DRMumbai: Having realised the potential of Indian outbound market, Taiwan Tourism Bureau (TTB) is all set to further its marketing and promotional activities in India.
“India is a very important market for us. We welcomed 35,000 Indian visitors in 2017, reflecting growth of 16 per cent over 2016. We are so positive about the market trend,” Trust H J Lin, Director, Taiwan Tourism Bureau, Singapore Office, said on the sideline of the recently concluded Taiwan Expo in New Delhi.
TTB was part of the Expo with two operators bringing the tourism component of Taiwan to India. “We participated to increase our brand visibility. Our national airline also took part in the Expo,” he said.
About importance of India market, he said that Taiwan recently launched a New Southbound Policy and India is one of the most important partners. The policy is designed to strengthen Taiwan’s relationships with the 10 ASEAN countries and six South Asian countries.
“The aim is to have two per cent of India. In tourism also, we are aiming to have two per cent share of the Indian outbound market,” he added.
To achieve this target, TTB has chalked out an aggressive marketing strategy for India market. “We have been organising fam tours for agents, media and wedding planners. We are also looking at TV, social media and other digital marketing platforms to strengthen our brand. We have already joint hands with players in travel trade such as Thomas Cook and Cox & Kings. We are now working with PR companies to develop a short film to be displayed in cinema halls in India,” he said.
TTB is expected to open a branch office in Mumbai in June this year. Besides, TTB is also organising five city roadshows in New Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Pune and Kochi. Recently, TTB organised a roadshow in Bengaluru, where it showcased the destination with the help of virtual reality. Earlier, the Bureau conducted an online agent training programme in India and is currently creating awareness through various webinars.
“Taiwan, which is ranked the number two cruise destination in Asia after China, last year, received one million cruise passengers resulting into $1 billion cruise revenue with 600 ports of call. We also cooperate with other Asian countries like South Korea and Hong Kong. We will also be highlighting this aspect to India market,” Lin said.
Of the 35,000 Indians that visited Taiwan in 2017, 4500 were leisure travellers and remaining were business travellers. There are over 100 Taiwanese companies in India, with an investment of over $1.5 billion. “We are looking at Indian wedding market in a big way. We hosted 20 Indian wedding planners in 2017 to give them a ground experience. We regularly organise fams for media, trade and now for social influencers,” he added.
