May – September 2008 · For the 2008 Caribbean Beach Volley Ball season, nine tournaments have been held along the East Coast of the USA. The last tournament before the finale in

___________________________________________________________________________________ CTO Americas Interim Marketing Report - May – September 2008

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CTO AMERICAS INTERIM MARKETING REPORT

May – September 2008

September 2008


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Introduction The Marketing Department wishes to express its deepest sadness on the passing of our colleague and friend, Arley Sobers. He was loved and admired and we will sorely miss his smile, wisdom and support. The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) expresses its support for the governments and people of our member countries affected by the recent storms. We stand ready to assist in whatever way we can first by offering aid to stricken countries through our CTO Relief Fund. Overview The marketing activity of CTO’s New York office continues to be the function of the Caribbean Tourism Development Company (CTDC) the marketing and business development entity equally owned by the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) and the CTO. CTDC, whose mandate is to Promote, Protect, Advance and Enhance the Caribbean brand, has assumed that responsibility through enlisting the services of the marketing staff of CHTA and the entire staff of CTO New York, as well as a cadre of contractor relationships. While the contractors have been enlisted by signed agreements, no formal arrangement has to date been concluded between CTDC and the staff of CHTA or CTO. Those arrangements are still being worked out. The transition of staff from CTO Barbados to CTO-USA, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of CTO Barbados as well as the transfer of all contracts and vendor agreements from CTO Barbados to CTO-USA, Inc. will take effect in the Fall of 2008. Challenges for the Caribbean The Marketing Report is presented against the backdrop of increased cost for air travel coupled with a reduction in air service to many Caribbean destinations. Rising energy costs, increased competition and a sluggish U.S. economy have all contributed to a reduction in travel as reported by major wholesalers and retail chains in telephone surveys conducted in July and August. The surveys reveal that total bookings to the Caribbean, not including Mexico, for all carriers with wholesale programs are lagging behind 2007 figures for the next six months starting in July by approximately 10.7%. The Mexican Riviera, including Cancun, is up and back to 2005 levels before the major hurricane damage destroyed much of the infrastructure and hotels. Jamaica and the Dominican Republic continue to do well, although the Dominican Republic tourism ministry reports the first monthly drop in arrivals this July in a very long time and anticipates little if any growth for the balance of the year. Several destinations in the Eastern Caribbean including Antigua, St. Kitts and St. Lucia have benefited from new levels of direct air service from mainland USA, even as American Eagle has drastically reduced connecting capacity over San Juan. Our bellwether agencies report business to competitive destinations is down by as much as 20%, including Europe, Hawaii, Florida and Las Vegas. The expectation is that this will be a very difficult Fall for the Caribbean with reduced airline capacity, higher fares and little promotional support. However, there is some optimism among key suppliers that the coming winter season may see a revival once the election is over, with the possibility that the US economy may make a softer landing than many analysts have predicted. The damage caused by recent hurricane activity will create an additional challenge for the region.


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Marketing Activities The marketing activities outlined below are the work of CTDC and the companies with which CTDC has specific contractual arrangements.

1. We continued to aggressively promote the Caribbean Brand represented by our new nine-color Caribbean logo. We have been insistent on the logo’s prominence in whatever materials and web presence we produce with our various business partners.

Curacao has joined the list of member countries that have been including the logo in their advertising and collateral materials. The others are: Bermuda, Islands of the Bahamas, Grenada, Puerto Rico, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and the US Virgin Islands. This is an encouraging start to getting both the public sector and private sector members of CTDC to use the Caribbean logo as a means of clearly identifying with the Caribbean brand as well as providing an endorsement of the brand.

A range of merchandize bearing the Caribbean brand under the name “Caribbean Collection” was on display in the Exhibition at ACTS in Washington, DC. CTDC is working on a business plan for the production and sale of the merchandize.

2. CaribbeanTravel.com – The Magazine. Questex Publishing, the publisher of Travel Agent

Magazine is the publisher of the former Gold Book, now titled CaribbeanTravel.com – The Magazine. This Caribbean travel industry directory is distributed to almost all US, Canadian and UK travel agencies.

3. CaribbeanTravel.com – The Website. The website, officially launched in March 2008, has

seen several enhancements since the last report:

• Continuation of Search Engine Optimization/Search Engine Marketing (SEO/SEM) • Addition of a graphic headshot of Lorraine Headley, former Director of Tourism for Antigua

and Barbuda, and blog writer for the site • Agreement with Travelocity and Dunhill Vacations to bring more "Hot Deals" to the site • Addition of a new graphic management tool to allow us to quickly promote special events

on the homepage • Addition of new online Travel Agent University, to educate travel agents about the

Caribbean, implemented with Questex (publisher of Travel Agent Magazine).

The development of a Canadian version of the site is currently in progress and will be unveiled to the media during Caribbean Week Toronto.

We met with our partners – E-Site Marketing, Travelocity and Constructive Media – in New York in mid-August to review and plan new strategies. One key outcome of the meeting is that we will place even more emphasis on analytics in order to methodically measure success which will in turn better guide us in our resource-allocations decisions and our integrated marketing efforts.


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4. Million Home Marketing Campaign. Through an agreement with Custom Marketing Group, the CTDC offers an integrated, multi-media campaign directed to consumers and top-producing travel agencies to help boost bookings to your destination. The inaugural summer program - delivered in May - proved extremely successful; traffic to http://www.caribbeantravel.com spiked by more than 500% just after the newspaper insertion, and continued to see above normal visitation during the two to three weeks after. CMG has begun the selling for the next two phases of the campaign. The launch dates are – Fall (November 7, 2008) and Spring (March 27, 2009). Markets Include: New York Metro, Philadelphia Metro, Chicago and South Florida. Newspapers include: USA Today, New York Newsday, The Westchester Journal News, The Bergen Record, Philadelphia Inquirer, Chicago Tribune and Sun Sentinel. Participation in the campaign allows you to: • Target more than one million high-income households through your ad in this glossy color

"Caribbean Guide" which will be inserted in several major metro area newspapers – in the cities and media above;

• Reach 100,000 "opt-in" pre-qualified E-consumers with your travel offers; • Share your message with 10,000 top-producing Caribbean Travel Trade Specialists –

agents who are focused on selling the Caribbean; • Participate in your own custom-designed exclusive email program (available to half- and

full-page advertisers).

5. ACTS 2008 – The inaugural Annual Caribbean Tourism Summit was held in Washington, DC, June 21-24, keynoted by Alan Greenspan, Federal Reserve Board Chairman (1987-2006). The event combined tourism investment and marketing discussions with opportunities for top level dialogue with U.S. politicians. CTDC created a website – www.ACTSdc.com – which provided the greater part of the promotion and registration for ACTS. In addition to the business meetings of the CHTA and CTO, ACTS featured panel discussions, workshops, a motivational brunch, a wedding, a gala banquet and awards evening, and a Rum & Rhythm Festival. CTDC retained the services of ConsumerScan to survey attendees and non-attendees. Recommendations included: using a smaller, more intimate venue for the summit to allow for better networking; rescheduling keynote speakers so an important presentation leads off each morning and afternoon session; setting specific objectives for the Summit with timelines and measurable outcomes; and, alternating the location of the summit between the Caribbean and an East Coast city.

Although there were both satisfaction and dissatisfaction with the inaugural event, there was enough promise shown in this first Summit to make ACTS 2009 an attractive prospect with 92% of respondents indicating that they would probably or definitely attend. Respondents asked that the specific objectives of ACTS 2009 be very pointed and clearly communicated.

6. Caribbean Week in Toronto. Building on the success of Caribbean Week in Toronto, this year’s event is scheduled for September 24-26. We have again enlisted the support of major media including the Toronto Star and we have reached out to several corporate sponsors to


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support the activities. This year, the activities include a private breakfast with government representatives, local investors and developers, a Travel Conference, Media Marketplace, a Caribbean Media Awards Luncheon – to recognize Canadian-based media – and the introduction of the Andy Parris Award to a travel agent who demonstrates his passion for and creativity in selling the Caribbean. There will also be a Caribbean Fair and a Rum & Rhythm event. We met with the leaders and influencers of the Caribbean Diaspora in Toronto to apprise them of the plans for Caribbean Week and to seek their support from among their friends and membership. Our intention is also to keep them informed and engaged in the activities of the organization.

7. CTO Chapters – CTDC has retained the services of Questex, publisher of Travel Agent

Magazine, to develop the Caribbean Agent Portal (CAP), an online platform which will serve as the main link between the CTO Chapters, other travel agents actively selling the Caribbean and the organization. CAP is a password protected site, hosted on our official www.CaribbeanTravel.com website, which offers agents up-to-date educational and promotional information on the member countries, hotels, cruises, activities and attractions. The program includes the following components: • E-Learning – A Caribbean Travel University • Productivity and Tracking Rewards • Media Library and Resource Center for travel agents to send to their clients, videos,

brochuhres, deals and incenties • Festivals and Events Calendar • Agent community (like a Facebook for agents)

The establishment of CAP represents a revamping of the management of the Chapter system and is intended to upgrade the flow of information between the organization and the chapters, as well as to increase revenue and productivity from the travel agent distribution channel. CAP is currently in its first phase and agents are invited to register.

8. For the 2008 Caribbean Beach Volley Ball season, nine tournaments have been held along the

East Coast of the USA. The last tournament before the finale in the Dominican Republic will take place in Atlantic City, on September 20-21. Fifty players will compete in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, the weekend of November 8 & 9. In addition to the players, volleyball enthusiasts are booking vacations to attend the finale.

9. Media Co-op ventures. We are continuing to diligently review media proposals that will provide

economies of scales for the membership. Currently under review are proposals from BBC, the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post. Upon completion of the review process, the proposal(s) that merit further consideration will be presented to the CTO Marketing Committee and the CTDC Board.

An agreement has been reached between Brides/Modern Bride and CTDC to create a special section to run in the April/May 2009 issue of Modern Bride and the May/June 2009 issue of Brides. An “Isle Style” micro-site will be set up on Brides.com to include customized content


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about the Caribbean (using the 2008 “Passport to the Caribbean template), dedicated pages for CTDC participants and sweepstakes entry (for Caribbean Wedding in June). The site will be live from March 1 to June 12, 2009.

10. Caribbean Cachet. Further research has been done to identify production houses and talent for

the Television Show. A decision to proceed will be made by the CTDC Board. 11. E-mail Blasts on behalf of member governments and chapters were sent to the IATAN database

of travel agents. During the period under review, Grenada and the Pacific Northwest, Cascade and North Texas Chapters took advantage of this service.

12. New Market Development. Plans are in place for the Caribbean to be represented for the first

time at the Association of Brazilian Travel Agents (ABAV) Fair of the Americas, which targets the travel trade across Latin America. The Fair will be held in Rio de Janeiro from October 22-24, 2008.

The main objectives of the Caribbean presence are to: • Support the destinations and private sector exhibitors that are already participating -

Aruba, Cancun, Curacao, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, St. Maarten and Venezuela.

• Represent those that are not able to participate. • Identify and meet with key travel trade contacts to further explore the market's potential. • Gain a clear understanding of the marketplace opportunities for increasing the productivity

from this affluent market.

This will be the foundation of a broader strategy to target vacationers from other countries in Latin America, such as Argentina and Panama.

Regional Marketing Fund - Thirteen countries have paid any money into the Regional Marketing Fund in 2008, for a total of $1,153,000; and some of those funds were arrears. We are still a considerably way from meeting the $2.6 million we should have available for funding the programs of CTDC if all members paid. The slow payment also affects programs in Europe since the Regional Marketing Fund is also a funding source for UK/Europe. Another round of reminders is being sent and we look forward to a better response from the members. Public Relations Lou Hammond & Associates (LH&A) continued to aggressively outreach to the media to promote the Caribbean brand. Tactical activities included:

• Press Releases, May - August, the agency provided a steady news flow as it disseminated 25 Caribbean press releases -- an average of more than six per month.

• Partner Outreach: Organized two meetings of the Caribbean PR Council, hosted at LH&A's offices. The meetings were made up of representatives from CTO & CHTA membership. The purpose of these meetings was to ensure partners were kept in the loop on special events such as ACTS and Caribbean Week Toronto and given the opportunity to participate in CTDC activities.


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• Caribbeantravel.com Blog: Worked with Lorraine Headley and edited content for blog. Also suggested topics and provided information as needed.

• ACTS: Coordinated various activities to promote ACTS and facilitated approved media. • Second Annual Caribbean Beach Volleyball Championship: Drafted and distributed release;

pitched media for coverage and secured NY1 News to film live during Coney Island tournament; Agency drafted local media alerts for regional tournaments.

• Taste of the Caribbean: Provided advice and assistance with Montreal's TASTE OF THE CARIBBEAN including utilization of media materials in pitching.

• News Bureau: Maintained active and aggressive CTDC news bureau, handling approximately 80 requests and opportunities in the quarterly period.

• Hot Tips: Provided more than 30 "hot tip" free media leads to constituents with opportunities for various levels of media coverage.

• Editorial Calendars: Secured and monitored more than 80 editorial calendar opportunities with national and regional media outlets.

• Promotions: Developed partnership relationships with several outlets for upcoming promotions for the region, including "The Ellen Degeneres Show", Self Magazine, Wheel of Fortune and the new Game Show Network Live.

• Newsletter: Drafted copy for Caribbean Insider newsletter. • Caribbean Week Toronto: Coordinated various activities to promote Caribbean Week in Toronto.


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Interim Marketing Report May – September 2008 CTO Toronto Overview The following summarizes the marketing activity of CTO in Canada since the last report was presented to the Board of Directors. The office began planning Caribbean Week in Toronto, with the guidance of the CTO New York office. Caribbean Week in Toronto is scheduled for September 24-26, 2008. The overall objectives are:

• To provide a platform for the sale of Caribbean vacations • To create events that attract significant amounts of positive media attention for the Caribbean • To provide equal opportunities for all member countries to benefit

The week includes:

• Caribbean Fair consumer event at Dundas Square – Caribbean entertainment will be highlighted on the main stage and member country representatives and CTDC members will have display booths. Dundas Square is the busiest corner in Toronto and attracts thousands of consumers daily. Celebrity chefs from various Caribbean destinations will be featured in cooking demonstrations. Caribbean cuisine will be available for consumers to purchase in addition to the sampling. Roger Mooking, celebrity Chef of the Food Network, will emcee part of the event. Live remote broadcasts and various promotions by radio stations Virgin Radio 99.9 and CFRB have been confirmed. Various tour operator suppliers will be offering specially priced vacations to the Caribbean and travel agents will be at various NTO booths selling and promoting travel. A grand prize drawing will enable CTDC to develop a consumer database for future promotion. CTDC logo apparel and items will be on sale at the event. Toronto Star is the main sponsor.

• Caribbean Travel Conference and Opening Ceremony – Following the opening ceremony,

keynote speaker, David Redekop, Conference Board of Canada will discuss travel trends and opportunities for the Caribbean. A panel of leading industry experts will discuss various topics relevant to the future of travel to the Caribbean. The VP of Network Planning will be the keynote speaker at the lunch. Travel Agent delegates will also attend niche marketing workshops in the afternoon.

• Invest in the Caribbean Networking Breakfast – Key investment leaders from Toronto are

invited to a networking breakfast hosted by the CTDC to meet with Ministers and Directors from the Caribbean to discuss mutual opportunities. The event is being sponsored by 2015 Pan Am Toronto Bid Committee.

• Media Marketplace and Caribbean Awards Luncheon – Media from around Canada have been invited to get updated information on the Caribbean. The Marketplace will be followed by the Caribbean Awards Luncheon which will honor key producing media from Canada. A travel agent who best exemplifies the spirit of the late Andrew (Andy) Parris will receive the first Andrew Parris


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Award.

• Rum & Rhythm Event – An event that will showcase the rums of the Caribbean, cuisine and music. This consumer event includes food prepared by celebrity chefs from the Bahamas, Cayman Islands, US Virgin Islands and St. Lucia. Music will be provided by various Caribbean musicians. There will also be a silent auction and Caribbean Vacation Grand Prize drawing.

• A website to promote Caribbean Week www.caribbeanweek.ca is monitored for visitation. During

the month of August there were 4,787 page views on the site, with 67% being new visitors. Tickets can be purchased for all events on the website.

Private/public sector cooperation - CTO Canada continues to work closely with various travel suppliers with the goal of increasing vacation packages to the Caribbean. The primary developments include the following: University Text Book – CTO assisted in providing statistics on the Caribbean to the publishers of University Text Books. The text books will credit CTO for the information provided when published in September 2008. The books will be used in all universities across Canada. Spa vacations have been developed in many Caribbean destinations by Spa and Wellness Vacations, a niche tour operator. Hibiscus International – Real Estate Groups – A new market niche has been developed by this company which offers group cruise departures to various Caribbean destinations for potential purchases of vacation or investment properties. WestJet Vacations was launched in 2005 to provide land vacation products to support West Jet Airlines’ routes. Nassau became their first Caribbean destination. CTO assisted in the development of that program. West Jet Airlines has the rights to 14 Caribbean cities and is now in the process of developing land vacations for West Jet Vacations to promote in many of the destinations. WJV sells their holiday packages and airfares through their website to the consumer directly and through Travel Agents. www.westjetvacations.com. Alio Tours is offering more Caribbean holiday packages as a result of CTO providing them with statistics and contacts for hotel partners. Alio works with scheduled airlines as a consolidator and package their vacations for travel agents. Fun Sun Vacations has been purchased by the Thomas Cook Canada group which includes Sunquest Vacations and Holiday House have been working with us and various hotel partners and tourist offices in developing more Caribbean products. Air Canada Vacations continues to increase its Caribbean Vacation offerings. Many of the member countries and CHTA members participated in product launches across Canada in August 2008. CTO staff attended all events. Ongoing Marketing Activities


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Various marketing initiatives highlighting the region have been initiated and planned for 2008.

• Toronto Star Caribbean Supplement & Online Promotion (September 22, 2008). The supplement which will be a minimum of 12 pages) will include editorial on the Caribbean including niche markets, festivals and member country website listing. The online promotion on torontostar.ca will feature an interactive map of the Caribbean with links to member country and allied sites. The online component will be featured for one year. Distribution of 500,000 copies as well as overruns will be used for trade and consumer shows. To be launched during Caribbean Week in Toronto.

• Dreamscapes Magazine – Consumer/trade travel magazine distributed through the national Globe and Mail newspaper and TravelWeek trade publication to all agencies in Canada on September 12 featuring a 24-page Caribbean section. A Caribbean Vacation contest will provide a database of consumers for promotional use.

• Baxter Publications CTDC Directory to be published October 2008 featuring contact and product information of all Caribbean Destinations.

• TravelWeek Caribbean Directory – This trade publication will be distributed to all travel industry members in October featuring all CTO members with their websites and contact information.

• Canadian Traveller Caribbean Supplement. - Caribbean educational and consumer pull-out section of the magazine. The publication was responsible for soliciting advertising in this special supplement that launched August 2008.

Trade & Consumer Activity During the period under review our staff participated in key trade and consumer shows. As with our involvement with other shows, the goal is to take advantage of the opportunity to turn these show attendees into Caribbean vacationers by offering sales of Caribbean vacations wherever CTO/CTDC has a booth. We have been encouraging our member countries to do the same. We participated in the select Addison Trade Shows, Air Canada Vacations Product Launches across Canada, Caribbean Goes North promotion including consumer and trade events in North British ColumbiaTravel. In addition, many member countries participated in Bridal Shows in Toronto and Montreal; Adventure Show in Toronto (golf, diving and adventure travel). Diaspora Event Toronto An invitation event for the Government members including Consul Generals, Tourist Board Representatives, Caribbean Associations and Caribbean media took place in Toronto in August. Mr. Hugh Riley attended the event and updated the guests on the CTDC and its plans for the promotion of the Caribbean region and the brand. There were more than 50 people in attendance. The group was asked to assist CTDC in the promotion of Caribbean Week to the constituents and memberships. This event will be held on a regular basis. Taste of the Caribbean, Montreal Our office worked with the event organizers to facilitate the participation of Caribbean chefs, entertainment, NTO involvement and prizes. The event took place in Montreal in May with over 1,000 consumers in attendance. MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, Exhibitions)


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CTO Toronto participates in all Society of Incentive Travel Executives of Canada and MPI meetings throughout the year. Many tourist offices and CHTA members participated in the Incentiveworks Show in August in Toronto. Caribbean Goes North CTO/CTDC participated in the successful Caribbean Goes North events with Air Canada Vacations (ACV). The events included consumer and travel agent training in various cities in northern British Columbia. ACV expects significant sales increases from this region for the Caribbean as a result of our participation. CTO, Cayman Islands, Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, St. Lucia, Bermuda, Sandals/Beaches and Occidental Hotels participated. Caribbean Calendar/Map A September 2008 – December 2009 Calendar with the Map of the Caribbean region that features all Canadian websites for the Member countries was produced for distribution to consumers and trade at various events including Caribbean Week. Education CTO has gained CITC (Canadian Institute of Travel Counsellors) accreditation status, whereby travel agents attending any CTO sponsored seminar or training program will earn ACCESS points. A generic Caribbean seminar has been developed for Canada which includes a general overview of the region, niche product updates and selling skills. Lifetime Achievement Award CTO is a co-sponsor of TIC Insurance and Baxter Publications of the William H. Baxter Lifetime Achievement Award in Canada. This award recognizes an individual in the travel and tourism industry in Canada for outstanding achievement. The winner is selected by a panel of judges from within the Canadian travel industry. The awards luncheon will take place in Toronto October 2008. In return for our sponsorship of this event, CTO receives advertising in the Baxter publications. Caribbeantravel.com Website Canadian content recommendations were given to CTDC for the website, which will be officially launched during Caribbean Week in Toronto to the media and trade.

Documents

May – September 2008 · For the 2008 Caribbean Beach Volley Ball season, nine tournaments have been held along the East Coast of the USA. The last tournament before the finale in