“People not beaches, is Goa’s big ticket tourism idea”
What is an idea? What is its role in society? Pertinentquestions you would agree without a doubt. Simply put, it is a concept ormental impression. Thank you Wikipedia. An idea you will agree is a very potent weaponin the battle to motivate or transform the fortunes of individuals, organisationsor countries. The big idea however has been missing from the lexicon of Goa’stourism board. It has not been able to maintain or sustain a specific brandidea over the years.
The idea is always central and the creator, admired andrespected. Alyque Padamsee, one time head honcho at what was then called Lintas(now Lowe) is considered to be the father of Indian branding. He has never beenshort of words with regards to the state of affairs in the country. Asked whathis communication strategy to promote Goa would be if given a chance as anadvertising chief this is what he had to say: “Everyone talks of the beaches ofGoa, let me assure you there are more beautiful beaches in Hawaii, whatseparates this place from the rest of the country are its people. Goa has an old world charm which marks it outas special.”
Goa, he said is not designed for tourists but for humanbeings to live in. Hawaii and Cannes he said had better beaches but the urge torip-off the tourist was very strong and pretty blatant. “This is not to saythat it does not happen in Goa but it is done in an amateur manner. It is pretty obvious. Like I said earlier, thegrace of the people is what marks this place out as special.”
The state, he felt, needed to promote its festivals better.“I remember coming over [to Goa] years ago, travelling by ship, going over forthe parties and then attending the contests to select king Momo. This does not happen anywhere else in thiscountry. Kerala has done a fantastic job promoting its backwaters and it has createdpackages to promote these places. Goa should take the initiative to promotewhat is unique here”.
Goa he felt should focus on the middle income tourist. “Keep it a happy experience and don’t try toohard because it would make it false. Goaoffers a relaxed life and it is importantto keep it that way for the tourists.”
