You Need a Passport Awareness Campaign A Caribbean Tourism Organization Initiative Monday April 24, 2006
You Need a Passport Background January 1, 2007, all US citizens will need a passport to visit the Caribbean Currently 7 MILLION Americans go to the Caribbean without a passport Relatively little publicity-most Americans unaware of change
You Need a Passport Potentially Disastrous Impact Imagine: 7 million less American visitors 188,000 Caribbean jobs in jeopardy Both air and cruise business will suffer Many stakeholder businesses in danger Not just 2007; once Americans leave, it will be hard to get them back
You Need a Passport Campaign Objectives Create awareness of the new US policy Use members and partners to spread the word Help Americans get a passport Downloadable application forms Passport Office finder Create an incentive for Americans to get a Passport Official Campaign Launch: Caribbean Week in New York, June 2006
Caribbean Visitors/Non-Passport Owners Target Audience: Demographics Total (adults 18+): 7,036,000 (Source: MRI Doublebase 2005)
CTO PASSPORT CAMPAIGN LOGO
Campaign Message: Very soon, you re going to need a passport to enjoy the stunning beauty and relaxing warmth of the Caribbean. Starting January 1, 2007, US citizens will need a passport to visit any foreign country, including those in the Caribbean. The time to get your passport is now (beat the rush). It s easy to get, and it gives you the freedom to travel wherever and whenever you choose.
HANDOUT TO MEMBERS & PARTNERS (FRONT)
HANDOUT TO MEMBERS & PARTNERS (INSIDE)
E-MAIL BLAST CAMPAIGN TO MEMBERS & PARTNERS
TRADE PARTNER WEB SITE - HOMEPAGE
TRADE PARTNER WEB PAGE - DOWNLOADABLE COMMUNICATION TOOLS
TRADE PARTNER WEB PAGE - ADDITIONAL SECTOR SPECIFIC MEDIA IDEAS
TRADE PARTNER WEB PAGE - HIGHLIGHTED COMMUNICATION TOOL EXAMPLE
DOWNLOADABLE PASSPORT MODULE
DOWNLOADABLE POSTCARD - CONSUMER
DOWNLOADABLE ANIMATED WEB BANNER
DOWNLOADABLE ANIMATED WEB BANNER - IN MEDIA
DOWNLOADABLE ANIMATED WEB BANNER - IN MEDIA
DOWNLOADABLE ANIMATED WEB BANNER - IN MEDIA
DOWNLOADABLE ANIMATED WEB BANNER - IN MEDIA
EXAMPLE OF AN EXISITING PRINT AD INCORPORATING THE DOWNLOADABLE PASSPORT CAMPAIGN LOGO
Where To Use Campaign Materials: Land Travel sections of newspapers Travel Magazines Direct mail to Caribbean/Mexico visitors within the past 3 years Travel Web sites Public transportation to airport Airlines Web sites Partnerships with Spring Break companies targeting college students
Where To Use Campaign Materials: Air Airlines in-flight magazines Baggage claim Airlines member clubs in airports Airlines terminals, e.g. PuertoRico & Miami airports Information distributed with customs papers & in customs area In-flight drink napkins
Where To Use Campaign Materials: Sea Ad in cruise Welcome Packet Postings at concierge desk/ excursion desk onboard Ad in onboard literature, delivered to rooms nightly Ads in seaport exit/customs line Ads on cruise channel broadcast onboard Information at exit/entry to ship at ports of call
Where To Use Campaign Materials: Planning sites / Booking engines Destination reviews Postings on major cruise line Web sites Caribbean vacation info pages / flight and trip booking pages
Where To Use Campaign Materials: Trade Partners Ads in trade publications for travel agents Official Information from passport agency noting changes, and simple info on getting a passport Direct mail to travel agents Information distributed to travel agents at conferences Posters/promotional material to travel agents to display in agencies
Use Partners to Spread the Word Caribbean countries Airlines Cruise Lines Hotels Car Rental Companies Tour Operators Media Credit Cards Airports/Hubs U.S. State Department U.S. Passport Agencies
Partnering With Lonely Planet World s most respected and recognizable independent travel publisher Guidebook for every country in the world (including Caribbean countries) Over 600 titles Lonely Planet Web site - 4.5 million unique visits per month The Thorn Tree blog - 400,000 unique visits per month Lonely Planet Comets newsletter:190,000 subscribers - 35% American
Joining Forces With Lonely Planet s U.S. Passport Campaign Launched September 2005 Goal: Increase passport ownership 23% to 35% in 3 yrs Supports Resolution in Congress to encourage Americans to travel abroad (travel is a way to unite the world) - led by California Rep. Barbara Lee - trying to make September 06 National Passport Month Campaign website www.gotpassport.com - receives 10,000 unique visitors/month - has a petition that visitors can send to Congress
Joining Forces With Lonely Planet s U.S. Passport Campaign Lonely Planet very interested in partnering with CTO and Caribbean countries/partners CTO seen as great partner to help spread word and offer sweepstakes prizes to encourage Americans to get Passports CTO can be part of all Lonely Planet Campaign initiatives and a co-sponsor at no cost Lonely Planet hopes CTO & Caribbean partners endorse the Resolution and help to get more petitions The Lonely Planet willing to be part of the official launch at Caribbean Week
Passport to the Caribbean Potential Outcome Retain frequent visitors who don t have passports Encourage first-time visitors to the Caribbean Positive PR for the Caribbean Goodwill towards Americans
Thank you! Contact Info: Hugh Riley Caribbean Tourism Organization (212) 635-9530 hriley@caribtourism.com
Addendum
Caribbean Visitors/Non-Passport Owners Family-oriented [indexed in parentheses] Household size: 3-4 (121), 5+ (107) Number of children: 1 or 2 (123) Age of children: <2yrs (115), 2-5 yrs (125), 6-11 yrs (116), 12-17 yrs (118) My children have a significant impact on the brands I choose (114) Spend time (heavy or medium) w/kids or grandkids at home or outside home (115) (Source: MRI Doublebase 2005)
Caribbean Visitors/Non-Passport Owners Big Cruisers Number of cruises taken: 1 (484), 2 (446), 3 (483) Cruise Line used: Disney (649) Carnival (622) Royal Caribbean (520) Princess (375) (Source: MRI Doublebase 2005)
Caribbean Visitors/Non-Passport Owners Domestic Travel and Travel Agent Use Take 1-3 round trips per year (155) Most likely to take 2 night (152) or 7 night (151) trips Spend between $3000 to $5000 per trip (257), $5000+ (218) Use travel agents: To choose destination (348) To book entire trip (208) Hotel only (155) Flight only (102) (Source: MRI Doublebase 2005)
What are people saying? It seems a bit excessive to me! Does anyone know more about this? Yeah, its for the same reason they are inspecting grandmas at the airports to put it bluntly, because some bureaucrats think it is a good idea. This totally sucks. Can't imagine needing a passport just to go for a quick surf in Baja or a weekend surf run to Cabo or Mazatlan. Ridiculous. What's next? Posted on globalsurfers.com; a Web site for surfers to exchange ideas and tips and post comments about their experiences.
Why don t Americans get Passports? The average American urban dweller is subjected to 5000 advertisements per day. The average American household has the television on more than seven and a half hours a day. The average American urban dweller spends more of his life than ever before stuck in traffic, or working to pay for his car. It is estimated that the average car owner spends 1/6 of his waking hours either in transit or earning wages to support his vehicles(s). I guess they are all too busy in traffic, working to pay for their car, dealing with adverts and watching TV. It doesn t leave much time for passport applications. Comments are from Peter Gyford s blog. He wrote an article titled, How Many Americans Own Passports? http://www.gyford.com/phil/writing/2003/01/31/how_many_america.php.
Travel Statistics The top cities for passport ownership are: New York, 38%; San Francisco, 37%; Miami/Fort Lauderdale, 33%; West Palm Beach, 31%; San Diego, 29%; Los Angeles, 27%; Washington DC, 27%. Source: US Office of Central Statistics Number of Americans obtaining passports yearly is steadily increasing (5,263,989 in 1995 vs. 10,123,424 in 2005). Source: http:/travel.state.gov/passport/services/stats_890.html 3,605,201 cruise passengers used the Port of Miami in 2005, a 3% increase over 2004. Source: http://www.miamidade.gov/portofmiami/cruise_stats.asp Miami International Airport experienced a 1.87% growth in the number of international passengers in 2005 vs 2004. Source: http://www.miami-airport.com/html/2005_traffic_report.html