Branding Ghana: An online tourism brand perspective

The relevance of nation branding in contemporary times stems from the recognition that a country's worldwide perception and distinctiveness significantly impact its pursuit of developmental objectives.

National branding denotes the deliberate and strategic efforts undertaken by a country to construct and project a distinct and desirable perception of itself, to attain advantageous goals. In the context of a worldwide economic system, nations, urban hubs, and local governments engage in competition to attract various entities such as visitors, investors, customers, students, events, and similar stakeholders.

Recent tourist growth in Ghana has been impressive. Ghana had 624,000 tourists in 2021, ranking 91st internationally, according to the World Tourism Organisation. Ghana's tourist business earned $664 million that year. This amount accounts for 57% of Western Africa's international tourist revenues and 0.91% of its GDP. The Internet has transformed tourism information transmission, trip planning, and consumption. Ghana's tourism business offers several unexplored prospects, including an online tourist brand.

Due to environmental concerns and expanding conservation demands, countries are developing preservation agendas to preserve resources for future generations. Sustainable development strategies are also being studied. Countries attract visitors and Foreign Direct Investments with natural and cultural/heritage riches.

Local economies need these resources. Thus, sustainable online management of Ghana's tourism brand may attract investors, tourists, and local revenue. Ghana's web brand will promote the variety of experiences tourists may have. Online brand experiences allow tourists to digitally explore a destination's resources and services before their journey. Online tourism advertising is useful for vacationers seeking destination information.

User engagement in Internet advertising, especially via user-generated advertisements, has been found to improve destination popularity and visitor numbers, an area we believe Ghana must take consider keenly. Additionally, this phenomenon emphasises the destination's branding importance. As more tourists expect to learn about a destination online, service providers are pushed to build trustworthy digital branding.

These digital entities create and share content on social media. Social media channels strategically used in online tourist branding facilitate audience interaction. In the latest website design, the Ghana Tourism Authority has included exciting events and eye-catching sections like ExperienceGH, Discover (culture and history), and The Return, and hashtags like #WearGhana, #SeeGhana, and #DecemberInGhana, this we believe must be sustained and expanded to attract diverse visitors across the globe.

It is worth noting that, online tourism branding goes beyond advertising. In terms of effect and expense, online advertisements are crucial. Advertising can strengthen brands, find new markets, and affect customer behaviour.

For commercials to reach the right target, the Ghana Tourism Authority should work with contemporary digital marketing-savvy firms. The online expansion of “The Year of Return” campaign through social media, websites, and blogs allowed more diasporans to connect with their origins and explore their curiosity.

Digital branding may improve a nation's image management, but it also offers challenges. Due to the incorporation of unidirectional media and interactive social platforms, governments engaged in media efforts confront several new challenges. Social media rules differ from traditional media regulations therefore such efforts must be approached with the right know-how and strategy.

As we know, globalisation has caused nations to compete like corporations. Therefore, nation branding gives nations advantages in a competitive system. Many nations advertise themselves via traditional and online channels. Internet tourist brands have great potential, for instance, Ghana must actively engage in social media platforms since the public impression of a country on these platforms affects its worldwide commercial operations, foreign investments, and tourism endeavours.

Thus, engaging strategically with social media is crucial for Ghana's diplomatic, cultural, and economic connections with other nations. Nations with strong tourist businesses have developed online tourism brands because visitors use online resources for information. Online tourism brands help build a national image and infrastructure to handle increased visitor mobility.

Ghana will boost its brand value by targeting worldwide tourists using online tourism businesses as this platform allows people to review their preconceived views about a country's image before making a decision.

By:

Dr. Mrs. Juliana Akushika Andoh

Lecturer,Upsa/ Consultant

Mr. Bernard Agyei Aryee

Consultant