'Nordic Exposed' Scandinavia Campaign Sounds Dirty, But We Wish

September 11, 2009 at 1:50 PM | by Omri | 0 Comments

We really have nothing much to add substantively to this new pitch from Scandinavia: yes, Scandinavia is neat; no, the region doesn't get enough credit for its variety; yes, more people should probably consider vacationing there. That's not happening and so travel board reps from Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden have been dispatched to Australia to generate some interest. Fair enough.

They're calling their workshops "Four Seasons and over 1000 Reasons to visit Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden." And this is where things, as it were, take a metaphorical turn south. We've been getting inundated with travel board press releases and, frankly, we're getting a little bit worried about our friends in the industry. We're beginning to fear that the recession has pushed some of them over the edge. First there's the title itself, which has all the light breezy freshness of a decaying log. And then there's this:

VisitFinland marketing representative Satu Raunola said 'For a start, there are four amazingly rich and diverse seasons—from our famed long summer days and nights through to beautiful autumns, magical snowy winters and the freshness of spring as the forests, parks and gardens come alive with flora and fauna.... Think Finland—the summer festivals under the midnight sun, the traditional home of Santa Claus in snow-covered Lapland... think Denmark—Land of Fairytales with its Royal palaces...�

If we were asked to write an over-the-top fake quote for a travel press release, we still could never come up with something like this. "Magical snowy winters and the freshness of spring"? is this being culled from a 14-year old girl's Live Journal? Is anybody in charge over there?

And that's before we get to "come alive with flora and fauna," which is a phrase we would never consider except in the context of wildly unhelpful sarcasm. As in: "yeah, this is a fantastic branding effort; why don't you insert something about how the spring comes alive with flora and fauna, creating a wondrous green fairy land through which little girls traipse through for herbs to bring back to mother." Get a grip, people.

[Photo: VisitFinland.com]

Related Stories:
· THE FIRST EVER �NORDIC EXPOSED� WORKSHOPS FOR AGENTS [Travel Blackboard]
· Tourism Boards Coverage [Jaunted]
· Finland Travel Coverage [Jaunted]

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