Incredible India: Tourism's Evolution and the Art of Promotion

Tourism is a major industry in India and the Ministry of Tourism launched a campaign to promote Incredible India as a tourist destination in 2002. [2] The phrase "Incredible India" was adopted as a slogan by the ministry. Before 2002, the Indian government regularly formulated policies and prepared pamphlets and brochures for the promotion of tourism, however, it did not support tourism in a concerted fashion. However, in 2002, the tourism ministry made a conscious effort to bring in more professionalism in its attempts to promote tourism.

It formulated an integrated communication strategy with the aim of promoting India as a destination of choice for the discerning traveler. The tourism ministry engaged the services of advertising and marketing firm Ogilvy & Mather (India) (O&M) to create a new campaign to increase tourist inflows into the country. [3] Travel industry analysts and tour operators were appreciative of the high standards of the 'Incredible India' campaign. "The promo campaign is making a powerful visual impact and creating a perception of India being a magical place to visit," said Anne Morgaon Scully, President, McCabeBremer Travel, Virginia, USA.

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Average travelers too appeared to find the campaign interesting and informative, going by favourable comments on blogs on travel websites Although the 'Incredible India' campaign was generally well received, industry observers differed in their opinions on the positioning of India in the campaign. G. S. Murari, Director, Fidelis Advertising and Marketing Pvt. Ltd. stated he was uncomfortable with the tagline 'Incredible India' and was of the opinion that since India was not a uni-dimensional country like Singapore or the Maldives, using a word like 'incredible' to describe India as a whole was not appropriate.

In 2011, Arjun Sharma, Managing Director, Le Passage to India, stated that the campaign has lived its life and it had to be reinvented. [8] The Ministry of Tourism has again engaged Ogilvy & Mather for a period of three year, beginning 2012, to redefine the brand and provide a strategic vision for the campaign. From ancient times, India has been looked upon as a place full of Mystique. In olden days time travelers like Huen Tsang came a long way with a great difficulty just to have felt of the place. But now in modern times, with supersonic jets, the world has become a smaller and has been named as a “global village”.

With the destinations becoming so much closer the tourist are pouring into India from all over the world leading to a fast development of tourism industry and yet it has not grown to its fullest potential. History has lost count of hordes of humanity which have travelled and through this land of vibes and wisdom; explorers, travelers, traders and invaders have been drawn to her shores. Fa Hien and Hieun Tsang came from China in search of Bhuddha’s calm serenity; from Alexander to Tamburlaine and Nadir Shah, Mahmud Ghaznavi, Muhammad Shah Ghauri to Babar, and Vasco-De-Gama to East India Company.

All came here to fill their coffers with the wealth of this land; Jews, Parsees, Muhammedans, Christians, Arabs, Persians, Turks, Orientals and Europeanshave been all made welcome here. India has some incredibly beautiful spiritual destinations located all over the country. From the majestic peaks of Himalayas to the ghats of holy Ganga to numerous other holy sites, one can go for an unforgettable spiritual journey through this majestic country.