Tampa Bay area needs to develop strong brand image

What is Tampa Bay?a) a body of water

b) a television market

c) a beginning phrase for sports franchises

d) a destination

e) a brand

A local, parochial answer to this question seems to be it is simply a body of water separating Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.

But the leaders of the Tampa/Hillsborough Convention and Visitors Association and, more importantly, visitors to this area believe Tampa Bay is a destination that is not separated by the Bay but connected by it.

Brand vs. regional approach
Two strategic priorities we are facing are focused around a regional approach and defining and marketing the destination brand. The two are inextricably linked.

Al Ries, one of the world's best-known marketing strategists and best selling author of "The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding" makes some relevant comments.

Ries says, "Marketing is building a brand in the mind of the prospect. If you can build a powerful brand, you will have a powerful marketing program. If you can't, then all the advertising, fancy packaging, sales promotion and public relations in the world won't help you achieve your objective."

To the leaders throughout the Tampa Bay area, this is the challenge.

Some say the region is defined by the product, not political boundaries. This is in part true, but branding and competition in today's marketplace demand that we take that a step further and say the region, or destination, is defined by what the visitor or prospective visitor perceives.
Back in 1997, visitors that came to this market told us that Busch Gardens and beaches were the key drivers. With that, they told us they viewed the destination as Tampa Bay.

We have made some strides through cooperative efforts in destination marketing including some joint trade missions, advertising campaigns and publicity programs.

But we won't be doing the area justice until we are all marketing the same brand, one that is not only known for its performance qualities but also for emotional attributes that are compelling, distinctive and binding our visitors to our destination.

Marketing Tampa Bay as a brand does not mean that individual communities will lose their identity because it will be the visitors' experiences sipping café con leche, going sponge diving and spending relaxing hours on a secluded coast that make the memories of visiting the Bay. As Jim Taylor, creator of the powerful Gateway brand stated, "those destinations branded for an emotionally enriching experience that is fun, pleasurable, and educational will be the most successful."

Branding process

The Tampa/Hillsborough Convention and Visitors Association is embarking on a branding process during the next year. We've started by getting our own house in order.

Beginning this year, marketing initiatives for both convention and tourism functions will be coordinated together. And we have retained Longwoods International, a marketing research firm in Toronto that is working with Hawaii, Philadelphia and other top destinations on branding issues.

This branding process cannot rely on marketing initiatives alone. The brand needs to be delivered not only in Tampa Bay's advertising, collateral and publicity, but also from the moment the visitor steps off that plane or out of the car.

The experience we promise our visitors has to be the experience we deliver, from the visual experiences at our airport and the reception when checking into the hotel to the delivery of an artistic performance to the thrill of landing that fish in the Bay.

Herb Gold is director of marketing for Southern Equipment Corp. in Tampa and is chairman of the Tampa/Hillsborough Convention and Visitors Association.