We all heard about “Despacito”; the Spanish single that its objective went beyond becoming a memorable hit smash, to centering tourists’ curiosity about “how they do it down in Puerto Rico.

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Reasons behind “Despacito” extraordinary impact on tourism marketing.1- Songs are better than videos and ads:2-Culture- specific:3-Accessible to every one:

The video has become the most-watched on YouTube of all time, with more than 3 billion views in only 7 months and beats what Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth track “See You Again” did in two years.

Also Read ► Despacito; Puerto Rico tourism increases by 45% due to music video

According to Billboard.com, “Despacito” has become the first Spanish song to reach the peak in more than 20 years after “Macarena.” Moreover, tourism in Puerto Rico was increased by 45% and thanks going to the song and its creator.

So many counters keep exerting efforts to promote tourism by creating website, launching campaigns, creating videos and ads, and using series. However, none of them were able to reach “Despacito” success. Here comes the questions: why this happened!

Reasons behind “Despacito” extraordinary impact on tourism marketing.

With responsibilities increasing, and daily routine becoming more boring, people escape to music to relax and create their own temporary imaginary world. Plus, songs are easily recalled. “Despacito” with its catchy tunes and moving rhythm succeeded to attract people, engage them, make them dance, and forget their real life for a while.

1- Songs are better than videos and ads:

Whenever people get interested in something, they like to know what is behind the scene. So it goes with “Despacito.” People first loved the song, then they knew the whole story of Puerto Rico. As a result, they developed curiosity about the country, the origin of the singers, and they decided to visit the island which normally led to tourists’ numbers going up.

However when it comes to Turkey, and Morocco, it uses close technique which is advertising their countries through series and drama. For example, there are some well-known successful Turkish series that were shooted in magnificent natural area like Al Eshek Al Mamno’ (Forbidden Love), and Hareem Al Sultan (The Magnificent Century). That contributed with a 15 per cent increase since shows went on air.

Moving to Morocco, it gained 70 Million $ in 2o14 and 40.6 Million $ in 2015 from foreign film investment like Spectra, The Bourne Ultimatum, and Inception.

But still songs are better because it is shorter. In worst cases if the song itself or the series not good, you can force yourself to watch a 3 minutes video, but you will never force yourself to watch a long series.

On the other hand countries like Egypt and Dubai which launched videos and ads did not achieve even a close success to the above mentioned.

The two campaigns “This is Egypt” and “See you in Dubai” were good videos. The music of the videos were good, live, and suitable with the images. The photos were well-edited and beautiful, and even the places were well-chosen. However, the videos were not catchy enough. I mean you can listen to the music, you can enjoy it, but once the videos end, you will forget about them. Even if someone is not in the mood, he\ she will just change the channel or turn off the TV.

2-Culture- specific:

One important reason why people travel abroad is absolutely culture. Everything in the video of “Despacito” is so Spanish. Starting from The beach, the music, the language, how they wear, the paintings on the walls, to locals dancing on the streets were so country-specific. This somehow was very appealing to people and encouraged them to visit the island and experience new adventure.

Similarly, Turkey makes use of its Ottoman Civilization and Muslim culture, launching ads that display mosques, temples besides beaches and natural sights.

The very contrary, “This is Egypt” campaign did. Whenever we google it or talk about Egypt the phrase “7000-years-old of civilization” is associated. The Egyptians pharos, the temples, the museums, and the pyramids are what distinguish Egypt, what make it unique, what the world does not have, and what they come to see.

From 1:34 munities, the video was focusing on beaches, and desserts, giving the variety of ancient Egyptian monuments merely 5 seconds.

Besides, the music of the video was totally normal. It would be better if they put a more culture-specific music like one of Umm Kulthum’s songs, or other great Egyptian figure like her, mashed up with oriental music. It would be catchier.

Also “Come and Visit Dubai” campaign used a Hindi soundtrack to the ad. The music was really engaging but it would differ if they put an Arabian song.

3-Accessible to every one:

A song is overplayed on radios, on TV, in cars, and mostly downloaded on our phones. This is why “Despacito” is rapidly spread worldwide.

Lucky Turkey and Morocco, moves and series come in the second position. Because more than half of people watch series and movies, whether on TV, in cinema, or on the internet. A few may accidently see a scene and become interested about the place.

However, ads and videos, comes at the last position due to the fact that most of people do not watch TV nowadays. Even on YouTube, most of us just skip the ad whenever buzzes on our screen.

On the other hand, websites need someone to search on them and get information about the most famous events. I mean “Visit Dubai” website is a great effort to boost tourism, but songs are accessible more. You can undeliberately hear a song while walking in the street or setting in a café, but this does not happen a lot with ads.

Knowing your audience and knowing how to reach them, are the most important thing in marketing. Normal ads and videos are not the best ways to boost tourism any more. However, creating songs and using series may be the best new techniques to boost tourism.