Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Your Singapore

Just a week ago, the Singapore Tourism Board has unveiled a new branding campaign or rather tagline for Singapore. The good old "Uniquely Singapore" tagline which has been used for many years has now given way to "Your Singapore"
This new tagline, to promote and market Singapore to the world as a leading tourist destination has drawn flak from many Singaporeans and foreigners branding experts including. Their beef is that the new tagline has lost the soul of what defines the Singapore's experience. The taglines of other countries have almost remain unchanged and therein lies the value of their marketing tagline and the branding.
"Amazing Thailand", "Malaysia-Truly Asia" and now for Singapore, the branding reads "Your Singapore".
Personally I understand the aims of the team in coming out with the new Singapore branding tagline. The team wants each tourist coming to Singapore to plan his own itineries to explore the Singapore he or she wants to see.
I find the new branding slogan quite plain and it can only make sense to a more educated tourist who knows that this tagline means that Singapore has all that he or she wants to see and to explore. However, for the typical tourist, this tagline and branding may sound a tad too plain. The new branding to me is like an empty glass which Singapore Tourism Board hopes that each tourist coming to Singapore can fill it with either coke, orange juice, Pepsi, etc depending on his or her own tastes and preferences. However, as I say, a customer being offered the empty glass may choose to ignore it at all while pursuing other glasses filled with other beverages afforded by other countries.

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