Situation
Israel is a stunning country with dynamic tourism offerings for all kinds of travellers. However, it draws its own share of negative perceptions and pre-conceived notions from the Indian population.
Challenge
There was a sense of fear regarding personal safety while visiting the country owing to the limited awareness about the destination in addition to decades of Israeli-Palestinian conflict. During our tenure while representing the country, Israel faced constitutional, political and border unrest alongside personal negative sentiments against the country among a select few media houses.
Strategy
Focused efforts in positioning Israel as an exciting, innovative and new destination to explore for travellers. Aim was to build an overarching brand story that would change the perception and create a line for consistent communication, driving positive image of Israel in India. Leveraged various touchpoints to create synergies between India and Israel – effectively used PR to highlight significant developments such as Indian Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi’s visit to Israel and hosting a media conference for the Israel Prime Minister, Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to India. Successfully hosted Bollywood celebrities such as Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Sushant Singh Rajput, Jacqueline Fernandes, Sonam Kapoor & Disha Patani for on-location movie/magazine shoots. Curated culinary events such as Taste of Israel in association with Celebrity Chef Moshe Shek and also announced the launch of the historic Air India direct flight from Delhi to Tel Aviv.
Outcome
The team managed to control crisis situations & address extreme perceptions associated with the country. We were able to highlight reasons that outweigh common notions and encourage consumers to visit the destination. As custodian of Israel’s social media pages, we engaged with audiences of various segments on a daily basis affecting the destination’s overall impression. All our efforts along with the Ministry resulted in India becoming the 12th source market for Israel with a 21% growth in arrivals in 2018. We also managed to secure 2087 positive travel stories for Israel.
