A campaign put together by Stark Communications titled ‘Dream Season in God’s Own Country’ for Kerala Tourism has won the Gold award in the Marketing – Secondary Government Destination category at the PATA Travel Mart 2009 which recently concluded in Hangzhou, China. The entry took top honour amongst 236 entries worldwide.
Targeted at the Indian market, the campaign aimed at attracting domestic travellers to Kerala during the traditional off-season. The Stark team claims that the campaign which positioned the state as an affordable and inviting destination, led to a 15.2 per cent increase in tourist arrivals in the state, during the off-season in 2008.
Roy V Mathew, director, Stark Communications, while commenting on the campaign’s success says, “The challenge was to make Kerala a value for money proposition, without eroding the brand value. And in the process, Kerala not only gained an added season in the travel calendar, but also enjoyed a big growth in domestic tourist arrivals.”
Stark has been working with Kerala Tourism for the last 14 years.