with the first prize of winning a chance to visit a place in the US with the KOL. 6. To engage with Chinese people living and studying in the US to promote it as one of the “must-go” destinations via word-of-mouth. • Brand USA’s current strategies all focus on the visitors. However, there is an audience segment that is living, traveling, and shopping across the US on a daily basis. These people know the destination and have a huge impact on their friends’ and families’ travel decisions. Programs should therefore be designed to offer themed trips, discounts, and promotions from merchants for Chinese living in the US and their friends and family during special seasons such as graduation season, spring break, and Chinese New Year. Most of them are highly active online, and there is enormous value in cultivating them to become Brand USA’s advocates and user-generated-content creators. • Brand USA should also hold or sponsor events with local Chinese students’ associations and communities such as the Chinese Students 42 and Scholars Association in order to engage with local students and their visiting friends and families. • It should create geo-targeted social advertisements with tailored content to inspire actions from local Chinese residents and their visiting friends and family during key travel periods. 7. To develop Brand USA's Chinese site (GoUSA.cn) as the ultimate portal for U.S. travel information to unite the joint efforts and amplify the voice for each destination in the US. • To build a stronger presence, some bigger destinations in the US have their own destination marketing offices in China, along with their own social channels and websites for the Chinese market,. However, messages from many different sources can be overwhelming for Chinese audiences, so it is important to ensure that GoUSA.cn functions as the ultimate information hub for those traveling to the US. To build the presence of this site, a series of video campaigns should be implemented. Each destination should produce a three-minute video clip that showcases its travel resources and efforts made to cater for the Chinese audience. Each video should be featured on the site for one week, and this week should be named after that destination (i.e. “the week of LA” or “the week of NYC”). In that week, the majority of 43 Brand USA’s marketing efforts and resources should be used to promote this destination and the video through all channels. The audience could engage and learn more information through GoUSA.cn. • Search engine optimization (SEO) and SEM strategies and efforts should target relevant key words and optimize page rankings. Various SEO techniques should be used: for example, optimizing web content, cooperating with “Baidu Promotion Alliance", and purchasing keywords related to the promotion in order to keep Brand USA’s Chinese portal among the top search results on Baidu.com. • Brand USA should establish more high-quality outbound links with online travel sites and social sites to drive the traffic to GoUSA.cn. • Brand USA should create a contest entitled “I want to be the brand ambassador” that engages and encourages user-generated content creators to share their work on social channels with no format restrictions. Winners should be awarded cash, free trips, and other gifts. All the voting results announcements should be made on the GoUSA.cn site to maximize traffic and establish awareness of the site and the brand. 44 Strategies and Tactics in PR and Media Buying To inform and inspire Brand USA’s target audience (including media, opinion leaders, travel operators, and the general public), raise awareness, and establish a positive image, three main strategies and tactics in PR should be: 1. To improve brand awareness and image, and especially to build a better understanding of the brand among inhabitants of China’s tier-one and tier- two cities. • Brand USA should host a series of media events in target tier-one and tier-two cities across China. These should be aimed at local print and broadcast media to introduce the efforts U.S. destinations have made to be more welcoming and cater to Chinese visitors. The media events should also introduce regulations such as the ten-year visa policy that make the US more easily travelable for Chinese visitors. • Brand USA should also host exhibitions in target cities’ museums, parks, and shopping malls to showcase modern American culture, arts, music, and so on, to inspire interest among target audiences. • Brand USA should also construct iconic U.S. scenes in the busy commercial centers of selected Chinese cities to recreate certain familiar scenes in American TV shows or movies to Chinese audiences. This can raise people’s interest and inspire them to experience the US 45 for real, while providing news-worthy content for the media. 2. To establish on-going proactive and systematic media relations development programs and maintenance with key media contacts to build the awareness and preference for the US as a desired destination among Chinese tourists. • Brand USA should create a “media relations manager” position to focus on media monitoring and market intelligence, including daily media and blog monitoring and regular media and consumer audits to gain market and competition insights. • It should also establish and manage a media database covering a wide range of print, internet, and broadcast media outlets, to track the impact and reach of Brand USA media content to discover the best media outlets and formats for Brand USA. • It should prepare a media kit that is both informative and attractive to support Brand USA’s brand positioning among key media partners. • It should maintain weekly communication with key media contacts via telephone, email, and newsletters. • It should organize familiarization trips to the US for key media partners and opinion leaders. 46 3. To execute a highly selective media and advertisement strategy focusing on target audience in tier-one and tier-two cities. • Place advertising on only top media like <Travelling Scope>, <National Geographic traveler>, etc., during a certain period of time. • Besides traditional spots like airports and bus stations, start to test to place eye-catchy and inspiring ads in new places like screens in office buildings, subway stations, live-streaming apps. • Outdoor celebrity reality TV shows in China such as <Keep Running> remains popular and highly viewed for years. Some episodes of the outdoor reality shows will be shot overseas, it will be a good opportunity to collaborate with selected reality TV shows for Brand USA to invite and accommodate the crews and celebrities to experience the US, and then create conversation around it online. • American TV shows and Hollywood movies always have a big impact on Chinese consumers, especially on those well-educated middle class which is one of the Brand USA’s main target audience. Partner with some selected TV shows or movies featuring certain destinations and attractions will help to inspire the interest of target audience to the US. 47 Strategies and Tactics in Trade Like most non-English-speaking, developing, long-haul markets, a majority of Chinese travelers, especially first-time travelers, prefer to travel on packaged tours. This requires Brand USA to build a strong communication strategy in dealing with tour operators and trade partners. Four of the main strategies and tactics are: 1. To establish on-going proactive trade relations development programs with key trade partners to facilitate Brand USA to build its brand awareness and achieve product-selling goals. • Brand USA should establish and manage a trade partner database covering all major licensed Chinese outbound tour operators who have significant business or potential in the U.S. market. This database should be used to identify the key partners. • It should organize 50 seasonal training seminars in a year to train and certify key trade partners. • It should also develop a comprehensive calendar of online and offline educational seminars for key product development managers in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen. Training should be not be limited to traditional product introduction, but should include brand messaging and sales-marketing tactics that are integrated with related Brand USA communications programs. 48 • Brand USA should create loyalty programs for key trade partners that offer their employees benefits such as discount tickets, complimentary hotel rooms, gift cards, and so on. 2. To attend or sponsor trade events to build a strong presence among key shareholders. • Brand USA should be strategic and focus only on building a strong presence in top trade shows such as the China International Travel Mart, Internationale Tourismus-Börse Berlin, the International Luxury Travel Mart, and the China Outbound Travel & Tourism Market, to engage and maintain strong relationships with key shareholders such as government stakeholders, airline partners, and tour operators. • It should also organize a series of sales missions to 12 key cities – Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Chengdu, Wuhan, Tianjin, Xi’an, Shenyang, Suzhou, and Nanjing – to establish a presence in the market and allow Chinese tour operators and U.S. suppliers to establish direct contact. • Brand USA should organize a series of outreach roadshow trips to other increasingly affluent regions outside of the key 12 Chinese cities listed above. This would allow it to establish new distribution channels and connect with key tour operators in these regions to achieve brand 49 awareness and focus on package tour sales in this new market. • Both U.S. and Chinese governments have a strong influence over the Chinese outbound travel market. Given the power of the Chinese government to regulate Chinese travel trade and media, and the U.S. government’s control of visa and customs policies, it is important to include both governments’ officials as much as possible in all Brand USA’s trade activities. 3. To build strong relationships between U.S. suppliers and Chinese tour operators to enhance brand understanding and encourage new product development. • Brand USA should organize two familiarization trips in 2019 for key tour operators to fly to the US to meet with U.S. suppliers for educational workshops and in-depth, one-on-one discussions of itineraries and products. • It should also establish a brand ambassador program to reward trade partners that offer most support and make most sales by the end of the year with cash prizes. 4. To create online seasonal programs through key online travel partner agencies for a traceable campaign to increase awareness and bookings. 50 • Brand USA should build a strong relationship with key OTAs such as Ctrip, Qunaer, Tuniu, Mafengwo, and others. It should utilize partner OTA platforms’ networks to launch seasonal campaigns to increase awareness and drive traceable results such as hotel bookings and ticket sales. • It should design programs such as promotions at the point of reservation of air tickets, promotional offers to users who research travel information about the US, banner advertisements and promotions via OTA social media channels, and special call-to-action offers through Short Message Service and Electronic Direct Mail strategy to frequent travelers. Evaluation To measure the success of this plan, the following evaluation strategies should be established : • Evaluation of conversations and topics on social media sites and online travel agencies’ discussion boards. o Monitor interaction on social media channels to calculate increases in the frequency of conversations and discussions of topics.  An increase of over 800 positive conversations and engagements would be an indicator of success. 51 o Track social media mentions of Brand USA or U.S.-travel-related topics using social media monitoring tools such as Sougou or Blueview.  Keywords might include “Brand USA,” “U.S. travel,” “U.S. tour,” “Gateway+2,” “U.S. Travel Brand Ambassador,” “U.S. travel recommendations,” “U.S. travel tips,” “ where to visit in the US,” and “iconic destinations in the US,” etc. • Evaluation of media coverage. o Monitor media coverage and sentiment on both traditional media publications and new media channels to calculate increases in positive media coverage.  A 300% increase in positive media coverage would be an indicator of success. • Evaluation of user-generated content. o Monitor posts and topics on social media channels and online travel agencies’ discussion boards to calculate increases in user-generated content.  A 300% increase in user-generated content would be an indicator of success.  A 30% increase in non-traditional iconic destinations topics and conversations shared by the audience would be an indicator of success. 52 • Evaluation of social campaigns. o Success will be measured by the follower numbers of all social media channels, social media “buzz” about the campaigns and events, as well as the incremental visitation and bookings. o These achievements will be considered indicators of success:  An increase of 150% in numbers of social media followers on all channels.  H5 campaign: • At least 100,000 participants entering the campaign. • At least 40,000 followers being converted, and 20,000 shares.  KOL partnership campaign: • At least 10,000 selfies shared on social media. • A turnout of at least 500 participants at the offline event.  Series of roadshows, sales missions, and exhibitions: • At least 500,000 participants and viewers from target tier-one and tier-two cities. • At least 50 media reports on the trade events.  A 5% increase in tour operators’ sales and a 10% increase in online travel agencies’ sales. 53 Timeline The entire communication campaign will run from January 2019 to December 2019, and it will be broken down to three main categories based on the three aspects of main communication efforts discussed in the strategies and tactics: 54 55 56 Budget 57 Appendix 1. Interview Questions 1. How important China market to the U.S. tourism industry? Why? 2. What are the motivations or information source do you think for Chinese travelers to visit the United States? 3. Where would you suggest or prefer Chinese visitors to go to the United States? 4. In general, what kind of strategies is Brand USA using to raise awareness and attract more Chinese visitors? 5. According to the Brand USA fiscal year business plans of recent years, we noticed that Brand USA has increased its budget to the China market every single year, especially in the investment of digital part, why? 6. How do you evaluate Brand USA’s current communication strategies? What improvement should be made , and what are the challenges? 58 2. Survey Questions Screening Questions 1. Do you have a passport? Yes/No 2. Have you ever traveled internationally before? Yes/No General Questions 3. How frequently do you travel abroad ?  More than 5 times per year  3-5 times per year  Once or twice per year  Less than once per year 4. How will you allocate your money in a trip? Please rank the elements below from highest to lowest.  Dining  Airlines  Hotel  Shopping  Sightseeing  Health and wellness 5. How likely would you want to share travel pictures and experience on social media or with your friends? (1-7 Scale) 59 6. Where do you usually get information about travel destinations? Please select all that apply.  Brochures  TV Commercials  Outdoor Ads  Radio  Newspapers/Magazines  Traditional tour agencies  Peer Recommendations  Social Media  Blogs  Online Travel Agencies  Official Websites 7. Where do you prefer to book your trip?  Tour operators  Online travel agencies  Official Websites  Others 8. Have you ever been to the United States before? Yes (to 9) / No (to 8) 9. How likely would each of the factors below discourage you from visiting the United States? Please select all that apply.  Accessibility  Distance  Language barrier  Not enough information  Price 60  Safety concern  Visa  Never thought of  Other 10. What was the motivation that inspired you for that visit? Please select all that apply.  A good deal  Friends or relatives’ recommendation  A TV show or a movie  Photos or reviews shared by KOLs, celebrities and bloggers  To visit a specific city or destination  To visit a friend or family member  To practice my English  To attend an event or meeting  Other (please specify) 11. Have you ever heard of or followed GoUSA.cn, or Brand USA WeChat, Weibo or any other social account? Yes (please specify) / No 12. How much do you consider yourself know the U.S. as a travel destination? (1-7 Scale) 13. Do you want to visit the U.S. in the future? (1-7 Scale) Demographics 14. What is your gender? Male/Female 15. What is your age? 61  18 to 24 years  25 to 34 years  35 to 44 years  45 to 54 years  55 to 64 years  Age 65 or older 16. What is your marital status?  Single (never married)  Married  Separated  Widowed  Divorced 17. What is the highest degree or level of education you have completed?  Less than high school  High school graduate (includes equivalency)  Some college, no degree  Associate's degree  Bachelor's degree  Ph.D.  Graduate or professional degree 18. What was your estimate annual income? (Chinese avg. annul income per Capita is $8,800 in 2017)  Less than $5,000  $5,000 to $9,999  $10,000 to $14,999  $15,000 to $34,999  $35,000 to $59,999  $60,000 to $99,999  $100,000 to $149,999 62  $150,000 or more Bibliography Australia Tourism Commission, (1999). China outbound travel market Brand USA, (2017). Retrieved from: https://www.thebrandusa.com/about/reports China Daily, (2017). Chinese tourists spend more via online travel agencies. 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University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

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Asset Metadata

Creator Lu, Zijun (author)

Core Title How Brand USA will reach its fastest-growing international market - China: Brand USA Chinese strategic public relations plan

School Annenberg School for Communication

Degree Master of Arts

Degree Program Strategic Public Relations

Publication Date 08/15/2018

Defense Date 08/15/2018

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag Brand USA,Chinese digital marketing strategy in tourism,Chinese outbound travel market,Chinese PR strategy plan,OAI-PMH Harvest,tourism marketing,U.S. travel destinations marketing strategy

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Floto, Jennifer (committee chair), Lynch, Brenda (committee member), Yang, Aimei (committee member)

Creator Email 530172959@qq.com,luzijun89@gmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-70620

Unique identifier UC11671431

Identifier etd-LuZijun-6761.pdf (filename),usctheses-c89-70620 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-LuZijun-6761.pdf

Dmrecord 70620

Document Type Thesis

Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Lu, Zijun

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA