Adventures in Place Branding

One of the best ways a destination brand can set itself apart from its competitors is to tell its own unique story. Storytelling helps tap into the emotional side of a customer’s buying process, allowing companies, products and even travel destinations to transcend a list of physical selling points. Instead of competing on amenities and price, brand stories help build emotional bonds with customers; spark their imagination and let them begin their journey before they even get there.

Here are three examples of destination brands and Websites that sell by telling stories:

Authentic Destinations promotes tourism and hospitality in the Caribbean, but with a very particular focus. As its name implies, the company (through its Website) rates hotels, restaurants and tourism-related activities based on the “authenticity” of culture, food, overall experience and other decisive criteria.  AuthenticBahamas.com is the first of multiple Authentic destination websites to come.  |� more »

What’s the Authentic story?
Stunning cinematography and vintage Bahamian music are the backdrop for a series of dream-like videos that let visitors use their imagination to weave their own story and authentic vacation experience. But perhaps even more telling is what you don’t see. No crowded beaches, casinos or over commercialized tourist areas. Authentic Bahamas and the Authentic brand were developed to help those who seek unique, authentic vacation experiences and adventures. Click play below. Enjoy the journey.

See each movie in the series below. (more to come)

Nature Vacations organizes customized eco vacations to Costa Rica. Gerardot & Co. developed the website NatureVacations.com to help vacationers create custom vacation itinerary wish lists and submit them to Nature Vacations. A staff of “travel designers” then reviews the itinerary and makes recommendations based on the customer’s preferences and their own first-hand experiences before booking the carbon-neutral Costa Rican eco adventure.

What’s the Nature Vacations story?
How does Nature Vacations stand out in a crowd of travel planning sites like Expedia, Travelocity, or Kayak.com? Instead of faceless travel agents or impersonal computerized transactions, customers are matched up with travel designers that not only live in Costa Rica, they stay in the hotels they recommend. They climb the very volcanoes and eat at the restaurants they suggest to their customers. In an exotic vacation destination like Costa Rica, first-hand knowledge and real life experiences go a long way toward reassuring first-time visitors.

Travelers can also relate to the Nature Vacations blog, which is written entirely by mother/wife/staff travel writer, Lisa Khajavi. She and her family travel all over Costa Rica and Panama and share first-hand vacation experiences and tips with mothers and families who might be planning a trip to Costa Rica. | more about NatureVacations.com »

The City of Watsonville hired Gerardot & Co. for a comprehensive rebrand of its image and its economic development marketing tools. The City, located in California’s Central Coast region, is known mostly as an agricultural community. Hampered by a struggling economy, Watsonville was determined to diversify and reposition itself as an incubator for entrepreneurs and new industries.

What’s Watsonville’s story?
Weeks of research, focus groups and one-on-one interviews with business owners and commercial real estate brokers revealed the story of Watsonville’s agriculturally and culturally rich history — a story that still unfolds today. From its earliest roots, the area has attracted generations of immigrants who worked the fertile soil to create a better life for themselves in America. The Spanish, who originally settled the area soon saw waves of migrant workers from China, Japan, the Philippines, Eastern Europe and Latin America. They brought with them their traditions and distinct cultures and even influenced the eclectic mix of architectural styles. The common thread of creating a better life through hard work, grit and determination has fostered a unique culture of unique opportunities that still exists today. Leveraging this rich past, Gerardot & Co. helped develop a powerful brand image for Watsonville’s future that is summed up in one simple phrase — “Growing Opportunities.” | Read the entire Branding Case Study. »