Turkish tourism ailing due to lack of advertising

The global economic crisis, along with the swine flu epidemic, which shook 2009 to the core, took a severe toll on tourism throughout the world, as traveling for pleasure is regarded as a luxury, not a necessity. However, Turkey succeeded in increasing the number of tourists visiting the country in this grim year. Data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism show that some 27.08 million tourists visited Turkey in 2009, representing a 2.81 percent increase compared to 2008. During the same period, however, revenue was down from $21.96 in 2008 to $21.25 billion in 2009.

The drop in revenue was a result of the tourism sector’s downward pricing strategy and widely available all-inclusive holiday packages, offered in a bid to remain open in a period of recession as tourists became increasingly cautious about spending money. Even though the tourism industry managed to sustain less damage than other sectors, the long-term effects of this policy are still being questioned.

According to Mehmet Ersoy, the chairman of Etstur, one of Turkey’s leading tour operators, the effects of the economic meltdown and decreasing prices in the sector are entirely positive; by attracting more people from around the world, it adds to the promotion of the country and prejudiced attitudes against Turkey due to a lack of knowledge are eliminated. “European tourists, especially Greeks and Spaniards, have a negative bias against Turkey. We know that there are people going to travel agencies and asking for any destination other than Turkey. But with the crisis they had to choose Turkey as it offers holidays at really low prices. And these tourists, who came to Turkey for the first time only because of financial reasons, were pleased with the service they received and will come to Turkey again,” he said. As proof of this, Ersoy highlighted that early reservations are currently declining around the world compared to the previous year while in Turkey they are on the rise.

Last year, tourists coming to Turkey from the European member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which account for more than half of the total number of tourists to Turkey, rose by 4.68 percent in 2009 compared to 2008, reaching 14.05 million, up from 13.42 million.

Kemal Özyiğit, president of Skal International İstanbul, said in an interview with Sunday’s Zaman that the prices the Turkish tourism sector offers should increase over time without causing a decrease in tourist numbers with the right marketing strategies. However, he thinks that it is not only the price advantage that attracts people to Turkey but the quality of services and hotels.

Özkan Altıntaş, a tourism writer, however, criticizes the “budget destination” label that is being attached to Turkey with these affordable holiday packages. All-inclusive programs should be abolished completely, he asserts, as their damage to the sector is beyond imagination. The costs to the establishments that are offering such programs are more than their revenues, he explains, and points to the long-term effect on the system, explaining, “It is difficult to raise a price level once it has been offered.”

According to Altıntaş, what is important is the per capita spending and the duration of the stay, not the number of tourists. Currently, a tourist spends only $600 on average in Turkey, he said, adding that this should be at least $1,000, while the average duration of a stay should also be raised from the current two to three days to 10 days. When asked what should be done to correct the situation, Altıntaş remarked that a floor price of 100 euros per day should be set for rooms and high-income groups should be attracted, for instance, by promoting the country’s golf courses.

Recently, Culture and Tourism Minister Ertuğrul Günay also commented on these problems, noting that the focus should be placed on quality rather than quantity. “The per capita spending of a tourist in Turkey is well below the world average -- we need to raise it. Our high-quality tourism centers are deteriorating due to low revenue. We are working on a promotional campaign targeting more sophisticated and higher-income groups,” he stated.

In need of promotion

“As a country located in an area where the history of the world was made, where the Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire were built, Turkey should have been attracting at least 100 million tourists annually, not 25 million,” said Altıntaş, commenting on the country’s deficiency in promotion. “People around the world do not know Turkey. There is a serious lack of knowledge. For this reason, occupancy rates are currently around 30 percent, we are throwing away 70 percent of our capacity. What we need is a serious promotional campaign,” he remarked.

The problem region in which Turkey is located also adversely influences the tourism sector, said Altıntaş. Even the smallest event in the country or in its neighboring countries results in a decline in the number of visitors. This is also a clear sign of deficient promotion, the product of an “insecure” image of Turkey.