ADTA holds workshop to evaluate marketing plans

The workshop brought together some 25 participants. It reviewed the marketing achievements of the participants during the previous term and further looked into the future plans of the participants for the year 2007, including time and execution tables, financial feasibilities and proposed budgets for implementing promotional and marketing projects.

The participants discussed their performance, including ways of overcoming hurdles facing them. The meeting also improved on plans of the participants in a bid to synchronize the various marketing plans and streamlining them with the main marketing strategy of the ADTA.

Speaking shortly after the meeting, ADTA Marketing Director Ali Ahmed Al Hosani said that representation offices made presentations during the meeting about their previous activities and future plans, noting that these offices have contributed enormously in attracting tourists to the emirate.

"The target now is to achieve a tourism growth of 10 to 20 per cent during the 2006/7. During 2005, the influx of tourists rose to 1.200 million," he said, urging the participants to achieve even higher rates in various tourism marketing indices. Al Hosani stressed the need to enhance training programmes for tour operators and agents in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and the Western region.

He added, "The meeting also touched on the promotional and marketing rewards of Abu Dhabi road show workshops, which the participants described as important. Virtually all participants called for more such workshops in various cities in Europe, particularly in Germany and Britain which are big markets."

Al Hosani said that the participants underlined the importance of the Abu Dhabi Champions programme, which is dedicated to training tour operators and agents to become knowledge experts in promoting and marketing Abu Dhabi as a top tourist destination.

He pointed out that the programme which started in March is gaining increasing popularity in the UK and Germany among travel and tourist agents. The number of interested participants in the programmes has risen to 250 with 400 more participants expected to register next month. This will increase the number to 1000 participants by the end of the year in both the UK and Germany.

During the meeting, the participants also agreed to streamline their public relations plans in Europe and elsewhere. The technical programs were also unified so as to avoid duplication and maximize results. In this context, ADTA Marketing Director stressed the importance of the workshop in enhancing coordination among offices.

"The workshop provided an opportunity for marketing personnel to exchange experience and share their plans and strategies. It was also an opportunity to evaluate performance and chart the way forward. The recommendations will be implemented as main parts of the marketing work plan," Al Hosani concluded.