Boosting Village Tourism through Strategic Branding
In recent years, village tourism has emerged as a compelling alternative to the more conventional urban and resort tourism. This shift is largely driven by travelers seeking authentic, cultural, and nature-based experiences that offer a respite from the bustling city life. However, many villages face significant challenges in attracting and retaining visitors due to a lack of strategic branding and communication. This article delves into how Mekarsari, a tourism village in Bandung, Indonesia, leverages strategic branding to enhance its tourism sector.
The Concept of Branding in Tourism
Before hand let’s understand branding in the tourism scope. Branding in tourism is about creating a distinct image and identity for a place that can attract and retain tourists. It goes beyond just a logo or a tagline, it encompasses the overall experience that a destination offers. Effective branding helps in building recognition, trust, and loyalty among visitors. For village tourism, branding is particularly important as it helps in positioning the village as a unique and desirable destination.
Understanding Village Tourism
Village tourism is characterized by the immersion of tourists in the local culture, traditions, and natural beauty of rural areas. Unlike mass tourism, village tourism focuses on sustainable and community-based tourism practices that benefit local communities both economically and socially. It often includes activities such as agricultural tourism, cultural festivals, and nature-based adventures, which provide visitors with a unique and enriching experience.
Mekarsari Village is famed for its breathtaking tea plantations and the local community's deep passion for tea. It showcases the possibilities of village tourism. Situated amidst the picturesque landscapes of Bandung, this village provides a peaceful environment away from the busyness of urban life, making it an ideal destination for those in search of tranquility and authentic experiences.
Challenges in Branding a Tourism Village
Branding a place, especially a village, is significantly different and more challenging compared to general branding processes. There are numerous challenges to face, with one of the main ones being the lack of human resources and the local community’s limited understanding of the tourism sector. This often leads to mistakes in tourism activities.
In Mekarsari Village, I have distributed questionnaires regarding the local community’s understanding of their tourism potential and how they understand how to contribute well to the tourism sector. The results showed that 100% of respondents were aware of their village’s tourism potential. However, 76.4% of respondents expressed uncertainty and lacked understanding about how to contribute effectively to the tourism sector.
That’s why in developing the branding of a tourism village, we should not only focus on what will be offered to the target market but also consider how these offerings will be delivered. This is related to how the local community carries out tourism activities when welcoming visitors.
Understanding The Market
The market insight ladder above reflects the range of underlying reasons for general tourists to go on vacation. It starts from simple reasons like “Wanting a vacation” to the most profound ones such as “Creating a more meaningful life”. This indicates that vacations are not just for taking a break from daily routines, but also about how these vacations personally impact each tourist.
The market insight ladder itself is a conceptual framework that allows a brand to gain insights into the behavior and preferences of its target market. With this, a brand can explore market perceptions and preferences to uncover the underlying meanings and emotions associated with the brand. Therefore, we can ensure that the brand strategy designed is based on a good understanding of the market, making the decisions taken more precise and effective in branding efforts.
The Importance of Strategic Branding
Strategic branding plays a critical role in distinguishing a village from other destinations. It involves creating a unique identity that resonates with the target audience and communicates the village’s values, experiences, and attractions effectively.
Benefits of Strategic Branding in Village Tourism
- Increased Tourism: A well-defined brand attracts more visitors, leading to increased tourism and economic benefits for the local community. This increase in tourism helps in boosting the local economy and provides new opportunities for the local people.
- Enhanced Visitor Experience: Clear and consistent branding helps in setting visitor expectations and enhancing their overall experience. By providing a cohesive and memorable experience, the village can ensure that visitors leave with positive impressions and are likely to return.
- Community Empowerment: Involving the local community in the branding process fosters a sense of ownership and pride, motivating them to contribute to tourism development. This empowerment helps in creating a sustainable tourism model that benefits both the visitors and the local community.
- Sustainable Tourism Development: Strategic branding helps in promoting sustainable tourism practices that are respectful of the local culture and environment. By focusing on sustainability, the village can ensure that tourism development does not negatively impact the local ecosystem and heritage.
Crafting the Brand Identity of Mekarsari Village
The brand identity of Mekarsari Village is deeply rooted in the natural beauty and the history of tea plantations in this village, as well as from every interaction with individuals who visit, and also the perspectives and hopes of the local community. Thus, the positioning is found that Mekarsari is a village whose people are passionate about tea and cherish local culture and history in their daily lives, making this an authentic experience that visitors can feel when visiting Mekarsari. Based on this positioning, it can be concluded that the values to be conveyed in the identity of Mekarsari include:
- Back to Tea: Tea is the origin of Mekarsari Village, from when Rudolph Eduard Kerkhoven started the tea plantation in 1874 until now it has become the center of tea research in Indonesia. Thus, all the essence and identity of this village return to tea.
- Valuable Experience: Mekarsari Village ensures that every visitor has the best experience possible, so they are happy to share this good experience with others.
- A Place to Come Home: Mekarsari Village is home to every individual, this village was formed through the collaborative efforts and interactions of its people. Therefore, hospitality and acceptance are always open in this village.
The Essence of Mekarsari Village
To embrace all the values above, “the innocent” brand archetype was chosen, which means that the identity of Mekarsari Village emphasizes authenticity, optimism, and simplicity to help people rediscover a reason and write new stories in their lives through the warmth of a cup of tea and also through every other element in Mekarsari.
With this concept, it is hoped to provide a different perspective for tourists who usually see an area with tea plantations as merely a recreational destination, such as taking photos or just playing around the tea plantations. But with this concept, tourists are invited to see the deeper meaning of a tea leaf, which is represented by the local community of Mekarsari Village in processing tea from the initial harvest to its consumption.
Tailored Approaches for Effective Branding
However, the author understands that the main concept above does not directly provide solutions to all the problems found in Mekarsari Village tourism. Therefore, three sub-concepts have been developed, covering different scopes of segmentation but still aligning with the same vision as the main concept, ranging from general, regional, to local scopes. This approach is taken because research shows that each segmentation requires different approaches, ensuring that the marketing and messages conveyed are more precise and relevant to the problems and the audience within that scope.
First, “Mekarsari Alam Teh/ Mekarsari Tea Nature”
This concept will be used in a general segmentation, especially targeting the tea community in Indonesia. The aim is to strengthen and introduce the identity of Mekarsari Village as a village closely associated with tea and known for its high-quality Gambung tea leaves to those who are unaware of or just know about Mekarsari Village. This concept was chosen because of the presence of the Indonesian Tea and Quinine Research Center (PPTK) in Mekarsari, as well as the history of Rudolph Eduard Kerkhoven as the figure who initiated the tea plantation in Mekarsari, which has been documented in a novel by Hella S. Haasse. In general, this concept is represented by three main keywords: nature, history, and serenity.
Second, “Mekarsari TujuanMu/ Mekarsari Your Destination”
This concept is used in the regional segmentation around Bandung, aiming as a direct Call To Action to the people around Bandung who have known the characteristics of tourism in this area to visit Mekarsari Village. This is expected to facilitate travel decisions for tourists who already understand the characteristics of tourist spots in the Bandung area. The impression and message to be conveyed in this concept emphasize the positive experiences of tourists who have visited Mekarsari, thereby expected to create a persuasive effect on other tourists to visit. In general, this concept is represented by three main keywords: experience, knowledge, and life.
Third, “Mekarsari Bersatu Bersama/ Mekarsari United Together,”
This concept will be used in the local segmentation, aiming to increase the understanding of tourism and strengthen cultural values in the daily life of the people of Mekarsari Village. This concept is derived from the direct translation of Mekarsari Village’s slogan “Mekarsari Sabeungkeutan.” It is hoped that this concept can strengthen the values that already exist in local life and culture, so they can be more appreciated and practiced in the community’s daily activities. In general, this concept is represented by three main keywords: friendliness, culture, and unity.
In Conclusion
Strategic branding is essential for boosting village tourism and strengthening the village's identity. By crafting a unique identity and communicating it effectively, villages like Mekarsari can attract more tourists, enhance visitor experiences, and empower local communities. As more travelers seek authentic and sustainable tourism experiences, villages that invest in strategic branding will be well-positioned to thrive in the competitive tourism landscape. To summarize this discussion, I’ll give you my favorite quote from Chufan that still relates to the topic we’ve discussed above:
The identity system of a place may be easy to ignore its existence by people, but when we lose the identity system, it becomes difficult for us to move even a single step, just like the blind. — Chufan, Z. The Importance of Visual Identity Graphic Design in Cities, p.713
Hi There! It’s me, Tri, a Brand Designer and ‘a bit of library geek’ who always has splashes of paint on his shirt. Thank you for reading my article, I’ll be happy to know you, so let’s connect: triyusup.myportfolio.com.
