‘Less local sponsorships for more overseas promo’

The Hotel Association of the Northern Mariana Islands has urged the Marianas Visitors Authority to spend less on community events so it will have more money for marketing efforts abroad.

“We need to trim down what we do internally to make more of MVA’s budget available for external activities,” HANMI president Lynn Knight said during Tuesday’s Tourism Summit at Aqua Resort Club.

Knight made the recommendation in light of MVA’s call for additional marketing funds.

MVA has reported that the agency’s advertising budget dropped to $2.1 million in fiscal year 2004 from over $3 million in FY 1998. The budget reduction, MVA has noted, took place amid the opening of new markets such as China, Russia, and the Philippines.

MVA has told the Legislature it needs a supplemental budget of at least $2 million to effectively promote the destination.

“Because we have a dwindling budget, perhaps we should trim down our list of events and use some of that money for other activities that might do a better job of bringing people here,” Knight said.

She cited, for instance, the annual Taste of the Marianas food festival for which MVA has allocated $40,000 of its budget.

“We all love to go to the Taste of the Marianas. But as an expensive activity, does it really bring any customers into the CNMI or is it more a big carnival, feed-the-masses event for our community? I don’t think it really helps our tourism industry the way it was intended,” Knight said.

MVA was also urged to reconsider the celebration of Tourism Month every May.

“Tourism month is another activity that’s designed to help the local community appreciate the tourism industry. But you know what? They already do. Everyone knows that tourism is the future industry for the CNM,” Knight said.

She also expressed belief that the Marianas Tourism Education Council and similar groups by themselves were doing enough efforts to promote awareness and support for the tourism industry.

MVA has a total budget of $622,212.51 for promotions within the islands. More than half, or $325,000 of this amount goes to the annual Xterra race; $30,000 for Rota events; and $27,000 for Tinian events.

The tourism agency maintains that such events are needed to further enhance the Northern Marianas as a preferred sports and leisure travel destination in the Pacific.

According to MVA, the advertisement value that the CNMI will receive as a result of MVA’s continued effort in obtaining more sports magazine writers and reporters to cover events such as the Xterra Saipan Championship and the Taste of the Marianas, will total an estimated publicity exposure value worth millions of dollars.

On the other hand, small-scale events play an important role in marketing the destination and enhancing the relationship between the community and international visitors, MVA says.

Such community events include the CNMI Tourism Month, bowling tournaments, fun runs, Christmas in the Marianas, golf and beach volleyball tournaments, kid’s fishing derby, etc.